Cameroon Teen Girl Wins International Children's Peace Prize
VOA News｜Africa
November 21, 2019 01:24 PM Moki Edwin Kindzeka (source)
Cameroon Teen Girl Wins International Children's Peace Prize
喀麥隆女青年榮獲國際兒童和平獎
November 21, 2019 01:24 PM
Moki Edwin Kindzeka
YAOUNDE —
A 15-year-old girl from Cameroon is one of two winners of the 2019 International Children's Peace Prize. Divina Maloum was rewarded for her efforts in promoting children's rights by visiting school to warn students against joining armed groups, such as Boko Haram.
Hundreds of children from schools in Yaounde, glued to their TV screens, applauded Wednesday as Maloum was given the International Children's Peace Prize for 2019 in the Hague on the occasion of Universal Children's Day.
This is no small award. The other winner of the prize was 16-year-old Greta Thunberg, the climate activist from Sweden, who was unable to attend the ceremony but said in a statement that she is "incredibly grateful and honored for this prize."
Among those watching Maloum accept the award was her civic education teacher, Ntigang Oumarou. Oumarou said thanks to Maloum's association to Children for Peace, many young people in their schools and neighborhoods no longer consume drugs. She said after Maloum's talks and sensitization caravans, the community was alert and the police now conduct regular controls to make sure drugs and alcohol are not sold around schools and to children. She said she was very proud of the 15-year old [sic] and wished her well.
Maloum created Children for Peace in 2014 after she visited Cameroon's northern border with Nigeria, where Boko Haram terrorism has killed more than 27,000 people and displaced two million others.
She said she was horrified that children were the greatest victims of the war and started thinking of what she could do to help those who were joining Boko Haram, either by force or out of ignorance.
"I noticed that the rights of children especially for girls were violated. You see a girl of five years getting married to an old man of 60 years. You see boys, girls who are carriers of bombs (suicide bombers), so I decided to create that association to stimulate the civic and voluntary engagement of children in the fight against violent extremism. To make them be peace builders in their communities. To also make them to be change makers," Maloum said.
Children for Peace now has a network of 100 children across Cameroon's ten regions. She has organized inter-community children's peace camps, established peace clubs in mosques, and together with other children, issued a children's declaration against violent extremism.
Maloum said she believed everyone can make a difference in bringing peace to their societies.
"My message to the world is that when the power of love will be greater than the love of power, man shall have another name which is God and that a youth, where you are as an individual, you can change the world and make a difference where you are going to," she said.
Maloum said her main concern now is for peace to return to the restive English-speaking regions of Cameroon, where most schools have been closed for three years due to fighting between armed separatists and the country's military.
來自喀麥隆（Cameroon）的迪維娜．馬洛（Divina Maloum）是 2019 年國際兒童和平獎（International Children's Peace Prize）兩位得主中的一位(one of two winners)。今年 15 歲的她因努力提倡(promote)兒童權益而獲獎。她透過校園訪視來勸誡學童不要加入「博科聖地（Boko Haram）」般的武裝(armed)組織。
