美国代表团访问哥伦比亚

US Delegation 1 Visits Colombia

Rhoda Metcalfe

Bogota

31 Aug 2001 23:33 UTC

It's been almost a year since the U.S. government agreed to invest more than $1.3 billion in a wide-ranging anti-narcotics 2 program known as Plan Colombia. The program aims to 1)eliminate half of Colombia's 2)cocaine production over five years. But its aerial spraying to knock out drug crops has been 3)controversial. This week, Colombia received its first high-level U.S. government 4)delegation under the new Bush administration.

U.S. Undersecretary of State Marc Grossman, who led the delegation on its three-day visit, gave an assessment 3 of the anti-drug 5)strategy at a news conference Friday. "The combination of aerial 6)spraying and voluntary 7)manual 8)eradication 4 by farmers who made pacts 5 with the government has had a serious impact on drug production in southern Colombia," he said. "50,000 hectares of coca plantation 6 have been sprayed from the air nationwide in what we believe is a safe and environmentally sound manner."

To destroy the crops, the aerial 9)fumigation 7 program uses the chemical glyphosate, commercially known as Round Up. That's become controversial in recent months, as residents in the drug growing zones complain the spraying is causing skin and eye 10)infections. Mr. Grossman says the U.S. administration has looked into the issue. "If you are in contact with the glyphosate in high enough 11)concentrations, it does cause eye irritations 8, but the way we spray it, and the levels with which we spray it, are so low, that we don't believe this is a problem in the short term or the long term," he said.

The visit comes at a time when peace talks with the country's largest left-wing 12)guerrilla group, the FARC, are 13)teetering precariously 9. There is mounting criticism that the rebels are making unfair use of a huge 14)demilitarized zone, created to allow for peace negotiations 10, as their own private refuge to hold 15)kidnap victims, process narcotics and train troops. Some critics have called for the zone to be eliminated, which would likely mean an end to peace talks. Mr. Grossman did not agree. "The establishment and continuation of such a zone is purely 11 and wholly and solely 12 a matter for the Colombian government," he said. "I made no recommendations to President Pastrana. What I did was agreed with President Pastrana that there is a need to restart the peace process."

In mid-September U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell will visit Colombia and Peru, as part of the continuing evaluation 13 of the U.S.-backed anti-drug strategy.

(1)      eliminate[I5lImIneIt]vt.排除, 消除v.除去

(2)      cocaine[kEJ5keIn]n.古柯碱,可卡因

(3)      controversial[kRntrE5v:F(E)l]adj.争论的, 争议的

(4)      delegation[delI5^eIF(E)n]n.代表团, 授权, 委托

(5)      strategy[5strAtIdVI]n.策略, 军略

(6)      spray[spreI]n.喷雾, 飞沫vt.喷射, 喷溅

(7)      manual[5mAnjJEl]n.手册, 指南adj.手的, 手动的, 手工的, 体力的

(8)      eradication n.连根拔除, 根除

(9)      fumigation忿恨

(10)      infection[In5fekF(E)n]n.[医] 传染, 传染病, 影响, 感染

(11)      concentration[kRnsEn5treIF(E)n]n.集中, 集合, 专心, 浓缩, 浓度

(12)      guerrilla[^E5rIlE]n.游击战, 游击队

(13)      teeter[5ti:tE(r)]v.步履蹒跚, 摇摇欲坠

(14)      demilitarize[di:5mIlItEraIz]vt.解除武装, 废除军备

(15)      kidnap[5kIdnAp]vt.诱拐(小孩), 绑架, 勒赎