VOA常速英语2008年-Kenya Negotiations Resume; Parliament to Debate

By Scott Bobb
Nairobi
29 February 2008

Opposition¹ and government negotiators in Kenya resumed talks Friday, focusing on long-term aspects of the country's crisis. The talks received a boost after the leaders of the government and opposition reached a power- sharing agreement. Correspondent Scott Bobb reports from Nairobi.

After breaking the deadlock² over power sharing, negotiators for the Kenyan government and opposition began to focus on resolving what are seen as long-term solutions to Kenya's crisis, namely constitutional reform, land distribution and poverty.

The talks took on a new vitality³ after President Mwai Kibaki and opposition leader Raila Odinga signed a power-sharing accord in the presence of chief mediator⁴ Kofi Annan, Chairman of the African Union Jakaya Kikwete and the Nairobi diplomatic corps⁵.

Mr. Kibaki said he would convene⁶ parliament Thursday to begin debate on the constitutional amendments⁷ needed to implement⁸ the accord.

The speaker of parliament, Kenneth Marende, said he does not anticipate any difficulties in passing the constitutional changes.

"There must be a bill prepared by the government, a bill which will then be tabled in parliament," said Marende. "After it is tabled in parliament it will then be moved in the normal manner and it will be debated and voted for."

Opposition parliament member Ababu Namwamba noted⁹ that the Kenyan constitution currently allows parliament to change the constitution with a two-thirds majority vote. He said this should not be difficult to muster¹⁰ given the broad support for the agreement.

"The main obstacle will be political brinkmanship and hardliners that may crop up," said Namwamba. "But otherwise, if every side maintains the goodwill¹¹ that has been demonstrated by the two principals, then I do not foresee any difficulty in the implementation¹² of this deal."

The agreement calls for the creation of the post of prime minister who will supervise the ministries¹³ and can only be dismissed by a majority vote in parliament. Mr. Odinga is expected to assume this post.

The accord also calls for the distribution of ministerial posts according to the relative strength of each party in parliament.

The African Union, Britain and the United States welcomed the agreement saying they hope it will bring peace and reconciliation¹⁴ to the country.

Kenyans reacted with spontaneous street celebrations in some cities, although some cautioned that similar deals in previous years ended up in failure.

One thousand people were killed and several hundred thousand were displaced by violence that erupted after Mr. Kibaki was declared the winner of a presidential election which the opposition says was rigged.

1 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。

2 deadlock   

n.僵局，僵持

参考例句：

• The negotiations reached a deadlock after two hours.两小时后，谈判陷入了僵局。
• The employers and strikers are at a deadlock over the wage.雇主和罢工者在工资问题上相持不下。

3 vitality   

n.活力，生命力，效力

参考例句：

• He came back from his holiday bursting with vitality and good health.他度假归来之后，身强体壮，充满活力。
• He is an ambitious young man full of enthusiasm and vitality.他是个充满热情与活力的有远大抱负的青年。

4 mediator   

n.调解人，中介人

参考例句：

• He always takes the role of a mediator in any dispute.他总是在争论中充当调停人的角色。
• He will appear in the role of mediator.他将出演调停者。

5 corps   

n.(通信等兵种的)部队；(同类作的)一组

参考例句：

• The medical corps were cited for bravery in combat.医疗队由于在战场上的英勇表现而受嘉奖。
• When the war broke out,he volunteered for the Marine Corps.战争爆发时，他自愿参加了海军陆战队。

6 convene   

v.集合，召集，召唤，聚集，集合

参考例句：

• The Diet will convene at 3p.m. tomorrow.国会将于明天下午三点钟开会。
• Senior officials convened in October 1991 in London.1991年10月，高级官员在伦敦会齐。

7 amendments   

（法律、文件的）改动( amendment的名词复数 )； 修正案； 修改； （美国宪法的）修正案

参考例句：

• The committee does not adequately consult others when drafting amendments. 委员会在起草修正案时没有充分征求他人的意见。
• Please propose amendments and addenda to the first draft of the document. 请对这个文件的初稿提出修改和补充意见。

8 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。

9 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。

10 muster   

v.集合，收集，鼓起，激起；n.集合，检阅，集合人员，点名册

参考例句：

• Go and muster all the men you can find.去集合所有你能找到的人。
• I had to muster my courage up to ask him that question.我必须鼓起勇气向他问那个问题。

11 goodwill   

n.善意，亲善，信誉，声誉

参考例句：

• His heart is full of goodwill to all men.他心里对所有人都充满着爱心。
• We paid ￡10,000 for the shop,and ￡2000 for its goodwill.我们用一万英镑买下了这家商店，两千英镑买下了它的信誉。

12 implementation   

n.实施，贯彻

参考例句：

• Implementation of the program is now well underway.这一项目的实施现在行情看好。

13 ministries   

（政府的）部( ministry的名词复数 )； 神职； 牧师职位； 神职任期

参考例句：

• Local authorities must refer everything to the central ministries. 地方管理机构应请示中央主管部门。
• The number of Ministries has been pared down by a third. 部委的数量已经减少了1/3。

14 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。