2006年VOA标准英语-Rights Groups Protest Sudan President Chai

By Noel King
Khartoum
19 January 2006

The African Union Summit is set to begin early next week in the Sudanese capital, Khartoum amid a storm of controversy¹ over who will next chair the AU. Traditionally, the president of the summit's host nation assumes the chairmanship of the African Union for one year. But activists³ and rights groups in Sudan and abroad say Sudanese President Omar Al Bashir is not fit to lead the AU because of Sudan's human rights record in Darfur.

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Omar Al Bashir (File photo)  
  

More than 50 African heads of state will convene⁴ for the 2006 African Union summit in Khartoum on Monday. Sudanese president Omer Al Bashir is in line to assume the rotating AU chairmanship at the close of the summit.

But outraged⁵ rights groups say Al Bashir's human rights record in Darfur should disqualify him for the post. Al Bashir and his top officials have been accused, in numerous independent reports, of ordering and overseeing crimes against humanity in Darfur, including murder and rape⁶.

Seven-thousand AU troops are struggling to maintain a cease-fire between government forces and rebels in the war-torn region. The AU has accused both parties of violating the cease-fire.

Mudawi Ibrahim, a prominent human rights activist², and heads Sudan's largest aid organization in Darfur, says it is absurd to think Bashir can chair the AU.

"If Al Bashir assumes the leadership, that undermines the African Union completely. If these people want the African Union to be respected and to be effective they shouldn't come and make the summit here," he said. "They are actually destroying the African Union completely. They don't have any legitimacy⁷. You cannot be the chair of the peacekeepers at the same time your army is part of the conflict. How can you do that? How can you mediate⁸ if you are part of the conflict?"

Mudawi Ibrahim says he fears that Bashir's leadership would disrupt fragile peace talks between Darfuri rebels and the Sudan government in Abuja, Nigeria.

Izzedin Abdul, the co-founder of the Khartoum office of Darfur's largest rebel group, the Sudan Liberation Army, told VOA that if Bashir chairs the AU it will be a slap in the face to Darfuris.

"We have rejected even for Sudan to host the African Union summit due to the well-known situation in Sudan," he said. "Sudan is not in a position to host the African Union summit because Sudan has got its own problems and it can't solve [them.] How can it solve the problems of Africa? I think the African Union might commit a very big mistake if they elected the current regime president for the chairmanship of the AU"

The only African head of state to speak out against Bashir is Chadian President, Idris Deby, whose government is at odds⁹ with Bashir's. Chad recently accused Sudan of arming and harboring rebels who seek to overthrow¹⁰ the Chadian government.

The Sudanese government has long denied complicity in the Darfur crisis. The government is accused of arming Arab militias¹¹ to conduct a scorched¹² earth campaign to crush a 2003 rebellion.

Rebels rose against the government complaining of political and economic marginalization, sparking the conflict that has led to 180,000 deaths and displaced two million people.

1 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

2 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

3 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 convene   

v.集合，召集，召唤，聚集，集合

参考例句：

• The Diet will convene at 3p.m. tomorrow.国会将于明天下午三点钟开会。
• Senior officials convened in October 1991 in London.1991年10月，高级官员在伦敦会齐。

5 outraged   

a.震惊的，义愤填膺的

参考例句：

• Members of Parliament were outraged by the news of the assassination. 议会议员们被这暗杀的消息激怒了。
• He was outraged by their behavior. 他们的行为使他感到愤慨。

6 rape   

n.抢夺，掠夺，强奸；vt.掠夺，抢夺，强奸

参考例句：

• The rape of the countryside had a profound ravage on them.对乡村的掠夺给他们造成严重创伤。
• He was brought to court and charged with rape.他被带到法庭并被指控犯有强奸罪。

7 legitimacy   

n.合法，正当

参考例句：

• The newspaper was directly challenging the government's legitimacy.报纸直接质疑政府的合法性。
• Managing from the top down,we operate with full legitimacy.我们进行由上而下的管理有充分的合法性。

8 mediate   

vi.调解，斡旋；vt.经调解解决；经斡旋促成

参考例句：

• The state must mediate the struggle for water resources.政府必须通过调解来解决对水资源的争夺。
• They may be able to mediate between parties with different interests.他们也许能在不同利益政党之间进行斡旋。

9 odds   

n.让步，机率，可能性，比率；胜败优劣之别

参考例句：

• The odds are 5 to 1 that she will win.她获胜的机会是五比一。
• Do you know the odds of winning the lottery once?你知道赢得一次彩票的几率多大吗？

10 overthrow   

v.推翻，打倒，颠覆；n.推翻，瓦解，颠覆

参考例句：

• After the overthrow of the government,the country was in chaos.政府被推翻后，这个国家处于混乱中。
• The overthrow of his plans left him much discouraged.他的计划的失败使得他很气馁。

11 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

12 scorched   

烧焦，烤焦( scorch的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（植物）枯萎，把…晒枯； 高速行驶； 枯焦

参考例句：

• I scorched my dress when I was ironing it. 我把自己的连衣裙熨焦了。
• The hot iron scorched the tablecloth. 热熨斗把桌布烫焦了。