2006年VOA标准英语-Africa's Medicine Tree Facing Extinction F

By Alisha Ryu
Nyeri, Kenya
22 May 2006

Jack¹ Githae, herbal doctor, is standing² next to a young MUIRI tree at his clinic in Nyeri, Kenya  
  
For thousands of years, people living around Mount Kenya in the central part of the east African country have relied on a species of indigenous³ trees to treat different kinds of physical ailments⁴. About a decade ago, western drug companies discovered why the trees are so highly prized.  The trees are now facing extinction⁵, becoming the latest symbol, some say, of the destruction caused by western greed and rampant⁶ corruption⁸ in Africa.

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To the untrained eye, Prunus Africana can easily be mistaken for an ordinary tree.

Unlike some of the more distinctive⁹ African trees like the majestic¹⁰ baobab and the flat-topped acacia, nothing about the muiri, as it is locally known, is eye-catching. And that ordinariness allows it to blend unnoticed into the green canopy¹¹ of the forests around Mount Kenya and neighboring Aberdere National Park, where the muiri live alongside a multitude of other species of trees and plants.

Ordinary as the muiri may appear, a local specialist in herbal medicine, Jack Githae, says Prunus Africana are nothing short of a miracle.

"You use the root. You use the bark. You use the leaves. It is used for abdominal¹² problems, infectious diseases, allergies¹³, and used in veterinary medicine. So, it's very useful," he said.

Muiri trees also grow in the tropical forests of central Africa and in the equatorial region of West Africa. But the largest concentration of the trees is in Kenya.

Word about the curative powers of the muiri reached European pharmaceutical¹⁴ companies around a decade ago. Subsequent research found that the bark of the muiri tree contained properties effective in fighting prostate cancer, a deadly disease which often strikes men in their 60s and 70s.

Large-scale commercial harvesting of the trees soon began in Kenya and huge quantities of dried muiri bark, worth hundreds of millions of dollars, have been exported, mostly to Europe.

Ideally, long, narrow strips of the bark should be removed from each tree, allowing the tree to rejuvenate¹⁵. The stripped bark grows back after about two years.

But Jack Githae accuses drug companies of hiring agents, who did not consult the local people and had no interest in learning how to harvest the trees properly.

"I have seen quite a number of them come with tractors, with power saws. They cut, de-bark, and leave the trunk to be used as firewood. By the time we discovered, most of the muiri were cut off," he said.

Thousands of muiri trees are believed to have been destroyed in Kenya, putting Prunus Africana on the list of the most endangered plant species in the world.

Jonathan Leakey, the son of famed paleontologist Louis Leakey, acknowledges that he was one of the agents in Kenya, who helped collect and export hundreds of tons of muiri bark to Europe.

"I was. Yes, I'm not denying that. I was a major exporter," said Leakey. "But for some four or five years, I have not exported any. I have nothing more to do with that tree. I have totally stopped dealing¹⁶ with it. It is not being harvested anymore anyway. There is a total ban on the export and the collection of the bark from this tree. It is a government ban."

But conservationists say the ban is only loosely enforced in Kenya and companies who pay hefty bribes¹⁷ are being allowed to harvest muiri at unsustainable levels.

Kenyan conservationist and Nobel laureate, Wangari Mathai, tells VOA that western drug companies should not be the only group, who should be held responsible for the demise¹⁸ of the muiri tree.

"It is those educated foresters. It is the ministers in government. It is the government personnel, who are charged with the responsibility of protecting these resources. So, if they become corrupt⁷ and allow themselves to be persuaded by the agents, then of course, as a country, we are losing. You are talking about a country where 56 percent of the people are poor. If you show them a few thousand shillings and you tell them to go into the forest and cut a muiri tree, and the forester is willing to share the loot, it is very, very difficult to convince such a person that the tree is so valuable that one day, it could be turned into an extremely valuable drug and therefore, he should not cut it. It is very, very difficult. That is why we say poverty is both a cause and reason for environmental destruction," she explained.

Wangari Mathai and other conservationists say they are doing their best to educate Kenyans and other Africans about the importance of protecting national resources.

