VOA标准英语2008年-War Crimes Tribunal's Credibility at Stake in K

The war crimes trial of former Bosnian Serb political leader Radovan Karadzic has again put the spotlight¹ on the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia. Karadzic has appeared before the court in the Hague twice since he was arrested in Belgrade last July. In this report from Washington, Senior Correspondent André de Nesnera says experts believe the court's credibility is at stake in this high-profile trial.
　
Former Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic at the UN Yugoslav war crimes tribunal in the Hague, Netherlands, 29 Aug 2008

Radovan Karadzic faces 11 counts of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes stemming from the 1992-95 war in Bosnia. He and Bosnian Serb military leader Ratko Mladic, who is still at large, are accused of ordering what is considered to be the worst atrocity² in Europe since the Second World War: the massacre³ of an estimated 8,000 Muslim men and boys in the U.N.-protected enclave of Srebrenica in July 1995.

Appearing before the court late last month, Karadzic refused to plead to the charges against him. The presiding judge Iain Bonomy entered a not guilty plea for him on all 11 counts. The court then adjourned⁴ and is expected to resume its proceedings⁵ against Karadzic later this month.

The highest profile case to date was that of former Yugoslav President Slobodan Milosevic, also accused of genocide. Milosevic died in detention⁶ in March 2006, just months before a verdict was due.

Radovan Karadzic has decided⁷ he does not need a lawyer and will represent himself.

Experts such as Paul Williams, former legal adviser⁸ to the Bosnian government, say that was a tactic⁹ used by Slobodan Milosevic.

"Although we look at the tribunal as a legal mechanism¹⁰, President Milosevic and Radovan Karadzic look at it as a political platform," he said. "Karadzic has no desire to receive a fair trial, or to have his day in court. He sees that this is his last show."

"And he wants to use the tribunal as a political platform to make his case for his innocence¹¹. And I don't mean legal innocence here, I think he believes that he'll be found guilty and sent to prison. He also wants to 'tell his story'. Karadzic sees that he will have a year or so before the tribunal to 'tell his story'. He's been hiding for the last 12 years and now is his chance to say his peace, to say his story," he added.

Analysts¹² say Karadzic must not be allowed to make a mockery of the trial - something Milosevic was able to do very effectively.

Paul Williams and others say Karadzic's trial will be crucial for the credibility of the international court. "The tribunal has a very mixed record. Justice Goldstone [Richard Goldstone: chief prosecutor¹³ from 1994-96] was phenomenal in that he came out very early and very aggressively and indicted¹⁵ Radovan Karadzic and Ratko Mladic," he said.

"But then there was a change of regime at the tribunal. Goldstone left and new prosecutors¹⁶ came in and the tribunal became timid and tardy," he said. "It was slow to indict¹⁴ Milosevic, it was slow to exercise its jurisdiction¹⁷ in Kosovo and by many accounts was a failure. It then failed in the Milosevic trial. Now is the time for the tribunal to re-establish its credibility by having an effective and a fair prosecution¹⁸ of Karadzic and to re-establish its role in the peace process."

Experts, such as Charles Kupchan with the Council on Foreign Relations, say bringing to justice indicted war criminals such as Radovan Karadzic, is the first step in the process of reconciliation¹⁹ and healing among the various ethnic²⁰ groups in the region.

"If you take a somewhat longer time horizon and you say what kind of events are important to communal²¹ healing, to collective healing, these apprehensions²², these trials, these prosecutions²³ do play an important role even on a personal basis, because there is a sense that justice is being served, there is a sense that those responsible for crimes against humanity are being held accountable," he said.

Kupchan and other experts say the Karadzic trial also sends a powerful message to other leaders indicted for alleged²⁴ war crimes, that it may take time, but ultimately they will be arrested and face justice for their crimes.

 

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 atrocity   

n.残暴，暴行

参考例句：

• These people are guilty of acts of great atrocity.这些人犯有令人发指的暴行。
• I am shocked by the atrocity of this man's crimes.这个人行凶手段残忍狠毒使我震惊。

3 massacre   

n.残杀，大屠杀；v.残杀，集体屠杀

参考例句：

• There was a terrible massacre of villagers here during the war.在战争中，这里的村民惨遭屠杀。
• If we forget the massacre,the massacre will happen again!忘记了大屠杀，大屠杀就有可能再次发生！

4 adjourned   

（使）休会， （使）休庭( adjourn的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The court adjourned for lunch. 午餐时间法庭休庭。
• The trial was adjourned following the presentation of new evidence to the court. 新证据呈到庭上后，审讯就宣告暂停。

5 proceedings   

n.进程，过程，议程；诉讼(程序)；公报

参考例句：

• He was released on bail pending committal proceedings. 他交保获释正在候审。
• to initiate legal proceedings against sb 对某人提起诉讼

6 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。

7 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

8 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

9 tactic   

n.战略，策略；adj.战术的，有策略的

参考例句：

• Reducing prices is a common sales tactic.降价是常用的销售策略。
• She had often used the tactic of threatening to resign.她惯用以辞职相威胁的手法。

10 mechanism   

n.机械装置；机构，结构

参考例句：

• The bones and muscles are parts of the mechanism of the body.骨骼和肌肉是人体的组成部件。
• The mechanism of the machine is very complicated.这台机器的结构是非常复杂的。

11 innocence   

n.无罪；天真；无害

参考例句：

• There was a touching air of innocence about the boy.这个男孩有一种令人感动的天真神情。
• The accused man proved his innocence of the crime.被告人经证实无罪。

12 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

13 prosecutor   

n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人

参考例句：

• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。
• The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

14 indict   

v.起诉，控告，指控

参考例句：

• You can't indict whole people for the crudeness of a few.您不能因少数人的粗暴行为就控诉整个民族。
• I can indict you for abducting high school student.我可以告你诱拐中学生。

15 indicted   

控告，起诉( indict的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The senator was indicted for murder. 那位参议员被控犯谋杀罪。
• He was indicted by a grand jury on two counts of murder. 他被大陪审团以两项谋杀罪名起诉。

16 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

17 jurisdiction   

n.司法权，审判权，管辖权，控制权

参考例句：

• It doesn't lie within my jurisdiction to set you free.我无权将你释放。
• Changzhou is under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu Province.常州隶属江苏省。

18 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

19 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

20 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。

21 communal   

adj.公有的，公共的，公社的，公社制的

参考例句：

• There was a communal toilet on the landing for the four flats.在楼梯平台上有一处公共卫生间供4套公寓使用。
• The toilets and other communal facilities were in a shocking state.厕所及其他公共设施的状况极其糟糕。

22 apprehensions   

疑惧

参考例句：

• He stood in a mixture of desire and apprehensions. 他怀着渴望和恐惧交加的心情伫立着。
• But subsequent cases have removed many of these apprehensions. 然而，随后的案例又消除了许多类似的忧虑。

23 prosecutions   

起诉( prosecution的名词复数 )； 原告； 实施； 从事

参考例句：

• It is the duty of the Attorney-General to institute prosecutions. 检察总长负责提起公诉。
• Since World War II, the government has been active in its antitrust prosecutions. 第二次世界大战以来，政府积极地进行着反对托拉斯的检举活动。 来自英汉非文学 - 政府文件

24 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为