VOA标准英语2011--US Criticizes Sudan’s Bashir Over Abye

US Criticizes Sudan’s Bashir Over Abyei Comments

The United States on Thursday criticized an assertion by Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir that Khartoum will not recognize South Sudan as independent, if it claims the disputed Abyei region. South Sudan is set to become fully¹ independent in July.
The State Department's top Africa diplomat² is framing Bashir's comments on Abyei as unhelpful, and is urging leaders in Khartoum and the southern capital Juba to recommit to negotiations³ to settle remaining north-south disputes.
The Sudanese president has pledged to respect the results of the January referendum, in which southern Sudanese voted overwhelmingly for independence to take effect on July 9.
But the process appeared to hit a snag this week when Bashir said his government would never recognize an independent south, if it tries to claim the oil-rich central Abyei region.
In a talk with reporters here, Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson said the parties need to set aside threatening rhetoric⁴ and peacefully settle their remaining issues under their 2005 Comprehensive Peace Accord, or CPA, before July.
"Those comments are not helpful at all, and they only serve to inflame⁵ and heighten tensions. It is important that both sides - those in Khartoum and those in Juba - focus intensely on trying to resolve the key issues that have not been completed under the CPA. Abyei is one of them. This must be done before July 9. And it important that President Bashir and the President of South Sudan, Salva Kiir, continue to meet, negotiate, to resolve these issues as quickly as possible," he said.
Carson also said he has intervened with Uganda's government over its treatment of opposition⁶ leader Kizza Besigye, who was arrested on Thursday for the fourth time this month.
Besigye, who finished second in Uganda's February election behind President Yoweri Museveni, has been leading protests in Kampala against alleged⁷ corruption⁸, and soaring food and fuel prices.
Carson said he telephoned Ugandan Foreign Minister Sam Kuteesa earlier Thursday to protest what he said was the apparent serious mistreatment of Besigye, and the arrests of other opposition figures.
"We have expressed our concern about what appears to be harassment⁹ of Dr. Bisigye. I have myself spoken to the Ugandan foreign minister about this, and have urged that the Ugandan government act in both a responsible and civil fashion in dealing¹⁰ with the arrest of individuals attempting to carry out peaceful protests," said Carson.
Carson said he urged reconciliation¹¹ and the opening of political space for peaceful protests in Uganda, and said he was told that Museveni plans to meet opposition leaders next week to ease tensions.
The assistant secretary, who was among international observers of Nigeria's April 16 presidential election, hailed the country's multistage electoral process this month as its most successful since the end of military rule in 1999.
He said the United States deplores¹² the widespread lethal¹³ violence in northern Nigeria that occurred after the reelection of President Goodluck Johnson was confirmed.
But Carson said that overall, U.S. officials noted¹⁴ a more responsive security presence and hope that the latest elections, while imperfect, will provide "a baseline" for further improvement in a historically trouble-ridden process.

1 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

2 diplomat   

n.外交官，外交家；能交际的人，圆滑的人

参考例句：

• The diplomat threw in a joke, and the tension was instantly relieved.那位外交官插进一个笑话，紧张的气氛顿时缓和下来。
• He served as a diplomat in Russia before the war.战前他在俄罗斯当外交官。

3 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。

4 rhetoric   

n.修辞学，浮夸之言语

参考例句：

• Do you know something about rhetoric?你懂点修辞学吗？
• Behind all the rhetoric,his relations with the army are dangerously poised.在冠冕堂皇的言辞背后，他和军队的关系岌岌可危。

5 inflame   

v.使燃烧；使极度激动；使发炎

参考例句：

• Our lack of response seemed to inflame the colonel.由于我们没有反应,好象惹恼了那个上校。
• Chemical agents manufactured by our immune system inflame our cells and tissues,causing our nose to run and our throat to swell.我们的免疫系统产生的化学物质导致我们的细胞和组织发炎，导致我们流鼻水和我们的喉咙膨胀。

6 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。

7 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

8 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

9 harassment   

n.骚扰，扰乱，烦恼，烦乱

参考例句：

• She often got telephone harassment at night these days.这些天她经常在夜晚受到电话骚扰。
• The company prohibits any form of harassment.公司禁止任何形式的骚扰行为。

10 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

11 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

12 deplores   

v.悲叹，痛惜，强烈反对( deplore的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• He often deplores his past sins. 他经常痛悔自己过去的罪恶。 来自辞典例句
• Regretting the lack of spontaneity and real sensuousness in other contemporary poets, he deplores in Tennyson. 他对于和他同时代的诗人缺乏自发性和真实的敏感，感到惋惜，他对坦尼森感到悲痛。 来自辞典例句

13 lethal   

adj.致死的；毁灭性的

参考例句：

• A hammer can be a lethal weapon.铁锤可以是致命的武器。
• She took a lethal amount of poison and died.她服了致命剂量的毒药死了。

14 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。