VOA标准英语2009年-Somaliland President Urges Calm After Dead

The president of Somaliland is calling for his political opponents to cease public protests and to sit down at the table with him for renewed negotiations¹. Political protests in the breakaway republic of Somaliland turned deadly on Saturday, leaving three people dead and several others injured.
　
President of the Breakaway Republic of Somaliland, Dahir Riyale in his office in Hargeisa (File)

Somaliland President Dahir Riyale cautioned his political opposition² against breaking the territory's peace, saying that peace is easy to maintain but hard to win back.

Policemen fired into a crowd Saturday after protesters began burning tires and hurling³ stones when opposition lawmakers were denied access to the parliament building.

On Sunday, President Dahir Riyale urged the territory's citizens to take a long look towards the south, where the Western-backed Mogadishu government is engaged in a bloody⁴ struggle against opposing Islamic militant⁵ groups in central and southern Somalia.

He said instability in the breakaway territory plays into the hands of the radical⁶ Islamist group al-Shabab. The spiritual leader of al-Shabab recently released a taped message threatening the Somaliland government.

Last week a brawl⁷ broke out between members of the Lower House of Parliament after it was ruled a motion to impeach⁸ the president could proceed constitutionally. Security forces stormed the building after a parliament member loyal to the president brandished⁹ a firearm.

The police have since maintained a lockdown on the building, refusing access to the enraged¹⁰ members of parliament.
　
People take to the streets of Hargeysa in the breakaway state of Somaliland, 12 Sep 2009

A group of parliament members led by the speaker said they were going to peacefully re-enter their chamber¹¹ on Saturday. When police again barred their way, the crowd that had gathered to escort the lawmakers turned riotous¹².

Mohamed Nor Arale, one of the opposition members of parliament, says citizens must rescue Somaliland from the hands of the president, who is not interested in holding democratic elections according to the law.

Somaliland has been a pocket of stability and democracy, rare in a region marred¹³ with conflict. It broke away from Somalia after the central government collapsed¹⁴ in 1991, although it has yet to be recognized by the international community as a separate state.

Somaliland's election commission has indefinitely postponed¹⁵ elections scheduled for later this month. It was the third delay in a vote that was originally scheduled for April 2008.

President Riyale, who has been in power since 2002, faces strong challenges from two presidential opponents. Both opposition parties have rejected his position that elections should be held without proper voter registration¹⁶ lists.

A number of journalists were detained by police for covering the Saturday clashes. Watchdog groups have accused the government of cracking down on journalistic freedom in the territory.

1 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

2 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

3 hurling   

n.爱尔兰式曲棍球v.猛投，用力掷( hurl的现在分词 )；大声叫骂

参考例句：

• The boat rocked wildly, hurling him into the water. 这艘船剧烈地晃动，把他甩到水中。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Fancy hurling away a good chance like that, the silly girl! 想想她竟然把这样一个好机会白白丢掉了，真是个傻姑娘！ 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 bloody   

adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染

参考例句：

• He got a bloody nose in the fight.他在打斗中被打得鼻子流血。
• He is a bloody fool.他是一个十足的笨蛋。

5 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

6 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

7 brawl   

n.大声争吵，喧嚷；v.吵架，对骂

参考例句：

• They had nothing better to do than brawl in the street.他们除了在街上斗殴做不出什么好事。
• I don't want to see our two neighbours engaged in a brawl.我不希望我们两家吵架吵得不可开交。

8 impeach   

v.弹劾；检举

参考例句：

• We must impeach the judge for taking bribes.我们一定要检举法官收受贿赂。
• The committee decided to impeach the President.委员会决定弹劾总统。

9 brandished   

v.挥舞( brandish的过去式和过去分词 )；炫耀

参考例句：

• "Bang!Bang!"the small boy brandished a phoney pistol and shouted. “砰！砰！”那小男孩挥舞着一支假手枪，口中嚷嚷着。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Swords brandished and banners waved. 刀剑挥舞，旌旗飘扬。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

10 enraged   

使暴怒( enrage的过去式和过去分词 )； 歜； 激愤

参考例句：

• I was enraged to find they had disobeyed my orders. 发现他们违抗了我的命令，我极为恼火。
• The judge was enraged and stroke the table for several times. 大法官被气得连连拍案。

11 chamber   

n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所

参考例句：

• For many,the dentist's surgery remains a torture chamber.对许多人来说，牙医的治疗室一直是间受刑室。
• The chamber was ablaze with light.会议厅里灯火辉煌。

12 riotous   

adj.骚乱的；狂欢的

参考例句：

• Summer is in riotous profusion.盛夏的大地热闹纷繁。
• We spent a riotous night at Christmas.我们度过了一个狂欢之夜。

13 marred   

adj. 被损毁, 污损的

参考例句：

• The game was marred by the behaviour of drunken fans. 喝醉了的球迷行为不轨，把比赛给搅了。
• Bad diction marred the effectiveness of his speech. 措词不当影响了他演说的效果。

14 collapsed   

adj.倒塌的

参考例句：

• Jack collapsed in agony on the floor. 杰克十分痛苦地瘫倒在地板上。
• The roof collapsed under the weight of snow. 房顶在雪的重压下突然坍塌下来。

15 postponed   

vt.& vi.延期，缓办，（使）延迟vt.把…放在次要地位；[语]把…放在后面（或句尾）vi.（疟疾等）延缓发作（或复发）

参考例句：

• The trial was postponed indefinitely. 审讯无限期延迟。
• The game has already been postponed three times. 这场比赛已经三度延期了。

16 registration   

n.登记，注册，挂号

参考例句：

• Marriage without registration is not recognized by law.法律不承认未登记的婚姻。
• What's your registration number?你挂的是几号？