2007年VOA标准英语-Bangladesh Jails Ex-PM Zia on Corruption Charge

By Anjana Pasricha
New Delhi
03 September 2007

Bangladesh's military-backed administration has arrested former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia on charges of corruption¹. Anjana Pasricha reports from New Delhi that the heads of the country's two main political parties are now in detention².

Former Bangladesh Prime Minister Khaleda Zia waves to supporters after she was arrested in Dhaka, Bangladesh, 03 Sept 2007

Former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia was arrested and jailed Monday after a city court refused her bail³ in a corruption case. She faces charges of using her influence to select the operator of state cargo⁴ depots⁵ in 2003. Her son also was arrested.

The arrest has been expected since July, when her rival, former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, was arrested.

 

Syed Mohammad Ibrahim, a political analyst⁶ in Bangladesh, says the move is part of the administration's strategy to force the two leaders out of politics.

"The fact is they are too powerful to be removed by the party themselves, or to be removed even by the people themselves, so they have to be removed through a process of law," he said.

The administration had tried unsuccessfully to send the two women - who between them ruled the country for 16 years - into exile.

Since then the interim⁷ administration has been pressuring their organizations - Khaleda Zia's Bangladesh Nationalist Party, and Sheikh Hasina's Awami League Party - to change their leadership.

The military-backed government says Khaleda Zia's arrest is part of a crackdown against corruption, and proves that no one is above the law.

On Sunday, the government also filed new corruption charges against Sheikh Hasina, accusing her of taking illegal payments from a private company to build a power plant. She already faces several other charges.

Both women have denied the charges against them, calling them fabricated and politically motivated.

The two leaders are widely blamed for misrule and rampant⁸ corruption during the time they ruled the country.

The government has vowed⁹ to remove corruption from politics before it holds elections and restores democracy next year. Nearly 170 leaders from both parties are already in detention.

Bangladesh has been under emergency rule since January when the failure of the two main parties to reach a consensus¹⁰ on how to hold elections plunged¹¹ the country into violence.

1 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。

2 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。

3 bail   

v.舀（水），保释；n.保证金，保释，保释人

参考例句：

• One of the prisoner's friends offered to bail him out.犯人的一个朋友答应保释他出来。
• She has been granted conditional bail.她被准予有条件保释。

4 cargo   

n.(一只船或一架飞机运载的)货物

参考例句：

• The ship has a cargo of about 200 ton.这条船大约有200吨的货物。
• A lot of people discharged the cargo from a ship.许多人从船上卸下货物。

5 depots   

仓库( depot的名词复数 )； 火车站； 车库； 军需库

参考例句：

• Public transportation termini and depots are important infrastructures for a city. 公交场站设施是城市重要的基础设施。
• In the coastal cities are equipped with after-sales service and depots. 在各沿海城市均设有服务部及售后维修站。

6 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

7 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

8 rampant   

adj.(植物)蔓生的；狂暴的，无约束的

参考例句：

• Sickness was rampant in the area.该地区疾病蔓延。
• You cannot allow children to rampant through the museum.你不能任由小孩子在博物馆里乱跑。

9 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

10 consensus   

n.(意见等的)一致，一致同意，共识

参考例句：

• Can we reach a consensus on this issue?我们能在这个问题上取得一致意见吗？
• What is the consensus of opinion at the afternoon meeting?下午会议上一致的意见是什么？

11 plunged   

v.颠簸( plunge的过去式和过去分词 )；暴跌；骤降；突降

参考例句：

• The train derailed and plunged into the river. 火车脱轨栽进了河里。
• She lost her balance and plunged 100 feet to her death. 她没有站稳，从100英尺的高处跌下摔死了。