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VOA常速英语:Thousands of People Displaced in Philippines 'Forgotten War'

2008-10-29来源:和谐英语

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The International Committee of the Red Cross, or ICRC, says hundreds of thousands of people in the Philippines war-torn Central Mindanao Province are facing a humanitarian crisis. But, it says, no one is paying attention. Lisa Schlein reports for VOA from Geneva.
 
Fighting is a way of life in Central Mindanao. It has been going on for decades. And the International Committee of the Red Cross said the conflict displaces about 100,000 people every year.

But an eruption of fighting between government and Muslim rebels in August intensified the crisis. The Philippines government estimates that during a three-week period, about 600,000 people were affected by the fighting and many of them fled.

To add to their woes, the Red Cross said people in Central Mindanao were hit by a typhoon. It said heavy flooding also caused massive displacement.  

The ICRC Outgoing Head of Delegation in the Philippines, Felipe Donoso, called this a "double punishment". Despite these events, he said the people in the region are all but forgotten. He noted that long, low-simmering conflicts often do not make the news.

He said, "But this low intensity armed conflict-it produces high intensity of humanitarian consequences on the people - meaning, of course, civilians being killed, their property being destroyed, their crops, their livelihoods and a situation of extended period of displacement, which is new, if you compare it with recent years."

Donoso explained that people in Mindanao are used to being displaced. But, he said, they typically leave their homes for a few days, until the immediate danger is over, and then they return.  

However, this time, he said the intensity of the fighting has caused widespread security problems and fear among the people. He said many who do not dare to go home have been staying in temporary shelters for several weeks.

He said people in this region are constantly on the move. And he said that moving from one place to another has become a normal way of life. "These people, they know, that whatever happens every year, they will be displaced - once, twice, three times a year," said Donoso. "And this is part of life. This is part of life. And that is the drama of these people. And that is why they do not get our interest. There is no visibility, but there are really humanitarian consequences. There is a real situation there. There are really people dying. There are really people affected every day with heavy humanitarian consequences and no visibility."  

Donoso said the ICRC has stepped up the distribution of food and essential items to displaced people in Central Mindanao. He said that since August, aid has been handed out to more than 120,000 people.

In addition, he said the Red Cross is monitoring the effects of the hostilities on the civilian population. It also is speaking regularly with the warring parties on their need to protect civilians.
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