But she acknowledges that the effort will likely fail unless both western companies and African governments work together to curb¹⁹ the destructive cycle of greed and corruption.

1 jack   

n.插座，千斤顶，男人；v.抬起，提醒，扛举；n.（Jake）杰克

参考例句：

• I am looking for the headphone jack.我正在找寻头戴式耳机插孔。
• He lifted the car with a jack to change the flat tyre.他用千斤顶把车顶起来换下瘪轮胎。

2 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

3 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。

4 ailments   

疾病（尤指慢性病），不适( ailment的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His ailments include a mild heart attack and arthritis. 他患有轻度心脏病和关节炎。
• He hospitalizes patients for minor ailments. 他把只有小病的患者也送进医院。

5 extinction   

n.熄灭，消亡，消灭，灭绝，绝种

参考例句：

• The plant is now in danger of extinction.这种植物现在有绝种的危险。
• The island's way of life is doomed to extinction.这个岛上的生活方式注定要消失。

6 rampant   

adj.(植物)蔓生的；狂暴的，无约束的

参考例句：

• Sickness was rampant in the area.该地区疾病蔓延。
• You cannot allow children to rampant through the museum.你不能任由小孩子在博物馆里乱跑。

7 corrupt   

v.贿赂，收买；adj.腐败的，贪污的

参考例句：

• The newspaper alleged the mayor's corrupt practices.那家报纸断言市长有舞弊行为。
• This judge is corrupt.这个法官贪污。

8 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

9 distinctive   

adj.特别的，有特色的，与众不同的

参考例句：

• She has a very distinctive way of walking.她走路的样子与别人很不相同。
• This bird has several distinctive features.这个鸟具有几种突出的特征。

10 majestic   

adj.雄伟的，壮丽的，庄严的，威严的，崇高的

参考例句：

• In the distance rose the majestic Alps.远处耸立着雄伟的阿尔卑斯山。
• He looks majestic in uniform.他穿上军装显得很威风。

11 canopy   

n.天篷，遮篷

参考例句：

• The trees formed a leafy canopy above their heads.树木在他们头顶上空形成了一个枝叶茂盛的遮篷。
• They lay down under a canopy of stars.他们躺在繁星点点的天幕下。

12 abdominal   

adj.腹（部）的，下腹的；n.腹肌

参考例句：

• The abdominal aorta is normally smaller than the thoracic aorta.腹主动脉一般比胸主动脉小。
• Abdominal tissues sometimes adhere after an operation.手术之后腹部有时会出现粘连。

13 allergies   

n.[医]过敏症；[口]厌恶，反感；（对食物、花粉、虫咬等的）过敏症( allergy的名词复数 )；变态反应，变应性

参考例句：

• Food allergies can result in an enormous variety of different symptoms. 食物过敏会引发很多不同的症状。 来自辞典例句
• Let us, however, examine one of the most common allergies; hayfever. 现在让我们来看看最常见的变态反应的一种--枯草热。 来自辞典例句

14 pharmaceutical   

adj.药学的，药物的；药用的，药剂师的

参考例句：

• She has donated money to establish a pharmaceutical laboratory.她捐款成立了一个药剂实验室。
• We are engaged in a legal tussle with a large pharmaceutical company.我们正同一家大制药公司闹法律纠纷。

15 rejuvenate   

v.(使)返老还童；(使)恢复活力

参考例句：

• The mountain air will rejuvenate you.山里的空气会使你恢复活力。
• Exercise is perhaps the most effective way to rejuvenate your skin.锻炼可能是使皮肤恢复活力的最好手段。

16 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

17 bribes   

n.贿赂( bribe的名词复数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂v.贿赂( bribe的第三人称单数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• corrupt officials accepting bribes 接受贿赂的贪官污吏

18 demise   

n.死亡；v.让渡，遗赠，转让

参考例句：

• He praised the union's aims but predicted its early demise.他赞扬协会的目标，但预期这一协会很快会消亡。
• The war brought about the industry's sudden demise.战争道致这个行业就这么突然垮了。

19 curb   

n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制

参考例句：

• I could not curb my anger.我按捺不住我的愤怒。
• You must curb your daughter when you are in church.你在教堂时必须管住你的女儿。