2006年VOA标准英语-UNHCR Concerned for Safety of Refugees in

By Lisa Schlein
Geneva
14 April 2006
 

Goz-Amer camp, one of 12 UNHRC-run camps in eastern Chad  
  
The United Nations refugee agency says it is alarmed over the possible impact of the violence in Chad on hundreds of thousands of refugees from Sudan's conflict-ridden province of Darfur. The agency says refugees have been caught up in cross-border attacks. And, on Friday, Chad's president threatened to expel Sudanese refugees, unless the world takes steps to stop what he calls Sudan's efforts to undermine his government.

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Earlier this week, the U.N. says, a large group of armed men briefly¹ took control of the Goz-Amer camp, housing nearly 18,000 refugees in eastern Chad.

The U.N. High Commissioner² for Refugees says the agency began reducing its staff after that attack. In the wake of Thursday's rebel attack on the Chad capital, N'djamena, UNHCR spokeswoman Jennifer Pagonis says the agency is planning to evacuate³ non-essential personnel and dependents from the area.

"At the moment, it is going to be a wait and see situation," she said. "Basic camp services need to be kept running for the refugees. They are in a very difficult situation. There is nowhere else for them to go to. So, we will just take it as it comes for the time being."

The UNHCR takes care of an estimated 200,000 refugees who fled fighting in Darfur. They have become increasingly vulnerable to attacks.

UNHCR chief Antonio Guterres has warned, unrest on both sides of the Sudan-Chad border is posing a growing risk to civilians⁵, the displaced and aid workers. He called this a threat to regional stability.

Last month, The UNHCR says, a group of armed men broke into a camp, killed a guard, wounded another and shot an aid worker, who eventually died. The agency says, several weeks ago, rebels from Darfur forcibly recruited hundreds of refugees to fight in the war.

After that incident, the UNHCR asked the Chadian government to increase security around the camps. But, Pagonis admits the situation remains⁶ dangerous and could get worse.

"We always look at a worst-case scenario," she said. "But, in this case, it is particularly difficult to almost imagine how one could cope with that. This is an extremely hostile region of the world. It is a desert region. It has been one of the major challenges that we have faced of even find sites for camps where refugees can have water. So, where they would flee to, if the situation deteriorated⁷ is a question that is unanswerable at the moment, and, indeed, we feel it incredibly acutely that the options are very, very limited."

Pagonis says the camps are calm for now, and everyone hopes they will stay that way. She urges all parties in the conflict to respect the humanitarian⁸ and civilian⁴ character of the camps, and to leave those who have fled the terrors of Darfur in peace.

1 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

2 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

3 evacuate   

v.遣送；搬空；抽出；排泄；大(小)便

参考例句：

• We must evacuate those soldiers at once!我们必须立即撤出这些士兵！
• They were planning to evacuate the seventy American officials still in the country.他们正计划转移仍滞留在该国的70名美国官员。

4 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

5 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

6 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

7 deteriorated   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Her health deteriorated rapidly, and she died shortly afterwards. 她的健康状况急剧恶化，不久便去世了。
• His condition steadily deteriorated. 他的病情恶化，日甚一日。

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。