VOA常速英语2007年-Pakistan's Musharraf Promises Fair Vote; Opposi

By Michael Bowman
Washington
09 December 2007

Pakistan's President is again promising¹ that next month's elections will be free and fair, as efforts by opposition² parties to present a united front appear to have crumbled³. From Washington, VOA's Michael Bowman reports.

For weeks, President Pervez Musharraf has insisted that the January 8 vote will be transparent⁴ and free of fraud. The assurances have not convinced major opposition parties, which until now have maintained the threat of a boycott⁵.

News reports from Pakistan say opposition parties met to consider a boycott pact⁶, but failed to reach an agreement. As a result, former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's Pakistan Muslim League Party now says it has no choice but to take part in the general elections, despite misgivings⁷ about the integrity of the vote.

Speaking on CNN's Late Edition program, Mr. Musharraf accused opposition groups of leveling baseless accusations⁸ for their own political purposes.

"This is a clear indication of their preparation for defeat," said Pervez Musharraf. "Now when they lose, they will have a good rationale, [saying] that it is all rigged, that this is all fraud. This is what they do always. In Pakistan, the loser always cries. I think they should gracefully⁹ participate in the elections, and then gracefully accept defeat if any of them gets defeated. We will congratulate anyone who does win."

Mr. Musharraf recently stepped down as head of Pakistan's armed forces, but has yet to lift a state of emergency that has sparked controversy¹⁰ and criticism at home and abroad. The one-time general who overthrew¹¹ Mr. Sharif in 1999 suggested that his critics in the international community should not be judging him.

"We act according to our dictates¹² and realities in Pakistan," said Mr. Musharraf. "And let the people in the United States and the West understand what Pakistan is. Please understand us . We are fighting the terrorists here. Do not destabilize Pakistan, you will repent¹³ [regret] it."

Mr. Musharraf also reiterated¹⁴ his opposition to any unilateral military move by the United States to capture terrorist mastermind Osama bin¹⁵ Laden¹⁶ in Pakistani territory.

President Bush ordered that all U.S. assistance to Pakistan be reviewed after Mr. Musharraf suspended constitutional rule, but said U.S.-Pakistani security cooperation must continue, especially in the fight against terrorism.

One of Mr. Bush's top supporters in the U.S. Congress, House Republican Leader John Boehner, said he still has confidence in the Pakistani ruler.

"I do, and I think he has been, really, a very important ally to us," said John Boehner. "And when we look at the threats we face around the world, having Pakistan as one of our allies is important to our long-term future.

Boehner, who also spoke¹⁷ on CNN, added that he is hopeful that constitutional rule will be restored in Pakistan, and that the January elections will be free and fair.

1 promising   

adj.有希望的，有前途的

参考例句：

• The results of the experiments are very promising.实验的结果充满了希望。
• We're trying to bring along one or two promising young swimmers.我们正设法培养出一两名有前途的年轻游泳选手。

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 crumbled   

（把…）弄碎， （使）碎成细屑( crumble的过去式和过去分词 )； 衰落； 坍塌； 损坏

参考例句：

• He crumbled the bread in his fingers. 他用手指把面包捻碎。
• Our hopes crumbled when the business went bankrupt. 商行破产了，我们的希望也破灭了。

4 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

5 boycott   

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。

6 pact   

n.合同，条约，公约，协定

参考例句：

• The two opposition parties made an electoral pact.那两个反对党订了一个有关选举的协定。
• The trade pact between those two countries came to an end.那两国的通商协定宣告结束。

7 misgivings   

n.疑虑，担忧，害怕；疑虑，担心，恐惧( misgiving的名词复数 )；疑惧

参考例句：

• I had grave misgivings about making the trip. 对于这次旅行我有过极大的顾虑。
• Don't be overtaken by misgivings and fear. Just go full stream ahead! 不要瞻前顾后， 畏首畏尾。甩开膀子干吧！ 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

8 accusations   

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。

9 gracefully   

ad.大大方方地；优美地

参考例句：

• She sank gracefully down onto a cushion at his feet. 她优雅地坐到他脚旁的垫子上。
• The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line. 新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。

10 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

11 overthrew   

overthrow的过去式

参考例句：

• The people finally rose up and overthrew the reactionary regime. 人们终于起来把反动的政权推翻了。
• They overthrew their King. 他们推翻了国王。

12 dictates   

n.命令，规定，要求( dictate的名词复数 )v.大声讲或读( dictate的第三人称单数 )；口授；支配；摆布

参考例句：

• Convention dictates that a minister should resign in such a situation. 依照常规部长在这种情况下应该辞职。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He always follows the dictates of common sense. 他总是按常识行事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 repent   

v.悔悟，悔改，忏悔，后悔

参考例句：

• He has nothing to repent of.他没有什么要懊悔的。
• Remission of sins is promised to those who repent.悔罪者可得到赦免。

14 reiterated   

反复地说，重申( reiterate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• "Well, I want to know about it,'she reiterated. “嗯，我一定要知道你的休假日期，"她重复说。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹
• Some twenty-two years later President Polk reiterated and elaborated upon these principles. 大约二十二年之后，波尔克总统重申这些原则并且刻意阐释一番。

15 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

16 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

17 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。