VOA常速英语2007年-Disarmament Process Kicks Off in Ivory Coast

By Naomi Schwarz
Dakar
21 December 2007

Rebels and government troops in Ivory Coast are set to begin the long-awaited disarmament process on Saturday, a critical first step before forming a new national army is the divided country. Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo and rebel turned prime minister, Guillaume Soro, are expected to attend Saturday's ceremonies together. Naomi Schwarz reports from VOA's West and Central Africa bureau in Dakar.

A spokesman for President Gbagbo says the president is optimistic about disarmament.

The spokesman, Gervais Coulibaly, says the president feels it is a crucial element of the peace process.

He says the president is confident the disarmament will succeed because the decision comes from both the rebel and government sides.

The process, overseen¹ by a joint² command of rebel and government officers, calls for soldiers to regroup into fewer barracks before giving up their arms and, ultimately joining a new, mixed national army with the rebels.

But analyst³ with British-based Chatham House, Daniel Balint-Kurti, says big questions remain.

"If disarmament does take place, then that would be an historic step. But it is a very big if," he said.

He says numerous past attempts at disarmament have proved largely symbolic⁴. He says there are a number of sticking points that leave both sides reluctant to give up their weapons. One of the biggest is that the identification process, one of the core issues that led to civil war, has not yet been resolved.

"It would highly controversial if the rebels accepted a full disarmament but then did not actually achieve what they claim is their main objective: the question of identification, identity papers for all Ivorians they believe should have them," he said.

Balint-Kurti says questions over payment also cause problems.

Earlier this week, rebel soldiers in Bouaké, a rebel stronghold, fired shots and stole vehicles to press demands for a bonus before the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha.

Rebel leaders said a cash shortage forced them to delay paying 125 troops until the following day.

There have been several attempts to reunite Ivory Coast since a failed coup⁵ in 2002 led to the country being divided between rebels in the north and forces led by President Gbagbo in the south. The latest peace process, signed in neighboring Burkina Faso in March, was signed directly by the president and rebel leader Soro.

1 overseen   

v.监督，监视( oversee的过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was overseen stealing the letters. 他被人撞见在偷信件。 来自辞典例句
• It will be overseen by ThomasLi, director of IBM China Research Laboratory. 该实验室由IBM中国研究院院长李实恭(ThomasLi)引导。 来自互联网

2 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

3 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

4 symbolic   

adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的

参考例句：

• It is symbolic of the fighting spirit of modern womanhood.它象征着现代妇女的战斗精神。
• The Christian ceremony of baptism is a symbolic act.基督教的洗礼仪式是一种象征性的做法。

5 coup   

n.政变；突然而成功的行动

参考例句：

• The monarch was ousted by a military coup.那君主被军事政变者废黜了。
• That government was overthrown in a military coup three years ago.那个政府在3年前的军事政变中被推翻。