VOA标准英语2008年-Key Partner in Pakistan Coalition Government Qu

Pakistan's former prime minister Nawaz Sharif says his party, the Pakistan Muslim League-N has quit the ruling coalition¹ government because its main partner, the Pakistan People's Party, has broken several key policy promises. VOA's Barry Newhouse reports from Islamabad the announcement ends a partnership² that just one week ago successfully pressured President Pervez Musharraf to resign.

Pakistan's ruling coalition government has been deadlocked³ for months over whether it would restore more than 40 top judges who were fired by President Musharraf. In recent weeks, the coalition rallied around its opposition⁴ to the president and ended his nearly nine-year rule through a carefully orchestrated series of no confidence votes.
　
Nawaz Sharif (file photo)

But that powerful unity⁵ was short-lived. Nawaz Sharif said his party is quitting the coalition because the Pakistan People's Party broke pledges about restoring the judiciary and deciding who would be the next president.

"These repeated violations⁶ have forced us to withdraw our support from the ruling coalition and sit on the opposition benches," said Sharif. "However, we will play a constructive⁷ role in light of the charter of democracy and continue our struggle for the restoration of judges and genuine democracy in Pakistan."
　
Pakistan People's Party leader Asif Ali Zardari addresses a press conference in Islamabad, 07 Aug 2008

At one point during the news conference in Islamabad he waved a document he said showed PPP leader Asif Ali Zardari's signature on one of the broken agreements.

Sharif said among the unfulfilled deals was a plan for nominating a neutral presidential candidate if the far-reaching powers that Pervez Musharraf had bestowed⁸ on the president's office were not changed.

The Pakistan Peoples Party named Asif Ali Zardari its presidential candidate in recent days. Sharif said the PML-N is nominating a retired⁹ judge, Said-uz Zaman Siddiqui, to run against him.

Several Pakistan People's Party officials disputed Mr. Sharif's version of the coalition's differences, but PPP spokesman Faratullah Babar was hopeful the two would be able to reconcile.

He says the leader of the Pakistan People's Party has said we will not disturb Sharif's party's government in Punjab province and we expect the same from him in the National Assembly. He says we are hopeful they will return to the coalition.

Other key members of the ruling coalition said they will continue to support the Pakistan People's Party, maintaining the PPP-led majority in parliament. But the departure of Sharif's party deprives the coalition of an automatic two-thirds majority of seats required to pass constitutional amendments¹⁰.

The political split comes during a time of worsening security in Pakistan, with more than 80 people killed in suicide bombings in the past week and more than 250,000 people fleeing a military offensive against Taliban militants¹² in Bajaur tribal¹³ agency.

Meanwhile, Pakistan's interior ministry¹⁴ announced it is formally banning the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan militant¹¹ group. The action gives the government broader powers to prosecute¹⁵ associates and fundraisers of the banned militia¹⁶, which claimed credit for a string of attacks across Pakistan in the last year.

The former secretary of the interior ministry, Tasneem Noorani, who was involved in banning several militant groups in recent years, said that in the past, militant groups that mainly operated in the tribal agencies were not placed on banned lists because the anti-terror laws do not apply in the semi-autonomous region.

He told VOA that the designation indicates the government is concerned the group is expanding its influence into settled areas of the country.

"That is certainly one of the points," said Noorani. "Because if they do any activity in the settled area then the anti-terrorist law would become that much more important. And if there are people sympathetic to them in settled areas, like in central Punjab or in Sindh, then those people could be put under severe pressure."

Noorani says the designation gives the government another tool, in addition to military action and peace agreements, to try to counter the growing militant threat.

1 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

2 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

3 deadlocked   

陷入僵局的；僵持不下的

参考例句：

• The plan deadlocked over the funds. 这个计划由于经费问题而搁浅了。
• The meeting deadlocked over the wage issue. 会议因工资问题而停顿下来。

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 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

6 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。

7 constructive   

adj.建设的，建设性的

参考例句：

• We welcome constructive criticism.我们乐意接受有建设性的批评。
• He is beginning to deal with his anger in a constructive way.他开始用建设性的方法处理自己的怒气。

8 bestowed   

赠给，授予( bestow的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• It was a title bestowed upon him by the king. 那是国王赐给他的头衔。
• He considered himself unworthy of the honour they had bestowed on him. 他认为自己不配得到大家赋予他的荣誉。

9 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

10 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。

11 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

12 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

13 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

14 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

15 prosecute   

vt.告发；进行；vi.告发，起诉，作检察官

参考例句：

• I am trying my best to prosecute my duties.我正在尽力履行我的职责。
• Is there enough evidence to prosecute?有没有起诉的足够证据？

16 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。