voa标准英语2008-Tens of Thousands of Guineans Attend Conte Funer

Thousands of Guineans turned out Friday to pay their respects to former President Lansana Conte, whose death this week sparked a military coup¹. Mutinous² soldiers have consolidated³ power with the resignation of Guinea's prime minister.
　

Guinean soldiers escort the remains4 of late dictator Lansana Conte arriving at the stadium from the People's Palace during his funeral ceremony in Conakry, 26 Dec 2008

Thousands of people took part in services marking President Conte's death.

Heads of state from neighboring Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Ivory Coast, and Sierra Leone watched as Conte's coffin⁵ entered the People's Palace draped in Guinea's red, yellow, and green national flag. The prime minister of Mali attended the services as did African Union Commission Chairman Jean Ping.

Conte allies eulogized the long-time leader. Guinea's deposed⁶ Prime Minister Ahmed Tidiane Souare was joined by more than two dozen former government officials who have surrendered to mutinous soldiers.

Conte's coffin was taken to the city's central stadium where most people were dressed in white, the traditional Muslim color of mourning.
　

Captain Moussa Camara, 25 Dec 2008

Coup leader Captain Moussa Camara did not attend the memorial services. His second-in-command, General Mamadou Toto Camara did not explain the captain's absence but said the military reassures⁷ Guineans that it will guarantee their well-being⁸.

General Camara said the military pays homage⁹ to President Conte and prays to God to give them the courage to continue his work of tolerance¹⁰ and peace.

Junior officers launched their coup Tuesday within hours of President Conte's death. Souare and other government officials tried to hang on to power, appealing for popular support and international pressure to put down the military take-over.

But a reporter for VOA in Conakry says no one tried to stop the mutinous soldiers. They paraded Captain Camara through the streets of the capital Wednesday evening, carrying him to the presidential palace and proclaiming him the nation's new leader.
　

Guinean PM Ahmed Tidiane Souare (L) talks to media at army camp near Conakry, 25 Dec 2008

Coup leaders consolidated their power with Souare's resignation Thursday. Addressing Captain Camara as the president of the newly-formed National Council for Democracy and Development, Souare said all members of the former government are at the military's disposal for the good of the nation.

Captain Camara had given former government officials until Thursday evening to turn themselves in or risk being caught-up in a nationwide sweep of those still loyal to the former government. Still unaccounted for is National Assembly Speaker Aboubacar Sompare who, under Guinea's constitution, should have been named president ahead of elections in 60 days.

The African Union, United States and European Union are calling for Guinea to quickly return to democratic rule.

Camara says his ruling council of six civilians¹¹ and 26 soldiers will organize "free, credible¹², and transparent¹³" elections in December 2010. He told reporters he will not be a candidate in that election because he said soldiers have no wish to cling to power.

A statement on national radio said coup leaders will meet with political, religious, and labor¹⁴ leaders Saturday morning ahead of talks with representatives from the United Nations, the
African Union, the European Union and the Group of Eight leading industrialized nations.

France currently holds the rotating chair of the European Union. A French Foreign Ministry¹⁵ spokesman said foreign diplomats¹⁶ will meet in the capital Conakry Saturday.
　

Guinea President Lansana Conte (file photo)

Lansana Conte was only Guinea's second head of state, ruling for nearly 25 years after taking power in a coup following the death of post-independence leader Ahmed Sekou Toure. President Conte was thought to be in his 70s and had been ill for some time. He was a heavy smoker¹⁷ who suffered from diabetes¹⁸.

He first won election as president in 1993 in a vote protested by political opponents because some results were canceled. He survived a February 1996 army mutiny over pay in which at least 40 people were killed. The president was captured by mutineers who later freed him when he promised to raise salaries for troops.

President Conte was re-elected in 1998 after his main challenger was jailed for sedition¹⁹. A referendum changing the constitution to remove term limits allowed President Conte to run again in 2003. Most opposition²⁰ parties boycotted²¹ that ballot²², and he was re-elected with more than 95 percent of the vote. He survived a 2005 assassination²³ attempt and a general strike and army mutiny last year.

