VOA常速英语2008年-EU Adds to Pressure on Zimbabwe for Election Re

By Tendai Maphosa
London
17 April 2008

The European Commission has said further delay in releasing Zimbabwe's presidential election results is unacceptable. As Tendai Maphosa reports from London the EU call is part of the ever-growing chorus for the result to be published without further delay.

In Brussels, EU spokesman John Clancy said the publication of the results is needed now. He added that the European Commission, along with the rest of the international community continues to watch and wait for action.

"The publication of the results is also in the interests of the Zimbabwe people, who want democracy and they simply want better living conditions. So further delays are in our viewpoint are unacceptable and will just be considered as stalling the democratic process," he said.

Clancy's comments follow British Prime Minister Gordon Brown's criticism of Zimbabwe's authorities Wednesday during a U.N. Security Council meeting. He openly accused President Robert Mugabe of stealing the election. Mr. Brown said having seen the results at polling stations, it is clear Mr. Mugabe lost.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon also repeated his call for the results to be released.

He warned that unless there is a transparent¹ solution to the deadlock², the situation could deteriorate³ further, with serious implications for the people of Zimbabwe. Mr. Ban again offered U.N. assistance, especially if a second round of "fair and transparent" elections if needed.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice called Thursday for Zimbabwe's neighbors to press for an end to the post-election political crisis. Rice called the last few years of Mugabe's rule in Zimbabwe, "an abomination," and said its up to that country whether he should step down.

In South Africa, government communications chief Themba Maseko described the situation as dire⁴. He said there is a need for further talks. Maseko said the delay in releasing the results is cause for great concern.

"South Africa, like the rest of the world, is concerned about the delay in the release of the results and the anxiety that this was generating," he said. "We are keen to see a speedy release of the election results as soon as possible."

The opposition⁵ Movement for Democratic Change's leader Morgan Tsvangirai claims victory over President Robert Mugabe who has led the country since independence in 1980. He has accused Mugabe of delaying in order to rig the results.

The ruling ZANU-PF and some independent observers say Tsvangirai did not get the more than 50 percent of the vote to avoid a second round run-off. Zimbabwe's government accuses the opposition leader of plotting with former colonial power Britain to bring about regime change.

Meanwhile, Britain's Foreign Office issued a statement advising against all but essential travel to Zimbabwe, citing the continuing tension surrounding the election and the deployment⁶ of uniformed forces (police and military) and war veterans around the country. The statement described the situation in Zimbabwe as "unpredictable, volatile⁷ and could deteriorate quickly, without warning."

1 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。

2 deadlock   

n.僵局，僵持

参考例句：

• The negotiations reached a deadlock after two hours.两小时后，谈判陷入了僵局。
• The employers and strikers are at a deadlock over the wage.雇主和罢工者在工资问题上相持不下。

3 deteriorate   

v.变坏；恶化；退化

参考例句：

• Do you think relations between China and Japan will continue to deteriorate?你认为中日关系会继续恶化吗？
• He held that this would only cause the situation to deteriorate further.他认为，这只会使局势更加恶化。

4 dire   

adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的

参考例句：

• There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
• We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。

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 deployment   

n. 部署,展开

参考例句：

• He has inquired out the deployment of the enemy troops. 他已查出敌军的兵力部署情况。
• Quality function deployment (QFD) is a widely used customer-driven quality, design and manufacturing management tool. 质量功能展开(quality function deployment,QFD)是一个广泛应用的顾客需求驱动的设计、制造和质量管理工具。

7 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。