VOA常速英语2008年-Deadlock Deepens in Kenya Power-Sharing Deal

By Derek Kilner
Nairobi
08 April 2008

Kenya's opposition¹ has announced that it is suspending talks about the formation of a power-sharing government until the president's party agrees to conditions on how to implement² a plan signed by the two sides in February. Derek Kilner reports from Nairobi.

Following a meeting of lawmakers from the opposition Orange Democratic Movement, party Secretary-General Anyang Nyong'o read a statement announcing that talks on establishing a coalition³ cabinet have been suspended until the president's Party of National Unity⁴ commits to sharing power equally in the government.

"It is now crystal clear to the country that PNU is extremely reluctant to honor the accord in the first place," said Nyong'o. "In fact by his utterances⁵ and deeds since the signing of the accord, President Mwai Kibaki has demonstrated his contempt for and reluctance⁶ to forming a grand coalition government as the constitution demands and the people of Kenya expect him to do."

Opposition leader Raila Odinga, who is set to take up the newly created position of prime minister, Monday accused the president's party of backtracking on commitments regarding the composition of the Cabinet and the extent of power-sharing in government positions below the ministerial level.

The statement also called for the Cabinet ministers who had been appointed before the agreement was signed to step down, and for a reduction in the size of the cabinet from the 40 ministers that had earlier been agreed. The large Cabinet size has been widely criticized in Kenya as a waste of resources.

Following a similar meeting of members of President Kibaki's party, Vice⁷ President Kalonzo Musyoka said the president remains⁸ committed to reaching an agreement as soon as possible, and is open to further negotiation⁹ on the size and composition of the Cabinet.

"People have accused President Kibaki sometimes of being indecisive," said Musyoka. "I want you to know that you cannot have a more tolerant head of state anywhere in the world. But I think he is now about to take the bull by the horns."

Musyoka also said his side would be open to new elections if the talks do not succeed, and urged foreign diplomats¹⁰ not to take sides in the negotiations¹¹. Odinga met earlier in the day with European diplomats.

Meanwhile, police used tear gas to disperse¹² protesters in Nairobi's vast Kibera slum, raising fears that the current dispute could reignite the type of unrest the country experienced following December's disputed elections. Kibera, a stronghold of Odinga, was one of the centers of the post-election violence that killed about 1,200 people and displaced hundreds of thousands.

Former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan mediated¹³ a power-sharing agreement between President Kibaki and Odinga in February. But the two sides have been deadlocked¹⁴ recently over the appointment of ministers to the coalition government, with the opposition saying the president's party is unwilling¹⁵ to concede a fair share of powerful ministries¹⁶.

Both sides say they are still committed to reaching agreement on the Cabinet, but the gap between their positions appears wider than ever. Whatever the outcome of the Cabinet discussions, the episode has raised serious concerns about how well a coalition government will be able to operate, given the distrust that persists between the two sides.

1 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。

2 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。

3 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。

4 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

5 utterances   

n.发声( utterance的名词复数 )；说话方式；语调；言论

参考例句：

• John Maynard Keynes used somewhat gnomic utterances in his General Theory. 约翰·梅纳德·凯恩斯在其《通论》中用了许多精辟言辞。 来自辞典例句
• Elsewhere, particularly in his more public utterances, Hawthorne speaks very differently. 在别的地方，特别是在比较公开的谈话里，霍桑讲的话则完全不同。 来自辞典例句

6 reluctance   

n.厌恶，讨厌，勉强，不情愿

参考例句：

• The police released Andrew with reluctance.警方勉强把安德鲁放走了。
• He showed the greatest reluctance to make a reply.他表示很不愿意答复。

7 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

8 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。

9 negotiation   

n.谈判，协商

参考例句：

• They closed the deal in sugar after a week of negotiation.经过一星期的谈判，他们的食糖生意成交了。
• The negotiation dragged on until July.谈判一直拖到7月份。

10 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》

11 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

12 disperse   

vi.使分散；使消失；vt.分散；驱散

参考例句：

• The cattle were swinging their tails to disperse the flies.那些牛甩动着尾巴驱赶苍蝇。
• The children disperse for the holidays.孩子们放假了。

13 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。

14 deadlocked   

陷入僵局的；僵持不下的

参考例句：

• The plan deadlocked over the funds. 这个计划由于经费问题而搁浅了。
• The meeting deadlocked over the wage issue. 会议因工资问题而停顿下来。

15 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

16 ministries   

（政府的）部( ministry的名词复数 )； 神职； 牧师职位； 神职任期

参考例句：

• Local authorities must refer everything to the central ministries. 地方管理机构应请示中央主管部门。
• The number of Ministries has been pared down by a third. 部委的数量已经减少了1/3。