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VOA常速英语2007年-British PM Brown Isolated as European, African

时间:2007-12-14 06:50:35

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By Tendai Maphosa
London
29 November 2007

Tensions between Britain and Zimbabwe remain high before next month's Europe-Africa summit in Lisbon, Portugal.  British Prime Minister Gordon Brown insists he will not attend if Zimbabwean President Robert Mugabe shows up as planned.  But, as Tendai Maphosa reports from London, Mr. Brown is not getting support for his boycott1 threat from other European or African leaders.

Britain's Prime Minister Gordon Brown says he will not sit at the table with a man widely accused of human rights abuses, of trampling2 on democracy and of having destroyed his country through economic mismanagement.  Speaking to reporters in London this week, Mr. Brown confirmed his intention to boycott.

"We cannot sit down with at the same table as President Mugabe," he said.  "We do not believe that from the record we have seen over these last few years that there is anything to be gained from a dialogue between Britain and Zimbabwe."

President Mugabe's government has dismissed such threats and accusations3 as interference by the country's former colonizer4.  Mr. Mugabe says he will be at the Lisbon summit.

The Zimbabwean leader has come under increasing criticism from Western countries and human rights organizations.  The European Union has slapped a travel ban on Mr. Mugabe, government officials, and senior members of the ruling ZANU-PF party.  But the European Union bowed to pressure from African countries to invite Mr. Mugabe to the Lisbon summit and agreed to temporarily lift the ban to enable him to attend.

While some European leaders have said they would rather have Mr. Mugabe not come, they have shown little inclination5 to follow Mr. Brown's lead to boycott the summit.

Swedish Prime Minister Fredrik Reinfeldt says he will attend, but insists the issue of Zimbabwe's human rights abuses must be on the agenda.

"It cannot be the only item of course, but it should be a role in the meeting for human rights discussions," he said.

Europe is in a bind6, says Editor Patrick Smith of Africa Confidential7, a newsletter on African affairs.  He tells VOA that Europe is desperate to have a summit with Africa.

"You got to set that against the background of the increasing involvement of China and India and indeed Russia in Africa," he noted8.  "So, the Europeans have got a lot more competition against their normal economic and diplomatic ties with Africa and they feel that, certainly Portugal and Germany feel that it would be entirely9 wrong to lose out in that competition simply because of what they consider to be a bilateral10 dispute between Britain and Zimbabwe."

Improving trade relations between Europe and Africa is a cornerstone of the summit, and many fear that Mr. Mugabe's presence will divert attention from that focus.

African leaders have been adamant11 that Mr. Mugabe be invited.  Some say that while they do not agree with his policies, they believe that dialogue is the best way to resolve Zimbabwe's political and economic crisis.

Speaking during a visit to Sweden, Liberian President Ellen Sirleaf-Johnson said Mr. Mugabe has a right to be heard.

"I am sure he will express the views that are of importance to him and we will have 52 other leaders taking the floor who will express views that are of interest to them," she said.  "Those interests may not be the same so we will have a diversity of issues on the table we hope much of them will be substantive12 and that we can really make some progress at the summit."

During a visit to Zimbabwe, Senegal's President Abdoulaye Wade13 summed up the feelings of many African leaders in support of Robert Mugabe, saying "he is an African brother."

Mr. Wade said he hoped Mr. Mugabe and Gordon Brown would both attend the Lisbon summit, but noted that if he had to choose, he would take Mr. Mugabe's presence over Gordon Brown's.
 
Many Africans remain wary14 of western criticism, viewing it as an attempt to impose outside views and policies on their countries.
 
Many also view Britain's position as selective and hypocritical, since Mr. Mugabe is not the only African leader with a questionable15 human-rights record expected to attend the summit.
 
On the other hand, experts say the fact that other European leaders are willing to sit down with Mr. Mugabe shows that the European Union is putting its self-interest above human rights.  They say that should serve as a warning to democratic movements in Africa to not rely too much on western governments for support.
 
Andebrhan Giorgis is a spokesman for the International Crisis Group research center. 

