2007年VOA标准英语-Beatings and Abductions Continue in Zimbabwe

By Peta Thornycroft
Harare
07 May 2007

After the high-profile police beating of senior opposition¹ politicians in March, state-sponsored political violence in Zimbabwe is now targeting mid-level opposition activists⁴ and ordinary citizens who are being dragged out of their homes, and beaten, mostly at night in Harare's high-density suburbs. Peta Thornycroft reports that doctors, lawyers and opposition political leaders describe it as a terror campaign perpetrated by state security agents against opponents of President Robert Mugabe.

Every morning, victims of political violence are showing up for treatment in various doctors offices in Harare.

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Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai is seen in bed at a local hospital in Harare, 14 Mar 2007

The doctors say that since March 11, when many opposition leaders were arrested and suffered serious injuries in police custody⁵ they are treating at least five people a day, every day. They add they have reports that more injured people remain at home, unable to travel to town for treatment, or too poor to afford transport.

One doctor, who asked not to be identified, said he had never seen so many victims of severe beatings in his career as a private medical practitioner⁶ in Harare.

Victims of political violence say they are unable to seek help at public health facilities, as they have to produce a certificate from the police about the cause of their injuries before they can be treated. This was confirmed by State Security Minister Didymus Mutasa in a telephone interview with VOA.

"Because the police would have been called in and the hospitals here do not treat cases like that without reference to the police," he said.

Many of the victims are officials of small branches of the opposition Movement for Democratic Change, but some have told doctors they have no political affiliation⁷.

University of Zimbabwe senior political analyst⁸ Eldred Masunungure says the ruling Zanu-PF has embarked⁹ on a two-pronged strategy. The first, he says, is designed to soften¹⁰ up or neutralize¹¹ the opposition Movement for Democratic Change in advance of the Southern African Development Community's mission to bring ZANU-PF and opposition groups to the negotiating table before national elections next March.

Masunungure adds that Zanu-PF is in election mode and on what he described as a war footing. He says Zanu-PF has always used violence as an instrument of persuasion¹².

Alec Muchadahama is a lawyer who handles many of the political detentions¹³ in Harare. He has regularly brought cases of severe beatings suffered by his clients in police custody to the attention of the courts.

He says political repression¹⁴, especially beatings, has never been worse with daily arrests of people he believes are on a police list of opposition members.

"Apart from those they have arrested and taken to court, there are also those who police are simply abducted¹⁵ during the night and taken to far off places in the bushes and assaulted thoroughly¹⁶ - leave them for dead in the bushes," he said. "And some of them are taken to police stations where they are also seriously tortured and simply released."

Muchadahama and others have told VOA that some people abducted from their homes at night disappear, and no one knows whether they are dead, in hiding, or have fled to South Africa.

State security minister Didymus Mutasa denies the government has been beating people up in the townships. He told VOA the victims are lying about the attacks.

"There is nobody who is being beaten. Please do not make me angry," he said. "I am telling you again and again that there is nobody who is being beaten, but you are telling lies."

Victims of violence say they are not always sure which branch of the state's extensive security machinery¹⁷ is responsible for the ongoing¹⁸ reign¹⁹ of terror in the townships. But different individuals have identified the Central Intelligence Organization; the military police; or, youth militia²⁰ loyal to Zanu-PF as being responsible for their abuse.

The government accuses the opposition of engaging in terrorism and says the MDC is responsible for 11 petrol bomb attacks, mostly in Harare, since March 15. The majority targeted police stations and Zanu-PF owned homes in the high-density suburbs.

The MDC denies the allegations; but 31, mostly senior members of the MDC, are now in prison awaiting trial on terrorism charges. Lawyer Muchadahama said the only evidence the police have produced so far are some confessions²¹ he says were extracted under torture. He adds that the arrests are political.

"Because the police are saying on a daily basis they want to carry out raids in an attempt to arrest would be saboteurs but in this process they are going for any person who they suspect is an MDC sympathiser or activist³ and is treating them in the manor²² I have described," he said.

Shortly after the interview with the VOA, Muchadahama and a colleague, Andrew Makoni were detained and held at Harare Central Police Station. The Harare High Court ruled on Saturday they should be released immediately.

