VOA标准英语2008年-France Denies Involvement in Rwanda Genocide

France has rejected a report by Rwanda claiming Paris played a role in the 1994 genocide in the East African nation. Lisa Bryant reports from Paris the French government says it still wants to rebuild frayed¹ relations with Rwanda.

In remarks to reporters Wednesday, French Foreign Minister spokesman Romain Nadal said the report by a Rwandan commission made "unacceptable accusations² against French political and military officials," and he questioned the commission's objectivity.
　
French soldiers on patrol pass ethnic³ Hutu troops from the Rwandan government forces 27 June 1994, near Gisenyie, about 10kms from the border with Zaire

Published Tuesday, the 500-page report claims France was aware of preparations leading up to Rwanda's 1994 genocide that killed some 800 people in just a few months. It accuses the French military in Rwanda of contributing to the planning of the massacres⁴ and even taking part in the killings⁵ that mostly targeted members of the minority Tutsi ethnic group. France had military advisors⁶ in Rwanda leading up to the genocide, and later headed a humanitarian⁷ operation there.

It implicates⁸ 13 French politicians and 20 military officials, including former French prime minister Alain Juppe - who was foreign minister at the time - and late president Francois Mitterrand.

The accusations against France are not new, nor are the French rebuttals. During a visit to Kigali in January, French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner again denied French military involvement in the genocide.

Mr. Kouchner said there was a certain reticence⁹ and problems of understanding by the French military back home, but he would never attack the French army because it was not responsible for the killings. In his opinion, the mistakes were political ones.

France and Rwanda have traded accusations over the years over just who was responsible for the killings. The two countries cut diplomatic ties in 2006 after leading French judge Jean -Louis Brugiere accused current Rwandan President Paul Kagame of being involved in the death of his predecessor¹⁰ in 1994, which sparked the genocide.

The two countries have sought to mend relations in recent months, with a meeting between Kagame and French President Nicolas Sarkozy last December and Kouchner's trip to Rwanda in January. Foreign Ministry¹¹ spokesman Nadal said Tuesday that France remained determined¹² to rebuild a new relationship with Rwanda.

 

1 frayed   

adj.磨损的v.（使布、绳等）磨损，磨破( fray的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• His shirt was frayed. 他的衬衫穿破了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The argument frayed their nerves. 争辩使他们不快。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

2 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。

3 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

4 massacres   

大屠杀( massacre的名词复数 )； 惨败

参考例句：

• The time is past for guns and killings and massacres. 动不动就用枪、动不动就杀、大规模屠杀的时代已经过去了。 来自教父部分
• Numberless recent massacres were still vivid in their recollection. 近来那些不可胜数的屠杀，在他们的头脑中记忆犹新。

5 killings   

谋杀( killing的名词复数 )； 突然发大财，暴发

参考例句：

• His statement was seen as an allusion to the recent drug-related killings. 他的声明被视为暗指最近与毒品有关的多起凶杀案。
• The government issued a statement condemning the killings. 政府发表声明谴责这些凶杀事件。

6 advisors   

n.顾问，劝告者( advisor的名词复数 )；（指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授

参考例句：

• The governors felt that they were being strung along by their advisors. 地方长官感到他们一直在受顾问们的愚弄。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• We will consult together with advisors about her education. 我们将一起和专家商议她的教育事宜。 来自互联网

7 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

8 implicates   

n.牵涉，涉及（某人）( implicate的名词复数 )；表明（或意指）…是起因

参考例句：

• This confession implicates numerous officials in the bribery scandal. 这一供认会使许多官员牵连到受贿的丑事中。 来自辞典例句
• Did you tell him that the recording implicates President Logan in Palmer's assassination? 你有没有告诉他录音显示洛根总统跟帕尔默被杀有关？ 来自电影对白

9 reticence   

n.沉默，含蓄

参考例句：

• He breaks out of his normal reticence and tells me the whole story.他打破了平时一贯沈默寡言的习惯，把事情原原本本都告诉了我。
• He always displays a certain reticence in discussing personal matters.他在谈论个人问题时总显得有些保留。

10 predecessor   

n.前辈，前任

参考例句：

• It will share the fate of its predecessor.它将遭受与前者同样的命运。
• The new ambassador is more mature than his predecessor.新大使比他的前任更成熟一些。

11 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

12 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。