VOA标准英语2012--ICC Verdict Finds Lubanga Guilty of Using Child Soldiers

ICC Verdict Finds Lubanga Guilty of Using Child Soldiers

After a trial lasting¹ more than three years, involving more than 60 witnesses and more than a thousand items of evidence, the three judges of Chamber² I at the International Criminal Court came to a unanimous decision.

Presiding judge Adrian Fulford delivered the verdict. "Chamber concludes that the prosecution³ has proved beyond reasonable doubt that Mr. Thomas Lubanga Dyilo is guilty of the crimes of conscripting and enlisting⁴ children under the age of 15 years into the FPLC and using them to participate actively⁵ in hostilities," he said.

An ethnic⁶ Hema, Thomas Lubanga led the rebel group, the Union of Congolese Patriots⁷, and its military wing, the FPLC. He was found guilty of recruiting child soldiers under the age of 15 to kill rival ethnic Lendus in the gold-rich Ituri region during 2002-2003.

At the beginning of the trial in 2009, ICC Chief Prosecutor⁸ Luis Moreno-Ocampo claimed Lubanga used children as young as nine.

"Lubanga's armed group recruited, trained and used hundreds of young children to kill, pillage⁹ and rape," he said.

Videos shown in court by the prosecution showed Lubanga addressing fighters, including child soldiers.

The trial focused solely¹⁰ on the use of children. Human rights groups have called for a wider court investigation¹¹ into abuses during the Ituri conflict. It is estimated more than 50,000 people were killed and hundreds of thousands were forced to flee their homes.

Lubanga was arrested in March 2005 and transferred to The Hague a year later.

"Lubanga really, ultimately, is a very middle-ranking official in the rebel movement and a bit-player in the Congolese conflict as a whole," said Phil Clark, a specialist in African politics and the role of the International Criminal Court, at the School of Oriental and African Studies in London. "So many Congolese who've lived through this conflict are surprised that the International Criminal Court isn't going after more senior suspects, including actors in the Ugandan and Congolese governments."

This is the International Criminal Court's first verdict since it was set up 10 years ago. 

The judges criticized the prosecution for submitting some unreliable testimony¹² - which cost the ICC time and money.

Analyst¹³ Phil Clark says the ruling is a big step for the court.

"Certainly this is a landmark," he said. "I think the ICC has waited a long time to complete its first case. But relatively¹⁴ speaking this has still been quite a long and drawn¹⁵ out affair, with various stops and starts. It's a trial that has almost collapsed¹⁶ on three occasions because the prosecution's investigations¹⁷ were very weak in Congo, they relied on third hand evidence, they didn't do investigations on their own independently on the ground and that's really weakened this case."

A sentencing hearing will take place at the ICC in the coming months and judges will also decide on possible reparations for Lubanga's victims.

In the meantime, Lubanga has 30 days to appeal the verdict.

1 lasting   

adj.永久的，永恒的；vbl.持续，维持

参考例句：

• The lasting war debased the value of the dollar.持久的战争使美元贬值。
• We hope for a lasting settlement of all these troubles.我们希望这些纠纷能获得永久的解决。

2 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

3 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

4 enlisting   

v.（使）入伍， （使）参军( enlist的现在分词 )；获得（帮助或支持）

参考例句：

• He thought about enlisting-about the Spanish legion-about a profession. 他想去打仗，想参加西班牙军团，想找个职业。 来自辞典例句
• They are not enlisting men over thirty-five. 他们不召超过35岁的人入伍。 来自辞典例句

5 actively   

adv.积极地，勤奋地

参考例句：

• During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
• We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。

6 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。

7 patriots   

爱国者，爱国主义者( patriot的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Abraham Lincoln was a fine type of the American patriots. 亚伯拉罕·林肯是美国爱国者的优秀典型。
• These patriots would fight to death before they surrendered. 这些爱国者宁愿战斗到死，也不愿投降。

8 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。

9 pillage   

v.抢劫；掠夺；n.抢劫，掠夺；掠夺物

参考例句：

• The invading troops were guilty of rape and pillage.侵略军犯了抢劫和强奸的罪。
• It was almost pillage.这简直是一场洗劫。

10 solely   

adv.仅仅，唯一地

参考例句：

• Success should not be measured solely by educational achievement.成功与否不应只用学业成绩来衡量。
• The town depends almost solely on the tourist trade.这座城市几乎完全靠旅游业维持。

11 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。

12 testimony   

n.证词；见证，证明

参考例句：

• The testimony given by him is dubious.他所作的证据是可疑的。
• He was called in to bear testimony to what the police officer said.他被传入为警官所说的话作证。

13 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

14 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。

15 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

16 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

17 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。