The Philippine army plans to transform an insurgency-wracked island into the country's second largest pineapple producing region in an effort to end decades of bloodshed.
The military is spearheading the plan in cooperation with the local governments on the southern island of Jolo, Lieutenant General Romeo Tolentino said on May 7.
Under the plan, Jolo, which is 950km south of Manila, would be transformed into a major producer of pineapples to provide livelihoods to impoverished Muslims who have lived under the shadow of rebel violence for decades.
PHOTO: EPA
The general said the army was negotiating an agreement with private agriculture firms to plant three towns on Jolo island with some 100,000 pineapples.
"Visit Jolo in a few years' time and I assure you the traces of blood and armed struggle that once haunted the whole island will have vanished," Tolentino said.
At 1,600km2, Jolo is more than twice the size of Singapore.
Its mineral-rich volcanic soil has been identified as good for agriculture, but decades of bloody insurgency have left it one of the country's poorest areas.
Abu Sayyaf and Jemaah Islamiyah (JI) militants also operate in the area and are on the run from a massive manhunt involving some 7,000 troops. Violence in Jolo reached a high point in Feb. 2005 when the Phillipines army sent a large force to hunt down militants.
Both Abu Sayyaf and JI are on the US government's list of foreign terrorist organisations and have been blamed for Southeast Asia's worst attacks in recent years.
Small numbers of US troops have been assisting the Filipino forces in the fight, with Jolo identified as an important regional anti-terrorism showcase.(AFP)
菲律賓軍方計畫將一座遭叛軍摧殘的島嶼，改造成全國第二大鳳梨產地，盼能終結數十年來的流血衝突。
羅密歐．托羅提諾中將在五月七日表示，軍方將主導這項與南部霍洛島地方政府合作的計畫。
計畫中，位於馬尼拉南方九百五十公里的霍洛島將轉型為重要的鳳梨產地，讓數十年來生活在叛軍暴力陰影下的貧窮穆斯林賴以維生。
托羅提諾中將說，軍方正在與民間農業企業協商，計畫在霍洛島三個小鎮種植約十萬顆鳳梨。
他說︰「幾年後來參觀霍洛島，我敢保證，一度籠罩全島的斑駁血跡與武裝衝突將消失無蹤。」
霍洛島面積一千六百平方公里，約比兩個新加坡大。
當地富含礦物的火山土相當適宜農業，但數十年的血腥暴動使霍洛島成為菲國最赤貧的地區之一。
阿布沙耶夫組織與伊斯蘭祈禱團叛軍也在當地運作，都因七千軍隊左右的大規模追捕而逃亡。二○○五年二月菲律賓軍方派遣大批軍隊掃蕩霍洛島叛軍，暴力衝突達到白熱化。
這兩個組織都被列入美國政府的外國恐怖組織名單，並因涉及近幾年東南亞慘不忍賭的攻擊事件而遭到譴責。
由於霍洛島被視為區域反恐要地，美國已派出一小部分軍隊來協助菲律賓軍方。
（法新社/翻譯︰賴美君）
SAY WHAT? 說說看
live under the shadow of
活在‥‥陰影下
If you live under the shadow of something, then it is always present in your life or looming over you in some way. The metaphor indicates the size of the problem is much larger than you and covering you wherever you go. "Phillip lives under the shadow of his father's greatness; all of his aunts and uncles expect him to also be a successful international lawyer."
假如你「live under the shadow of 某事」，這件事總是如影隨形，或是在某方面影響著你。這個隱喻意指這個問題超出你能負擔的，如影隨形困擾著你。例如︰「菲力普活在父親能力卓越的陰影下。所有姑媽與叔伯都期望他也能當個成功的國際律師」。
OUT LOUD 對話練習
Kyle: I went with my grandpa to pick apples last weekend.
Eric: Oh yeah? Did you have fun?
Kyle: I had a grand old time. We probably picked six bags of apples.
Eric: I haven't done anything like that since I was a kid.
Kyle: Maybe you and I can go next weekend.
凱爾︰我上週末和祖父去採蘋果。
艾瑞克︰真的嗎？你玩得開心嗎？
凱爾︰我重溫了往日美好時光。我們大概採了六袋蘋果。
艾瑞克︰我長大後就再也沒做過這種事。
凱爾︰也許我們下個週末可以一起去。
grand old time 往日美好時光
If someone has a grand old time, then they had fun doing something. Similarly, you can refer to the happier days in your past as the good old days.
假如有人「has a grand old time」，那個人做某事做得很開心。同樣的，你也可以用「good old days」來指往日的美好時光。
A: The 2025 World Masters Games will begin on May 17 and run until May 30. B: World Masters Games? A: It’s a quadrennial multi-sport event for people over 30, which will be jointly held by Taipei and New Taipei City. B: Cool, maybe we can go cheer for all the athletes from home and abroad. A: There will be an athletes’ parade in downtown Taipei prior to the opening ceremony on Saturday. Let’s go then. A: 2025雙北世界壯年運動會5月17日開幕，持續至5月30日閉幕。 B: 世壯運？ A: 這是四年一度、以30歲以上青壯年為主的運動會，本屆是由台北市和新北市共同舉辦。 B: 好酷喔，我們去幫來自國內外的選手們加油吧！ A: 週六在台北市區會有選手遊行，之後是開幕典禮，我們去看吧。 （By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times／台北時報張迪)
A: Where will the 35 sports of the 2025 World Masters Games be held? B: Apart from Taipei and New Taipei City, some games will take place in Yilan County, Taoyuan County, and Hsinchu County and City. A: The news says about 25,000 people, including many celebrities and sports stars, have already registered for the games. B: Even Taipei Mayor Chiang Wan-an, who is 47, registered for softball and squash. New Taipei Mayor Hou You-yi, who is 68, also registered for table tennis. A: And it will be the largest sports event ever in Taiwan’s history. How exciting. A:
Computex, Asia’s biggest electronics conference, kicked off Monday in Taipei, and as in years past drew industry chieftains from Nvidia Corp.’s Jensen Huang and Qualcomm Inc.’s Cristiano Amon to Young Liu of Foxconn, which makes the bulk of the world’s iPhones and Nvidia servers. But while last year’s event was a celebration of the post-ChatGPT AI boom, executives this time are likely grappling with the uncertainty of the Trump administration’s effort to reshape the global trade order — disrupting a decades-old model for tech manufacturing. This year’s exhibition will of course feature the hardware required to bring artificial intelligence to life.
Dog owners often wish they could understand their pets’ thoughts. “Dog buttons” might turn their dream into a reality. These specially designed buttons, __1__ sound chips, enable dogs to communicate their needs by pressing buttons corresponding to pre-recorded words like “walk,” “play,” “outside,” and “food.” This bridges the communication __2__ between humans and their canine companions. The science behind dog buttons is based on the concept of associative learning. It’s a process __3__ learners can link actions with outcomes. For instance, if an owner consistently presses the “walk” button and then takes their dog for a walk, the dog
RSS