VOA常速英语2007年-Former Pakistani Prime Minister Allowed to Meet

By Barry Newhouse
Islamabad
10 November 2007

Pakistan's former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto joined protests in the capital against emergency rule Saturday and tried to meet with the former Chief Justice of the Supreme¹ Court. VOA's Barry Newhouse reports from Islamabad, where state television broadcast some reports on her speeches throughout the day.  

Police relaxed the security cordon² around Ms. Bhutto's local residence this morning and allowed her to drive around the city for meetings with party officials and protesters.

In the parking lot of a private television station, where hundreds of journalists chanted and wore black armbands signifying the death of the independent press, Ms. Bhutto said she and her party stand for a free news media.

"The Pakistan People's Party and I are with them in their struggle for freedom," she said.

Most independent broadcast news stations remain off the air in Pakistan, and some newspapers have been censored³. But in recent days, state television has carried reports of Ms. Bhutto's speeches, indicating the government is willing to allow some coverage⁴ of her organizing efforts.

Pakistan's attorney general announced Saturday that emergency laws would be suspended within one month. But officials with Ms. Bhutto's party have insisted on an immediate⁵ end to the laws and restoration of basic rights.

[U.S. President George Bush said Saturday during a news conference in Texas, that promises by Mr. Musharraf to lift the state of emergency are "positive steps." He added that the United States needs the cooperation of Pakistan to combat the militant⁶ group al-Qaida.]

While police on Saturday allowed Ms. Bhutto to move freely around most of the capital, there were limits. She tried to visit the former Supreme Court Chief Justice Iftikar Chaudhry, who has been an opposition⁷ symbol since he was removed from office last Saturday.

Police blocked Ms. Bhutto's car as it approached the home of the former chief justice. 

Surrounded by supporters, journalists and hundreds of riot police, Ms. Bhutto demanded Justice Chaudhry be reinstated. 

She said rather than detaining the country's senior judges, security forces should try to detain pro-Taliban militants⁸, such as Maulana Fazlullah, whose forces have overrun towns in the Northwest Frontier Province in recent weeks.

Ms. Bhutto said there is a growing coalition⁹ of opposition groups against General Pervez Musharraf, the president, and his suspension of the constitution.  She appealed to all Pakistanis to join a march on Tuesday from Lahore to Islamabad. Organizers say they expect an outpouring of support that will help build an opposition coalition
 
The government's response to the march will be an important indicator¹⁰ of how much dissent¹¹ it will tolerate. .

Police successfully prevented Friday's mass protest in Rawalpindi.  If the government decides to ban Tuesday's march, it is unclear if organizers will be able to draw significant crowds to the streets.

1 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

2 cordon   

n.警戒线，哨兵线

参考例句：

• Police officers threw a cordon around his car to protect him.警察在他汽车周围设置了防卫圈以保护他。
• There is a tight security cordon around the area.这一地区周围设有严密的安全警戒圈。

3 censored   

受审查的，被删剪的

参考例句：

• The news reports had been heavily censored . 这些新闻报道已被大幅删剪。
• The military-backed government has heavily censored the news. 有军方撑腰的政府对新闻进行了严格审查。

4 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

5 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

6 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

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 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

9 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

10 indicator   

n.指标；指示物，指示者；指示器

参考例句：

• Gold prices are often seen as an indicator of inflation.黃金价格常常被看作是通货膨胀的指标。
• His left-hand indicator is flashing.他左手边的转向灯正在闪亮。

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。