VOA标准英语2008年-Pakistan Opposition Demands UN Investigation of

By Nancy-Amelia Collins
Islamabad
03 January 2008

The party of the slain¹ Pakistani opposition² leader, Benazir Bhutto, is demanding the United Nations lead the investigation³ into Ms. Bhutto's assassination⁴. But the Pakistani government insists a Scotland Yard investigative team arriving to help in the probe is sufficient to solve the controversy⁵ surrounding her death. VOA's Nancy-Amelia Collins reports from Islamabad.

The Pakistan People's Party, Ms. Bhutto's party, says a United Nations investigation into her death it is the only way to get at the truth.

The government has requested help from Britain's Scotland Yard. But Sherry Rehman, a PPP spokeswoman, says the death of someone of Ms. Bhutto's stature⁶ - she was twice prime minister of Pakistan - warrants a credible⁷ investigation.

"The party's asked for a U.N.-led credible investigation, independent investigation…We feel that it's a large enough disaster and tragedy to mark the death of a prime minister who had said she was threatened constantly," said Rehman. "She had appealed to the Pakistan government repeatedly, very specifically, for particular support in terms of her security, which she did not receive, right till the end."

Ms. Bhutto was assassinated⁸ in the city of Rawalpindi a week ago while campaigning for parliament. Her death sparked riots across this nation, leading to more than 50 deaths and millions of dollars in property damage.

The former prime minister had complained repeatedly about a lack of security. She narrowly escaped a suicide attack the day she arrived back in the country last October, after eight years in self-imposed exile.

Before her death, she said elements within the government were trying to kill her. The government denies that charge, but there is no disputing that controversy surrounds the assassination.

Television footage shows a man alongside Ms. Bhutto's motorcade firing three shots at the back of her head. The back of her hair and her veil are lifted, and then she slumps⁹ down in the car. An apparent suicide blast follows.

The government, however, says Ms. Bhutto did not die from a gunshot. It says the force of the blast caused her to crack her skull¹⁰ on her car's sunroof as she ducked the attack. The government blames al-Qaida for her death.

Ms. Bhutto's supporters say the government is at least partly responsible because it failed to provide adequate security. Others simply accuse the government of carrying out the assassination.

No matter who leads the investigation, it is questionable¹¹ how much evidence is left. Shortly after the attack, local television showed blood and debris¹² being washed from the attack site, destroying potentially crucial evidence.

Political analyst¹³ Nasim Zahra says she doe not believe investigators¹⁴ will have much evidence to work with.

"Most of the evidence has kind of disappeared, plus of course the family's not going to let the body be exhumed¹⁵, understandably, so beyond then just kind of talking to people and questioning those who were involved at the site of the crime itself," said Zahra. "I mean I don't think you can have an exhaustive inquiry¹⁶."

President Pervez Musharraf announced Wednesday that the parliamentary elections scheduled for January 8 would be delayed until February 18, saying the riots had damaged polling centers and destroyed voter lists.

1 slain   

杀死，宰杀，杀戮( slay的过去分词 )； (slay的过去分词)

参考例句：

• The soldiers slain in the battle were burried that night. 在那天夜晚埋葬了在战斗中牺牲了的战士。
• His boy was dead, slain by the hand of the false Amulius. 他的儿子被奸诈的阿缪利乌斯杀死了。

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 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

4 assassination   

n.暗杀；暗杀事件

参考例句：

• The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
• Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年，林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。

5 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。

6 stature   

n.（高度）水平，（高度）境界，身高，身材

参考例句：

• He is five feet five inches in stature.他身高5英尺5英寸。
• The dress models are tall of stature.时装模特儿的身材都较高。

7 credible   

adj.可信任的，可靠的

参考例句：

• The news report is hardly credible.这则新闻报道令人难以置信。
• Is there a credible alternative to the nuclear deterrent?是否有可以取代核威慑力量的可靠办法？

8 assassinated   

v.暗杀( assassinate的过去式和过去分词 )；中伤；诋毁；破坏

参考例句：

• The prime minister was assassinated by extremists. 首相遭极端分子暗杀。
• Then, just two days later, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. 跟着在两天以后，肯尼迪总统在达拉斯被人暗杀。 来自辞典例句

9 slumps   

萧条期( slump的名词复数 )； （个人、球队等的）低潮状态； （销售量、价格、价值等的）骤降； 猛跌

参考例句：

• Deflation could emerge from simultaneous slumps in the world's three major economies. 如果世界经济三大主体同时衰退，通货紧缩就会出现。
• This is the cycle of economic booms and slumps. 这是经济繁荣和经济萧条的周期变化。

10 skull   

n.头骨；颅骨

参考例句：

• The skull bones fuse between the ages of fifteen and twenty-five.头骨在15至25岁之间长合。
• He fell out of the window and cracked his skull.他从窗子摔了出去，跌裂了颅骨。

11 questionable   

adj.可疑的，有问题的

参考例句：

• There are still a few questionable points in the case.这个案件还有几个疑点。
• Your argument is based on a set of questionable assumptions.你的论证建立在一套有问题的假设上。

12 debris   

n.瓦砾堆，废墟，碎片

参考例句：

• After the bombing there was a lot of debris everywhere.轰炸之后到处瓦砾成堆。
• Bacteria sticks to food debris in the teeth,causing decay.细菌附着在牙缝中的食物残渣上，导致蛀牙。

13 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。

14 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 exhumed   

v.挖出，发掘出( exhume的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Marie Curie's remains were exhumed and interred in the Pantheon. 玛丽·居里的遗体被移出葬在先贤祠中。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• His remains have been exhumed from a cemetery in Queens, New York City. 他的遗体被从纽约市皇后区的墓地里挖了出来。 来自辞典例句

16 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。