2007年VOA标准英语-Pakistan Opposition Leader Says Musharraf Must

By Gary Thomas
Washington
07 August 2007

Former Pakistani prime minister Benazir Bhutto says President Pervez Musharraf will have to relinquish¹ his role as military chief if he wants to reach a political accommodation with the opposition². In an exclusive interview with VOA correspondent Gary Thomas, the ex-leader of Pakistan says time is running out for both sides to reach some kind of agreement.

Benazir Bhutto

Speaking by telephone, Benazir Bhutto said that negotiations³ between her Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP) and President Musharraf's government have yielded no concrete results.

Ms. Bhutto would neither confirm nor deny that she met with General Musharraf in Abu Dhabi recently, as was widely reported. But she said the Pakistani leader is making promises, but no concrete gestures toward a return to civilian⁴ rule.

"One thing is certain, that time is running out for General Musharraf's side to reach some kind of an accommodation with the opposition," said Ms. Bhutto. "And unless they can come up with upfront gestures I think it is going to be very difficult, given that nothing has happened since the process began."

Ms. Bhutto, who served twice as prime minister of Pakistan in the 1990s, lives in exile and faces charges of corruption⁵ if she returns. She has consistently denied the charges, saying they are politically motivated. She says the lifting of the ban on her return and the dropping of the charges against her would be the kind of upfront gestures she is looking for.

General Musharraf took power from Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif in a bloodless coup⁶ in 1999. Ms. Bhutto is adamant⁷ that if General Musharraf wants to have any future political role under any negotiated deal with her Pakistan Peoples' Party, he must give up his military role.

"The uniform is not negotiable," she said. "It is something that is not constitutionally permissible⁸, and it is not negotiable because the whole country is against it, and PPP has spent its whole life fighting to make a distinction between democratic government and military government. And having the uniform blurs⁹ the distinction between military rule and a civil role."

Parliamentary and presidential elections are to be held sometime in the next few months in Pakistan. Which comes first is at issue.

The president is elected by an electoral college made up of the national parliament and the four provincial¹⁰ assemblies. General Musharraf and his allies have control of the current parliament, which would virtually reassure¹¹ his reelection. But the opposition says the next president has to be chosen by the next parliament and assemblies.

Ms. Bhutto noted¹² that Pakistani courts are becoming more assertive¹³ and independent after General Musharraf's dismissal of the Supreme¹⁴ Court's chief justice - which sparked widespread protests - was overturned. She says the presidential reelection issue might be legally challenged.

"And of course there is the whole issue of the [presidential] reelection from the present assembly, which in the view of the PPP would be illegal but in General Musharraf's view is legal," said Ms. Bhutto. "So I think that is an issue that is probably going to end up in the courts."

Ms. Bhutto says if General Musharraf seeks reelection before general elections are held, her party might resign from parliament or boycott¹⁵ elections.

1 relinquish   

v.放弃，撤回，让与，放手

参考例句：

• He was forced to relinquish control of the company.他被迫放弃公司的掌控权。
• They will never voluntarily relinquish their independence.他们绝对不会自动放弃独立。

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 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

4 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。

5 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

6 coup   

n.政变；突然而成功的行动

参考例句：

• The monarch was ousted by a military coup.那君主被军事政变者废黜了。
• That government was overthrown in a military coup three years ago.那个政府在3年前的军事政变中被推翻。

7 adamant   

adj.坚硬的，固执的

参考例句：

• We are adamant on the building of a well-off society.在建设小康社会这一点上，我们是坚定不移的。
• Veronica was quite adamant that they should stay on.维罗妮卡坚信他们必须继续留下去。

8 permissible   

adj.可允许的，许可的

参考例句：

• Is smoking permissible in the theatre?在剧院里允许吸烟吗？
• Delay is not permissible,even for a single day.不得延误，即使一日亦不可。

9 blurs   

n.模糊( blur的名词复数 )；模糊之物；（移动的）模糊形状；模糊的记忆v.（使）变模糊( blur的第三人称单数 )；（使）难以区分

参考例句：

• The electron clouds are clearly visible as blurs surrounding the invisible nuclei. 电子云就象环绕着看不见的核的一片云雾。 来自辞典例句
• The letter had many blots and blurs. 信上有许多墨水渍和污迹。 来自辞典例句

10 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。

11 reassure   

v.使放心，使消除疑虑

参考例句：

• This seemed to reassure him and he continued more confidently.这似乎使他放心一点，于是他更有信心地继续说了下去。
• The airline tried to reassure the customers that the planes were safe.航空公司尽力让乘客相信飞机是安全的。

12 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

13 assertive   

adj.果断的，自信的，有冲劲的

参考例句：

• She always speaks an assertive tone.她总是以果断的语气说话。
• China appears to have become more assertive in the waters off its coastline over recent years.在近些年，中国显示出对远方海洋的自信。

14 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。

15 boycott   

n./v.(联合)抵制，拒绝参与

参考例句：

• We put the production under a boycott.我们联合抵制该商品。
• The boycott lasts a year until the Victoria board permitsreturn.这个抗争持续了一年直到维多利亚教育局妥协为止。