VOA标准英语2009年-Clinton to Discuss Governance, Corruption

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in Nigeria where she will meet with President Umaru Yar'Adua Wednesday on the fifth stop of her Africa trip. Clinton is expected to discuss good governance and corruption² in Nigeria.
　
Hillary Clinton addresses panel discussion in Goma, Congo, 11 Aug 2009

Secretary of State Clinton meets separately with President Yar'Adua and several former Nigerian heads of state in what her Africa deputy calls the most important country in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson says the Obama administration wants to strengthen and deepen U.S. ties with Nigeria as it faces challenges that include violence in the oil-rich Niger Delta³ and fighting between Muslims and Christians⁴ in the north.

Daphne Wysham is on the board of the U.S.-based Institute for Policy Studies. She says last month's Muslim/Christian violence in the city of Maiduguri that killed hundreds of people has overshadowed the longer-running conflict in the Delta.

"It remains⁵ an area that is cordoned⁶ off, and so those who have fled are not able to return," said Daphne Wysham. "Our concern is that the violence in the Niger Delta must be addressed with third-party mediation⁷ of some sort in order to address the on-going concerns of the people that live in a region that has been despoiled⁸ by oil and gas development for the last five of six decades."

Assistant Secretary Carson says the Yar'Adua government must also tackle corruption in a country that is regularly ranked as one of the most corrupt¹ in the world.

Clinton has a town hall meeting with non-governmental organizations working on good governance and transparency.

She is also expected to discuss regional issues with President Yar'Adua, who is the current leader of the Economic Community of West African States. Senior State Department officials say she will likely bring up this month's constitutional referendum in Niger, where President Mamadou Tandja won the right to change the constitution to extend his time in office.

The U.S. State Department says that is a mistake and constitutional term limits in Niger should be followed. It is a position shared by the European Union and the regional ECOWAS alliance, which has threatened to sanction President Tandja if he changes the constitution to run again when his second term expires in December.

U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is in Nigeria where she will meet with President Umaru Yar'Adua Wednesday on the fifth stop of her Africa trip. Clinton is expected to discuss good governance and corruption in Nigeria.

Secretary of State Clinton meets separately with President Yar'Adua and several former Nigerian heads of state in what her Africa deputy calls the most important country in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Assistant Secretary of State for African Affairs Johnnie Carson says the Obama administration wants to strengthen and deepen U.S. ties with Nigeria as it faces challenges that include violence in the oil-rich Niger Delta and fighting between Muslims and Christians in the north.

Daphne Wysham is on the board of the U.S.-based Institute for Policy Studies. She says last month's Muslim/Christian violence in the city of Maiduguri that killed hundreds of people has overshadowed the longer-running conflict in the Delta.

"It remains an area that is cordoned off, and so those who have fled are not able to return," said Daphne Wysham. "Our concern is that the violence in the Niger Delta must be addressed with third-party mediation of some sort in order to address the on-going concerns of the people that live in a region that has been despoiled by oil and gas development for the last five of six decades."

Assistant Secretary Carson says the Yar'Adua government must also tackle corruption in a country that is regularly ranked as one of the most corrupt in the world.

Clinton has a town hall meeting with non-governmental organizations working on good governance and transparency.

She is also expected to discuss regional issues with President Yar'Adua, who is the current leader of the Economic Community of West African States. Senior State Department officials say she will likely bring up this month's constitutional referendum in Niger, where President Mamadou Tandja won the right to change the constitution to extend his time in office.

The U.S. State Department says that is a mistake and constitutional term limits in Niger should be followed. It is a position shared by the European Union and the regional ECOWAS alliance, which has threatened to sanction President Tandja if he changes the constitution to run again when his second term expires in December.

1 corrupt   

v.贿赂，收买；adj.腐败的，贪污的

参考例句：

• The newspaper alleged the mayor's corrupt practices.那家报纸断言市长有舞弊行为。
• This judge is corrupt.这个法官贪污。

2 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

3 delta   

n.（流的）角洲

参考例句：

• He has been to the delta of the Nile.他曾去过尼罗河三角洲。
• The Nile divides at its mouth and forms a delta.尼罗河在河口分岔，形成了一个三角洲。

4 Christians   

n.基督教徒( Christian的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Christians of all denominations attended the conference. 基督教所有教派的人都出席了这次会议。
• His novel about Jesus caused a furore among Christians. 他关于耶稣的小说激起了基督教徒的公愤。

5 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

6 cordoned   

v.封锁，用警戒线围住( cordon的过去式 )

参考例句：

• Police cordoned off the area until the bomb was defused. 警方封锁了这个地区直到炸弹被拆除为止。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Police cordoned off the road and diverted commuter traffic. 警察封锁了道路并分流交通。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 mediation   

n.调解

参考例句：

• The dispute was settled by mediation of the third country. 这场争端通过第三国的斡旋而得以解决。
• The dispute was settled by mediation. 经调解使争端得以解决。

8 despoiled   

v.掠夺，抢劫( despoil的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• They despoiled the villagers of their belongings. 他们夺走了村民的财物。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The victorious army despoiled the city of all its treasures. 得胜的军队把城里的财宝劫掠一空。 来自辞典例句