VOA常速英语2008年-ASEAN Expresses Concern Over Burma's Election B

By Naomi Martig
Hong Kong
20 February 2008

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations is expressing concern over Burma's decision to exclude pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi from future elections. The statement from ASEAN follows the completion of Burma's draft constitution. But the regional bloc¹ still says it will not interfere² in Burma's domestic affairs. Naomi Martig reports from VOA's Asia News Center in Hong Kong.

Singaporean Foreign Minister George Yeo says Burma's decision to bar Aung San Suu Kyi from participating in elections is odd and out of date. Singapore currently holds ASEAN's rotating leadership. Yeo spoke³ late Tuesday in Singapore, where foreign ministers from the 10-member organization are holding meetings.

But, in keeping with ASEAN's history of non-interference in member states' affairs, Yeo also said the group could do little about Burma's decision.

 

On Tuesday, Burma's state-run radio said a 54-member commission had approved the draft constitution. It prohibits Aung San Suu Kyi from participating in elections because she was married to a foreigner. The democracy leader was married to a British national, who died of cancer in 1999.

Roshan Jason is executive director of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Myanmar Caucus⁴ in Malaysia. He said ASEAN's statement on Burma was weak, especially since it recently signed a charter that calls on member states to protect human rights in the region.

"I think ASEAN has failed in its first attempt to uphold its promises to make sure the region consists of countries which respect human rights," said Jason.

Aung San Suu Kyi has spent 12 of the last 18 years under detention⁵, and is currently under house arrest in Rangoon. Her party won a landslide⁶ election in 1990, but the military government refused to recognize the results. Since then, it has prevented the party from taking office.

Jason said he does not expect ASEAN to take a stronger stance anytime soon, because addressing human rights in Burma could force other member states to acknowledge their own shortcomings.

"You have countries in the region as well, member states of ASEAN, who have, who are in their own way, levels, committing human rights abuses," noted⁷ Jason. "You've got draconian⁸ laws in various countries; you've got arbitrary arrests; you've got former military dictatorships taking the form of civil, political groups."

Jason also says the bloc is choosing money over the basic rights of Burma's people, as many ASEAN members have strong business interests in Burma. ASEAN has argued that trade will help bring about reform in Burma, one of the poorest countries in the region.

Burma says it will hold a national referendum in May to approve the new draft constitution. The international community has criticized the document because Aung San Suu Kyi and independent political parties were barred from the drafting process. Burma's military government says general elections will be held in 2010.

1 bloc   

n.集团；联盟

参考例句：

• A solid bloc of union members support the decision.工会会员团结起来支持该决定。
• There have been growing tensions within the trading bloc.贸易同盟国的关系越来越紧张。

2 interfere   

v.(in)干涉，干预；(with)妨碍，打扰

参考例句：

• If we interfere, it may do more harm than good.如果我们干预的话，可能弊多利少。
• When others interfere in the affair,it always makes troubles. 别人一卷入这一事件，棘手的事情就来了。

3 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。

4 caucus   

n.秘密会议；干部会议；v.（参加）干部开会议

参考例句：

• This multi-staged caucus takes several months.这个多级会议常常历时好几个月。
• It kept the Democratic caucus from fragmenting.它也使得民主党的核心小组避免了土崩瓦解的危险。

5 detention   

n.滞留，停留；拘留，扣留；(教育)留下

参考例句：

• He was kept in detention by the police.他被警察扣留了。
• He was in detention in connection with the bribery affair.他因与贿赂事件有牵连而被拘留了。

6 landslide   

n.(竞选中)压倒多数的选票；一面倒的胜利

参考例句：

• Our candidate is predicated to win by a landslide.我们的候选人被预言将以绝对优势取胜。
• An electoral landslide put the Labour Party into power in 1945.1945年工党以压倒多数的胜利当选执政。

7 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

8 draconian   

adj.严苛的；苛刻的；严酷的；龙一样的

参考例句：

• You can't expect the people to obey such draconian regulations.你不能指望人民服从如此严苛的规定。
• The city needs a draconian way of dealing with robbers.这个城市需要一个严苛的办法来对付强盗。