Amnesty International Criticizes US War on Terror

 

Tom Rivers

In its annual assessment¹ of human rights violations³ on a global scale, Amnesty International is blaming both armed groups and governments for perpetuating⁴ what it calls the most sustained on attack on basic values and international humanitarian⁵ law seen in 50 years.
In a blistering⁶ report, the London-based human rights group says during the past 12 months, the world has been caught up in the a global struggle pitting extremists like al Qaida against countries like the United States.
Amnesty's Secretary-General, Irene Khan, says the price being paid is the erosion of human rights all over the world, and she blames both sides for the degradation⁷ of what she calls, basic global values.
"Amnesty's report 2004, which we are launching today, reflects the voices of millions of ordinary people, who are paying a heavy price for a war on global values, global standards and global institutions - a war which is being waged with equal vigor⁸ by governments and armed groups, each feeding each the other in a vicious downward spiral of violence," she said.
At the London news conference, Ms. Khan strongly attacked extremism around the world.
"We condemn⁹ the cruel, callous¹⁰, and criminal attacks of armed groups whether FARC or Hamas or al Qaida, or any other in the strongest possible terms," said Irene Khan. "We deemed them, or at least some of them, as crimes against humanity and asked for those who committed them to be brought to justice."
But the Amnesty chief accuses some governments of, "fighting terror with terror." And she says they simply provide a breeding ground for more violence.
"By sacrificing the global values of human rights in a blind pursuit of security, governments we believe are losing the moral compass," she said. "And this failure of leadership is a dangerous concession¹¹ to armed groups. And nowhere has that failure been clearer than in Iraq and in the context of the U.S.-led war against terrorism.
Irene Khan says the war on terror has, in effect, resulted in abuse in the name of freedom in dozens of countries.
But the United States receives the most criticism in the 339-page document, which details the human rights situation in 157 nations and territories.
"The pictures from Abu Ghraib have caused universal revulsion, but we should not be surprised by what we are seeing," continued Iren Khan. "This is the logical consequence of the relentless¹² pursuit of the war on terror by the United States since 9/11."
Ms. Khan says Amnesty International issued reports to the U.S. administration nearly a year ago about the alleged¹³ torture and mistreatment of prisoners in Iraq, as well as deaths in custody¹⁴, civilian¹⁵ killings¹⁶, and other problems. She says Amnesty never received a response.

注释：
assessment [E5sesmEnt] n. 估价
violation² [7vaiE5leiFEn] n. 违反，违背
Amnesty International 国际特赦组织
perpetuate¹⁷ [pE(:)5petjueit] vt. 使永存，使不朽
humanitarian [hju(:)7mAni5tZEriEn] n. 人道主义
blistering [5blistEriN] adj. 激烈的，炙热的
pitting extremist（顽固）抵抗的极端分子
al Qaida 基地组织
Secretary-General 执行长
erosion [i5rEuVEn] n. 破坏，腐蚀
degradation [7de^rE5deiFEn] n. 降级
wage [weidV] v. 发动
vigor [5vi^E] n. 精力，活力
vicious [5viFEs] adj. 不道德的，恶意的，品性不端的
spiral [5spaiErEl] n. 螺旋形
callous [5kAlEs] adj. 无情的
FARC abbr. Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia哥伦比亚革命武装力量
Hamas哈马斯
deem [di:m] v. 认为，相信
breeding ground 滋生地
sacrifice [5sAkrifais] v. 牺牲
pursuit [pE5sju:t] n. 追求
moral compass 道德准则
concession [kEn5seFEn] n. 让步
Abu Ghraib（巴格达）格莱布监狱
universal [7ju:ni5vE:sEl] adj. 普遍的，世界的
revulsion [ri5vQlFEn] n. 突发变乱
relentless [ri5lentlis] adj. 无情的
custody [5kQstEdi] n. 拘留

1 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

2 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。

3 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

4 perpetuating   

perpetuate的现在进行式

参考例句：

• Revenge leads to a self-perpetuating cycle of violence. 怨怨相报会导致永不休止的暴力。
• It'set out to eradicate heresy, and ended by perpetuating it. 它的目的只是要根除异端邪说，结果却巩固了异端邪说。 来自英汉文学

5 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

6 blistering   

adj.酷热的；猛烈的；使起疱的；可恶的v.起水疱；起气泡；使受暴晒n.[涂料] 起泡

参考例句：

• The runners set off at a blistering pace. 赛跑运动员如脱缰野马般起跑了。
• This failure is known as preferential wetting and is responsible for blistering. 这种故障称为优先吸湿，是产生气泡的原因。 来自辞典例句

7 degradation   

n.降级；低落；退化；陵削；降解；衰变

参考例句：

• There are serious problems of land degradation in some arid zones.在一些干旱地带存在严重的土地退化问题。
• Gambling is always coupled with degradation.赌博总是与堕落相联系。

8 vigor   

n.活力，精力，元气

参考例句：

• The choir sang the words out with great vigor.合唱团以极大的热情唱出了歌词。
• She didn't want to be reminded of her beauty or her former vigor.现在，她不愿人们提起她昔日的美丽和以前的精力充沛。

9 condemn   

vt.谴责，指责；宣判(罪犯)，判刑

参考例句：

• Some praise him,whereas others condemn him.有些人赞扬他，而有些人谴责他。
• We mustn't condemn him on mere suppositions.我们不可全凭臆测来指责他。

10 callous   

adj.无情的，冷淡的，硬结的，起老茧的

参考例句：

• He is callous about the safety of his workers.他对他工人的安全毫不关心。
• She was selfish,arrogant and often callous.她自私傲慢，而且往往冷酷无情。

11 concession   

n.让步，妥协；特许(权)

参考例句：

• We can not make heavy concession to the matter.我们在这个问题上不能过于让步。
• That is a great concession.这是很大的让步。

12 relentless   

adj.残酷的，不留情的，无怜悯心的

参考例句：

• The traffic noise is relentless.交通车辆的噪音一刻也不停止。
• Their training has to be relentless.他们的训练必须是无情的。

13 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

14 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

15 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。

16 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。

17 perpetuate   

v.使永存，使永记不忘

参考例句：

• This monument was built to perpetuate the memory of the national hero.这个纪念碑建造的意义在于纪念民族英雄永垂不朽。
• We must perpetuate the system.我们必须将此制度永久保持。