VOA标准英语2008年-Hearing Begins for 5 Suspected 9/11 Co-Conspira

By Al Pessin
Guantanamo
05 June 2008

Six-and-a-half years after the September 11 terror attacks, the accused mastermind and four other co-conspirators are facing a war-crimes tribunal at the U.S. detention¹ center at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The arraignment² of Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and the four others is the highest-profile test yet of the controversial tribunal system, which is under review by the U.S. Supreme³ Court. All five men face the death penalty if convicted. VOA's Al Pessin has this report from the Guantanamo Bay detention center.
　

Sun sets over Camp Justice and its adjacent tent city, legal complex of US Military Commissions, at Guantanamo Bay US Naval4 Base, 04 Jun 2008

The defendants⁵ will face a military judge for the first time Thursday to hear the charges against them formally read. They will have the opportunity to enter a plea and may also be allowed to speak to the court about other issues, such as the conditions of their detention and interrogation. Charges against a sixth detainee were withdrawn⁶ last month without explanation, but experts note he has claimed some of the evidence against him was obtained through torture.

This will be the first public appearance for the five men, who have been held by the U.S. government for years, first in secret CIA prisons and now at Guantanamo. Reporters, lawyers and human rights activists⁷ will be allowed to watch the hearing, but no sound, video or pictures will be made public. In addition, sound from the hearing will be delayed several seconds to enable military officials to turn it off if someone reveals secret information.

The process for trying the men before what are called Military Commissions was created specifically for detainees in the war on terrorism. But the original system was struck down by the U.S. Supreme Court, and the court is now considering a case which could invalidate the revised process. Still, the senior military officer responsible for the process, Brigadier General Thomas Hartmann says the defense⁸ department is adding dozens of staff members to his team in an effort to move forward with arraignments and trials as quickly as possible.
　

Brig. Gen. Thomas Hartmann briefs members of media at Guantanamo Bay US Naval Base, 04 Jun 2008

Speaking to reporters here Wednesday evening, General Hartmann addressed one of the main controversies⁹ surrounding the process, the use of secret evidence.

"Every piece of evidence, classified or not that goes to the finder of fact will be subject to review, cross examination, challenge and understanding by the accused and his counsel," he said.

The 'finder of fact' will be a military jury. General Hartman's statement raises the possibility that secret evidence could be revealed to al-Qaida members but not to the public, but that would likely only happen much later in the process. In these commission trials, the defendants are prosecuted¹⁰, judged and represented by U.S. military lawyers, but private lawyers have volunteered to be part of the defense team.

Activists like Joanne Mariner¹¹ of Human Rights Watch are not convinced that this process will be fair, as General Hartmann says it will. They say the military process does not sufficiently¹² protect the defendants' rights, particularly regarding evidence obtained through mistreatment. General Hartmann says that decision will be made by the military judge in each instance.

Mariner, who will be an observer at Thursday's hearing, says the relatives of the nearly three thousand victims of the attacks, and the public at large, deserve a more reliable process, like the regular U.S. federal courts.

"A case as important as the September 11th terrorist attacks on the United States should be tried fairly in federal court so that the result is some kind of finality in which both the U.S. public and the world can recognize that the result of the trial is reliable and credible," said Mariner.

The Bush administration is opposed to using federal courts to try the terrorism suspects, in part because of the secret evidence.

The best-known of the men going on trial Thursday is Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, known as the mastermind of the September 11th attacks. His alleged¹³ co-conspirators are Ramzi Binalshibh, Walid Muhammed 'Attash, Ali Abdul Aziz Ali and Mustafa al Hawsawi. Charges against Mohammed al Kahtani were dropped, but officials say they may be reinstated later. He is believed to have planned to be one of the September 11 hijackers.

The arraignment will take place in a specially¹⁴ built building on this U.S. Naval Base, not far from the detention center where 275 detainees are held. Several others have also been charged and their trials are proceeding¹⁵. Officials expect to charge and try more of the detainees, but some have been approved for release and others may remain in custody¹⁶ without being charged.

These five detainees could face the death penalty if they are convicted, but if any of them is acquitted¹⁷ he could still be kept in custody as an enemy combatant.

Both President Bush and Defense Secretary Robert Gates have said they would like to close the Guantanamo detention center, but Secretary Gates acknowledged recently that he has not made much progress toward finding an alternative way to deal with the terrorism suspects held here.

1 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。

2 arraignment   

n.提问，传讯，责难

参考例句：

• She was remanded to juvenile detention at her arraignment yesterday. 她昨天被送回了对少年拘留在她的传讯。 来自互联网
• Wyatt asks the desk clerk which courthouse he is being transferred to for arraignment. 他向接待警员询问了马宏将在哪个法庭接受传讯。 来自互联网

3 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

4 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

5 defendants   

被告( defendant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The courts heard that the six defendants had been coerced into making a confession. 法官审判时发现6位被告人曾被迫承认罪行。
• As in courts, the defendants are represented by legal counsel. 与法院相同，被告有辩护律师作为代表。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件

6 withdrawn   

vt.收回；使退出；vi.撤退，退出

参考例句：

• Our force has been withdrawn from the danger area.我们的军队已从危险地区撤出。
• All foreign troops should be withdrawn to their own countries.一切外国军队都应撤回本国去。

7 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》

8 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

9 controversies   

争论

参考例句：

• We offer no comment on these controversies here. 对于这些争议，我们在这里不作任何评论。 来自英汉非文学 - 历史
• The controversies surrounding population growth are unlikely to subside soon. 围绕着人口增长问题的争论看来不会很快平息。 来自辞典例句

10 prosecuted   

a.被起诉的

参考例句：

• The editors are being prosecuted for obscenity. 编辑因刊载污秽文字而被起诉。
• The company was prosecuted for breaching the Health and Safety Act. 这家公司被控违反《卫生安全条例》。

11 mariner   

n.水手号不载人航天探测器，海员，航海者

参考例句：

• A smooth sea never made a skillful mariner.平静的大海决不能造就熟练的水手。
• A mariner must have his eye upon rocks and sands as well as upon the North Star.海员不仅要盯着北极星，还要注意暗礁和险滩。

12 sufficiently   

adv.足够地，充分地

参考例句：

• It turned out he had not insured the house sufficiently.原来他没有给房屋投足保险。
• The new policy was sufficiently elastic to accommodate both views.新政策充分灵活地适用两种观点。

13 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

14 specially   

adv.特定地；特殊地；明确地

参考例句：

• They are specially packaged so that they stack easily.它们经过特别包装以便于堆放。
• The machine was designed specially for demolishing old buildings.这种机器是专为拆毁旧楼房而设计的。

15 proceeding   

n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报

参考例句：

• This train is now proceeding from Paris to London.这次列车从巴黎开往伦敦。
• The work is proceeding briskly.工作很有生气地进展着。

16 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

17 acquitted   

宣判…无罪( acquit的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（自己）作出某种表现

参考例句：

• The jury acquitted him of murder. 陪审团裁决他谋杀罪不成立。
• Five months ago she was acquitted on a shoplifting charge. 五个月前她被宣判未犯入店行窃罪。