Hindi English Translation || Editorial || Helping Afghanistan: On the UN mission in Afghanistan

Helping Afghanistan: On the UN mission in Afghanistan

The world must save Afghans from poverty, while pressuring (दबाव डालना, प्रभाव डालना) the Taliban to end oppression (उत्पीड़न, दुर्व्यवहार)

The UN Security Council’s (संयूक्त राष्ट्र सुरक्षा परिषद) decision to authorise (अधिकृत करना, अनुमति देना, सहमत होना) a new mandate (जनादेश, शासनादेश, स्वीकृति, अनुमोदन) for the organisation (संगठन, योजना, व्यवस्था) in Afghanistan is the most emphatic (ज़ोरदार, निर्णायक, शानदार) step taken by the world body (संघ, संगठन, समूह) in tackling the myriad (असंख्य, अनगिनत, अनेक) problems the country has been facing ever since the Taliban takeover (ले लेना, अधिकार में लेना, नियंत्रण में लेना). According to the UNSC resolution (संकल्प, निर्णय, घोषणा), which was adopted (अपनाना, स्वीकृति या स्वीकार) by a vote of 14-0, with Russia abstaining, the UN mission in Afghanistan is authorised to promote (को बढ़ावा देना, प्रोत्साहित करना, समर्थन करना) gender equality (लैंगिक समानता), the empowerment (सशक्तिकरण, प्राधिकरण, मान्यता, क्षमता निर्माण) of women and girls, human rights and an inclusive (all-inclusive, comprehensive, including all the parties/groups involved in something) and representative government. There is no direct reference (mention, remark, comment) to the Taliban, but it urges (encourage, push, prompt; advise, recommend, suggest) the mission (a group of people (delegation or task force) sent on a mission (assignment, undertaking, or operation)) to work in “close consultation with all relevant political actors (participants (in an action)) and stakeholders....” The Taliban have called for (require, publicly ask/necessitate, demand) international help but shown no signs of sharing power or respecting the basic rights of Afghans. In the 1990s, the Taliban had barred (prohibit, prevent, forbid, ban) girls and women from education and work and taken a hostile (opposed, inimical, antagonistic; confrontational, belligerent, combative) approach towards ethnic (relating to a population subgroup (cultural, national, traditional/folk) with a common national or cultural tradition) and religious minorities. The Sunni (relating to Sunni branch/sect of Islam) fundamentalist (relating to someone believing in obeying religious laws strictly) group formed a men-only, Pashtun-dominated government that only reluctantly (hesitantly, unwillingly) allowed girls to go to elementary schools; older girls are still denied education. And barring (except for, apart from, other than) some sectors such as health care and education, Afghanistan’s vast number of working women are not allowed to go to their workplaces.

But the Taliban’s fundamentalism (fanaticism, radicalism, dogmatism/bigotry) and their lack (absence, unavailability, non-existence) of legitimacy (reasonableness, justification, validity) should not prevent the international community from working to ameliorate (make better, enhance, improve (a bad or unpleasant situation)) the suffering (loss, distress, drawback, disadvantage) of the Afghan people. The country is going through one of its worst humanitarian (compassionate, humane, socially concerned) crises. Before the Taliban takeover, two-thirds of the Afghan government’s expenditure came through donations. As no country has recognised (acknowledge, accept, admit something (existence, validity, or legality)) the Taliban as the legitimate (legal, lawful, legalized, authorized) rulers of Afghanistan, these donations have dried up (wane, disappear, fail, vanish, subside, dwindle, come to noting) since August. The U.S.’s decision to freeze (stop/suspend; limit, restrict, confine) $9 billion in assets belonging to (be associated with, be connected to, be linked to) the Afghan central bank (The banking regulator of a county’s banking system. (e.g. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is the central bank of India)) has deepened (increase, intensify, escalate) the crisis. Even government employees have not been paid their salaries for months. Only 2% of Afghanistan’s 38 million people have enough food, according to the World Food Programme (it is the food-assistance branch of the United Nations and the world’s largest humanitarian organization focused on hunger and food security. Founded in 1961, it is headquartered in Rome. It is the leading humanitarian organization saving lives and changing lives, delivering food assistance in emergencies and working with communities to improve nutrition and build resilience). Its economy is expected to contract by 30% this year and nearly every Afghan citizen could be living in poverty by mid-2022, according to the UN. The international community is reluctant (unwilling, disinclined, resisting, opposed, hesitant) to step in (intervene, intercede, take action) over fears that the Taliban would use the aid to consolidate (strengthen, reinforce, fortify) their power and resist further demands for reforms. But the international community cannot just look away (to turn/avert one’s gaze (away from someone)) when Afghans face mass starvation (extreme hunger, lack of food, famine, undernourishment/malnourishment). With the fresh mandate (approval, acceptance, endorsement, authority), which got the support of almost all the major powers, the UN mission should start engaging (involve (in a diplomatic talk/discussion)) the Taliban. This does not mean that the member countries should offer quick recognition ((formal) acknowledgement, acceptance, admission ( of existence, validity, or legality of something)) to the Taliban regime (government). They should offer humanitarian assistance to the Afghans in consultations (discussion, discourse, deliberation) with the Mullahs (a Muslim scholar, teacher, or religious leader), while at the same time putting pressure on them to accept at least short-term reforms and take measures (action, step, procedure) to respect basic human rights.

