VOA常速英语2008年-Kenya Humanitarian Crisis Deepens as Talks Cont

By Scott Bobb
Nairobi
06 February 2008

In Kenya, the government and opposition¹ have resumed talks on the dispute over the elections that sparked a month-long wave of violence. Relief officials say the humanitarian² toll³ continues to rise and are calling for a speedy solution. VOA's Scott Bobb reports from Nairobi.

Relief officials appealed to political leaders to stabilize⁴ security throughout Kenya as the number of people fleeing violence in some parts of the country continued to rise.

A Kenya Red Cross spokesman, Tony Mwangi, says the instability is aggravating⁵ the humanitarian crisis.

"There are a lot of areas that require immediate⁶ assistance in the form of food as well as shelter for freshly displaced people and this is mostly in the western region of the country and a bit of the Rift⁷ Valley," Mwangi said.

Nearly 100 people have been killed in the violence in the past several days, mostly in western Kenya. The Red Cross says as a result the death toll has risen to about 1,000 and the number of homeless has grown to more than 300,000.

Mwangi said his organization has provided some assistance to most of the displaced in the country but not enough. He said security was an essential condition for the efficient distribution of aid.

"Our humanitarian response moves a lot faster when security is available. And while the Kenya Red Cross have access to some of the areas that have been affected⁸ the speed at which we would like to operate is not the best," Mwangi said.

Mwangi said the best solution is for the displaced to be able to return home where they can receive food rations⁹ while their homes and communities are rebuilt. The camps, which are prone¹⁰ to disease, criminality and social problems, are not a long-term solution.

The talks aimed at resolving the Kenyan crisis continued Wednesday. They focused on the disputed December elections that sparked the violence.

The opposition accuses the government of rigging the elections in order to install President Mwai Kibaki for a second term. The government says the opposition should take its objections to the courts.

Former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who is overseeing the talks, was joined by two other members of the mediation¹¹ team, South Africa's former first lady Graca Machel and Tanzania's former president Benjamin Mkapa.

Mr. Mkapa told reporters the talks are progressing at a good pace.

He says the talks show cooperation from both sides and a serious commitment to achieving Kenyans' expectations of living in peace and unity¹².

Several hundred business leaders Tuesday announced that industrial production had been reduced by 40 percent during the past month. Exports had been hard hit by the paralysis¹³ of transportation. And hotel occupancy in tourist areas had fallen from 90 percent to 10 percent.

They forecast that economic growth would decline by several percentage points from its recent rate of more than six percent. They said 400,000 jobs could be lost in the next six months and the country could fall into recession if the crisis continued.

1 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

2 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。

3 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

4 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。

5 aggravating   

adj.恼人的，讨厌的

参考例句：

• How aggravating to be interrupted! 被打扰，多令人生气呀！
• Diesel exhaust is particularly aggravating to many susceptible individuals. 许多体质敏感的人尤其反感柴油废气。

6 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

7 rift   

n.裂口，隙缝，切口；v.裂开，割开，渗入

参考例句：

• He was anxious to mend the rift between the two men.他急于弥合这两个人之间的裂痕。
• The sun appeared through a rift in the clouds.太阳从云层间隙中冒出来。

8 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

9 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。

10 prone   

adj.(to)易于…的，很可能…的；俯卧的

参考例句：

• Some people are prone to jump to hasty conclusions.有些人往往作出轻率的结论。
• He is prone to lose his temper when people disagree with him.人家一不同意他的意见,他就发脾气。

11 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。

12 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。

13 paralysis   

n.麻痹(症)；瘫痪(症)

参考例句：

• The paralysis affects his right leg and he can only walk with difficulty.他右腿瘫痪步履维艰。
• The paralysis affects his right leg and he can only walk with difficulty.他右腿瘫痪步履维艰。