VOA标准英语2009年-Iraq Announces Preliminary Results of Provincia

Iraq's electoral commission has announced the preliminary results of last weekend's provincial¹ elections, amid some accusations² of irregularities and voting fraud. The Iraqi army and security forces, however, say that they will maintain order despite any challenges.
　
Iraqi election officials count ballots⁴ from the country's provincial elections in Baghdad, 05 Feb 2009

The head of Iraq's High Electoral Commission Faraj al-Haidari announced the preliminary results of Saturday's provincial election, indicating that 90 percent of the vote had been counted and that international observers were pleased with the electoral process.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki's bloc⁵ won 38 percent of the vote in Baghdad, 37 percent in Basrah, and large margins⁷ in other provinces.

This is the country's first election since 2005, with fourteen of Iraq's 18 provinces having voted.

Meanwhile, a suicide bomber⁸ in Diyala province, near the Iranian border, killed at least 12 people in a restaurant in the mostly Kurdish town of Khanaqin.

On the other side of the country, in the western Anbar province, the Iraqi Army and security forces stepped up their presence, amid complaints of irregularities and voting fraud by Sunni tribal⁹ leaders. U.S. troops were also reportedly asked to step up their patrols in the province.

Brigadier General Murdah Dulaimy told Iraqi TV that his men were sent to Anbar province to keep order and will clamp down according to the army's security plan.

He says that the Iraqi Armed Forces will act decisively against anyone trying to disrupt order in Anbar province. Yesterday, he adds, we met with the elders and sheikhs in Anbar and told them that the army would maintain neutrality and clamp down against anyone disturbing the peace.

Key tribal leaders in Anbar province, including Sheikh Ahmed Abu Rishah, who heads the local Sahwah or Awakening¹⁰ council, has accused the rival Iraqi Islamic Party of stuffing ballot³ boxes to rig the vote:

He says that our dispute with the electoral commission is that we sent a large number of votes from Anbar to be counted in Baghdad and we have proof of it, from the initial count, so we know the number of votes that were sent to be tallied¹¹ in Baghdad.

Iraqi Deputy Prime Minister Rafah al Issawi, himself a Sunni, visited Anbar province to express support for Sheikh Abu Rishah and the Sahwah Council, insisting that a recount must take place:

He says that, today, those who won the vote are unfortunately not those who wield¹² power, but that he doesn't think any of the sheikhs of Anbar want to return to the bad old days of violence, and will instead resort to legal means for a recount.

Political and tribal leaders met in Ramadi, Wednesday, according to the Arab daily Asharqalawsat to dissipate tensions, agreeing "not to take up arms against one another."

The paper also noted¹³ that election turnout was only 51 percent.

Prime Minister Maliki's coalition¹⁴ was credited by various Baghdad newspapers with winning a large margin⁶ because of his recent success in imposing¹⁵ law. Shi'ite religious parties, including that of firebrand cleric Muqtada al-Sadr did not do so well, but insisted they would make alliances with other parties to strengthen their hand.

1 provincial   

adj.省的，地方的；n．外省人，乡下人

参考例句：

• City dwellers think country folk have provincial attitudes.城里人以为乡下人思想迂腐。
• Two leading cadres came down from the provincial capital yesterday.昨天从省里下来了两位领导干部。

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 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

4 ballots   

n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 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。

6 margin   

n.页边空白；差额；余地，余裕；边，边缘

参考例句：

• We allowed a margin of 20 minutes in catching the train.我们有20分钟的余地赶火车。
• The village is situated at the margin of a forest.村子位于森林的边缘。

7 margins   

边( margin的名词复数 )； 利润； 页边空白； 差数

参考例句：

• They have always had to make do with relatively small profit margins. 他们不得不经常设法应付较少的利润额。
• To create more space between the navigation items, add left and right margins to the links. 在每个项目间留更多的空隙，加左或者右的margins来定义链接。

8 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。

9 tribal   

adj.部族的，种族的

参考例句：

• He became skilled in several tribal lingoes.他精通几种部族的语言。
• The country was torn apart by fierce tribal hostilities.那个国家被部落间的激烈冲突弄得四分五裂。

10 awakening   

n.觉醒，醒悟 adj.觉醒中的；唤醒的

参考例句：

• the awakening of interest in the environment 对环境产生的兴趣
• People are gradually awakening to their rights. 人们正逐渐意识到自己的权利。

11 tallied   

v.计算，清点( tally的过去式和过去分词 )；加标签（或标记）于；（使）符合；（使）吻合

参考例句：

• The girl tallied them with her eyes for a moment. 新娘用目光把这些化妆品清点了一下。 来自教父部分
• His account of the accident tallied with hers. 他对事故的陈述和她的相吻合。 来自辞典例句

12 wield   

vt.行使，运用，支配；挥，使用(武器等)

参考例句：

• They wield enormous political power.他们行使巨大的政治权力。
• People may wield the power in a democracy.在民主国家里，人民可以行使权力。

13 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。

14 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

15 imposing   

adj.使人难忘的，壮丽的，堂皇的，雄伟的

参考例句：

• The fortress is an imposing building.这座城堡是一座宏伟的建筑。
• He has lost his imposing appearance.他已失去堂堂仪表。