Courtesy: The Hindu

Important Word List With Meaning

1.pressure (verb)

Hindi Meaning - दबाव डालना, प्रभाव डालना
English Meaning - pressurize, press, push, persuade, influence, force, strong-arm.

2.oppression (noun)

Hindi Meaning - उत्पीड़न, दुर्व्यवहार
English Meaning - persecution, abuse, maltreatment.

3.UN Security Council (UNSC) (noun)

Hindi Meaning - संयूक्त राष्ट्र सुरक्षा परिषद
English Meaning - it is one of the six principal organs of the United Nations, charged with ensuring international peace and security.

4.authorise (verb)

Hindi Meaning - अधिकृत करना, अनुमति देना, सहमत होना
English Meaning - permit, allow, agree to, approve.

5.mandate (noun)

Hindi Meaning - जनादेश, शासनादेश, स्वीकृति, अनुमोदन
English Meaning - approval, acceptance, endorsement.

6.organization (noun)

Hindi Meaning - संगठन, योजना, व्यवस्था
English Meaning - planning, arrangement, coordination.

7.emphatic (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - ज़ोरदार, निर्णायक, शानदार
English Meaning - decisive, conclusive, resounding.

8.body (noun)

Hindi Meaning - संघ, संगठन, समूह
English Meaning - association, organization, group.

9.myriad (adjective)

Hindi Meaning - असंख्य, अनगिनत, अनेक
English Meaning - various, many and various, manifold, multiple.

10.takeover (noun)

Hindi Meaning - ले लेना, अधिकार में लेना, नियंत्रण में लेना
English Meaning - gaining of control, change of ownership; seizure, capture, occupation, overrunning, invasion, conquering.

11.resolution (noun)

Hindi Meaning - संकल्प, निर्णय, घोषणा
English Meaning - decision, declaration; ruling/verdict.

12.adopt (verb)

Hindi Meaning - अपनाना, स्वीकृति या स्वीकार
English Meaning - approve or accept (formally).

13.promote (verb)

Hindi Meaning - को बढ़ावा देना, प्रोत्साहित करना, समर्थन करना
English Meaning - encourage, support, champion, uphold, espouse.

14.gender equality/parity/equity (noun)

Hindi Meaning - लैंगिक समानता
English Meaning - It is the view that everyone should receive equal treatment and not be discriminated against based on their gender (sex).

15.empowerment (noun)

Hindi Meaning - सशक्तिकरण, प्राधिकरण, मान्यता, क्षमता निर्माण
English Meaning - authorization, accreditation; capacity-building, inclusiveness; authority, power.

16.mission (noun)

English Meaning - a group of people (delegation or task force) sent on a mission (assignment, undertaking, or operation).

17.UN resolution (noun)

English Meaning - United Nations resolution is formal expression of the opinion or will of United Nations organs. It is a decision or declaration voted on by all member states of the United Nations and it usually requires a simple majority (50 percent of all votes plus one) to pass.. Although any UN body can issue resolutions, in practice most resolutions are issued by the Security Council or the General Assembly.

18.UNSC Resolution 2593 (noun)

English Meaning - The Resolution demands that Afghan territory not be used to threaten or attack any country or to shelter and train terrorists and plan or finance terrorist attacks. It specifically mentions individuals designated by the UNSC resolution 1267.

