2007年VOA标准英语-Members of Burundi Rebel Group Flee Peace Talks

By Arjun Kohli
Nairobi
24 July 2007

Key members of Burundi's last rebel group have escaped into the bush before the completion of peace talks in the country's capital Bujumbura. Government officials say they see this move as a sign of aggression¹.  For VOA, Arjun Kohli has this report from Nairobi.

Peace talks aimed at implementing² a cease-fire agreement between the Burundi National Liberation Forces, known by the acronym³ FNL, and the government are stalled after the disappearance⁴, beginning on Saturday,  of at least four key members from the rebel delegation⁵.

Jean Berchamns Ndayshimiye, the military leader of the FNL, was the first to disappear.  Diplomats⁶ say he fled to the bush to join his troops in Bujumbura Rural Province.  They say he escaped despite the presence of AU troops who were at the negotiations⁷.

Government spokeswoman, Hafsa Mossi, says the negotiations were important for peace and stability in the east African country. 

"They were discussing about the implementation⁸ of the peace accord," Mossi said. "The mechanism⁹ to be put in place to start implementing the peace accord. We were in the process.  That's why they were even guarded by security guards from the African Union. It's very significant in the sense that this was the last rebel group in Burundi, and we could finally see the peace and stability in Burundi after they joined the other Burundian people to come in and lead their country.  So if they ran away it means what it means, It means they do not want to be part of the process."

The Hutu FNL is the last of seven rebel groups without an arrangement with the government.

Although Hutus comprise the majority of the population, Tutsis have been politically and economically dominant¹⁰ in the region.  Peace agreements have been reached since November 2003 when one former rebel group, the CNDD-FDD signed a cease-fire and power sharing agreement.  In March 2004, members of the CNDD-FDD entered the government and parliament. President Nkurunziza was elected in 2005.

Government spokeswoman Mossi says there is no reason for the FNL to continue fighting.

"They want full democracy for everyone," Mossi said. "They want to be free.. They want all the ethnic¹¹ groups to be involved in the institutions and all that is being done so there is really no point in them to be fighting today. That's all they've been doing all along… killing¹² people, taking hostages…I think they were doing that at the same time that the CNDD-FDD was fighting around the capital and in some few places in the country."

Since Burundi achieved independence from Belgium in 1962, one president and one prime minister have been assassinated¹³, and civil war in the early 1990s preceded the influx¹⁴ of hundreds of thousands of Rwandan refugees during that country's violent conflict. The activities of armed Hutu and Tutsi groups further destabilized Burundi's government in the mid¹⁵ 90s.

Hafsa Mossi says the FNL wants democracy and power sharing but is not continuing with negotiations.  FNL leaders were not available for comment.

Late last month the police arrested and detained eight members of the FNL,  in particular members of a wing which calls itself the Party for the Liberation of the Hutu people led by Agathon Rwasa.  Two grenades and a list of funders for the group were seized.

1 aggression   

n.进攻，侵略，侵犯，侵害

参考例句：

• So long as we are firmly united, we need fear no aggression.只要我们紧密地团结，就不必惧怕外来侵略。
• Her view is that aggression is part of human nature.她认为攻击性是人类本性的一部份。

2 implementing   

v.实现( implement的现在分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• -- Implementing a comprehensive drug control strategy. ――实行综合治理的禁毒战略。 来自汉英非文学 - 白皮书
• He was in no hurry about implementing his unshakable principle. 他并不急于实行他那不可动摇的原则。 来自辞典例句

3 acronym   

n.首字母简略词，简称

参考例句：

• That's a mouthful of an acronym for a very simple technology.对于一项非常简单的技术来说，这是一个很绕口的缩写词。
• TSDF is an acronym for Treatment, Storage and Disposal Facilities.TSDF是处理，储存和处置设施的一个缩写。

4 disappearance   

n.消失，消散，失踪

参考例句：

• He was hard put to it to explain her disappearance.他难以说明她为什么不见了。
• Her disappearance gave rise to the wildest rumours.她失踪一事引起了各种流言蜚语。

5 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

6 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

8 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。

9 mechanism   

n.机械装置；机构，结构

参考例句：

• The bones and muscles are parts of the mechanism of the body.骨骼和肌肉是人体的组成部件。
• The mechanism of the machine is very complicated.这台机器的结构是非常复杂的。

10 dominant   

adj.支配的，统治的；占优势的；显性的；n.主因，要素，主要的人(或物)；显性基因

参考例句：

• The British were formerly dominant in India.英国人从前统治印度。
• She was a dominant figure in the French film industry.她在法国电影界是个举足轻重的人物。

11 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。

12 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

13 assassinated   

v.暗杀( assassinate的过去式和过去分词 )；中伤；诋毁；破坏

参考例句：

• The prime minister was assassinated by extremists. 首相遭极端分子暗杀。
• Then, just two days later, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. 跟着在两天以后，肯尼迪总统在达拉斯被人暗杀。 来自辞典例句

14 influx   

n.流入，注入

参考例句：

• The country simply cannot absorb this influx of refugees.这个国家实在不能接纳这么多涌入的难民。
• Textile workers favoured protection because they feared an influx of cheap cloth.纺织工人拥护贸易保护措施，因为他们担心涌入廉价纺织品。

15 mid   

adj.中央的，中间的

参考例句：

• Our mid-term exam is pending.我们就要期中考试了。
• He switched over to teaching in mid-career.他在而立之年转入教学工作。