VOA标准英语2010年-Rwandan President Lashes Out at UN Ove

Rwandan president Paul Kagame has again lashed¹ out at the United Nations after a U.N. report suggested Rwandan soldiers were guilty of mass killings² and rape³ in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Making a speech in London, Mr. Kagame suggested the report's authors had deliberately⁴ given a false account. As the dispute worsens, the Rwandan leader has threatened to withdraw Rwandan peacekeepers from Sudan.

Hours before Paul Kagame was due to give his speech, his supporters had arrived outside the venue⁵ in central London to show their love for the president and celebrate his recent re-election with songs, dances and plenty of Rwandan flags.

The esteem⁶ in which they hold Mr. Kagame is matched in Britain where he was invited to give the prestigious⁷ Oppenheimer lecture at London analyst⁸ group, the International Institute for Strategic Studies.

"It is a pleasure to be here at the International Institute for Strategic Studies and an honor to speak on the challenges of nation-building in Africa," he said.

President Kagame was re-elected in August with 94 percent of the vote, amid allegations that he'd intimidated⁹ and in some cases locked up political opponents.

But it's a simmering row between Rwanda and the United Nations that's now threatening to tarnish¹⁰ his image.

Paul Kagame's forces took power in 1994 after bringing an end to the genocide of his Tutsi people by Hutus.

A leaked U.N. report accuses his troops of carrying out mass killings and rape as they pursued the Hutus into the Democratic Republic of Congo in the 1990s.

After his speech, the president rebutted¹¹ the allegations.

"They are baseless and totally untrue and flawed in many ways. To accuse Rwandan forces of committing genocide in the Congo or wherever for that matter, other than what happened in our own country, is just absurd," he said.

As the row intensifies¹² President Kagame has threatened to withdraw the 3,500 Rwandese peacekeepers from Darfur in Sudan. He says the UN's failure to stop the genocide against the Tutsis in 1994 invalidates any criticism of his forces.

Asked about the now improving relations between Rwanda and the DRC, Mr. Kagame said he believed that could be the motivation behind the U.N. report.

"While some people seem to acknowledge it is very good, other people feel threatened by it and want to undermine it. It's like 'Oh - if Rwanda and the Congo come together then what?'... there are people's jobs that are threatened by that," he said.

But Carina Tertsakian from Human Rights Watch says the Rwandan government should take the report seriously.

"The very serious abuses carried out by Rwandan troops as well as by Congolese groups in Congo in the '90s were well documented already at that time not only by U.N. teams but by different Non-Governmental Organizations, so to deny the accusations¹³ in that way is simply not credible¹⁴. The Rwandan government should treat these allegations with the seriousness that they deserve and at the very least commit to bring to justice the perpetrators of these crimes."

Back in central London, Paul Kagame's supporters aren't letting the U.N. report change the way they view their president.

"He's full of democracy, full of achievements, development and prosperity," says one supporter. "I appreciate everything he does and he's genuine. We've seen a lot of people going and coming, but he's a genuine," another supporter said.

The U.N. report into the alleged¹⁵ war crimes by Rwandan forces in the DRC is due to be officially published on 1 October. Parts of it have already been leaked - and provoked a fiery¹⁶ response. When the full details emerge, the growing tension between President Kagame and the United Nations is only likely to get worse.
 

1 lashed   

adj.具睫毛的v.鞭打( lash的过去式和过去分词 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥

参考例句：

• The rain lashed at the windows. 雨点猛烈地打在窗户上。
• The cleverly designed speech lashed the audience into a frenzy. 这篇精心设计的演说煽动听众使他们发狂。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

3 rape   

n.抢夺，掠夺，强奸；vt.掠夺，抢夺，强奸

参考例句：

• The rape of the countryside had a profound ravage on them.对乡村的掠夺给他们造成严重创伤。
• He was brought to court and charged with rape.他被带到法庭并被指控犯有强奸罪。

4 deliberately   

adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地

参考例句：

• The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。
• They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。

5 venue   

n.犯罪地点，审判地，管辖地，发生地点，集合地点

参考例句：

• The hall provided a venue for weddings and other functions.大厅给婚礼和其他社会活动提供了场所。
• The chosen venue caused great controversy among the people.人们就审判地点的问题产生了极大的争议。

6 esteem   

n.尊敬，尊重；vt.尊重，敬重；把…看作

参考例句：

• I did not esteem him to be worthy of trust.我认为他不值得信赖。
• The veteran worker ranks high in public love and esteem.那位老工人深受大伙的爱戴。

7 prestigious   

adj.有威望的，有声望的，受尊敬的

参考例句：

• The young man graduated from a prestigious university.这个年轻人毕业于一所名牌大学。
• You may even join a prestigious magazine as a contributing editor.甚至可能会加入一个知名杂志做编辑。

8 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

9 intimidated   

v.恐吓；威胁adj.害怕的；受到威胁的

参考例句：

• We try to make sure children don't feel intimidated on their first day at school. 我们努力确保孩子们在上学的第一天不胆怯。
• The thief intimidated the boy into not telling the police. 这个贼恫吓那男孩使他不敢向警察报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 tarnish   

n.晦暗，污点；vt.使失去光泽；玷污

参考例句：

• The affair could tarnish the reputation of the prime minister.这一事件可能有损首相的名誉。
• Stainless steel products won't tarnish.不锈钢产品不会失去光泽。

11 rebutted   

v.反驳，驳回( rebut的过去式和过去分词 )；击退

参考例句：

• Has Mr. Chiang or any member of his party ever rebutted this? 蒋先生及其党人曾经对这话提出过任何驳斥吗？ 来自互联网
• He rebutted the argument of the other team in a debate. 他在辩论会中反驳对方的论点。 来自互联网

12 intensifies   

n.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的名词复数 )v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• A clear atmosphere intensifies the blue of the sky. 纯净的空气使天空变得更蓝。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Blowing on fire intensifies the heat. 吹火使热度加强。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 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。

14 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？

15 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

16 fiery   

adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的

参考例句：

• She has fiery red hair.她有一头火红的头发。
• His fiery speech agitated the crowd.他热情洋溢的讲话激动了群众。