Ousted leader returns to Honduras

Ousted¹ Honduran President Manuel Zelaya has returned to his country, nearly three months after being deposed(被免职).

Mr Zelaya has sought refuge（避难庇护） inside the Brazilian embassy in Tegucigalpa and hundreds of his supporters have gathered outside.

Mr Zelaya said he had crossed mountains and rivers to return to the capital, where he said he was seeking dialogue.

Honduran authorities, who have threatened to arrest Mr Zelaya, have imposed a curfew on the country.

In images broadcast on national television, a smiling Mr Zelaya wearing his trademark² white cowboy hat appeared on the balcony of the Brazilian embassy waving to crowds of his supporters.

Witnesses said a military helicopter flew overhead.

Shortly afterwards officials imposed the 15-hour curfew, starting at 1600 (2200 GMT) on Monday.

 

The left-leaning president has been living in exile in Nicaragua since being ousted at gunpoint on 28 June.

The crisis erupted（爆发） after Mr Zelaya tried to hold a non-binding public consultation³ to ask people whether they supported moves to change the constitution.

The US has backed Mr Zelaya during his exile and criticised the de facto leaders for failing to restore "democratic（民主） constitutional rule" and the Organization of American States (OAS) has demanded Mr Zelaya's reinstatement.

Dialogue

Speaking to the BBC from inside the Brazilian embassy, Mr Zelaya said he had received support from various quarters in order to return.

 

"[We travelled] for more than 15 hours... through rivers and mountains until we reached the capital of Honduras, which we reached in the early hours of the morning," he said.

"We overtook military and police obstacles, all those on the highways here, because this country has been kidnapped by the military forces."

He said he was consulting with sectors⁴ of Honduran society and the international community in order "to start the dialogue for the reconstruction⁵ of the Honduran democracy".

Brazilian Foreign Minister Celso Amorim confirmed that Mr Zelaya had been given refuge inside the embassy.

But he said neither his country nor the OAS had played any part in Mr Zelaya's return, Associated Press news agency reported.

Thousands of Zelaya supporters converged（聚集） on the embassy, after gathering⁶ outside UN buildings where he was initially⁷ reported to be.

"The government has declared the curfew for the entire country from four in the afternoon until six in the morning to conserve⁸ calm in the country," a spokesman for the leadership, Rene Zepeda, told Reuters.

The interim⁹ government has repeatedly threatened to arrest Mr Zelaya should he return.

Call for calm

Mr Zelaya urged the armed forces not to use violence against demonstrators.

 

Supporters of Mr Zelaya initially gathered outside the UN building

OAS chief Jose Miguel Insulza also called for calm, telling Honduran authorities they were responsible for the security of Mr Zelaya and the Brazilian embassy.

As reports that Mr Zelaya had surfaced in Tegucigalpa began to come through, de facto leader Mr Micheletti appeared to be caught off-guard, insisting Mr Zelaya had not left neighbouring Nicaragua.

"It's not true. He is in a hotel suite¹⁰ in Nicaragua," Mr Micheletti told a news conference.

Mr Micheletti has vowed¹¹ to step aside after presidential elections are held as scheduled on 29 November. But he has refused to allow Mr Zelaya to return to office in the interim.

Shortly after June's coup¹², Mr Zelaya attempted to fly back to Honduras, but failed when the authorities blocked the runway at Tegucigalpa airport.

In July, talks in Costa Rica on resolving the crisis hosted by the country's President Oscar Arias¹³ broke down without the parties reaching an agreement.

Later that month, Mr Zelaya briefly¹⁴ crossed into Honduras from Nicaragua - a symbolic¹⁵ move the US described as "reckless". （本文由在线英语听力室整理编辑）

1 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

2 trademark   

n.商标；特征；vt.注册的…商标

参考例句：

• The trademark is registered on the book of the Patent Office.该商标已在专利局登记注册。
• The trademark of the pen was changed.这钢笔的商标改了。

3 consultation   

n.咨询；商量；商议；会议

参考例句：

• The company has promised wide consultation on its expansion plans.该公司允诺就其扩展计划广泛征求意见。
• The scheme was developed in close consultation with the local community.该计划是在同当地社区密切磋商中逐渐形成的。

4 sectors   

n.部门( sector的名词复数 )；领域；防御地区；扇形

参考例句：

• Berlin was divided into four sectors after the war. 战后柏林分成了4 个区。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Industry and agriculture are the two important sectors of the national economy. 工业和农业是国民经济的两个重要部门。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 reconstruction   

n.重建，再现，复原

参考例句：

• The country faces a huge task of national reconstruction following the war.战后，该国面临着重建家园的艰巨任务。
• In the period of reconstruction,technique decides everything.在重建时期，技术决定一切。

6 gathering   

n.集会，聚会，聚集

参考例句：

• He called on Mr. White to speak at the gathering.他请怀特先生在集会上讲话。
• He is on the wing gathering material for his novels.他正忙于为他的小说收集资料。

7 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

8 conserve   

vt.保存，保护，节约，节省，守恒，不灭

参考例句：

• He writes on both sides of the sheet to conserve paper.他在纸张的两面都写字以节省用纸。
• Conserve your energy,you'll need it!保存你的精力，你会用得着的！

9 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

10 suite   

n.一套(家具)；套房；随从人员

参考例句：

• She has a suite of rooms in the hotel.她在那家旅馆有一套房间。
• That is a nice suite of furniture.那套家具很不错。

11 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

12 coup   

n.政变；突然而成功的行动

参考例句：

• The monarch was ousted by a military coup.那君主被军事政变者废黜了。
• That government was overthrown in a military coup three years ago.那个政府在3年前的军事政变中被推翻。

13 arias   

n.咏叹调( aria的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Can you pick out the operatic arias quoted in this orchestral passage? 你能听出这段管弦乐曲里有歌剧式的咏叹调吗？ 来自辞典例句
• The actions are large and colour, there are arias and recitatives. 动作夸张而华美，有唱段也有宣叙部。 来自辞典例句

14 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

15 symbolic   

adj.象征性的，符号的，象征主义的

参考例句：

• It is symbolic of the fighting spirit of modern womanhood.它象征着现代妇女的战斗精神。
• The Christian ceremony of baptism is a symbolic act.基督教的洗礼仪式是一种象征性的做法。