VOA常速英语2007年-Remembering Pakistan's Former Prime Minister Be

By Alex Villarreal
Washington
28 December 2007
 

Pakistan's former prime minister and opposition¹ leader Benazir Bhutto has been assassinated². As Alex Villarreal reports, Bhutto will be remembered for her unwavering devotion to democracy and the people of Pakistan.

Police and aides say Pakistan's former prime minister Benazir Bhutto died Thursday after being shot during a suicide attack at an election rally near the capital, Islamabad.

The 54-year-old leader of the Pakistani People's Party had just addressed a gathering³ in a park in Rawalpindi, near Islamabad, when a suicide bomber⁴ fired gunshots at Bhutto before blowing himself up.

Benazir Bhutto was a Pakistani political icon⁵ -- the first female prime minister of a Muslim country.

She served two terms, from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 to 1996. Her tenure⁶ was marred⁷ by corruption⁸ charges, and she later left Pakistan under a cloud of legal challenges. But in recent years, Ms. Bhutto was heralded⁹ by western governments as a pro-democracy reformer.

After eight years in exile, she was allowed to return to Pakistan in October. In an emotional homecoming she said, "I feel very very emotional coming back to my country. I dreamt of this day for so many months and years. I counted the hours, I counted the minutes and the seconds, just to see this land, to see the grass, to see the sky. I feel so emotionally overwhelmed."

Bhutto's homecoming rally was marred by a suicide attack that killed more than 130 people -- one of the worst such attacks in Pakistan's history. The bombing also strained relations between her and President Pervez Musharraf.

For months, she held talks with President Musharraf for a possible power-sharing deal, strongly favored by the United States. But talks had stalled and Ms. Bhutto was campaigning to run in general elections set for January eighth. She was determined¹⁰ to see democracy in Pakistan.

"The people that you see outside are the real image of Pakistan. These are the decent hard working middle classes and working classes of Pakistan, who want to be empowered so they can build a moderate modern nation where everybody has equality. This is the real Pakistan and if we get democracy this is the face of Pakistan the world will see. Not the face of the extremists who have thrived under the dictatorships," Bhutto said.

Despite warnings from Pakistani security officials about threats to her safety, she continued to hold public rallies and held fast to her belief in the Pakistani people. She said, "I feel so proud of the people of Pakistan, I feel so very proud of them. It hurts us when people say, the terrorists who come, whether they are bombing tubes in London, or whetehr plotting plots in Germany or doing things in ohter countries, and have their trail leading back (to Pakistan). That is not the real image of Pakistan"

The Pakistan's People's Party, or PPP, was founded by her father Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in the 1960s. The PPP has been one of the few political parties in Pakistan that drew support from broad constituencies across the country.

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 assassinated   

v.暗杀( assassinate的过去式和过去分词 )；中伤；诋毁；破坏

参考例句：

• The prime minister was assassinated by extremists. 首相遭极端分子暗杀。
• Then, just two days later, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. 跟着在两天以后，肯尼迪总统在达拉斯被人暗杀。 来自辞典例句

3 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。

4 bomber   

n.轰炸机，投弹手，投掷炸弹者

参考例句：

• He flew a bomber during the war.他在战时驾驶轰炸机。
• Detectives hunting the London bombers will be keen to interview him.追查伦敦爆炸案凶犯的侦探们急于对他进行讯问。

5 icon   

n.偶像，崇拜的对象，画像

参考例句：

• They found an icon in the monastery.他们在修道院中发现了一个圣像。
• Click on this icon to align or justify text.点击这个图标使文本排齐。

6 tenure   

n.终身职位；任期；(土地)保有权，保有期

参考例句：

• He remained popular throughout his tenure of the office of mayor.他在担任市长的整个任期内都深得民心。
• Land tenure is a leading political issue in many parts of the world.土地的保有权在世界很多地区是主要的政治问题。

7 marred   

adj. 被损毁, 污损的

参考例句：

• The game was marred by the behaviour of drunken fans. 喝醉了的球迷行为不轨，把比赛给搅了。
• Bad diction marred the effectiveness of his speech. 措词不当影响了他演说的效果。

8 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

9 heralded   

v.预示( herald的过去式和过去分词 )；宣布（好或重要）

参考例句：

• The singing of the birds heralded in the day. 鸟鸣报晓。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• A fanfare of trumpets heralded the arrival of the King. 嘹亮的小号声宣告了国王驾到。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。