VOA标准英语2015--Burundi Violence Centers on Media Control

Burundi Violence Centers on Media Control

BUJUMBURA, BURUNDI—

The battle for Burundi has centered on control of the country’s influential¹ radio stations. That private and government media have both been casualties of the recent political violence.

Radio Bonesha in Bujumbura is officially off the air.

Last Thursday, the day of the coup², journalists at the private station said security forces came in and destroyed their equipment.

Editor in Chief  Leon Masango said the attack was clearly politically motivated.

“Policemen and military that said they were loyalists came here to destroy our material,” he said. “We had done nothing wrong. We are only here to inform the population.”

Another private station, Radio Publique Africaine, was burned down during the crisis.

Authorities here accuse the local media of supporting the protests against President Pierre Nkurunziza’s bid to run for a third term in office - a plan the opposition³ said violates the law.

Tensions mounted over the course of several weeks, finally boiling over when dissident members of the armed forces announced a coup against the president.

Government spokesman Willy Nyamitwe said the private radio stations were complicit in the attempted takeover.

“They were with the plotters because the plotters were in their studios and they have been broadcasting this and even some songs and they have been accompanying this plot as partners,” he said.

Journalists at the private stations deny being part of the coup.

Meantime, the government has heavily guarded its own state media.

VOA  tried to film the state broadcaster RTNB, but soldiers guarding the area wouldn't let us point our cameras in that direction.

Amateur footage obtained by VOA shows a demonstration⁴ outside the state broadcaster days before the coup. It turned violent when police open fire on protesters.

Rebel military forces later attacked the station during the coup, briefly⁵ forcing it off the air.

Taking control of broadcast operations is a typical strategy during conflict, according to RTNB television director Nestor Bankumukunzi.

“In countries like Burundi, when there has been a coup, they always go first to the national radio to be able to broadcast their message to the population. It’s typical when there’s a coup,” he said.

With other stations shut down, RTNB is now the only local media outlet⁶ left in Burundi.

In a country where radio is king, it is no surprise that the fight for control of the government has centered so much on who controls the airwaves.

1 influential   

adj.有影响的，有权势的

参考例句：

• He always tries to get in with the most influential people.他总是试图巴结最有影响的人物。
• He is a very influential man in the government.他在政府中是个很有影响的人物。

2 coup   

n.政变；突然而成功的行动

参考例句：

• The monarch was ousted by a military coup.那君主被军事政变者废黜了。
• That government was overthrown in a military coup three years ago.那个政府在3年前的军事政变中被推翻。

3 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。

4 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

5 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

6 outlet   

n.出口/路；销路；批发商店；通风口；发泄

参考例句：

• The outlet of a water pipe was blocked.水管的出水口堵住了。
• Running is a good outlet for his energy.跑步是他发泄过剩精力的好方法。