VOA标准英语2008年-US Says Zimbabwe's Mugabe Government Not Legiti

The United States said Monday the government of Zimbabwe's President Robert Mugabe cannot be considered legitimate¹ in the absence of a presidential runoff election. In the wake of opposition² candidate Morgan Tsvangirai's forced departure from the campaign, the Bush administration is pushing for action in the U.N. Security Council. VOA's David Gollust reports from the State Department.
　
Movement for Democratic Change (MDC) President Morgan Tsvangirai, center, speaks to the press, 19 Jun 2008

The State Department is expressing understanding for Mr. Tsvangirai's decision to quit the race, and deep disappointment that the Mugabe government made a free and fair runoff election impossible with its violent campaign against the opposition.

In a written statement, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice said it is abundantly clear that President Mugabe is determined³ to thwart⁴ the will of the Zimbabwean people, and that the United States condemns⁵ the violence in the strongest terms.

Rice said the opposition Movement for Democratic Change and Mr. Mugabe's ZANU-PF party must work together on behalf of the Zimbabwean people and said the Mugabe government "cannot be considered legitimate" in the absence of a runoff.

The Secretary further said Mr. Mugabe and his government have forsaken⁶ the most basic tenet of government, the protection of its people, and must be held accountable by the international community.
　
Tom Casey (file photo)

In a talk with reporters, State Department Deputy Spokesman Tom Casey said that Rice's remark about the legitimacy⁷ of the Mugabe government is a statement of the obvious, given the situation.

"Can we stop with the legal niceties here? This is a government that has no legitimacy in the eyes of its people, in the eyes of the United States or in the eyes of the international community absent a free and fair election," he said. "That's what it means. And whether there will be policy consequences to that or not depends on the action that this government takes in light of our statements, in light of actions in the Security Council, and in light of the discussions they're having with other regional leaders."

Casey said in addition to measures taken by the international community, the United States could augment⁸ sanctions it already has in place against Mr. Mugabe and key associates.

But he ruled out the withdrawal⁹ of U.S. Ambassador James McGee from Harare, saying his presence is needed to gauge¹⁰ the situation on the ground and maintain contact with the besieged¹¹ opposition.

Casey said the United States had no role in Mr. Tsvangirai's decision to pull out of the runoff but is supportive of it under the current conditions, which he said are making Zimbabwe's president an international political pariah¹².

"All I can say is it must be a very dark and scary place where Robert Mugabe is right now politically, because it's abundantly clear by actions of his government that neither he nor any of those supporting him believe that he would win a free in a and fair election, if they are re resorting to this kind of violence as a response," he said.

Casey did not specify¹³ what steps the Bush administration wants the world community to take, but that its initial expectation is for a so-called president's statement from the U.N. Security Council condemning¹⁴ the Harare government.

South Africa among others had resisted bringing the issue to the Security Council but Casey said the latest developments have brought a "change in tone" by regional leaders once protective of Mr. Mugabe.

 

1 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。

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 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

4 thwart   

v.阻挠，妨碍，反对；adj.横(断的)

参考例句：

• We must thwart his malevolent schemes.我们决不能让他的恶毒阴谋得逞。
• I don't think that will thwart our purposes.我认为那不会使我们的目的受到挫折。

5 condemns   

v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的第三人称单数 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地

参考例句：

• Her widowhood condemns her to a lonely old age. 守寡使她不得不过着孤独的晚年生活。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The public opinion condemns prostitution. 公众舆论遣责卖淫。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

6 Forsaken   

adj. 被遗忘的, 被抛弃的 动词forsake的过去分词

参考例句：

• He was forsaken by his friends. 他被朋友们背弃了。
• He has forsaken his wife and children. 他遗弃了他的妻子和孩子。

7 legitimacy   

n.合法，正当

参考例句：

• The newspaper was directly challenging the government's legitimacy.报纸直接质疑政府的合法性。
• Managing from the top down,we operate with full legitimacy.我们进行由上而下的管理有充分的合法性。

8 augment   

vt.(使)增大，增加，增长，扩张

参考例句：

• They hit upon another idea to augment their income.他们又想出一个增加收入的办法。
• The government's first concern was to augment the army and auxiliary forces.政府首先关心的是增强军队和辅助的力量。

9 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

10 gauge   

v.精确计量；估计；n.标准度量；计量器

参考例句：

• Can you gauge what her reaction is likely to be?你能揣测她的反应可能是什么吗？
• It's difficult to gauge one's character.要判断一个人的品格是很困难的。

11 besieged   

包围，围困，围攻( besiege的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Paris was besieged for four months and forced to surrender. 巴黎被围困了四个月后被迫投降。
• The community besieged the newspaper with letters about its recent editorial. 公众纷纷来信对报社新近发表的社论提出诘问，弄得报社应接不暇。

12 pariah   

n.被社会抛弃者

参考例句：

• Shortly Tom came upon the juvenile pariah of the village.不一会儿，汤姆碰上了村里的少年弃儿。
• His landlady had treated him like a dangerous criminal,a pariah.房东太太对待他就像对待危险的罪犯、对待社会弃儿一样。

13 specify   

vt.指定，详细说明

参考例句：

• We should specify a time and a place for the meeting.我们应指定会议的时间和地点。
• Please specify what you will do.请你详述一下你将做什么。

14 condemning   

v.（通常因道义上的原因而）谴责( condemn的现在分词 )；宣判；宣布…不能使用；迫使…陷于不幸的境地

参考例句：

• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。
• I concur with the speaker in condemning what has been done. 我同意发言者对所做的事加以谴责。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》