VOA常速英语2007年-Chavez Accuses Colombia of Sabotage in Rebel Ta

By Brian Wagner
Caracas
02 December 2007

Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez has accused Colombia again of sabotaging¹ a humanitarian² deal that he was trying to negotiate with Colombian rebels. In Caracas, VOA's Brian Wagner reports Mr. Chavez claimed his efforts were advancing until Colombia's president ordered him to stop.

President Chavez said he believed Colombian rebel leader Manuel Marulanda was prepared to release some of the hostages his group is holding, before Colombia's government asked him to stop working with the rebel.

In August, Colombian President Alvaro Uribe asked Mr. Chavez to negotiate with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, or FARC, to free hostages in exchange for the release of jailed rebels. But Mr. Uribe ended the efforts last week, saying the Venezuelan leader had improper³ contacts with Colombia's army chief.

Speaking to foreign journalists in Caracas on Saturday, Mr. Chavez claimed the communication was no more than a brief telephone call. And he questioned the commitment of Colombia's government to securing a deal to end decades of violence with leftist rebels.

Mr. Chavez said the Colombian government does not want a humanitarian deal, because as soon as there is the possibility to achieve one, the government resorts to sabotage⁴.

The Venezuelan leader also alleged⁵ that U.S. officials took part in the decision to end his negotiation⁶ efforts, and alleged that CIA operatives in Colombia were prepared to kill him if he traveled to meet rebel leaders.

During a raid in Bogota this week, Colombian authorities seized videos and photographs of some of the hostages, including three American contractors⁷ and a former Colombian presidential candidate. Officials also found letters from some of the hostages, who have been held for more than four years in jungle camps.

President Chavez said the images were recorded in October as part of his mediation⁸ efforts and were being sent to him in Venezuela when they were seized. He criticized Colombian authorities for ordering the raid, in which three people were arrested.

In Colombia, Peace Commissioner⁹ Luis Carlos Restrepo defended the decision to end Mr. Chavez's involvement, saying his actions had been erratic¹⁰ and unproductive.

The discovery of the FARC documents has raised fresh hope among relatives of some of the hostages that their loved ones will be released. Some family members have asked President Uribe to allow Mr. Chavez to resume his mission, but Colombian officials have rejected that possibility.

1 sabotaging   

阴谋破坏（某事物）( sabotage的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Mr Smith fiercely denied any question of sabotaging the talks. 史密斯先生坚决拒绝任何企图阻挠谈话的提问。
• Failed in sabotaging APEC summit in Sydney of Australia. 澳大利亚悉尼APEC会议遭遇惨败。

2 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。

3 improper   

adj.不适当的，不合适的，不正确的，不合礼仪的

参考例句：

• Short trousers are improper at a dance.舞会上穿短裤不成体统。
• Laughing and joking are improper at a funeral.葬礼时大笑和开玩笑是不合适的。

4 sabotage   

n.怠工，破坏活动，破坏；v.从事破坏活动，妨害，破坏

参考例句：

• They tried to sabotage my birthday party.他们企图破坏我的生日晚会。
• The fire at the factory was caused by sabotage.那家工厂的火灾是有人蓄意破坏引起的。

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 negotiation   

n.谈判，协商

参考例句：

• They closed the deal in sugar after a week of negotiation.经过一星期的谈判，他们的食糖生意成交了。
• The negotiation dragged on until July.谈判一直拖到7月份。

7 contractors   

n.（建筑、监造中的）承包人( contractor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We got estimates from three different contractors before accepting the lowest. 我们得到3个承包商的报价后，接受了最低的报价。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Contractors winning construction jobs had to kick back 2 per cent of the contract price to the mafia. 赢得建筑工作的承包商得抽出合同价格的百分之二的回扣给黑手党。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 mediation   

n.调解

参考例句：

• The dispute was settled by mediation of the third country. 这场争端通过第三国的斡旋而得以解决。
• The dispute was settled by mediation. 经调解使争端得以解决。

9 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

10 erratic   

adj.古怪的，反复无常的，不稳定的

参考例句：

• The old man had always been cranky and erratic.那老头儿性情古怪,反复无常。
• The erratic fluctuation of market prices is in consequence of unstable economy.经济波动致使市场物价忽起忽落。