VOA慢速英语2014 活动家继续往朝鲜放气球

 

AS IT IS 2014-10-20 Activists² to Continue Launching Balloons into North Korea 活动家继续往朝鲜放气球

Activists in South Korea are working to bring news and information to North Koreans. Recently, a group of activists launched balloons full of leaflets into North Korean airspace. The pieces of paper carried messages and other information.

After the balloon launch, North and South Korean troops exchanged gunfire along the border. In addition, North Korean officials threatened to cancel talks aimed at improving relations between the two sides.

VOA recently spoke³ with the leader of one of the activist¹ groups. He says he and the others will continue with their efforts to bring news from the outside world into North Korea.

Lee Min-bok is a North Korean who sought asylum⁴ in South Korea. Mr. Lee leads a group called the Campaign for Helping⁵ North Korea in a Direct Way. It uses balloons to send printed leaflets, CDs and even little radios to North Korea. The activists say they want to give North Koreans the chance to receive news and information without restrictions⁶ from the government.

Mr. Lee says the balloon launch is “a primitive⁷ humanitarian⁸ activity for human rights which opens the eyes, ears and mouths of the North Korean people that have been closed by the North Korean regime.”

The North Korean government tightly controls the country’s news media and use of the Internet. Lee Min-bok and other activists in South Korea launch thousands of balloons into North Korea every year. Mr. Lee says the North does not know about most of the launches. But a recent launch led to a military exchange of gunfire at the border, and increased tensions between the two countries.

North Korea reacted through KRT, the state-operated television station. It threatened to answer the launches with deadly attacks and cancel high-level talks to ease military tensions.

The presenter⁹ said “if South Korea truly wants a good relationship with North Korea, it must respect us first.”

Military officials on both sides reportedly met to discuss the recent launch.

Lim Byeong-cheol is with South Korea’s Unification Ministry¹⁰. He says the government does not have the power to stop balloon launches.  

He says “the government has been calling on the groups to make careful and wise decisions on sending anti-North Korea leaflets due to concern for people’s safety.”

Lee Min-bok says he understands the risks and concerns, but he does not plan to stop.

He says “I don’t do this for political reasons. This activity is justified¹¹ in the spirit of the constitution. But the activity must be done more quietly.”

Mr. Lee says he does not think the balloon launches will incite¹² a military conflict between the North and South. He says that when the winds permit them to launch more balloons, the activists will do so.

Words from this Story

exchange – v. to direct (words, looks, gunfire) at each other

relations – n. the way in which two or more people, groups, countries talk to, behave toward, and deal with each other

threatened – adj. to say that you will harm someone or do something unpleasant or unwanted especially in order to make someone do what you want

asylum – n. protection given by a government to someone who has left another country in order to escape being harmed

controls – v. to set or adjust the amount, degree, or rate of (something)

1 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

2 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

4 asylum   

n.避难所，庇护所，避难

参考例句：

• The people ask for political asylum.人们请求政治避难。
• Having sought asylum in the West for many years,they were eventually granted it.他们最终获得了在西方寻求多年的避难权。

5 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

6 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

7 primitive   

adj.原始的；简单的；n.原(始)人，原始事物

参考例句：

• It is a primitive instinct to flee a place of danger.逃离危险的地方是一种原始本能。
• His book describes the march of the civilization of a primitive society.他的著作描述了一个原始社会的开化过程。

8 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。

9 presenter   

n.（电视、广播的）主持人，赠与者

参考例句：

• Most people think being a television presenter is exciting.很多人认为当电视节目主持人是一件刺激的事情。
• The programme dispensed with its most popular presenter.这个节目最受欢迎的主持人被换掉了。

10 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

11 justified   

a.正当的，有理的

参考例句：

• She felt fully justified in asking for her money back. 她认为有充分的理由要求退款。
• The prisoner has certainly justified his claims by his actions. 那个囚犯确实已用自己的行动表明他的要求是正当的。

12 incite   

v.引起，激动，煽动

参考例句：

• I wanted to point out he was a very good speaker, and could incite a crowd.我想说明他曾是一个非常出色的演讲家，非常会调动群众的情绪。
• Just a few words will incite him into action.他只需几句话一将，就会干。