VOA常速英语2008年-Rights Groups Doubt Zimbabwe Elections Will Be

By Scott Bobb
Johannesburg
19 March 2008

An international human rights group says the upcoming elections in Zimbabwe are not likely to be fair because of human rights abuses and flaws in electoral procedures.  The Human Rights Watch group made the assessment¹ in Johannesburg, from where VOA's Scott Bobb reports.

The southern Africa researcher for Human Rights Watch, Tiseke Kasambala, says that despite a reduction in the level of violence seen in previous elections, campaign conditions in Zimbabwe have not improved enough for a fair vote.

"The conditions on the ground in terms of the electoral conditions and the buildup to the elections have been so flawed that we have documented numerous human rights abuses that preclude² the possibility of holding free and fair elections in the country on March 29," she said.

Kasambala said her organization had documented cases showing the Zimbabwean government and ruling ZANU-PF party have intimidated³ the opposition⁴, restricted its gatherings⁵, and used distributions of food and farming equipment to gain political advantage.

The organization is the latest to join Zimbabwean opposition leaders, civic⁶ groups and human rights organizations in criticizing the process.

But Zimbabwe's ambassador to South Africa, Simon Khaya Moyo, rejected the allegations in an interview with South Africa national radio.

"There is so much peace that all political parties are campaigning freely throughout the country to the chagrin⁷, of course, of our detractors led by London and Washington who would have wished chaos⁸ and mayhem prior to the polling day on March 29, 2008," he said.

Britain, the United States and the European Union have expressed concern that the elections would not be fair.  Their election observers have been rejected by Harare, which says they have already made up their minds.

Zimbabweans are due to go to the polls March 29 to elect a president, national assembly, senate and local councils.

President Robert Mugabe is seeking a sixth term and victory for his ZANU-PF party, which has dominated politics since independence 28 years ago.  He is being opposed by his former finance minister and ally Simba Makoni and by veteran opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai of the Movement for Democratic Change (MDC).

Pro-democracy groups and the opposition note that Zimbabweans are voting for the first time in four distinct elections with four separate ballot⁹ papers.  They say voter registration¹⁰ lists are flawed and difficult to check for inaccuracies.  And they complain that newly demarcated voting districts will make it difficult for some voters to find their polling stations.

They conclude that there has not been enough time to educate voters on these and other changes.  The government rejects the charge.

1 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

2 preclude   

vt.阻止，排除，防止；妨碍

参考例句：

• We try to preclude any possibility of misunderstanding.我们努力排除任何误解的可能性。
• My present finances preclude the possibility of buying a car.按我目前的财务状况我是不可能买车的。

3 intimidated   

v.恐吓；威胁adj.害怕的；受到威胁的

参考例句：

• We try to make sure children don't feel intimidated on their first day at school. 我们努力确保孩子们在上学的第一天不胆怯。
• The thief intimidated the boy into not telling the police. 这个贼恫吓那男孩使他不敢向警察报告。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 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。

5 gatherings   

聚集( gathering的名词复数 )； 收集； 采集； 搜集

参考例句：

• His conduct at social gatherings created a lot of comment. 他在社交聚会上的表现引起许多闲话。
• During one of these gatherings a pupil caught stealing. 有一次，其中一名弟子偷窃被抓住。

6 civic   

adj.城市的，都市的，市民的，公民的

参考例句：

• I feel it is my civic duty to vote.我认为投票选举是我作为公民的义务。
• The civic leaders helped to forward the project.市政府领导者协助促进工程的进展。

7 chagrin   

n.懊恼；气愤；委屈

参考例句：

• His increasingly visible chagrin sets up a vicious circle.他的明显的不满引起了一种恶性循环。
• Much to his chagrin,he did not win the race.使他大为懊恼的是他赛跑没获胜。

8 chaos   

n.混乱，无秩序

参考例句：

• After the failure of electricity supply the city was in chaos.停电后，城市一片混乱。
• The typhoon left chaos behind it.台风后一片混乱。

9 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

10 registration   

n.登记，注册，挂号

参考例句：

• Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
• What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？