VOA常速英语2008年-Rice Urges Compromise Following One-Day Trip to

Rice Urges Compromise Following One-Day Trip to Nairobi
By Scott Bobb
Nairobi
18 February 2008

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice Monday urged the parties in Kenya's reconciliation¹ talks to compromise and share power. The U.S. official met Kenyan leaders Monday during a one-day visit that was seen as raising international pressure for a political settlement to the disputed Kenyan elections. VOA's Scott Bobb reports from Nairobi.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice ended her one-day visit to Kenya Monday urging government and opposition² negotiators to compromise in order to end the crisis that has paralyzed the government and is threatening economic growth.

"It is extremely important that this country be able to move forward," Rice noted³. "That means that the political leaders from all persuasions⁴, all sides, need to come to an agreement. They need to have a power sharing arrangement which will allow the governance of Kenya to go forward."

She said chief mediator⁵ Kofi Annan had made good progress in working with the parties to close several outstanding issues.

"There is the remaining issue of governance and that structure needs to be decided⁶. There needs to be a coalition⁷," she said. "They need to share power and share responsibility for the governing of this country."

Nevertheless she acknowledged differences remain over how to achieve this goal.

The two sides have agreed on the need for a political solution to the Kenya crisis, but government negotiators have rejected power sharing, which the opposition demands.

Rice said real power sharing means the parties that come into any kind of coalition have to have responsibilities and authorities that matter. It cannot be an illusion of power sharing, she said, it has to be real.

She made the remarks after meeting separately with Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki, opposition leader Raila Odinga and chief mediator Kofi Annan.

Mr. Kibaki's office issued a statement saying that the Kenyan president during his meeting reaffirmed his commitment to the ongoing⁸ dialogue chaired by Mr. Annan and continue to look for an amicable⁹ solution to the current political challenges.

Rice was sent to Kenya by President Bush who also said the U.S. government wants to see a power sharing agreement.

Kenya's Foreign Minister Moses Wetangula reacted angrily to the remark, saying any solution must be a Kenyan one because anything less would be superficial and possibly counterproductive.

"We encourage our friends to support us, to encourage us, but not to make any mistake of putting a gun on anybody's head and say 'either or,' because that cannot work," Wetangula said.

Mr. Annan underscored that the international community is not seeking to force a solution on Kenyan leaders.

"No one is here to dictate¹⁰, but we are here in solidarity," Annan said. "And you will remember when we arrived I said we have not come to impose a solution, but we are here to insist on one."

The two sides last week signed an agreement that calls for an independent investigation¹¹ into the disputed elections. A wave of violence erupted after the vote in which 1,000 people were killed and several hundred-thousand more were displaced.

The accord calls for prosecution¹² of those responsible for the violence and for the creation of a truth and reconciliation commission. And it calls for sweeping¹³ reforms to the Kenyan constitution, electoral laws, political institutions, and security forces.

The government and opposition negotiators are due to take up issues surrounding governance when talks with Mr. Annan resume Tuesday.

1 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

2 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。

3 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

4 persuasions   

n.劝说，说服（力）( persuasion的名词复数 )；信仰

参考例句：

• To obtain more advertisting it needed readers of all political persuasions. 为获得更多的广告，它需要迎合各种政治见解的读者。 来自辞典例句
• She lingered, and resisted my persuasions to departure a tiresome while. 她踌躇不去，我好说歹说地劝她走，她就是不听。 来自辞典例句

5 mediator   

n.调解人，中介人

参考例句：

• He always takes the role of a mediator in any dispute.他总是在争论中充当调停人的角色。
• He will appear in the role of mediator.他将出演调停者。

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

7 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

8 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

9 amicable   

adj.和平的，友好的；友善的

参考例句：

• The two nations reached an amicable agreement.两国达成了一项友好协议。
• The two nations settled their quarrel in an amicable way.两国以和睦友好的方式解决了他们的争端。

10 dictate   

v.口授；(使)听写；指令，指示，命令

参考例句：

• It took him a long time to dictate this letter.口述这封信花了他很长时间。
• What right have you to dictate to others?你有什么资格向别人发号施令？

11 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。

12 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

13 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？