VOA慢速英语2015 中非共和国农村地区的冲突

 

AS IT IS 2015-01-16 Clashes¹ in Rural Areas of Central African Republic 中非共和国农村地区的冲突

The International Crisis² Group reported last month that a hidden conflict is taking place in rural parts of the Central African Republic. The conflict is between cattle herders and farmers. The herders are mostly Muslims from the Peul ethnic³ group. Most of the farmers are either Christians⁵ or animists. Animists believe that animals, plants and other things in nature have spirits just as human beings do.

Officials are attempting to stop the conflict and to prevent new violence in the country.

A group of livestock⁶ experts recently visited rural parts of the Central African Republic. The group included representatives of a national alliance⁷ of cattle herders, international aid groups, the United Nations and government agencies. The experts found that cattle growers and their animals are generally not welcome in agricultural areas. Clashes develop when the growers come under attack. The farmers attack the herders, who then answer with their own attacks.

Very often, the clashes take on religious or ethnic overtones. One side attacks the other for what appears to be religious or ethnic reasons.

Some people displaced⁸ by the unrest live at a camp in the town of Bambari. They say they fled there because of attacks by Peuls.

This man -- Yagbanga Vianney -- says Christians like him are being hurt because the Peuls are attacking Christians. He says that is why they sought protection at the camp.

The Central African Republic has a population of five million. Most of them are Christian⁴. The Peuls are usually Muslim.

Aid workers say about 1,000 Christians have been coming to Bambari every week to escape dangerous conditions in their home villages.  The attacks on villages are often designed to answer violence against the Peuls.

Nguere Bissekoa told VOA that the Peuls attacked his village and burned many houses. He says the attackers thought the area was occupied by Christian and animist militias¹⁰ known as anti-balaka.

The violence around Bambari has mainly happened on two roads leading south. These roads appear to be the front lines between the anti-balaka and the Peuls. Many of the Peuls have been forced from land where their animals once fed.

Much of Bambari is under the control of a militia⁹ leader named Ali Darassa. He has created a movement called the Union for Peace in the CAR, or UPC. Those letters come from the French name for the group.

Captain Ahamat Nedjad is a spokesman¹¹ for the group. He blamed the anti-balaka for most of the burned villages. But he admitted that the Muslims have sometimes used violence to answer the attacks.

However, he says even if Muslims sometimes burn a village they have a reason to do so. He says if the Christian militia group did not attack Peuls, Muslims would not answer with violence.   

In the Central African Republic, cattle often move from north to south at this time of year. Livestock experts are warning there could be more violence during this seasonal¹² migration¹³. The group says the government should place peacekeeping troops near the border with Chad to help reduce violence. It also says that providing vaccination¹⁴ services for cattle might persuade herders to follow suggested trails instead of having their animals walk on farmland and crops.

Words in This Story

livestock – n. farm animals (such as cows, horses, and pigs) that are kept, raised and used by people

overtones – n. an idea or quality that is suggested without being said directly

migration – n. the movement from one area to another at different times of the year

vaccination – n. medicine that prevents infection by a disease

1 clashes   

冲突( clash的名词复数 )； 不协调； （两群人之间的）打斗

参考例句：

• Clashes broke out between police and demonstrators. 警方与示威者发生了冲突。
• Several policemen were injured in the clashes. 几名警察在冲突中受伤。

2 crisis   

n.危机，危急关头，决定性时刻，关键阶段

参考例句：

• He had proved that he could be relied on in a crisis.他已表明，在紧要关头他是可以信赖的。
• The topic today centers about the crisis in the Middle East.今天课题的中心是中东危机。

3 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

4 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

5 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

6 livestock   

n.家畜，牲畜

参考例句：

• Both men and livestock are flourishing.人畜两旺。
• The heavy rains and flooding killed scores of livestock.暴雨和大水淹死了许多牲口。

7 alliance   

n.同盟，同盟国，结盟，联姻

参考例句：

• China will not enter into alliance with any big power.中国不同任何大国结盟。
• The new alliance was very much in evidence.新的联盟上星期很引人注目。

8 displaced   

移动( displace的过去式和过去分词 )； 替换； 移走； 撤职

参考例句：

• Gradually factory workers have been displaced by machines. 工厂的工人已逐渐被机器取代。
• He was displaced by another young man. 他已被另一个年轻人顶替。

9 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。

10 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

11 spokesman   

n.发言人，代言人

参考例句：

• The government spokesman gave a quick briefing to the reporters.政府发言人向记者们作了情况简介。
• They drew lots to decide who should be their spokesman.他们抽签决定谁是他们的发言人。

12 seasonal   

adj.季节的，季节性的

参考例句：

• The town relies on the seasonal tourist industry for jobs.这个城镇依靠季节性旅游业提供就业机会。
• The hors d'oeuvre is seasonal vegetables.餐前小吃是应时蔬菜。

13 migration   

n.迁移，移居，（鸟类等的）迁徙

参考例句：

• Swallows begin their migration south in autumn.燕子在秋季开始向南方迁移。
• He described the vernal migration of birds in detail.他详细地描述了鸟的春季移居。

14 vaccination   

n.接种疫苗，种痘

参考例句：

• Vaccination is a preventive against smallpox.种痘是预防天花的方法。
• Doctors suggest getting a tetanus vaccination every ten years.医生建议每十年注射一次破伤风疫苗。