VOA慢速英语--多名西方官员中途退出乌干达总统就职典礼

AS IT IS 2016-05-14 US, Others Walk Out of Ugandan Inauguration¹ 多名西方官员中途退出乌干达总统就职典礼

Yoweri Museveni has begun his fifth term as Uganda’s president.

United States, Canadian and European delegates walked out of the official swearing-in ceremony on Thursday. They left to protest Museveni’s comments about the International Criminal Court.

The delegates also were protesting the presence of Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir at the inauguration.

Bashir is a war crimes suspect. The court has accused him of genocide and crimes against humanity in the Darfur area of Sudan. He returned home from Uganda late Thursday.

In Washington, a State Department official said the U.S. is “concerned that President Bashir has been able to travel to Uganda.”

The country is a member of the International Crime Court. As such, Uganda is supposed to detain and surrender to the court any indicted² suspects on its soil.

In his speech Thursday, Yoweri Museveni openly voiced his lack of support for the court. Speaking to a number of African heads of state and other officials, the Ugandan leader said he no longer supports the court. He called its members, “a bunch of useless people.”

Underlying³ tension

Museveni has been in power since 1986. Before the inauguration, he arrived at Uganda’s Kololo Airstrip and received cheers from supporters. But the celebration took place against a setting of tension.

The government closed all social media websites the day before the swearing-in events. Police were deployed⁴ around Kampala, after unrest on Wednesday.

Opposition⁵ leader Kizza Besiyge had escaped from house arrest and made a surprise appearance. Besigye’s supporters gathered to see him. He promised to continue his campaign of defiance⁶, and calls himself the “people's president.”

Police fired tear gas to break up the crowd and began beating civilians⁷, according to witnesses and videos published on social media.

One storekeeper who was beaten said, "They [police] find us when we were closing the shop. They told us you close your shop, and we go." He said people became afraid and ran to nearby buildings.

Besigye finished in second place in the 2016 presidential election. He has called for an investigation⁸ of the election results.

Ugandan officials say Museveni won 61 percent of the votes.

The opposition FDC party said it held its own inauguration for Besiyge. The party released a video of the event on social media Wednesday. A short time later, the government cut social media links in the country.

This is the second time a social media blackout has been enforced. The first time was during the presidential election.

Many Ugandans avoided the social media ban by using VPNs or virtual private networks. Before the inauguration, Ugandans began warning friends on social media to make sure their VPN apps were current.

Words in This Story

walkout – n. the act of leaving a meeting or event as a way of showing disapproval⁹

inauguration – n. a ceremony to introduce someone, such as a newly elected official, into a job or position

indicted – v. to formally decide that someone should be put on trial for a crime

shopkeeper – n. someone who owns or manages a shop or store

defiance – n. a refusal to obey something or someone

blackout – n. a situation in which some kinds of information are deliberately¹⁰ kept from the public

indicted – adj. of or relating to a legal ruling to try someone for a crime

bunch – n. a group

1 inauguration   

n.开幕、就职典礼

参考例句：

• The inauguration of a President of the United States takes place on January 20.美国总统的就职典礼于一月二十日举行。
• Three celebrated tenors sang at the president's inauguration.3位著名的男高音歌手在总统就职仪式上演唱。

2 indicted   

控告，起诉( indict的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The senator was indicted for murder. 那位参议员被控犯谋杀罪。
• He was indicted by a grand jury on two counts of murder. 他被大陪审团以两项谋杀罪名起诉。

3 underlying   

adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的

参考例句：

• The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
• This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。

4 deployed   

（尤指军事行动）使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 )； 施展； 部署； 有效地利用

参考例句：

• Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
• The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。

5 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

6 defiance   

n.挑战，挑衅，蔑视，违抗

参考例句：

• He climbed the ladder in defiance of the warning.他无视警告爬上了那架梯子。
• He slammed the door in a spirit of defiance.他以挑衅性的态度把门砰地一下关上。

7 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

8 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

9 disapproval   

n.反对，不赞成

参考例句：

• The teacher made an outward show of disapproval.老师表面上表示不同意。
• They shouted their disapproval.他们喊叫表示反对。

10 deliberately   

adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地

参考例句：

• The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。
• They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。