VOA常速英语2007年-Georgian Leaders Stress Security

By Peter Fedynsky
Tblisi
11 November 2007

President Mikhail Saakashvili says Georgia's state of emergency will be lifted when the country is secure. The announcement comes as top Georgian government officials meet with the opposition¹ to discuss ways to resolve their bitter political impasse². VOA correspondent Peter Fedynsky has this report from Tbilisi.

In a televised meeting with businessmen, Georgian President Mikhail Saakashvili said he will lift the country's state of emergency based on the country's security needs, not because of recommendations by the foreign minister of another country.

The United States, the European Union and other countries have called on Mr. Saakashvili to quickly end emergency rule imposed after riot police used force to disperse³ anti-government protesters in Tbilisi on Wednesday.

Mr. Saakashvili's televised business meeting was broadcast as the opposition met with parliamentary Speaker Nino Burdzhanadze, a key Saakashvili ally, who will become interim⁴ president 45 days before Georgia's January 5 presidential election. The president must resign by national law before the election.

David Isupashvili, leader of Georgia's Republican Party, says the opposition raised the issue of equal media access during the two-and-a-half hour meeting with Speaker Burdzhanadze. "If the emergency rules continue until the very day the president resigns, the president will actually have started his electoral campaign," said Isupashvili. "And you can see today, the only TV which broadcasts any political news is occupied with presidential speech for three hours. He had speech for one hour and a half, and then it is repeated right now."

Speaker Burdzhanadze downplays the issue, saying security is much more important than media access. "I hope you will agree there is no reason to have any campaign if something wrong will happen in the country," she said. "So the first priority is security and stability in the country, and the second priority, despite its importance, is to have normal possibility for election campaign."

Salome Zurabashvili, Georgia's ex-foreign minister and leader of the opposition Georgian Way party, told VOA the meeting did not solve any of the problems discussed at the meeting. They included an end to the state of emergency, restoration of independent media, and electoral reforms. "On some we are a bit further down the road than on others," said Zurabashvili. "I think the main positive thing is that after this first meeting we'll still meet."

Zurabashvili says the Patriarch of the Georgian Orthodox Church, Ilia II, helped the government and opposition meet despite mutual⁵ animosities. Ilia met separately with both sides on Friday and organized a joint⁶ meeting Saturday.

Meanwhile, Georgian billionaire businessman Badri Patarkatsishvili has announced he will run in the January presidential election, but would step aside for any candidate that could unite the fractured opposition. Patarkatsishvili, however, is reported to be abroad and is also wanted by Georgian authorities in an alleged⁷ coup⁸ plot against President Saakashvili.

1 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。

2 impasse   

n.僵局；死路

参考例句：

• The government had reached an impasse.政府陷入绝境。
• Negotiations seemed to have reached an impasse.谈判似乎已经陷入僵局。

3 disperse   

vi.使分散；使消失；vt.分散；驱散

参考例句：

• The cattle were swinging their tails to disperse the flies.那些牛甩动着尾巴驱赶苍蝇。
• The children disperse for the holidays.孩子们放假了。

4 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。

5 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。

6 joint   

adj.联合的，共同的；n.关节，接合处；v.连接，贴合

参考例句：

• I had a bad fall,which put my shoulder out of joint.我重重地摔了一跤，肩膀脫臼了。
• We wrote a letter in joint names.我们联名写了封信。

7 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

8 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。