voa标准英语2008年-Calls for Justice Continue Six Years After Sene

The government of Senegal is angry over arrest warrants issued by a French judge against senior Senegalese officials in connection with a ferry disaster off the West African coast. Senegalese say the French judge acted outside his jurisdiction¹, but families of the victims approve saying he may provide the justice that has not been rendered in Senegal. Correspondent Scott Bobb filed this report from Dakar.
　

The capsized Senegalese ferry MS Joola is seen in this aerial handout2 photo from the French Navy, off the West African coast (File photo - 27 Sep 2002)

Janis Gomes is pounding pepper for the family lunch in the cramped³ kitchen of her home in a poor suburb of Dakar.

She says life is hard, prices are high and there is no one to help her since her husband died in the sinking of the Senegalese ferry, La Joola, six years ago. The government has refused to pay her compensation because she was married in a traditional ceremony and has no legal proof of the union.

Margareth Diouf is another widow of the La Joola disaster who is struggling to collect her compensation.

She says her late husband left five children all of whom are in school, one in university. But he had a second wife and because of the legal complexities⁴ neither of them has collected.

The La Joola ferry sank six years ago in stormy seas off the coast of neighboring Gambia. Official figures say the ferry, which was licensed⁵ to carry 550 passengers, was carrying 2,000 people. Only 64 survived, making it one of the worst maritime⁶ disasters in modern history.

The Senegalese government ordered $22,000 in compensation to be paid to the families of each victim. But many family members, often illiterate⁷ spouses⁸ from rural areas, have been unable to meet the strict administrative⁹ requirements to collect.

Nassardine Aldara, who lost four children in the accident, says many family members are still angry.

He says of all the promises made by the Senegalese government only the issue of compensation has made progress. And some families refused to accept that because they felt justice had not been rendered.

Following the incident, the Senegalese government fired several officials but no one was prosecuted¹⁰ and the case was closed one year later.

The ferry also carried foreigners from other nations, including 22 people of French nationality.

Some of these families filed a case in France. French judge Jean Wilfried Noel in September issued international arrest warrants against nine senior Senegalese officials, including a former prime minister, transportation minister and former head of the armed forces. The warrants charged them with negligent¹¹ manslaughter and failure to help people in danger.
　

Women pay respect at anonymous12 grave during sixth anniversary of Joola tragedy at 'cemetery13 of the drowned' on outskirts14 of Dakar, 26 Sept. 2008

The head of an association of families of the victims, Idrissa Diallo, lost three children in the accident. He received compensation, though under protest, but notes that less than half of the bodies were recovered and many families demand closure.

He says the Senegalese government has not fulfilled a promise to build a shrine¹⁵ to the victims but says the families will continue to struggle for a memorial because it is their duty.

Senegalese officials all the way up to the president were angered by the French warrants saying they represented undue¹⁶ interference in Senegalese law. The French government said it could not intervene in a legal case, straining relations between the two countries.

In response, a Senegalese judge has issued an arrest warrant for the French judge on charges of abuse of authority.

Many Senegalese agree with their government but family members of victims like Diallo support the French judge. They say the moral debt from the disaster has not been paid and foreign courts may provide the justice they feel has been denied in their home country.

1 jurisdiction   

n.司法权，审判权，管辖权，控制权

参考例句：

• It doesn't lie within my jurisdiction to set you free.我无权将你释放。
• Changzhou is under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu Province.常州隶属江苏省。

2 handout   

n.散发的文字材料；救济品

参考例句：

• I read the handout carefully.我仔细看了这份分发的资料。
• His job was distributing handout at the street-corner.他的工作是在街头发传单。

3 cramped   

a.狭窄的

参考例句：

• The house was terribly small and cramped, but the agent described it as a bijou residence. 房子十分狭小拥挤，但经纪人却把它说成是小巧别致的住宅。
• working in cramped conditions 在拥挤的环境里工作

4 complexities   

复杂性(complexity的名词复数)； 复杂的事物

参考例句：

• The complexities of life bothered him. 生活的复杂使他困惑。
• The complexities of life bothered me. 生活的杂乱事儿使我心烦。

5 licensed   

adj.得到许可的v.许可，颁发执照(license的过去式和过去分词)

参考例句：

• The new drug has not yet been licensed in the US. 这种新药尚未在美国获得许可。
• Is that gun licensed? 那支枪有持枪执照吗？

6 maritime   

adj.海的，海事的，航海的，近海的，沿海的

参考例句：

• Many maritime people are fishermen.许多居于海滨的人是渔夫。
• The temperature change in winter is less in maritime areas.冬季沿海的温差较小。

7 illiterate   

adj.文盲的；无知的；n.文盲

参考例句：

• There are still many illiterate people in our country.在我国还有许多文盲。
• I was an illiterate in the old society,but now I can read.我这个旧社会的文盲，今天也认字了。

8 spouses   

n.配偶，夫或妻( spouse的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Jobs are available for spouses on campus and in the community. 校园里和社区里有配偶可做的工作。 来自辞典例句
• An astonishing number of spouses-most particularly in the upper-income brackets-have no close notion of their husbands'paychecks. 相当大一部分妇女——特别在高收入阶层——并不很了解他们丈夫的薪金。 来自辞典例句

9 administrative   

adj.行政的，管理的

参考例句：

• The administrative burden must be lifted from local government.必须解除地方政府的行政负担。
• He regarded all these administrative details as beneath his notice.他认为行政管理上的这些琐事都不值一顾。

10 prosecuted   

a.被起诉的

参考例句：

• The editors are being prosecuted for obscenity. 编辑因刊载污秽文字而被起诉。
• The company was prosecuted for breaching the Health and Safety Act. 这家公司被控违反《卫生安全条例》。

11 negligent   

adj.疏忽的；玩忽的；粗心大意的

参考例句：

• The committee heard that he had been negligent in his duty.委员会听说他玩忽职守。
• If the government is proved negligent,compensation will be payable.如果证明是政府的疏忽，就应支付赔偿。

12 anonymous   

adj.无名的；匿名的；无特色的

参考例句：

• Sending anonymous letters is a cowardly act.寄匿名信是懦夫的行为。
• The author wishes to remain anonymous.作者希望姓名不公开。

13 cemetery   

n.坟墓，墓地，坟场

参考例句：

• He was buried in the cemetery.他被葬在公墓。
• His remains were interred in the cemetery.他的遗体葬在墓地。

14 outskirts   

n.郊外，郊区

参考例句：

• Our car broke down on the outskirts of the city.我们的汽车在市郊出了故障。
• They mostly live on the outskirts of a town.他们大多住在近郊。

15 shrine   

n.圣地，神龛，庙；v.将...置于神龛内，把...奉为神圣

参考例句：

• The shrine was an object of pilgrimage.这处圣地是人们朝圣的目的地。
• They bowed down before the shrine.他们在神龛前鞠躬示敬。

16 undue   

adj.过分的；不适当的；未到期的

参考例句：

• Don't treat the matter with undue haste.不要过急地处理此事。
• It would be wise not to give undue importance to his criticisms.最好不要过分看重他的批评。