2006年VOA标准英语-Human Rights Groups Blast Cheney for Prisoner T

By Scott Stearns
White House
27 October 2006

Leading human rights groups are denouncing U.S. Vice¹ President Dick Cheney for appearing to approve an interrogation method they consider torture on suspected terrorists.  Bush administration officials say Cheney was not referring to torture.

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Vice President Dick Cheney 
  
The controversy² stems from an interview the vice president had with conservative radio host Scott Hennen on station WDAY in Fargo, North Dakota.

According to a White House transcript³ of that interview, Hennen asked Cheney, "Would you agree a dunk in water is a no-brainer if it can save lives?"

"It's a no-brainer for me, but, for awhile there, I was criticized as being the Vice President for Torture," said Mr. Cheney.  "We don't torture. That's not what we are involved in. We live up to our obligations and international treaties that we are a party to."

Human rights groups believe that the phrase 'dunk in the water,' in the context it was used, refers to a technique, known as waterboarding, where a suspect is meant to believe that he or she will drown.

The recently revised U.S. Army Field Manual explicitly⁴ prohibits waterboarding as part of its broader ban against torture or degrading treatment.

In the interview, Cheney referred specifically to the interrogation of suspected terrorist leader Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the alleged⁵ mastermind behind the September 11 terrorist attacks.  He did not say what methods were used, but said U.S. interrogators were able to extract useful information.

When Hennen again asked the vice president about a 'dunk in the water,' Cheney said, "that's been a very important tool that we've had to be able to secure the nation."

Human Rights Watch says Cheney's comments set a new human rights low. Amnesty International says Cheney is championing torture in what it calls a radical⁶ break with America's proud human rights tradition.
 
 
Tony Snow
  
White House Spokesman Tony Snow says Cheney does not support torture.

"The vice president says he was talking in general terms about a questioning program that is legal to save American lives, and he was not referring to waterboarding," said Mr. Snow.

It was the interviewer who used the phrase 'dunk in the water.' When asked what the vice president meant, Snow said, "The transcript is there.  You read it and you interpret it."

"Look, I've said what I'm going to say on it," he added.  "I really can't… What you are asking me to do is to deconstruct something.  I've asked what he meant.  I've told you what he said he meant.  I can't go any further than that."

Snow says that, as a matter of common sense, the vice president is not going to talk about waterboarding and never will.

President Bush was asked about the incident following a meeting with the NATO Secretary General. 

George W. Bush  
  
"This country doesn't torture. We are not going to torture. We will interrogate⁷ people we pick up off the battlefield to determine whether or not they have got information that would be helpful to protect the country," said Mr. Bush.

America's treatment of detainees has been an issue in the fight against terrorism, even among some of its allies. President Bush says new rules give U.S. interrogators the tools they need to protect the nation, while respecting America's international treaty obligations, including the Geneva Convention.

Opposition⁸ Democrats⁹ say the vice president's comments show the White House has no clear policy on torture.  Massachusetts Senator John Kerry, who lost the 2004 presidential election, says what he calls the Bush administration's "determination to assert the right to torture" has undermined America's moral authority, put U.S. troops at great risk, and made the country less safe.

1 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

2 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

3 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

4 explicitly   

ad.明确地，显然地

参考例句：

• The plan does not explicitly endorse the private ownership of land. 该计划没有明确地支持土地私有制。
• SARA amended section 113 to provide explicitly for a right to contribution. 《最高基金修正与再授权法案》修正了第123条，清楚地规定了分配权。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法

5 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

6 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

7 interrogate   

vt.讯问，审问，盘问

参考例句：

• The lawyer took a long time to interrogate the witness fully.律师花了很长时间仔细询问目击者。
• We will interrogate the two suspects separately.我们要对这两个嫌疑人单独进行审讯。

8 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。

9 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》