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 mar   

vt.破坏，毁坏，弄糟

参考例句：

• It was not the custom for elderly people to mar the picnics with their presence.大人们照例不参加这样的野餐以免扫兴。
• Such a marriage might mar your career.这样的婚姻说不定会毁了你的一生。

3 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

4 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 custody   

n.监护，照看，羁押，拘留

参考例句：

• He spent a week in custody on remand awaiting sentence.等候判决期间他被还押候审一个星期。
• He was taken into custody immediately after the robbery.抢劫案发生后，他立即被押了起来。

6 practitioner   

n.实践者，从事者；(医生或律师等)开业者

参考例句：

• He is an unqualified practitioner of law.他是个无资格的律师。
• She was a medical practitioner before she entered politics.从政前她是个开业医生。

7 affiliation   

n.联系，联合

参考例句：

• There is no affiliation between our organization and theirs,even though our names are similar.尽管两个组织的名称相似，但我们之间并没有关系。
• The kidnappers had no affiliation with any militant group.这些绑架者与任何军事组织都没有紧密联系。

8 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

9 embarked   

乘船( embark的过去式和过去分词 )； 装载； 从事

参考例句：

• We stood on the pier and watched as they embarked. 我们站在突码头上目送他们登船。
• She embarked on a discourse about the town's origins. 她开始讲本市的起源。

10 soften   

v.(使)变柔软；(使)变柔和

参考例句：

• Plastics will soften when exposed to heat.塑料适当加热就可以软化。
• This special cream will help to soften up our skin.这种特殊的护肤霜有助于使皮肤变得柔软。

11 neutralize   

v.使失效、抵消，使中和

参考例句：

• Nothing could neutralize its good effects.没有什么能抵消它所产生的好影响。
• Acids neutralize alkalis and vice versa.酸能使碱中和碱，亦能使酸中和。

12 persuasion   

n.劝说；说服；持有某种信仰的宗派

参考例句：

• He decided to leave only after much persuasion.经过多方劝说，他才决定离开。
• After a lot of persuasion,she agreed to go.经过多次劝说后，她同意去了。

13 detentions   

拘留( detention的名词复数 )； 扣押； 监禁； 放学后留校

参考例句：

• Teachers may assign detention tasks as they wish and some detentions have been actually dangerous. 老师可能随心所欲指派关禁闭的形式，有些禁闭事实上很危险。
• Intimidation, beatings and administrative detentions are often enough to prevent them from trying again. 恐吓，拷打和行政拘留足以阻止请愿者二次进京的脚步。

14 repression   

n.镇压，抑制，抑压

参考例句：

• The repression of your true feelings is harmful to your health.压抑你的真实感情有害健康。
• This touched off a new storm against violent repression.这引起了反对暴力镇压的新风暴。

15 abducted   

劫持，诱拐( abduct的过去式和过去分词 )； 使（肢体等）外展

参考例句：

• Detectives have not ruled out the possibility that she was abducted. 侦探尚未排除她被绑架的可能性。
• The kid was abducted at the gate of kindergarten. 那小孩在幼儿园大门口被绑架走了。

16 thoroughly   

adv.完全地，彻底地，十足地

参考例句：

• The soil must be thoroughly turned over before planting.一定要先把土地深翻一遍再下种。
• The soldiers have been thoroughly instructed in the care of their weapons.士兵们都系统地接受过保护武器的训练。

17 machinery   

n.(总称)机械，机器；机构

参考例句：

• Has the machinery been put up ready for the broadcast?广播器材安装完毕了吗？
• Machinery ought to be well maintained all the time.机器应该随时注意维护。

18 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

19 reign   

n.统治时期，统治，支配，盛行；v.占优势

参考例句：

• The reign of Queen Elizabeth lapped over into the seventeenth century.伊丽莎白王朝延至17世纪。
• The reign of Zhu Yuanzhang lasted about 31 years.朱元璋统治了大约三十一年。

20 militia   

n.民兵，民兵组织

参考例句：

• First came the PLA men,then the people's militia.人民解放军走在前面，其次是民兵。
• There's a building guarded by the local militia at the corner of the street.街道拐角处有一幢由当地民兵团守卫的大楼。

21 confessions   

n.承认( confession的名词复数 )；自首；声明；（向神父的）忏悔

参考例句：

• It is strictly forbidden to obtain confessions and to give them credence. 严禁逼供信。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Neither trickery nor coercion is used to secure confessions. 既不诱供也不逼供。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

22 manor   

n.庄园，领地

参考例句：

• The builder of the manor house is a direct ancestor of the present owner.建造这幢庄园的人就是它现在主人的一个直系祖先。
• I am not lord of the manor,but its lady.我并非此地的领主，而是这儿的女主人。