雅溫德（Yaoundé）的數百名學童在週三（編按：2019 年 11 月 20 日）目不轉睛地盯著電視螢幕，為人在荷蘭海牙（The Hague）接受 2019 年國際兒童和平獎表揚的馬洛鼓掌(applaud，註 1)。頒獎當日正逢世界兒童節（Universal Children's Day）之際(occasion，註 2)。
國際兒童和平獎不容小觀。今年另一位得獎者是 16 歲的格蕾塔．通貝里（Greta Thunberg）。來自瑞典（Sweden）的她是位氣候變遷行動主義者。儘管本人無法到場參加典禮，通貝里在聲明中表示自己「能獲得這個獎項感到無比地感激(grateful)及光榮(honor)。」
曾教導馬洛公民(civic)教育的老師安蒂岡．歐瑪魯（Ntigang Oumarou，音譯）也是觀看馬洛接受表揚的群眾之一。
歐瑪魯表示，多虧馬洛發起兒童和平運動（Children for Peace），許多校內及鄰近地區的年輕人不再(no longer)吸食(consume)毒品。她進一步提到，經過馬洛的演說及宣傳之旅，社區居民變得較為機警(alert)，警察也開始進行定期控管，以確保(to make sure)毒品及含酒精的飲料不在校園周遭販售，同時不販賣給學童。歐瑪魯表示自己對 15 歲的馬洛感到非常驕傲，並祝福她一切順利。
馬洛在 2014 年訪問喀麥隆北方與奈及利亞（Nigeria）的邊境(border，註 3)後，就著手倡導兒童和平運動。恐怖主義(terrorism，註 4)份子博科聖地在當地已殺害超過 2 萬 7 千人，並使 2 百萬人流離失所(displace)。
孩童是戰爭中最大的受害者(victim)。馬洛為此感到非常震驚(horrified)，並因此開始思考她能如何幫助這些不論是被迫參與，或是出於(out of . . .，註 5)無知(ignorance，註 6)才參加博科聖地組織的兒童。
「我意識到兒童的權益，尤其是女孩的權益被侵害(violate，註 7)了。你看到 5 歲女孩嫁給 60 歲男子的案例，也看到男孩和女孩們成為炸彈運送者(carrier，註 8)、成為自殺炸彈客(suicide bomber)的事件，所以我決定要創立這個協會來促進(stimulate)孩童參與公民事項及促使他們自願投入反暴力極端主義(extremism，註 9)的抗爭。我希望讓孩童成為他們社區裡的和平建造者(peace builder)，也讓他們成為改變者(change maker)。」馬洛說道。
至今有 100 名孩童加入兒童和平運動，範圍遍及喀麥隆的 10 個地區。 馬洛規劃了社區間(inter-community)的兒童和平營，也在清真寺建立了和平社團，並與其他孩童一同發布了兒童反暴力極端主義宣言(declaration，註 10)。
馬洛表示，她相信人人都有能力改變社會，創造和平。
「我想傳遞給世界的訊息是：當愛的力量超越我們對權力的追求，人類(man，註 11)就會獲得另一種稱呼，也就是名為『神』的稱呼。而年輕人，不論身在何處，你都有改變世界的能力，都可以對未來的生活有所作為。」她描述著。
馬洛提起自己現階段主要的擔憂(concern)是如何讓喀麥隆動盪不安的(restive)英語系地區重拾平靜。持有武力的分裂主義份子(separatist，註 12)與國軍之間的戰爭已造成當地多所學校關閉長達 3 年之久。
Language Notes
註 1： applaud 於本文指「鼓掌」；本字也常指「讚許，稱讚；贊成」；注意重音在第 2 音節
註 2： occasion 於本文指「特殊場合；重大活動；盛會」；本字也常指「有時；偶爾，間或」；注意重音在第 2 音節
註 3： border 於本文指「國境；邊界；邊境」；本字也常指「飾邊，滾邊」
註 4： terrorism 由名詞 "terror"「恐懼，驚駭」與字尾 "-ism"「主義，信仰」組成；注意重音在第 1 音節
註 5： out of 於本文指「出於，因為」；本字也常指「由 . . . . . . 製成；由 . . . . . . 構成」
註 6： ignorance 由動詞 "ignore"「不理睬，忽視」與表示「行為」的名詞字尾 "-ance" 組成 ；注意重音在第 1 音節
註 7： violate 於本文指「違反，違背，違犯」；本字也常指「侵犯；打擾」
註 8： carrier 由動詞 "carry"「運送；輸送，傳輸」與字尾 "-ier"「做 . . . . . . 的人；用於 . . . . . . 的物」組成；於本文指「搬運人，運送人；運輸工具」；本字也常指「帶菌者；病毒攜帶者；帶原者」
註 9： extremism 由形容詞 "extreme"「極大的；極度的；極端的」與字尾 "-ism"「主義，信仰」組成；注意重音在第 2 音節
註 10： declaration 由動詞 "declare"「宣佈；聲明；公佈」與字尾 "-ion"「行為，狀態」組成；注意重音在第 3 音節
註 11： man 於本文指「人類，人」，為不可數名詞；本字也常指「成年男子，男人」
註 12： separatist 由形容詞 "separate"「各自的；單獨的，不同的」與字尾 "-ist"「信奉 . . . . . . 的（人）」組成；注意重音在第 1 音節
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Check your comprehension!
Choose the BEST answer to each of the questions below. After you finish, highlight the parentheses to reveal the hidden answers.
1. ( D ) According to the article, why did Divina Maloum create Children for Peace?
(A) To explain the concept of child marriage.
(B) To emphasize the importance of power.
(C) To encourage children to attack armed groups.
(D) To engage children in peace making.
2. ( B ) What CANNOT be inferred about children in parts of Cameroon?
(A) Some of them are unable to attend school.
(B) Some of them are promoting war and conflict.
(C) Some of them died delivering bombs.
(D) To engage children in peace making.
3. ( C ) What impact do the Cameroonian military and armed separatists have on children?
(A) They are fighting over children's right to education.
(B) They are challenging the country's educational system.
(C) They are (indirectly) deferring children's access to school.
(D) They are working to build better schools for children.
編譯：外語教學暨資源中心 編輯小組
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