2006年VOA标准英语-South Korean Troops Help Rebuild Iraq

By Margaret Besheer
Irbil, Iraq
22 November 2006

Reconstruction¹ in central and southern Iraq has been hindered by the ongoing² violence. But in northern Iraq's relatively³ calm Kurdistan region, some 2,000 South Korean troops are on a mission to help the local population rebuild their way to a brighter future. 

 
A Korean soldier teaches local residents automobile⁵ maintenance at Camp Zaytun's Vocational Training Center
Inside the Vocational Training Center at Camp Zaytun, teams of Korean and Kurdish instructors⁷ are teaching a class of local men about a car cooling systems.

The auto⁴ maintenance program is one of seven offered at Camp Zaytun, in the northern Iraqi city of Irbil.  The eight-week course will help the men become qualified⁸ mechanics, and with the cooperation of the Kurdistan regional government, guarantees them a job when they graduate.

Other vocational programs include baking, computers, and the operation of heavy machinery⁹.  Since the Vocational Training Center opened last February, more than 1,000 men and women have graduated.

The Koreans say their philosophy is to teach the local population how to catch a fish, rather than just giving them one.

 
Another Korean soldier hosts cooking classes at Vocational Training Center
Ghany Qadir Ahmad is 30 years old. He recently completed the heavy machinery course at Camp Zaytun and was able to raise enough money to buy a small. used bulldozer.

He says he used to be a farmer, earning about $10 a day. Now he earns the enormous sum of $220 per day operating his bulldozer at local construction sites. Ghany says the two months of training at Camp Zaytun have really changed his life.

The Vocational Training Center has been so successful, that the coalition¹⁰ is using it as a model and plans three new centers in other parts of Iraq.

Sergeant¹¹ First Class Yoohyun Jung is from South Jeolla Province in Korea. He has been in the army for over 10 years and is on a six-month tour in Irbil as an instructor⁶ at the Camp's bakery school. 

He says his experience in Iraq has been very rewarding and he feels he is doing something good for the Iraqi people as well as for his own country.

 
Korean troops perform Tae Kwon Do demonstration¹²
The Koreans are also making an impact with their hospital. Since it was established two years ago, it has treated more than 40,000 patients from across northern Iraq.

The 38-bed facility also offers training for local doctors and nurses to improve their medical skills, as well as a mobile clinic that goes to remote areas that lack medical care. 

Major General Jung Sun Hwang is the Commander for the Korean mission in Iraq. He says Korea is proud to be a part of the international coalition, and that his own country's experience with war in the 1950s is influencing its work here.

He says Korea suffered a devastating¹³ war and the only reason it succeeded economically in its aftermath was because of help from the Allies, including the United States. He says Korea is forever indebted to other countries and they are trying to repay that debt in Iraq.

 
Korean soldiers perform traditional folk dances
The South Korean's emphasize that their mission here is one of peace and reconstruction. Their soldiers do not patrol the areas near the base or engage in combat operations. But they do go into the local community as part of their outreach Operation Green Angel program.

Earlier this week, many of Camp Zaytun's soldiers took part in the inaugural¹⁴ ceremony of a girls school in Irbil that they helped build.  To the crowds delight, troops dressed in traditional Korean costumes performed folk dances, played music and gave an impressive martial¹⁵ arts show.

The South Koreans say their respect and consideration for the local people, their culture and traditions, has helped them win many hearts, and they feel their mission to foster peace and security in the region has been a success because of that.

1 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。

2 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

3 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

4 auto   

n.(=automobile)(口语)汽车

参考例句：

• Don't park your auto here.别把你的汽车停在这儿。
• The auto industry has brought many people to Detroit.汽车工业把许多人吸引到了底特律。

5 automobile   

n.汽车，机动车

参考例句：

• He is repairing the brake lever of an automobile.他正在修理汽车的刹车杆。
• The automobile slowed down to go around the curves in the road.汽车在路上转弯时放慢了速度。

6 instructor   

n.指导者，教员，教练

参考例句：

• The college jumped him from instructor to full professor.大学突然把他从讲师提升为正教授。
• The skiing instructor was a tall,sunburnt man.滑雪教练是一个高高个子晒得黑黑的男子。

7 instructors   

指导者，教师( instructor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The instructors were slacking on the job. 教员们对工作松松垮垮。
• He was invited to sit on the rostrum as a representative of extramural instructors. 他以校外辅导员身份，被邀请到主席台上。

8 qualified   

adj.合格的，有资格的，胜任的，有限制的

参考例句：

• He is qualified as a complete man of letters.他有资格当真正的文学家。
• We must note that we still lack qualified specialists.我们必须看到我们还缺乏有资质的专家。

9 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。

10 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

11 sergeant   

n.警官，中士

参考例句：

• His elder brother is a sergeant.他哥哥是个警官。
• How many stripes are there on the sleeve of a sergeant?陆军中士的袖子上有多少条纹？

12 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

13 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

14 inaugural   

adj.就职的；n.就职典礼

参考例句：

• We listened to the President's inaugural speech on the radio yesterday.昨天我们通过无线电听了总统的就职演说。
• Professor Pearson gave the inaugural lecture in the new lecture theatre.皮尔逊教授在新的阶梯讲堂发表了启用演说。

15 martial   

adj.战争的，军事的，尚武的，威武的

参考例句：

• The sound of martial music is always inspiring.军乐声总是鼓舞人心的。
• The officer was convicted of desertion at a court martial.这名军官在军事法庭上被判犯了擅离职守罪。