VOA双语新闻 Iraqis Postpone National Conference

Iraqi officials say they have postponed¹ a key national conference that was scheduled to start on Saturday. The aim was to choose a special council to oversee² the new interim³ government.

伊拉克官员说，他们推迟了原定星期六举行的一次重要全国性会议。这次会议的目的是要选出一个监督临时政府工作的特别委员会。

Sources close to the organizers of the conference say it has been delayed at the request of the United Nations, which wanted more time to prepare. It is now expected to take place in mid-August.

与大会组织者关系密切的有关方面说，推迟是应联合国的要求，联合国希望伊拉克有更多时间准备这次大会。目前，会议可望在8月中旬召开。

The point of the conference is to select a national council, which will advise and oversee the Iraqi interim government, serving as a watchdog of sorts. About 1000 delegates from all over the country were expected to take part in the conference and pick the 100-member national council.

会议目的是要选出一个全国委员会，由它来引导和监督伊拉克临时政府的工作，起到一种类似监督的作用。来自全国大约一千名代表将出席会议，由他们挑选委员会的一百位成员。

But how important is this to the average Iraqi? Some, including 35-year-old high school teacher Ahmed Mohammed Arif, have been following the process pretty carefully.

这次会议对普通伊拉克人很重要。一些平民很关心会议的进程，其中包括三十五岁的高中老师阿里夫。

"Not only me, me and most of the Iraqis, they are concerned about this council. It's a very important step for Iraq to be on the right way to democracy," he said.

阿里夫说：“不止是我，我和大多数伊拉克人都很看重这个委员会。它对伊拉克走上民主的正确道路非常重要。”

But the interim government and the United Nations may want to use the next two weeks to spread the word, because many Iraqis appear to have no idea what the conference or the national council are all about. But that does not keep them from having high expectations.

然而，临时政府和联合国也许还需要用两个礼拜的时间来传达这个消息，因为许多伊拉克人似乎一点也不了解这个大会和委员会的情况。但是，这并不影响他们有较高的期望值。

College student Ahmed Ali said that this is the first time he has heard of the national council.He added that the most important thing is holding a free election to choose a government that will represent all Iraqis, not like the former regime, which only represented a few. The main thing, he says, is that the election should be honest.

大学生阿里说，这是他第一次听说全国委员会。他说：“最重要的就是自由选举，选出一个能代表所有伊拉克人民的政府，而不是象以前的政体，仅仅代表少数人。主要的就是有一个诚实的选举。”

Engineer Luay Majid Al-Azzawi, 35, says he has heard of the national council, but he is not sure what it is supposed to do.

三十三岁的工程师阿扎维说，他听说过全国委员会，但不清楚具体的工作。

"We do not know anything about this council," he said. "What we want is to see an improvement in security and the economy."

他说：“我们不知道任何有关委员会的事情。我们所期望的是国家安全和经济有所改善。”

Recent news reports have indicated that it has been hard to decide who gets to participate in the national conference, because so many groups and factions⁴ have wanted to be there. But several parties, including one prominent Sunni Muslim group, have announced that they are boycotting⁵ the conference, because they do not think it will be fair. One report indicates that the delay is at least in part aimed at convincing them to participate.

最近有消息说，出席会议的人难以决定，因为有太多的组织和团体想参加。但有些党派，比如一个著名的逊尼派穆斯林团体，宣布会抵制这个大会，因为他们认为会议不会公平。有报道说，这次推迟会议的原因，至少在一定程度上是为了说服他们参加会议。
 

1 postponed   

vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发）

参考例句：

• The trial was postponed indefinitely. 审讯无限期延迟。
• The game has already been postponed three times. 这场比赛已经三度延期了。

2 oversee   

vt.监督，管理

参考例句：

• Soldiers oversee the food handouts.士兵们看管着救济食品。
• Use a surveyor or architect to oversee and inspect the different stages of the work.请一位房产检视员或建筑师来监督并检查不同阶段的工作。

3 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

4 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

5 boycotting   

抵制，拒绝参加( boycott的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• They're boycotting the shop because the people there are on strike. 他们抵制那家商店，因为那里的店员在罢工。
• The main opposition parties are boycotting the elections. 主要反对党都抵制此次选举。