VOA标准英语2009-Iranians Living in Australia 'Stunned' About

Iranians living in Australia have expressed their fears for their country and their belief that the recent election was hijacked¹ by supporters of President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.
　
Members of Sydney's Iranian community protest outside polling booth, 12 Jun 2009

Iranian expatriates have expressed horror at the crackdown on opposition² rallies in Tehran, where several people are thought to have been killed or injured by the police.

Over the years, hundreds of Iranians have sought asylum³ in Australia, escaping persecution⁴ back home.

Stolen victory

Those who were hoping that last week's presidential poll would unseat President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad have been left stunned⁵ by his re-election. One exile said it was a "stolen victory".

Many Iranians in Australia think the vote was rigged and the democratic process hijacked by a hard-line government.

Amir Mesrinejad, an Iranian refugee who arrived in Australia almost a decade ago, is an Anglican Church minister who believes the election result is a tragedy for his homeland.

"Some of the members of our church were very concerned about the results," he said. "I was aware that Iranians participated largely in the elections to bring his presidency⁶ down, but the result was the opposite. This regime has been the most barbaric regime. They have done the most outrageous⁷ acts against the nationals of Iran."

Expressions of concern

The United States, France, Germany and other countries have expressed concern about the election and about how the anti-government protests are being handled in Iran.

Australia has pursued a cautious approach to the elections in Iran. Canberra has not openly cast doubt on the outcome.

The Australian foreign minister, Stephen Smith, says he hopes the official results are reliable. Smith also says he is more concerned about efforts to encourage Tehran to give up its controversial nuclear program.

Opposition calls for restraint

Australia's conservative opposition has called on Iran to show restraint in dealing⁸ with protesters.

In Iran, the powerful Guardian⁹ Council has now described the contentious¹⁰ election as "provisional" and the supreme¹¹ leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has ordered an inquiry¹² into allegations of electoral fraud.

1 hijacked   

劫持( hijack的过去式和过去分词 )； 绑架； 拦路抢劫； 操纵（会议等，以推销自己的意图）

参考例句：

• The plane was hijacked by two armed men on a flight from London to Rome. 飞机在从伦敦飞往罗马途中遭到两名持械男子劫持。
• The plane was hijacked soon after it took off. 那架飞机起飞后不久被劫持了。

2 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。

3 asylum   

n.避难所，庇护所，避难

参考例句：

• The people ask for political asylum.人们请求政治避难。
• Having sought asylum in the West for many years,they were eventually granted it.他们最终获得了在西方寻求多年的避难权。

4 persecution   

n. 迫害,烦扰

参考例句：

• He had fled from France at the time of the persecution. 他在大迫害时期逃离了法国。
• Their persecution only serves to arouse the opposition of the people. 他们的迫害只激起人民对他们的反抗。

5 stunned   

adj. 震惊的，惊讶的 动词stun的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• The fall stunned me for a moment. 那一下摔得我昏迷了片刻。
• The leaders of the Kopper Company were then stunned speechless. 科伯公司的领导们当时被惊得目瞪口呆。

6 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

7 outrageous   

adj.无理的，令人不能容忍的

参考例句：

• Her outrageous behaviour at the party offended everyone.她在聚会上的无礼行为触怒了每一个人。
• Charges for local telephone calls are particularly outrageous.本地电话资费贵得出奇。

8 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。

9 guardian   

n.监护人；守卫者，保护者

参考例句：

• The form must be signed by the child's parents or guardian. 这张表格须由孩子的家长或监护人签字。
• The press is a guardian of the public weal. 报刊是公共福利的卫护者。

10 contentious   

adj.好辩的，善争吵的

参考例句：

• She was really not of the contentious fighting sort.她委实不是好吵好闹的人。
• Since then they have tended to steer clear of contentious issues.从那时起，他们总想方设法避开有争议的问题。

11 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

12 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。