2007年VOA标准英语-Somali Government Moves to Mogadishu

By Cathy Majtenyi
Nairobi
13 March 2007

Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf Tuesday moved to Somalia's volatile¹ capital from the government's former base in Baidoa. Several hours later, witnesses reported seeing several mortar² shells hitting Somalia's presidential residence in Mogadishu. Cathy Majtenyi reports for VOA from Nairobi.

Interim3 Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed (R) with his PM Ali Mohamed Gedi during a media briefing in Mogadishu, 09 Jan 2007" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070528/0829240.jpg" width="210" vspace="2" border="0" />

Interim Somali President Abdullahi Yusuf Ahmed (R) with his PM Ali Mohamed Gedi during a media briefing in Mogadishu, 09 Jan 2007

Yusuf will now be living in Villa⁴ Somalia, the presidential residence in violence-wracked Mogadishu.

The re-location applies to the president, Prime Minister, and ministers of Somalia's transitional government. Members of parliament will continue meeting in Baidoa.
 
Somali Minister of Foreign Affairs Esmael Mohamud Hurreh explains to VOA the reason for the move.

"We want to stabilize⁵ Mogadishu, and we cannot stabilize Mogadishu by being outside Mogadishu," he said.  "We have to go in there with the reconciliation⁶, bringing all Somalis together, at the same time having our security forces operating in the city."

Baidoa, a town some 220 kilometers northwest of the capital, was chosen in 2006 to be the government base after Yusuf refused to set up in Mogadishu, because of security concerns.

But now there are more than 1,000 Ugandan troops in Mogadishu as part of an African Union force deployed⁷ to bring stability to the volatile nation.

Among other things, the African Union troops are to protect the president and other government personnel as well as government operations.

The troops join Ethiopian soldiers who are still in Somalia. They had come to the country near the end of last year to back Somali government forces battling with the Islamic Courts Union.

Many of Mogadishu's buildings bear the scars of the country's long-running civil war that was sparked in 1991 following the ouster of Siad Barre.

Some of the buildings are partially⁸ or completely destroyed, while many are marked with bullet holes.

Foreign minister Hurreh says that the poor infrastructure⁹ poses a challenge to the government's move.

"We'll use some makeshift space to operate from," he added.  "Some of the ministries¹⁰ can be refurbished very quickly. Some of them will have to be rebuilt."

Hurreh says the government will be aiming to build permanent government structures in the capital.

Somalia's transitional government was formed in neighboring Kenya more than two years ago following a peace process.

1 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。

2 mortar   

n.灰浆，灰泥；迫击炮；v.把…用灰浆涂接合

参考例句：

• The mason flushed the joint with mortar.泥工用灰浆把接缝处嵌平。
• The sound of mortar fire seemed to be closing in.迫击炮的吼声似乎正在逼近。

3 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

4 villa   

n.别墅，城郊小屋

参考例句：

• We rented a villa in France for the summer holidays.我们在法国租了一幢别墅消夏。
• We are quartered in a beautiful villa.我们住在一栋漂亮的别墅里。

5 stabilize   

vt.（使）稳定，使稳固，使稳定平衡；vi.稳定

参考例句：

• They are eager to stabilize currencies.他们急于稳定货币。
• His blood pressure tended to stabilize.他的血压趋向稳定。

6 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

7 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

8 partially   

adv.部分地，从某些方面讲

参考例句：

• The door was partially concealed by the drapes.门有一部分被门帘遮住了。
• The police managed to restore calm and the curfew was partially lifted.警方设法恢复了平静，宵禁部分解除。

9 infrastructure   

n.下部构造，下部组织，基础结构，基础设施

参考例句：

• We should step up the development of infrastructure for research.加强科学基础设施建设。
• We should strengthen cultural infrastructure and boost various types of popular culture.加强文化基础设施建设，发展各类群众文化。

10 ministries   

（政府的）部( ministry的名词复数 )； 神职； 牧师职位； 神职任期

参考例句：

• Local authorities must refer everything to the central ministries. 地方管理机构应请示中央主管部门。
• The number of Ministries has been pared down by a third. 部委的数量已经减少了1/3。