VOA标准英语2010年-ICC Prosecutor Arrives in Kenya to Inv

The Prosecutor¹ of the International Criminal Court said that his team would build their case independently in order to present impartial² evidence to judges at The Hague.

Michael Onyiego | Nairobi 08 May 2010
 

International Criminal Court Prosecutor Luis Moreno-Ocampo attends a press conference at a hotel in Nairobi, Kenya, 08 May 2010

The Prosecutor of the International Criminal Court has arrived in Kenya to begin his investigation³ into crimes against humanity committed in the wake of a disputed presidential election.

Luis Moreno-Ocampo landed in the Kenyan capital Saturday morning for a much anticipated 5 day visit, during which he will gather evidence against suspected sponsors of the ethnic⁴ violence which gripped the East African nation in early 2008.

An estimated 1,000 people were killed and more than 300,000 displaced when supporters of President Mwai Kibaki and Prime Minister Raila Odinga clashed in reaction to accusations⁵ of vote rigging by both parties during the December 2007 presidential election.

Limited mandate⁶

In a press conference this morning, Moreno-Ocampo emphasized that his investigation would not cover the disputed election, explaining that his mandate was limited to crimes against humanity. He did, however, urge the Kenyan government to launch its own investigation into the poll, which he said would help ensure the credibility of the election in 2012. 

There has been wide speculation⁷ about who might be targeted by the investigations⁸. An international commission established in 2008 to examine the causes of the post election crisis presented a sealed list to Moreno-Ocampo containing 20 prominent Kenyan businessmen and politicians which it believed had sponsored the violence.

The Prosecutor has invited Kenyans who believe they are on the list to clear their names, but stressed that the list would not influence his own probe.

Moreno-Ocampo said that his team would build their case independently in order to present impartial evidence to judges at The Hague.

"Crimes happened here. People were killed, there was rape⁹, houses were burned; that happened," said the ICC prosecutor. "There are some allegations someone was involved. For me, I have to start from scratch. I have to collect evidence defining who was criminally responsible. This is not about political parties, this is not about political responsibilities, this is about criminal responsibilities. That's my job."

Witness protection

During the press conference, the issue of witness protection was repeatedly raised. After the prosecutor announced his intention to pursue those responsible for the violence, witnesses around the country have been repeatedly harassed¹⁰ and intimidated¹¹ both verbally and physically¹². Many have received death threats and a few have even gone into hiding.

Moreno-Ocampo estimated that he would select 30 witnesses for his case and affirmed the responsibility of the ICC to protect them. But the prosecutor said that he could only protect those witnesses which he selected and the responsibility fell to the Kenyan government to ensure the safety of the rest.

"We talk about this with the local authorities because it is their job," he said. "They have responsibility to ensure security for the citizens in Kenya, so they have to protect these people. But I cannot replace the Kenyan government. I will not pretend that I would replace the Kenyan government."

The prosecutor is expected to gather preliminary evidence in and around Nairobi over the next five days. The team of investigators¹³ will interview victims of the violence and speak with civil and religious leaders.

Moreno-Ocampo elected to pursue the perpetrators in 2009 in light of Kenya's apparent failure to administer justice. The Truth, Justice and Reconciliation¹⁴ Commission was established in 2008 to investigate the violence, but allegations of ethical¹⁵ violations¹⁶ leveled at the chairman, Bethuel Kiplagat, have marred¹⁷ its credibility and effectively halted its work.

Moreno-Ocampo has indicated that his investigation will take around seven months after which he will issue warrants for suspects to be tried in The Hague. The Kenyan government has promised its full support.
 

1 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。

2 impartial   

adj.(in,to)公正的，无偏见的

参考例句：

• He gave an impartial view of the state of affairs in Ireland.他对爱尔兰的事态发表了公正的看法。
• Careers officers offer impartial advice to all pupils.就业指导员向所有学生提供公正无私的建议。

3 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。

4 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

5 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。

6 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。

7 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

8 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

9 rape   

n.抢夺，掠夺，强奸；vt.掠夺，抢夺，强奸

参考例句：

• The rape of the countryside had a profound ravage on them.对乡村的掠夺给他们造成严重创伤。
• He was brought to court and charged with rape.他被带到法庭并被指控犯有强奸罪。

10 harassed   

adj. 疲倦的，厌烦的 动词harass的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He has complained of being harassed by the police. 他投诉受到警方侵扰。
• harassed mothers with their children 带着孩子的疲惫不堪的母亲们

11 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》

12 physically   

adj.物质上，体格上，身体上，按自然规律

参考例句：

• He was out of sorts physically,as well as disordered mentally.他浑身不舒服，心绪也很乱。
• Every time I think about it I feel physically sick.一想起那件事我就感到极恶心。

13 investigators   

n.调查者，审查者( investigator的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• This memo could be the smoking gun that investigators have been looking for. 这份备忘录可能是调查人员一直在寻找的证据。
• The team consisted of six investigators and two secretaries. 这个团队由六个调查人员和两个秘书组成。 来自《简明英汉词典》

14 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

15 ethical   

adj.伦理的，道德的，合乎道德的

参考例句：

• It is necessary to get the youth to have a high ethical concept.必须使青年具有高度的道德观念。
• It was a debate which aroused fervent ethical arguments.那是一场引发强烈的伦理道德争论的辩论。

16 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。

17 marred   

adj. 被损毁, 污损的

参考例句：

• The game was marred by the behaviour of drunken fans. 喝醉了的球迷行为不轨，把比赛给搅了。
• Bad diction marred the effectiveness of his speech. 措词不当影响了他演说的效果。