VOA标准英语2008年-Zimbabwe Food Aid Ban May Hamper Future Distrib

With many people in Zimbabwe at the point of starvation, a government ban on field work by relief organizations is putting them at further risk. As Peta Thornycroft reports for VOA, even if the restrictions¹ are lifted now, humanitarian² groups say it would take until September for emergency relief efforts to begin.

In early June, ZANU-PF welfare minister, Nicholas Goche, banned all field work in Zimbabwe by international aid agencies, accusing them of political meddling³ by providing campaign support for the opposition⁴ party, the Movement for Democratic Change in the March 29 elections.

Aid agencies deny they gave any support for the MDC, which won the parliamentary vote.

Devastating⁵ news for a country, where nearly four million people, or a third of the population, relies on food aid.

Now local food distribution agencies are warning that the Western donated food - some of it stored in the South African port of Durban for delivery to Zimbabwe - will have to be diverted to other countries if the ban is not lifted immediately.

A spokesman for one of the largest distributing agencies in Zimbabwe said Friday the ban is still firmly in place despite warnings from humanitarian agencies. He said that when the ban was imposed, many organizations had to dismantle⁶ their distribution networks.

As a result, he doubts the infrastructure⁷ could be restored for emergency feeding programs before September, even if the the ban was lifted immediately.

According to several key distribution agencies, emergency feeding programs are not usually necessary between April and October because of the summer harvest. But, the Famine Early Warning Systems Network recently issued an emergency statement saying Zimbabwe had its worst ever crops. According to FEWSNET between a third and half the population will need food aid before next year's harvest.

There is little food available in the shops here and even on the black market there is little of the staple⁸ food, corn meal, available.

People on the streets in Harare and money traders said there was almost no cash available Friday since the central bank chopped off 10 zeros from its currency on Wednesday.

In addition to food, the relief agencies provide clean water, medical care and other services. Of particular concern are people suffering from HIV/AIDS. Many are on treatment programs and are no longer getting their anti retrovirals drugs.

 

 

1 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

2 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

3 meddling   

v.干涉，干预（他人事务）( meddle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He denounced all "meddling" attempts to promote a negotiation. 他斥责了一切“干预”促成谈判的企图。 来自辞典例句
• They liked this field because it was never visited by meddling strangers. 她们喜欢这块田野，因为好事的陌生人从来不到那里去。 来自辞典例句

4 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

5 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。

6 dismantle   

vt.拆开，拆卸；废除，取消

参考例句：

• He asked for immediate help from the United States to dismantle the warheads.他请求美国立即提供援助，拆除这批弹头。
• The mower firmly refused to mow,so I decided to dismantle it.修完后割草机还是纹丝不动，于是，我决定把它拆开。

7 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

8 staple   

n.主要产物，常用品，主要要素，原料，订书钉，钩环；adj.主要的，重要的；vt.分类

参考例句：

• Tea is the staple crop here.本地产品以茶叶为大宗。
• Potatoes are the staple of their diet.土豆是他们的主要食品。