President Conte is being buried in his village about 100 kilometers outside the capital.

1 coup   

n.政变；突然而成功的行动

参考例句：

• The monarch was ousted by a military coup.那君主被军事政变者废黜了。
• That government was overthrown in a military coup three years ago.那个政府在3年前的军事政变中被推翻。

2 mutinous   

adj.叛变的，反抗的；adv.反抗地，叛变地；n.反抗，叛变

参考例句：

• The mutinous sailors took control of the ship.反叛的水手们接管了那艘船。
• His own army,stung by defeats,is mutinous.经历失败的痛楚后，他所率军队出现反叛情绪。

3 consolidated   

a.联合的

参考例句：

• With this new movie he has consolidated his position as the country's leading director. 他新执导的影片巩固了他作为全国最佳导演的地位。
• Those two banks have consolidated and formed a single large bank. 那两家银行已合并成一家大银行。

4 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

5 coffin   

n.棺材，灵柩

参考例句：

• When one's coffin is covered,all discussion about him can be settled.盖棺论定。
• The coffin was placed in the grave.那口棺材已安放到坟墓里去了。

6 deposed   

v.罢免( depose的过去式和过去分词 )；（在法庭上）宣誓作证

参考例句：

• The president was deposed in a military coup. 总统在军事政变中被废黜。
• The head of state was deposed by the army. 国家元首被军队罢免了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 reassures   

v.消除恐惧或疑虑，恢复信心( reassure的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• A significant benefit of Undo is purely psychological: It reassures users. 撤销的一个很大好处纯粹是心理上的，它让用户宽心。 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓
• Direct eye contact reassures the person that you are confident and honest. 直接的目光接触让人相信你的自信和诚实。 来自口语例句

8 well-being   

n.安康，安乐，幸福

参考例句：

• He always has the well-being of the masses at heart.他总是把群众的疾苦挂在心上。
• My concern for their well-being was misunderstood as interference.我关心他们的幸福，却被误解为多管闲事。

9 homage   

n.尊敬，敬意，崇敬

参考例句：

• We pay homage to the genius of Shakespeare.我们对莎士比亚的天才表示敬仰。
• The soldiers swore to pay their homage to the Queen.士兵们宣誓效忠于女王陛下。

10 tolerance   

n.宽容；容忍，忍受；耐药力；公差

参考例句：

• Tolerance is one of his strengths.宽容是他的一个优点。
• Human beings have limited tolerance of noise.人类对噪音的忍耐力有限。

11 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

12 credible   

adj.可信任的，可靠的

参考例句：

• The news report is hardly credible.这则新闻报道令人难以置信。
• Is there a credible alternative to the nuclear deterrent?是否有可以取代核威慑力量的可靠办法？

13 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

14 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

15 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

16 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 smoker   

n.吸烟者，吸烟车厢，吸烟室

参考例句：

• His wife dislikes him to be a smoker.他妻子不喜欢他当烟民。
• He is a moderate smoker.他是一个有节制的烟民。

18 diabetes   

n.糖尿病

参考例句：

• In case of diabetes, physicians advise against the use of sugar.对于糖尿病患者，医生告诫他们不要吃糖。
• Diabetes is caused by a fault in the insulin production of the body.糖尿病是由体內胰岛素分泌失调引起的。

19 sedition   

n.煽动叛乱

参考例句：

• Government officials charged him with sedition.政府官员指控他煽动人们造反。
• His denial of sedition was a denial of violence.他对煽动叛乱的否定又是对暴力的否定。

20 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。

21 boycotted   

抵制，拒绝参加( boycott的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Athletes from several countries boycotted the Olympic Games. 有好几国的运动员抵制奥林匹克运动会。
• The opposition party earlier boycotted the Diet agenda, demanding Miyaji's resignation. 反对党曾杯葛国会议程，要宫路下台。

22 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

23 assassination   

n.暗杀；暗杀事件

参考例句：

• The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
• Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年，林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。