VOA英语2010年-Kosovo PM Named in Human Organ Scandal

In a political bombshell for the Balkans, Kosovo's Prime Minister Hashim Thaci has been named in a European report as the head of a 'mafia-like' crime organization - accused of drug dealing¹, assassinations² and organ smuggling³. The allegations threaten to derail Kosovo's efforts to gain fully-recognized independence and could have a major impact on the country's relations with the West.

The report claims that at remote bases like this so-called 'Yellow House' in Albania, members of the Kosovo Liberation Army killed up to 500 prisoners and removed their organs, so they could be sold to international buyers on the black market.

The report's author, Council Of Europe Rapporteur Dick Marty, says the crimes were covered up after the Kosovo war. "It was known by numerous people who privately⁴ would tell you: 'well yes, we know but for reasons of political opportunity we have decided⁵ or we feel we have the duty to keep quiet'," he said.

The report even names Kosovo's Prime Minister, Hashim Thaci, as the head of the criminal gang that profited from the organ trade and that also carried out assassinations and drug trafficking. Thaci's party is still celebrating its win in Sunday's election. He says the claims are an attempt to slander⁶ the country's leaders.

"The scandalous report of the member of the European Council parliamentary assembly, Dick Marty, is a document filled with slanders⁷ and lies, which recycles 15 years old propaganda," he said.

Serbia has welcomed the Council of Europe report. Serb forces withdrew from Kosovo after a NATO bombing campaign in 1999. Seventy-two countries have since recognised Kosovo's independence, although Serbia still disputes the claim.

James Ker-Lindsay of the London School of Economics has written a book on Kosovo's efforts to gain independence. He says the accusations⁸ have the potential to derail that progress.

"I think that this is going to make it a lot more difficult for supporters of Kosovo's independence to gain more recognitions. And also we have questions about political dialogue with Belgrade. The Serbian government has said it's still interested in talking, but if these allegations are investigated and there's a case to answer, I think it's going to be very difficult for the Serbian government to continue talking with Thaci," he said.

The report claims that criminal gangs continued to harvest organs after the war at this clinic near Pristina. And in fact, in a currently-ongoing court case, seven people are on trial for trading in the organs of people living in extreme poverty. Prosecutors¹⁰ claim poor people from Moldova, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkey were offered up to $20,000 for their organs, but were never paid.

Surgeon Lutfi Dervishi is alleged¹¹ to be the ringleader of the group. The Council of Europe report also links him to the Kosovo Liberation Army's alleged kidnapping and killing¹² of Serb civilians¹³ for their organs. He denies the charges.

The prosecutor⁹ in the current case, Jonathan Ratel, says there are good reasons why Kosovo appears to be a hub for the illegal organ trade. "Post-conflict states, where clinics can be set up quickly, the rule of law or the legal regime or the health regime is weak, and persons can exploit that. The opportunity for exploitation of persons by trafficking is immense," he said.

The Council of Europe has tabled the report for discussion next month and will decide then whether to launch a criminal investigation¹⁴ into the allegations against Prime Minister Thaci.

1 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

2 assassinations   

n.暗杀( assassination的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Most anarchist assassinations were bungled because of haste or spontaneity, in his view. 在他看来，无政府主义者搞的许多刺杀都没成功就是因为匆忙和自发行动。 来自辞典例句
• Assassinations by Israelis of alleged terrorists habitually kill nearby women and children. 在以色列，自称恐怖分子的炸弹自杀者杀害靠近自己的以色列妇女和儿童。 来自互联网

3 smuggling   

n.走私

参考例句：

• Some claimed that the docker's union fronted for the smuggling ring.某些人声称码头工人工会是走私集团的掩护所。
• The evidence pointed to the existence of an international smuggling network.证据表明很可能有一个国际走私网络存在。

4 privately   

adv.以私人的身份，悄悄地，私下地

参考例句：

• Some ministers admit privately that unemployment could continue to rise.一些部长私下承认失业率可能继续升高。
• The man privately admits that his motive is profits.那人私下承认他的动机是为了牟利。

5 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。

6 slander   

n./v.诽谤，污蔑

参考例句：

• The article is a slander on ordinary working people.那篇文章是对普通劳动大众的诋毁。
• He threatened to go public with the slander.他威胁要把丑闻宣扬出去。

7 slanders   

诽谤，诋毁( slander的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We condemn all sorts of slanders. 我们谴责一切诽谤中伤的言论。
• All slanders and libels should be repudiated. 一切诬蔑不实之词，应予推倒。

8 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

9 prosecutor   

n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人

参考例句：

• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。
• The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

10 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

11 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

12 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。

13 civilians   

平民，百姓( civilian的名词复数 )； 老百姓

参考例句：

• the bloody massacre of innocent civilians 对无辜平民的血腥屠杀
• At least 300 civilians are unaccounted for after the bombing raids. 遭轰炸袭击之后，至少有300名平民下落不明。

14 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。