VOA常速英语2007年-AU Launches 'Panel of the Wise'

By Peter Heinlein
Addis Ababa
18 December 2007

The African Union has inaugurated a panel of distinguished¹ citizens to promote efforts to prevent conflict on a continent that has seen more than its share of wars.  VOA's Peter Heinlein reports from AU headquarters in Addis Ababa the group is being called "the panel of the wise."

The Commission of the African Union earlier this year established the panel of five eminent² persons to represent the continent's five regions on conflict prevention issues.  Each member will serve a three-year term.

The so-called "panel of the wise" includes former Organization of African Unity³ secretary-general Salim Ahmed Salim of Tanzania from the east; former Algerian president Ahmed Ben Bella from the north, and Benin's constitutional court president, Elisabeth K. Pognon, representing the west.

The central Africa seat is held by former Sao Tome and Principe president Miguel Trovoada, and the southern representative is South Africa's Independent Electoral Commission chief Brigalia Bam.

AU Peace and Security Commissioner⁴ Said Djinnit says the panel's value will be in using its moral authority to persuade African leaders that war should not be an option.

"The idea is to make use of their authority and independent authority to push our agenda for peace and to enable them to do what the peace and Security Council and the Commission cannot do," he said.  "To deploy⁵ their own talent, their own ways and means of ensuring that peace is consolidated⁶ on the continent."

All panel members were present for the inaugural⁷ ceremonies except Ben Bella, who turns 91 next week.  He sent a message, which was read by Salim Salim.

"Having been in the forefront of the struggle against colonialism and apartheid, our continental⁸ organization enabled Africa to free itself and launch itself in the international arena⁹ as a key factor, thus realizing at the same time a part of the African dream," he said. 

Salim will serve on the "Panel of the Wise" in addition to his current duties as the AU special envoy¹⁰ on Darfur.  There he is struggling to persuade donor¹¹ nations to provide military hardware for a hybrid¹² peacekeeping mission being formed to replace the overstretched African Union force that has failed to curb¹³ the violence in western Sudan.

He tells VOA he is mystified by the international community's reluctance¹⁴ to back up its words of concern about Darfur with the helicopters needed to enforce peace.

"I find it extremely difficult to understand how, in this day and age, with all the resources available, it would still be difficult to get the helicopters required for the force," he explained.  "And unless this force is properly equipped, it is going to meet the same problems the African Union force met in Darfur."

The female members of the panel expressed hope they could be a force for bringing a feminine perspective to the field of conflict prevention.  South Africa's Electoral Commission Chairwoman Brigalia Bam says women are natural peacemakers.

"Because in any society, the people who entrench¹⁵ values of goodness is usually in any given family a mother, and since I am a believer, I am not calling myself a feminist¹⁶, but I believe in the influence of women, I believe in the spirituality of women, I believe in their forthrightness¹⁷, because they believe in the protection of human life and I see myself as contributing to this way of thinking, of changing our minds," she said.

Bam says the challenge facing the "Panel of the Wise" is to influence present and future African leaders to acquire a new culture of mediation¹⁸. But she acknowledged the task is enormous in a region best by numerous conflicts.  She said, we must remember, "we cannot change the whole of the large continent."

1 distinguished   

adj.卓越的，杰出的，著名的

参考例句：

• Elephants are distinguished from other animals by their long noses.大象以其长长的鼻子显示出与其他动物的不同。
• A banquet was given in honor of the distinguished guests.宴会是为了向贵宾们致敬而举行的。

2 eminent   

adj.显赫的，杰出的，有名的，优良的

参考例句：

• We are expecting the arrival of an eminent scientist.我们正期待一位著名科学家的来访。
• He is an eminent citizen of China.他是一个杰出的中国公民。

3 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

4 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。

5 deploy   

v.（军）散开成战斗队形，布置，展开

参考例句：

• The infantry began to deploy at dawn.步兵黎明时开始进入战斗位置。
• The president said he had no intention of deploying ground troops.总统称并不打算部署地面部队。

6 consolidated   

a.联合的

参考例句：

• With this new movie he has consolidated his position as the country's leading director. 他新执导的影片巩固了他作为全国最佳导演的地位。
• Those two banks have consolidated and formed a single large bank. 那两家银行已合并成一家大银行。

7 inaugural   

adj.就职的；n.就职典礼

参考例句：

• We listened to the President's inaugural speech on the radio yesterday.昨天我们通过无线电听了总统的就职演说。
• Professor Pearson gave the inaugural lecture in the new lecture theatre.皮尔逊教授在新的阶梯讲堂发表了启用演说。

8 continental   

adj.大陆的，大陆性的，欧洲大陆的

参考例句：

• A continental climate is different from an insular one.大陆性气候不同于岛屿气候。
• The most ancient parts of the continental crust are 4000 million years old.大陆地壳最古老的部分有40亿年历史。

9 arena   

n.竞技场，运动场所；竞争场所，舞台

参考例句：

• She entered the political arena at the age of 25. 她25岁进入政界。
• He had not an adequate arena for the exercise of his talents.他没有充分发挥其才能的场所。

10 envoy   

n.使节，使者，代表，公使

参考例句：

• Their envoy showed no sign of responding to our proposals.他们的代表对我方的提议毫无回应的迹象。
• The government has not yet appointed an envoy to the area.政府尚未向这一地区派过外交官。

11 donor   

n.捐献者；赠送人；(组织、器官等的)供体

参考例句：

• In these cases,the recipient usually takes care of the donor afterwards.在这类情况下，接受捐献者以后通常会照顾捐赠者。
• The Doctor transplanted the donor's heart to Mike's chest cavity.医生将捐赠者的心脏移植进麦克的胸腔。

12 hybrid   

n.(动，植）杂种，混合物

参考例句：

• That is a hybrid perpetual rose.那是一株杂交的四季开花的蔷薇。
• The hybrid was tall,handsome,and intelligent.那混血儿高大、英俊、又聪明。

13 curb   

n.场外证券市场，场外交易；vt.制止，抑制

参考例句：

• I could not curb my anger.我按捺不住我的愤怒。
• You must curb your daughter when you are in church.你在教堂时必须管住你的女儿。

14 reluctance   

n.厌恶，讨厌，勉强，不情愿

参考例句：

• The police released Andrew with reluctance.警方勉强把安德鲁放走了。
• He showed the greatest reluctance to make a reply.他表示很不愿意答复。

15 entrench   

v.使根深蒂固；n.壕沟；防御设施

参考例句：

• A series of measures were designed to entrench democracy and the rule of law.采取一系列措施旨在巩固民主和法制。
• These dictators have entrenched themselves politically and are difficult to move.这些独裁者在政治上已经站稳了脚跟，很难推翻他们。

16 feminist   

adj.主张男女平等的，女权主义的

参考例句：

• She followed the feminist movement.她支持女权运动。
• From then on,feminist studies on literature boomed.从那时起，男女平等受教育的现象开始迅速兴起。

17 forthrightness   

正直

参考例句：

• His forthrightness won everyone's approval. 他的率直赢得了大家的好评。

18 mediation   

n.调解

参考例句：

• The dispute was settled by mediation of the third country. 这场争端通过第三国的斡旋而得以解决。
• The dispute was settled by mediation. 经调解使争端得以解决。