VOA标准英语10月-Kenya Commission Recommends Tribunal for Post-Ele

A commission established to investigate the political and ethnic¹ violence that followed Kenya's disputed December presidential elections has released its report and recommended establishing a special tribunal to try suspected perpetrators. As Derek Kilner reports from Nairobi, the report does not include the names of any of the suspects.

The commission of inquiry², headed by Justice Philip Waki, was created on the recommendation of the Panel of Eminant African Personalities³ led by former U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annan that helped mediate⁴ a power-sharing agreement between Kenya's ruling party and opposition⁵ in February.

That deal followed a wave of political and ethnic violence set off by disputed presidential elections in late December. After three months of hearings throughout the country, the commission released a 500-page report documenting the violence and its causes.

Waki said the central recommendation of the commission is the establishment of a special tribunal, composed of Kenyan and international judges, to try those suspected of the greatest involvement in the violence.

He added, "The special tribunal will be known as the Special Tribunal for Kenya. And it will be set up as a court which will sit within the territorial⁶ boundaries of Kenya and it will seek accountability against persons bearing the greatest responsibility for crimes - particularly crimes against humanity - relating to the 2007 general election. We want the tribunal to be self contained in terms of acquiring its own investigative staff, locally and internationally," Waki said.

According to deadlines included in the report, the tribunal should be set up within roughly four-and-a-half months. The commission said that if the tribunal is not established according to schedule or if it fails to serve its intended purpose, the commission will forward the names of suspects to the International Criminal Court in The Hague.

Notably⁷ absent from the report is any mention of names. Waki said the commission has evidence of involvement by prominent politicians, government officials, and businessmen. But until the tribunal is established the names of suspects will not be revealed.

Waki added, "We believe the commission's evidence forms a very firm basis for further investigations⁸ of alleged⁹ perpetrators, especially concerning those who bore the greatest responsibility for the post-election violence. In the nature of things, the premature¹⁰ disclosure of such evidence, and those it relates to exposes it to possible sabotage¹¹ or other adulteration before investigators¹² have an opportunity to assess it."

The commission is scheduled to deliver a sealed envelope containing the names to Annan on Friday.
　

A supporter of Kenya's Opposition leader Raila Odinga taunts13 a Kenyan policeman during a demonstration14 in Kisumu, Kenya, 16 Jan 2008

According to the commission, 1,133 people were killed in the violence between the election on December 27, and the end of February. That is considerably¹⁵ more than the roughly 600 deaths described by Kenyan police, though fewer than some estimates by nongovernmental organizations who have put the figure as high as 1,500.

Much of the violence was motivated by ethnic grievances¹⁶, the commission found, with some of the attacks planned ahead of time and some erupting spontaneously.

The commission also found that roughly 400 of the victims were killed as a result of gunshot wounds. And since much of the violence carried out by protesters or tribal¹⁷ gangs did not use firearms, the commission said, most of these victims were likely shot by police officers. The commission found no evidence of a shoot-to-kill order, but Waki said there was reckless use of violence by the police that should be just as troubling.

A separate commission, headed by South African Judge Johann Kriegler, was established to investigate the conduct of the 2007 election. That commission's report, released last month, urged an overhaul¹⁸ of the country's electoral commission. Kenya's cabinet said Tuesday it would implement¹⁹ the commission's recommendations.

1 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。

2 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

3 personalities   

n. 诽谤，（对某人容貌、性格等所进行的）人身攻击； 人身攻击；人格, 个性, 名人( personality的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• There seemed to be a degree of personalities in her remarks.她话里有些人身攻击的成分。
• Personalities are not in good taste in general conversation.在一般的谈话中诽谤他人是不高尚的。

4 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。

5 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。

6 territorial   

adj.领土的，领地的

参考例句：

• The country is fighting to preserve its territorial integrity.该国在为保持领土的完整而进行斗争。
• They were not allowed to fish in our territorial waters.不允许他们在我国领海捕鱼。

7 notably   

adv.值得注意地，显著地，尤其地，特别地

参考例句：

• Many students were absent,notably the monitor.许多学生缺席，特别是连班长也没来。
• A notably short,silver-haired man,he plays basketball with his staff several times a week.他个子明显较为矮小，一头银发，每周都会和他的员工一起打几次篮球。

8 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

9 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

10 premature   

adj.比预期时间早的；不成熟的，仓促的

参考例句：

• It is yet premature to predict the possible outcome of the dialogue.预言这次对话可能有什么结果为时尚早。
• The premature baby is doing well.那个早产的婴儿很健康。

11 sabotage   

n.怠工，破坏活动，破坏；v.从事破坏活动，妨害，破坏

参考例句：

• They tried to sabotage my birthday party.他们企图破坏我的生日晚会。
• The fire at the factory was caused by sabotage.那家工厂的火灾是有人蓄意破坏引起的。

12 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 taunts   

嘲弄的言语，嘲笑，奚落( taunt的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He had to endure the racist taunts of the crowd. 他不得不忍受那群人种族歧视的奚落。
• He had to endure the taunts of his successful rival. 他不得不忍受成功了的对手的讥笑。

14 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

15 considerably   

adv.极大地；相当大地；在很大程度上

参考例句：

• The economic situation has changed considerably.经济形势已发生了相当大的变化。
• The gap has narrowed considerably.分歧大大缩小了。

16 grievances   

n.委屈( grievance的名词复数 )；苦衷；不满；牢骚

参考例句：

• The trade union leader spoke about the grievances of the workers. 工会领袖述说工人们的苦情。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》
• He gave air to his grievances. 他申诉了他的冤情。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

18 overhaul   

v./n.大修，仔细检查

参考例句：

• Master Worker Wang is responsible for the overhaul of this grinder.王师傅主修这台磨床。
• It is generally appreciated that the rail network needs a complete overhaul.众所周知，铁路系统需要大检修。

19 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。