VOA常速英语2007-Pakistan's Bhutto Ends 8-Year Exile with Jubilan

By Barry Newhouse
Islamabad
18 October 2007

Hundreds of thousands of supporters of Pakistan's former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto are cheering her homecoming after eight years in self-imposed exile. From Islamabad, VOA's Barry Newhouse reports Ms. Bhutto's return turned into a massive political rally for her Pakistan People's Party.

As an emotional Benazir Bhutto emerged from the plane in Karachi, she told a throng¹ of reporters that she thanked God she had arrived home.

She says she has returned with a mission to help eradicate² poverty and improve the Pakistan education system, particularly for women.

Tightly packed crowds lined the streets in the southern city that has been a stronghold of support for Ms. Bhutto's Pakistan People's Party.

The 54-year-old former prime minister climbed on a bulletproof truck festooned with her party's red, green and black colors, and a banner reading "Long Live Bhutto."

Thousands of police were deployed³ for the arrival. Islamic militants⁴ have threatened to launch suicide attacks against Ms. Bhutto, who has said Taleban and al Qaida-linked groups threaten all of Pakistan.

Ms. Bhutto and her supporters then embarked⁵ on a slow-moving procession through Karachi's crowded streets, to the tomb of Pakistan's founder⁶, Muhammad Ali Jinnah (Quaid-e-Azam).

Dressed in the green-and-white colors of Pakistan's flag, Ms. Bhutto addressed the violence that has wracked the country in recent years.

She said she wants to end the unrest in Baluchistan and the tribal⁷ areas. She said she wants to replace the message of violence and hatred⁸ with a message of peace and love.

Ms. Bhutto arrives in Pakistan at a politically critical time for President Pervez Musharraf. She has long been a critic of Pakistan's military rule under General Musharraf, who led a coup⁹ in 1999.

But in recent months she has held negotiations¹⁰ with the president. The reported result is a power-sharing deal that would allow Mr. Musharraf to remain president, and Ms. Bhutto to resume the post of prime minister for a third time.

Some of her party's supporters say the negotiations have damaged her ability to bring about democratic change.

Any deal between the two could still mean nothing, however. The Supreme¹¹ Court is considering the constitutionality of Mr. Musharraf's re-election earlier this month, as well as an amnesty that led to corruption¹² charges against Ms. Bhutto being dropped.

1 throng   

n.人群，群众；v.拥挤，群集

参考例句：

• A patient throng was waiting in silence.一大群耐心的人在静静地等着。
• The crowds thronged into the mall.人群涌进大厅。

2 eradicate   

v.根除，消灭，杜绝

参考例句：

• These insects are very difficult to eradicate.这些昆虫很难根除。
• They are already battling to eradicate illnesses such as malaria and tetanus.他们已经在努力消灭疟疾、破伤风等疾病。

3 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。

4 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

5 embarked   

乘船( embark的过去式和过去分词 )； 装载； 从事

参考例句：

• We stood on the pier and watched as they embarked. 我们站在突码头上目送他们登船。
• She embarked on a discourse about the town's origins. 她开始讲本市的起源。

6 Founder   

n.创始者，缔造者

参考例句：

• He was extolled as the founder of their Florentine school.他被称颂为佛罗伦萨画派的鼻祖。
• According to the old tradition,Romulus was the founder of Rome.按照古老的传说，罗穆卢斯是古罗马的建国者。

7 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

8 hatred   

n.憎恶，憎恨，仇恨

参考例句：

• He looked at me with hatred in his eyes.他以憎恨的眼光望着我。
• The old man was seized with burning hatred for the fascists.老人对法西斯主义者充满了仇恨。

9 coup   

n.政变；突然而成功的行动

参考例句：

• The monarch was ousted by a military coup.那君主被军事政变者废黜了。
• That government was overthrown in a military coup three years ago.那个政府在3年前的军事政变中被推翻。

10 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

11 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

12 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。