VOA标准英语2009-Annan Gives Kenya Deadline for Election Viol

Former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, who mediated¹ a power-sharing agreement between Kenya's main political parties last year following disputed elections, says the country's leaders have until August to set up a tribunal to try those responsible for organizing post-election violence. If they fail to do so, Mr. Annan says he will forward the names of the chief suspects to the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
　
Kofi Annan (file)

As part of the power-sharing agreement, a committee was set up to investigate the political and ethnic² violence that killed more than 1,300 people and displaced over 300,000 following disputed elections in December 2007. That committee identified 10 key suspects, supposedly including high-profile political and business leaders, whose names were handed to former U.N. secretary-general Kofi Annan in a sealed envelope.

The initial commission recommended Mr. Annan pass the names to the International Criminal Court if Kenya failed to create the tribunal by this past February. The government introduced a bill to do so, but it was defeated in parliament.

Mr. Annan allowed Kenya's leaders more time to set up the tribunal, but there has been little movement since then. He told BBC radio he has been in discussions with President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga, the leaders of Kenya's two main political factions³, and they have agreed to try again to pass the necessary legislation.

The former U.N. chief said if the court is not created within a "reasonable period," which he identified as the end of August, he would be forced to hand over the names to the International Criminal Court.

Mr. Odinga claimed he won the 2007 election, but the president's party rigged the results. The episode set off a wave of political and ethnic violence in several parts of the country.

With the help of pressure from international leaders, Mr. Annan negotiated the power-sharing government. The coalition⁴ has held together with no major outbreaks of violence, but that two sides have continuously bickered⁵ over the terms of the arrangement, and have made little progress on promised reforms.

Many of those who opposed the bill in parliament said they did not trust Kenya's justice system to handle a serious investigation⁶, saying The Hague would be a better option. But observers say that many of the opponents are likely motivated by self-interest, seeing the international option as less likely to provide scrutiny⁷.

John Mututho, a lawmaker from Naivasha, one of the towns worst-affected by the violence, has endorsed⁸ sending the names to the international court, saying the local process is likely to continue to be plagued by delays, and could be disruptive as the next elections approach.

"If he wants to act, let him act now," Mututho said. "I do not see why we need deadlines. By the time they set up that thing, then we are going another one year. Then we shall be only half a year to start campaigns and then after that people will not understand the importance of maintaining peace in such a situation like this."

But Ngari Gituku, a fellow at the Kenya Leadership Institute, says he believes the president and prime minister are earnest in their desire to establish a local tribunal.

"We have the whole month of June, we have July, and I am sure the president, in conjunction with the prime minister, must have put certain things in place to ensure that the things that Kofi Annan is talking about will be done well before that time comes up," Gituku said.

Mr. Annan said a local court would be the best option, noting the importance of trying suspects within their community.

That view is shared by many human rights and legal groups, who point out that Kenya may not be a high priority for the international court, and that if it is taken up, the process could move very slowly. The International Criminal Court has said it is watching developments in Kenya.

1 mediated   

调停，调解，斡旋( mediate的过去式和过去分词 )； 居间促成； 影响…的发生； 使…可能发生

参考例句：

• He mediated in the quarrel between the two boys. 他调解两个孩子之间的争吵。
• The government mediated between the workers and the employers. 政府在工人与雇主间搞调和。

2 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

3 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

4 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。

5 bickered   

v.争吵( bicker的过去式和过去分词 )；口角；（水等）作潺潺声；闪烁

参考例句：

• The afternoon sun bickered through the leaves. 午后的阳光闪烁于树叶之间。 来自辞典例句
• They bickered over [about] some unimportant thing. 他们为芝麻小事争吵。 来自辞典例句

6 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。

7 scrutiny   

n.详细检查，仔细观察

参考例句：

• His work looks all right,but it will not bear scrutiny.他的工作似乎很好，但是经不起仔细检查。
• Few wives in their forties can weather such a scrutiny.很少年过四十的妻子经得起这么仔细的观察。

8 endorsed   

vt.& vi.endorse的过去式或过去分词形式v.赞同( endorse的过去式和过去分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• The committee endorsed an initiative by the chairman to enter discussion about a possible merger. 委员会通过了主席提出的新方案，开始就可能进行的并购进行讨论。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The government has broadly endorsed a research paper proposing new educational targets for 14-year-olds. 政府基本上支持建议对14 岁少年实行新教育目标的研究报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》