英语听力精选进阶版 13638

Khmer Rouge¹ trial

Summary

21 November 2011

The trial of the three most senior surviving leaders of the Khmer Rouge has begun in Cambodia. A UN-backed tribunal has charged Nuon Chea, Ieng Sary and Khieu Samphan with crimes against humanity² and genocide.

Around two million Cambodians died because of forced labour, starvation and murder when the Khmer Rouge governed the country in the late 1970s.

Reporter

Guy De Launey

 A Cambodian man looks at pictures of former Kmer Rouge leaders Nuon Chea (L), Khieu Samphan (middle) and Ieng Sary (R) 

Former Kmer Rouge leaders Nuon Chea (L), Khieu Samphan (middle) and Ieng Sary (R)

Report

This trial has been more than three decades in the making. Vietnamese-backed forces removed the Khmer Rouge from power in 1979. But for a long time there was no appetite to bring the organisation's leaders tojustice.

International politics allowed the Khmer Rouge to hold Cambodia's seat at the United Nations in the 1980s. And in the 90s a series of amnesties brought its members into positions in the government and military. So it took much wrangling³ to get the Khmer Rouge Tribunal off the ground. It finally started work almost six years ago, and progress has been agonisingly slow, with only one conviction⁴ so far.

Crimes included the forced evacuation of towns and cities; turning their inhabitants into slave labourers in the rice fields; and the torture and murder of anyone considered an enemy of the revolution.

The Khmer Rouge leader, Pol Pot, died in 1998. But his right hand man Nuon Chea is on trial alongside⁵ Khieu Samphan, the former head of state, and the former foreign minister, Ieng Sary. If they talk Cambodians may get some explanations at last, but if they stay silent the madness of the Khmer Rouge era may remain a mystery for ever.

Guy De Launey, BBC News

1 rouge   

n.胭脂，口红唇膏；v.(在…上)擦口红

参考例句：

• Women put rouge on their cheeks to make their faces pretty.女人往面颊上涂胭脂，使脸更漂亮。
• She didn't need any powder or lip rouge to make her pretty.她天生漂亮，不需要任何脂粉唇膏打扮自己。

2 humanity   

n.人类，[总称]人(性)，人道[pl.]人文学科

参考例句：

• Such an act is a disgrace to humanity.这种行为是人类的耻辱。
• We should treat animals with humanity.我们应该以仁慈之心对待动物。

3 wrangling   

v.争吵，争论，口角( wrangle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The two sides have spent most of their time wrangling over procedural problems. 双方大部分时间都在围绕程序问题争论不休。 来自辞典例句
• The children were wrangling (with each other) over the new toy. 孩子为新玩具（互相）争吵。 来自辞典例句

4 conviction   

n.确信，坚定的信仰；说服，信服；定罪

参考例句：

• His conviction carried him along in his research.他的信心支持着他把研究工作坚持下去。
• His conviction caused rioting in the streets.他被判有罪，引起了街头骚动。

5 alongside   

adv.在旁边；prep.和...在一起，在...旁边

参考例句：

• There was a butcher's shop alongside the theatre.剧院旁边有一家肉店。
• Alongside of him stood his uncle.他的身旁站着他叔叔。