VOA标准英语2009-Electoral Officials Distributing Ballots for

Electoral officials in Guinea Bissau are distributing voting materials ahead of Sunday's presidential election. Eleven candidates are running to succeed long-time President Joao Bernardo Vieira who was killed in March.

Campaign workers load boxes of paper ballots² onto a truck for transport to polling stations near the border with Senegal. Each shipment contains a white cardboard stand to give voters privacy and a clear plastic ballot¹ box with numbered plastic ties to seal it once polls close.

It is the earliest that voting materials have been distributed in Guinea Bissau. National Electoral Commission President Desejado Lima Da Costa says it is one of several changes meant to ensure a free and fair vote.

Da Costa says fraud usually occurs when voting materials arrive at polling stations late. This time he says electoral officials are better prepared and all materials will be in place before the first voters arrive Sunday morning.

Da Costa says Guinea Bissau can be an example for the sub-region by holding a vote that is free, transparent³, and without violence.

This country has been rocked by a series of army mutinies and coups⁵ since independence from Portugal in 1974. That instability has been exploited by Latin American drug gangs using airstrips along the coast to smuggle⁶ cocaine⁷ to Europe.

Sunday's vote is a contest to succeed President Vieria, who was killed in March hours after his chief political rival, Army Chief of Staff General Batista Tagme Na Waie, died in a bomb blast.

Earlier this month, former interior minister and presidential candidate Baciro Dabo was killed by state security forces who say he resisted arrest as an alleged⁸ coup⁴ plotter. Dabo's family says he was shot in his bed.

Campaigning was briefly⁹ suspended following the killing¹⁰ of Dabo and former defense¹¹ minister Helder Proenca. But after meeting with government officials and political leaders, Acting¹² President Raimundo Pereira decided¹³ that Sunday's vote would go ahead as planned.

At the Salvador Allende Secondary School, poll workers are being trained in securing ballot boxes and explaining the electoral process to voters who are illiterate¹⁴.

Da Costa says the government has launched an extensive civil education campaign to make sure people understand the significance of this vote.

Da Costa says this is a decisive election that could relaunch Guinea Bissau's economy. While he says no vote can resolve all of the problems confronting the country, it is an important part of establishing stability.

Nearly 600,000 people are registered to vote out of a population of 1.6 million. Unlike previous elections, Da Costa says the electoral commission will announce provisional results within five days instead of ten in hopes of reducing tensions among supporters awaiting the outcome.

While 11 candidates are running to succeed President Vieria, it is primarily a race between the ruling party candidate - former interim¹⁵ president Malam Bacai Sanha - and the main opposition¹⁶ Social Renewal¹⁷ Party candidate - former president Kumba Yala. Their strongest challenger is businessman and former interim president Henrique Rosa, who is running as an independent candidate.

1 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。

2 ballots   

n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

4 coup   

n.政变；突然而成功的行动

参考例句：

• The monarch was ousted by a military coup.那君主被军事政变者废黜了。
• That government was overthrown in a military coup three years ago.那个政府在3年前的军事政变中被推翻。

5 coups   

n.意外而成功的行动( coup的名词复数 )；政变；努力办到难办的事

参考例句：

• China has seen many political coups within the ruling class. 中国统治阶级内部发生过很多政变。 来自互联网
• Thailand has had eighteen coups or coup attendance since nineteen thirty-two. 泰国1932年以来有18次政变或参加政变。 来自互联网

6 smuggle   

vt.私运；vi.走私

参考例句：

• Friends managed to smuggle him secretly out of the country.朋友们想方设法将他秘密送出国了。
• She has managed to smuggle out the antiques without getting caught.她成功将古董走私出境，没有被逮捕。

7 cocaine   

n.可卡因，古柯碱（用作局部麻醉剂）

参考例句：

• That young man is a cocaine addict.那个年轻人吸食可卡因成瘾。
• Don't have cocaine abusively.不可滥服古柯碱。

8 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

9 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

10 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

11 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

12 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

13 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

14 illiterate   

adj.文盲的；无知的；n.文盲

参考例句：

• There are still many illiterate people in our country.在我国还有许多文盲。
• I was an illiterate in the old society,but now I can read.我这个旧社会的文盲，今天也认字了。

15 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

16 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。

17 renewal   

adj.(契约)延期，续订，更新，复活，重来

参考例句：

• Her contract is coming up for renewal in the autumn.她的合同秋天就应该续签了。
• Easter eggs symbolize the renewal of life.复活蛋象征新生。