大马士革邀请“友好国家”观察叙利亚的总统选举

 　　大马士革邀请“友好国家”观察叙利亚的总统选举

       DAMASCUS, May 5 (Xinhua) -- The Syrian parliament said on Monday that it had sent invitations to lawmakers from 11 "friendly countries" to attend the June 3 presidential elections.

　　Syria's parliament speaker said they had sent invitations to the parliaments of Russia, China, India, South Africa, Brazil, Venezuela, Cuba, Nicaragua, Bolivia, Ecuador and Armenia, requesting them to dispatch parliamentarians and election experts to follow up on the upcoming presidential elections in Syria.

　　The speaker said they would be "grateful" if friendly politicians and experts attend the elections, describing the elections as "free," "democratic," and "competitive."

　　The timing¹ of the presidential polls has raised ire of the Syrian opposition² and their regional and international backers, who have labeled it a "parody³ of democracy."

　　Opposition groups inside and outside Syria have criticized the decision to hold the presidential elections in light of the ongoing⁴ civil war that has killed more than 150,000 people.

　　They also stressed that millions of Syrians had fled to neighboring countries as refugees and do not have access to basic necessities, let alone polling stations.

　　Government officials said President Bashar al-Assad is the " real guarantee" for the future of Syria, adding that he has a high chance to be re-elected for a third seven-year term.（本文由在线英语听力室整理编辑）

1 timing   

n.时间安排，时间选择

参考例句：

• The timing of the meeting is not convenient.会议的时间安排不合适。
• The timing of our statement is very opportune.我们发表声明选择的时机很恰当。

2 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。

3 parody   

n.打油诗文，诙谐的改编诗文，拙劣的模仿；v.拙劣模仿，作模仿诗文

参考例句：

• The parody was just a form of teasing.那个拙劣的模仿只是一种揶揄。
• North Korea looks like a grotesque parody of Mao's centrally controlled China,precisely the sort of system that Beijing has left behind.朝鲜看上去像是毛时代中央集权的中国的怪诞模仿，其体制恰恰是北京方面已经抛弃的。

4 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。