19.abstain (verb)

English Meaning - not vote, decline to vote, refuse to vote (formally).

20.authorise (verb)

English Meaning - permit, sanction, allow, agree to, approve.

21.human rights (noun)

English Meaning - Human rights are rights inherent to all human beings, regardless of race, sex, nationality, ethnicity, language, religion, or any other status. Human rights include the right to life and liberty, freedom from slavery and torture, freedom of opinion and expression, the right to work and education, and many more. Everyone is entitled to these rights, without discrimination.

22.inclusive (adjective)

English Meaning - all-inclusive, comprehensive, including all the parties/groups involved in something.

23.representative government/representative democracy (noun)

English Meaning - a government where citizens elect people to represent them and make laws on their behalf, instead of always voting directly on laws and other government actions.

24.reference (noun)

English Meaning - mention, remark, comment.

25.urge (verb)

English Meaning - encourage, push, prompt; advise, recommend, suggest.

26.actor (noun)

English Meaning - participants (in an action).

27.stakeholder (noun)

English Meaning - a person with an interest in something.

28.call for (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - require, publicly ask/necessitate, demand.

29.bar (verb)

English Meaning - prohibit, prevent, forbid, ban.

30.hostile (adjective)

English Meaning - opposed, inimical, antagonistic; confrontational, belligerent, combative.

31.ethnic (adjective)

English Meaning - relating to a population subgroup (cultural, national, traditional/folk) with a common national or cultural tradition.

32.Sunni (adjective)

English Meaning - relating to Sunni branch/sect of Islam.

33.fundamentalist (adjective)

English Meaning - relating to someone believing in obeying religious laws strictly.

34.Pashtun (noun)

English Meaning - Pathan; They make up around 42 percent of the population of Afghanistan. They live mainly in the south and the east of the country. They have a distinct language called Pashto (an official language since 1936).

35.reluctantly (adverb)

English Meaning - hesitantly, unwillingly.

36.barring (preposition)

English Meaning - except for, apart from, other than.

37.fundamentalism (noun)

English Meaning - fanaticism, radicalism, dogmatism/bigotry.

38.lack (noun)

English Meaning - absence, unavailability, non-existence.

39.legitimacy (noun)

English Meaning - reasonableness, justification, validity.

40.ameliorate (verb)

English Meaning - make better, enhance, improve (a bad or unpleasant situation).

41.suffering (noun)

English Meaning - loss, distress, drawback, disadvantage.

42.go through (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - undergo, experience, suffer, be subjected to, live through, endure, tolerate, withstand, put up with, cope with, weather.

43.humanitarian (adjective)

English Meaning - compassionate, humane, socially concerned.

44.humanitarian crisis (noun)

English Meaning - it is also called as humanitarian disaster; a situation with high levels of human suffering in which basic human welfare is in danger on a large scale.

45.recognise (verb)

English Meaning - acknowledge, accept, admit something (existence, validity, or legality).

46.legitimate (adjective)

English Meaning - legal, lawful, legalized, authorized.

47.dry up (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - wane, disappear, fail, vanish, subside, dwindle, come to noting.

48.freeze (verb)

English Meaning - stop/suspend; limit, restrict, confine.

49.frozen (adjective)

English Meaning - relating to a bank or investment account through which no transaction can be made.

50.belong to (verb)

English Meaning - be associated with, be connected to, be linked to.

51.central bank (noun)

English Meaning - The banking regulator of a county’s banking system. (e.g. The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) is the central bank of India).

52.deepen (verb)

English Meaning - increase, intensify, escalate.

53.World Food Programme (WFP) (noun)

English Meaning - it is the food-assistance branch of the United Nations and the world’s largest humanitarian organization focused on hunger and food security. Founded in 1961, it is headquartered in Rome. It is the leading humanitarian organization saving lives and changing lives, delivering food assistance in emergencies and working with communities to improve nutrition and build resilience.

54.contract (verb)

English Meaning - decrease, diminish, reduce, dwindle, decline.

55.reluctant (adjective)

English Meaning - unwilling, disinclined, resisting, opposed, hesitant.

56.step in (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - intervene, intercede, take action.

57.aid (noun)

English Meaning - assistance, support.

58.consolidate (verb)

English Meaning - strengthen, reinforce, fortify.

59.look away (phrasal verb)

English Meaning - to turn/avert one’s gaze (away from someone).