VOA标准英语2010年-International Community Urges Ivory Co

International pressure is mounting for Ivory Coast to hold its long-delayed presidential elections, as controversy¹ over the voter list threatens to once again push back the poll.

In January, President Laurent Gbagbo accused the Independent Electoral Commission of approving a voter list for the presidential elections that contains the names of almost one-half million foreigners. The Ivorian government ordered an investigation² into the fraud allegations, and Mr. Gbagbo's accusations³ were followed by calls for the head of the electoral commission to resign.

Denying the fraud allegations, electoral commission head, Robert Mambé, said that voter list should never have been released.

Questions of nationality were divisive during the civil war in 2002 and remain sensitive in Ivory Coast, which has a large immigrant population.

In a statement released Sunday, the former rebel faction⁴ in the North, the New Forces, denounced what they called attempts to remove northerners from the already published provisional voter rolls, by questioning their nationality.

Ivorian officials have said political fights over the voter list will not delay the poll, but observers fear otherwise.

Last week, the United Nations Security Council extended the mandate⁵ of the U.N. peacekeeping mission in Ivory Coast until May 30, hoping to encourage elections by extending the mandate for only four months instead of six.

US Ambassador to the United Nations, Susan Rice (File)

U.S. Ambassador Susan Rice said the Security Council hoped elections would take place by the end of May and called repeated delays "a source of real concern" for the United States and the Council.

"There was a very unfortunate incident in which a false voter list was released and that has set back the process further," Rice noted⁶.  "It is our view that the steps need to be taken by the Ivorian authorities to ensure that the election happens properly but also that the conditions for it are such that the people of Ivory Coast can all participate, that all eligible⁷ voters are allowed to cast their ballots⁸ and that it happen in a transparent⁹ and legitimate¹⁰ fashion," she said.

At a summit of the African Union in Ethiopia Sunday, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon urged Ivory Coast "to overcome the outstanding issues and set a definite date for the elections," ideally holding them before the end of March.

The World Bank, which has already forgiven 55 percent of Ivory Coast's debt to it, has tied further debt relief to the holding of elections.

World Bank President Robert Zoellick, who left the Ivorian commercial capital, Abidjan, Saturday, said the world has been waiting for this presidential poll.  And he deplored¹¹ what could be another delay, resulting from recent issues with the voter list.

World Bank Pres. Robert Zoellick (R) is greeted by the Pres. of Ivory Coast Laurent Gbagbo at the Presidential Palace in Abidjan, 29 Jan 2010

"I was encouraged that both the president and the opposition¹² seemed to want to move forward on those elections, and I tried to do what I could to say that we thought that moving forward on those elections would enable us to help with further debt relief and further investment in the country," said Zoellick.  "That's not only important for the people of Ivory Coast. Ivory Coast is a big economy in this region. It is important for stability and growth in the region as well," he said.

Ivory Coast was once an economic powerhouse in West Africa. It is the world's leading cocoa producer.  But the political stalemate has prevented much-needed reforms to the cocoa sector¹³, such as reducing high taxes on cocoa farmers. Zoellick called these reforms a "fundamental issue" for Ivory Coast.

The vote is an attempt to find a lasting¹⁴ political solution to nearly a decade of internal conflict in the once stable West African nation, but voter registration¹⁵ issues have prompted Ivory Coast to push back the election several times since President Gbagbo's mandate ran out in 2005.

The opposition has accused Mr. Gbagbo and his government of stalling elections to remain in power.

The election is currently planned for March, but no date has been announced.

 

1 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

2 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

3 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

4 faction   

n.宗派，小集团；派别；派系斗争

参考例句：

• Faction and self-interest appear to be the norm.派系之争和自私自利看来非常普遍。
• I now understood clearly that I was caught between the king and the Bunam's faction.我现在完全明白自己已陷入困境，在国王与布纳姆集团之间左右为难。

5 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

6 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

7 eligible   

adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的

参考例句：

• He is an eligible young man.他是一个合格的年轻人。
• Helen married an eligible bachelor.海伦嫁给了一个中意的单身汉。

8 ballots   

n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 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。

10 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

11 deplored   

v.悲叹，痛惜，强烈反对( deplore的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• They deplored the price of motor car, textiles, wheat, and oil. 他们悲叹汽车、纺织品、小麦和石油的价格。 来自辞典例句
• Hawthorne feels that all excess is to be deplored. 霍桑觉得一切过分的举动都是可悲的。 来自辞典例句

12 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。

13 sector   

n.部门，部分；防御地段，防区；扇形

参考例句：

• The export sector will aid the economic recovery. 出口产业将促进经济复苏。
• The enemy have attacked the British sector.敌人已进攻英国防区。

14 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

15 registration   

n.登记，注册，挂号

参考例句：

• Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
• What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？