Turkey's Former Army Chief Jailed on Terror Charge

 　　Turkey's former army chief was arrested on Friday over an alleged¹ plot to topple the government of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan. General Ilker Basbug is accused of leading a terrorist organization.

　　Basbug was questioned for seven hours by Istanbul prosecutors² and then sent to prison. Speaking to reporters as he was taken away, Basbug described the situation as "tragic³ comedy."

　　But Turkish political scientist Cengiz Aktar said the arrest represents a changing of the guard.

　　"It's a grand premiere. It has never before happened before in the republican history of this country since 1923. This man was in charge until a few years ago. It's a major development," said Aktar.

　　Led by influential⁴ officers, Turkey's military ousted⁵ four governments between 1960 and 1997.

　　Turkey's current Islamist-leaning government has shown contempt for the secular⁶ opposition⁷.

　　Turkish authorities have detained more than 300 people, including journalists, academics and politicians, as part of a wide-reaching investigation⁸ into a secular network known as Ergenekon.

　　The Turkish army sees itself as appointed guardian⁹ of the secular state.

　　Basbug was allegedly involved in an Internet campaign to undermine the ruling AK party by publishing allegations of corruption¹⁰. He is one of hundreds of people jailed or tried as part of the four-year-long probe into secular dissent¹¹.

　　Yasemin Congar, deputy editor of the Turkish newspaper Taraf, said it is right to weed out people bent¹² on overthrowing¹⁴ the government.

　　"It's basically about digging out the dirt within the state. If this country's prosecutors manage to go to the end of this, Turkey will definitely be more democratic, definitely more secure and [a] more transparent¹⁵ country."

　　But criticism over the probe is growing. Critics say evidence against suspects is often thin.

　　In court, Basbug confronted accusations¹⁶ against him, saying that as chief of a 700,000-strong military, he would have used other methods rather than publishing Internet stories had he intended an overthrow¹³.

　　Retired¹⁷ Brigadier General Haldun Solmazturk said former and current military men are being targeted for expressing opinions against the government.

　　"Turkish democracy is reversing. It's going back. It's not advancing," said Solmazturk.

　　At least 58 military men are in jail. So far, none have been convicted.

　　Turkish political scientist Aktar of Istanbul's Bahcesehir University said the credibility of the Ergenekon probe is increasingly in doubt.

　　"Judging by European and international standards, these trials are not fair. As long as there is no result to these ongoing¹⁸ custodies and trials, the entire Ergenekon case actually weakens," said Aktar.

　　If convicted, Basbug and others face decades in jail.

1 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

2 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

3 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

4 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

5 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

6 secular   

n.牧师，凡人；adj.世俗的，现世的，不朽的

参考例句：

• We live in an increasingly secular society.我们生活在一个日益非宗教的社会。
• Britain is a plural society in which the secular predominates.英国是个世俗主导的多元社会。

7 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。

8 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。

9 guardian   

n.监护人；守卫者，保护者

参考例句：

• The form must be signed by the child's parents or guardian. 这张表格须由孩子的家长或监护人签字。
• The press is a guardian of the public weal. 报刊是公共福利的卫护者。

10 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。

11 dissent   

n./v.不同意，持异议

参考例句：

• It is too late now to make any dissent.现在提出异议太晚了。
• He felt her shoulders gave a wriggle of dissent.他感到她的肩膀因为不同意而动了一下。

12 bent   

n.爱好，癖好；adj.弯的；决心的，一心的

参考例句：

• He was fully bent upon the project.他一心扑在这项计划上。
• We bent over backward to help them.我们尽了最大努力帮助他们。

13 overthrow   

v.推翻，打倒，颠覆；n.推翻，瓦解，颠覆

参考例句：

• After the overthrow of the government,the country was in chaos.政府被推翻后，这个国家处于混乱中。
• The overthrow of his plans left him much discouraged.他的计划的失败使得他很气馁。

14 overthrowing   

v.打倒，推翻( overthrow的现在分词 )；使终止

参考例句：

• They succeeded in overthrowing the fascist dictatorship. 他们成功推翻了法西斯独裁统治。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I always delight in overthrowing those kinds of schemes. 我一向喜欢戳穿人家的诡计。 来自辞典例句

15 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。

16 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。

17 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

18 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。