"I think the democratic movements in Africa must be home grown, there must be a process in each country that is basically indigenous," he said.

The Lisbon summit is scheduled for December 8-9.


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点击收听单词发音收听单词发音  

1 boycott EW3zC     
n./v.(联合)抵制,拒绝参与
参考例句:
  • We put the production under a boycott.我们联合抵制该商品。
  • The boycott lasts a year until the Victoria board permitsreturn.这个抗争持续了一年直到维多利亚教育局妥协为止。
2 trampling 7aa68e356548d4d30fa83dc97298265a     
踩( trample的现在分词 ); 践踏; 无视; 侵犯
参考例句:
  • Diplomats denounced the leaders for trampling their citizens' civil rights. 外交官谴责这些领导人践踏其公民的公民权。
  • They don't want people trampling the grass, pitching tents or building fires. 他们不希望人们踩踏草坪、支帐篷或生火。
3 accusations 3e7158a2ffc2cb3d02e77822c38c959b     
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。
4 colonizer 2f8697fdaa7da17e3005b6189fae8b97     
殖民者,殖民地开拓者,移民
参考例句:
  • In the first few year, the colonizer find life difficult. 头几年里,殖民地开拓者觉得生活艰难。
5 inclination Gkwyj     
n.倾斜;点头;弯腰;斜坡;倾度;倾向;爱好
参考例句:
  • She greeted us with a slight inclination of the head.她微微点头向我们致意。
  • I did not feel the slightest inclination to hurry.我没有丝毫着急的意思。
6 bind Vt8zi     
vt.捆,包扎;装订;约束;使凝固;vi.变硬
参考例句:
  • I will let the waiter bind up the parcel for you.我让服务生帮你把包裹包起来。
  • He wants a shirt that does not bind him.他要一件不使他觉得过紧的衬衫。
7 confidential MOKzA     
adj.秘(机)密的,表示信任的,担任机密工作的
参考例句:
  • He refused to allow his secretary to handle confidential letters.他不让秘书处理机密文件。
  • We have a confidential exchange of views.我们推心置腹地交换意见。
8 noted 5n4zXc     
adj.著名的,知名的
参考例句:
  • The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
  • Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。
9 entirely entirely     
ad.全部地,完整地;完全地,彻底地
参考例句:
  • The fire was entirely caused by their neglect of duty. 那场火灾完全是由于他们失职而引起的。
  • His life was entirely given up to the educational work. 他的一生统统献给了教育工作。
10 bilateral dQGyW     
adj.双方的,两边的,两侧的
参考例句:
  • They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
  • There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题,两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。
11 adamant FywzQ     
adj.坚硬的,固执的
参考例句:
  • We are adamant on the building of a well-off society.在建设小康社会这一点上,我们是坚定不移的。
  • Veronica was quite adamant that they should stay on.维罗妮卡坚信他们必须继续留下去。
12 substantive qszws     
adj.表示实在的;本质的、实质性的;独立的;n.实词,实名词;独立存在的实体
参考例句:
  • They plan to meet again in Rome very soon to begin substantive negotiations.他们计划不久在罗马再次会晤以开始实质性的谈判。
  • A president needs substantive advice,but he also requires emotional succor. 一个总统需要实质性的建议,但也需要感情上的支持。
13 wade nMgzu     
v.跋涉,涉水;n.跋涉
参考例句:
  • We had to wade through the river to the opposite bank.我们只好涉水过河到对岸。
  • We cannot but wade across the river.我们只好趟水过去。
14 wary JMEzk     
adj.谨慎的,机警的,小心的
参考例句:
  • He is wary of telling secrets to others.他谨防向他人泄露秘密。
  • Paula frowned,suddenly wary.宝拉皱了皱眉头,突然警惕起来。
15 questionable oScxK     
adj.可疑的,有问题的
参考例句:
  • There are still a few questionable points in the case.这个案件还有几个疑点。
  • Your argument is based on a set of questionable assumptions.你的论证建立在一套有问题的假设上。

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