2007年VOA标准英语-AU Patrols in Darfur to Protect Against Rape

By Noel King
Nyala, Sudan
01 March 2007

The United Nations and international observers have identified rape¹ as a tool used by Arab Janjaweed militias² to terrorize women and girls in Sudan's war-torn Darfur region. The African Union force charged with monitoring Darfur has tried to combat the threat of rape in the most unsettled areas. Noel King reports for VOA from Otash camp in south Darfur.

African Union civilian³ police and military observers drive deep into the bush outside of Otash camp in Nyala, South Darfur.

Young girl washes plates for her family in North Darfur refugee camp of El Sallam

Their mission is to patrol the remote area north of Otash, where thousands of Darfuri women and girls trek⁴ several times each week to collect firewood.
 
In order to cook the food rations⁵ the women are given by humanitarian⁶ agencies, they must leave the relative safety of the camp to collect firewood.  Once outside, they face the threat of rape by armed militias known as Janjaweed.
 
In Sudan, as in many other societies, rape is a source of shame, and though it is rampant⁷, many women fear reporting rape to Sudanese authorities.
 
AU civilian police chief inspector⁸ Henry Tanor explained to VOA why the firewood patrols were deemed necessary.

"When they go to the bush, the people try to rape them. So, all the time they come and report that when they went for firewood they have been raped⁹ and they have been attacked by Janjaweed," he said.  "So they fear going to the bush. But they are compelled to go. Most of them live on this firewood."

Five kilometers from the camp, the patrol came upon two women wearing tattered¹⁰ robes and carrying heavy axes, used to cut the wood.
 
At first, they shied away as the AU police officers got out of their cars, but when they saw AU Captain Debbie Omoruan the woman looked relieved. Omoruan explained to VOA that it is important to have women police officers accompany the patrols.
 
"They are clamoring for us to come to the bush with them," she said.  "That's why I have my women here. When the women are also here they feel very safe. Because [when] they see women the fear relaxes."

Later that same day, things went slightly awry¹¹.
 
Two young women collecting wood on a hillside heard the AU patrol approach and, believing they were in danger, began scrambling¹² over the hills to get away. 
 
AU civilian police and military observers, along with a young Sudanese police officer who was with the patrol, chased after them shouting greetings.  In time, the mistake was made clear.
 
One of the women, Hawa Adam Abdel Nour, told VOA they were running, because they were afraid.

"This is the place where the Arabs used to attack us," she said. "When we saw you we thought you were here to attack.  The attackers wore the uniform of the Sudanese police.  We used to think they were here to protect us but they would take the young women away and beat the older ones,".
 
Observers often wonder why women leave the camp at all, instead of the men.
 
Another Sudanese woman interviewed for this story, Khadija Sebit, explains.

"They will just kill the men," she said. "One day 10 men from my village were killed by Janjaweed,".
 
Sudan is charged with arming and supporting the Arab Janjaweed following a 2003 rebellion by members of predominantly African tribes.  In retaliation¹³, the Janjaweed conducted a savage¹⁴ scorched-earth campaign targeting African civilian villages.
 
Experts estimate that at least 200,000 people have died during the conflict.  More than 2 million others fled to camps for the displaced where they live in peril¹⁵ and squalor. 
 
Critics have called the African Union force incompetent¹⁶, because of its inability to stem violence in the region.  But on firewood patrols their mission is often a success.  
 
As the AU police and observers prepared to leave, the women hurriedly lifted bundles of firewood to their heads and followed the African Union patrol back to the camp.

1 rape   

n.抢夺，掠夺，强奸；vt.掠夺，抢夺，强奸

参考例句：

• The rape of the countryside had a profound ravage on them.对乡村的掠夺给他们造成严重创伤。
• He was brought to court and charged with rape.他被带到法庭并被指控犯有强奸罪。

2 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

3 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。

4 trek   

vi.作长途艰辛的旅行；n.长途艰苦的旅行

参考例句：

• We often go pony-trek in the summer.夏季我们经常骑马旅行。
• It took us the whole day to trek across the rocky terrain.我们花了一整天的时间艰难地穿过那片遍布岩石的地带。

5 rations   

定量( ration的名词复数 )； 配给量； 正常量； 合理的量

参考例句：

• They are provisioned with seven days' rations. 他们得到了7天的给养。
• The soldiers complained that they were getting short rations. 士兵们抱怨他们得到的配给不够数。

6 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。

7 rampant   

adj.(植物)蔓生的；狂暴的，无约束的

参考例句：

• Sickness was rampant in the area.该地区疾病蔓延。
• You cannot allow children to rampant through the museum.你不能任由小孩子在博物馆里乱跑。

8 inspector   

n.检查员，监察员，视察员

参考例句：

• The inspector was interested in everything pertaining to the school.视察员对有关学校的一切都感兴趣。
• The inspector was shining a flashlight onto the tickets.查票员打着手电筒查看车票。

9 raped   

v.以暴力夺取，强夺( rape的过去式和过去分词 )；强奸

参考例句：

• A young woman was brutally raped in her own home. 一名年轻女子在自己家中惨遭强暴。 来自辞典例句
• We got stick together, or we will be having our women raped. 我们得团结一致，不然我们的妻女就会遭到蹂躏。 来自辞典例句

10 tattered   

adj.破旧的，衣衫破的

参考例句：

• Her tattered clothes in no way detracted from her beauty.她的破衣烂衫丝毫没有影响她的美貌。
• Their tattered clothing and broken furniture indicated their poverty.他们褴褛的衣服和破烂的家具显出他们的贫穷。

11 awry   

adj.扭曲的，错的

参考例句：

• She was in a fury over a plan that had gone awry. 计划出了问题，她很愤怒。
• Something has gone awry in our plans.我们的计划出差错了。

12 scrambling   

v.快速爬行( scramble的现在分词 )；攀登；争夺；（军事飞机）紧急起飞

参考例句：

• Scrambling up her hair, she darted out of the house. 她匆忙扎起头发，冲出房去。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• She is scrambling eggs. 她正在炒蛋。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 retaliation   

n.报复，反击

参考例句：

• retaliation against UN workers 对联合国工作人员的报复
• He never said a single word in retaliation. 他从未说过一句反击的话。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 savage   

adj.野蛮的；凶恶的，残暴的；n.未开化的人

参考例句：

• The poor man received a savage beating from the thugs.那可怜的人遭到暴徒的痛打。
• He has a savage temper.他脾气粗暴。

15 peril   

n.(严重的)危险；危险的事物

参考例句：

• The refugees were in peril of death from hunger.难民有饿死的危险。
• The embankment is in great peril.河堤岌岌可危。

16 incompetent   

adj.无能力的，不能胜任的

参考例句：

• He is utterly incompetent at his job.他完全不能胜任他的工作。
• He is incompetent at working with his hands.他动手能力不行。