VOA常速英语2008年-The US Calls for Respect for Press Freedom in C

By William Eagle
Washington,DC
04 March 2008

The United States Ambassador to Cameroon, Janet Garvey, has reiterated¹ US support for freedom of the press and peaceful political reforms in the country.  Her remarks come in the wake of a government crackdown on the press and recent protests over political reforms, and the rising prices of fuel and food. 

In recent weeks, the government closed two Douala-based broadcaster,  TV Equinoxe and Magic-FM, a VOA affiliate².  Journalists working for another VOA partner, Ocan City Radio in Douala, have received death threats.

Ambassador Garvey told VOA reporter Ferdinand Ferella that “we will continue urge the government to not harass³ independent media and to let them function they way they are supposed to. “

She says it’s a difficult time now in Cameroon and that it’s important for the public to have access “to all sources of information.”

There is a move underway to change the current constitution to allow President Paul Biya to run for another term in 2011.  Ambassador Garvey says the US supports the right of a country to change its constitution, but says it should be done so “reluctantly, and with the involvement of the entire citizenship⁴ of a country.”

She said on the other hand that  “there are aspects of the current constitution that have not been fully⁵ implemented⁶ – [ones] that need to be improved.  We are awaiting the establishment of a Senate – that is called for in the constitution. That would certainly help on the issue of succession and some of the other legitimate⁷ concerns people would have. “ 

Garvey said institutions should be developed that permit alternance in government and political leadership.  However, she said the US is against changes that would seem to favor a particular party or individual.

The US ambassador said over the past 10 years, Cameroon has made many improvements with regard to human rights and an independent press.  She says the US wants to encourage the government to continue in that direction.

1 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

2 affiliate   

vt.使隶(附)属于；n.附属机构，分公司

参考例句：

• Our New York company has an affiliate in Los Angeles.我们的纽约公司在洛杉矶有一个下属企业。
• What is the difference between affiliate and regular membership?固定会员和附属会员之间的区别是什么？

3 harass   

vt.使烦恼，折磨，骚扰

参考例句：

• Our mission is to harass the landing of the main Japaness expeditionary force.我们的任务是骚乱日本远征军主力的登陆。
• They received the order to harass the enemy's rear.他们接到骚扰敌人后方的命令。

4 citizenship   

n.市民权，公民权，国民的义务(身份)

参考例句：

• He was born in Sweden,but he doesn't have Swedish citizenship.他在瑞典出生，但没有瑞典公民身分。
• Ten years later,she chose to take Australian citizenship.十年后，她选择了澳大利亚国籍。

5 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

6 implemented   

v.实现( implement的过去式和过去分词 )；执行；贯彻；使生效

参考例句：

• This agreement, if not implemented, is a mere scrap of paper. 这个协定如不执行只不过是一纸空文。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The economy is in danger of collapse unless far-reaching reforms are implemented. 如果不实施影响深远的改革，经济就面临崩溃的危险。 来自辞典例句

7 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。