2007年VOA标准英语-European Parliament Members Defend Criticisms o

By Dan Robinson
Capitol Hill
18 April 2007

Members of the European Parliament have gone before US Congress to defend the findings of a report criticizing the practice of extraordinary rendition, in which terrorist suspects have been transferred by U.S. authorities to other countries for interrogation. VOA's Dan Robinson has a report from Capitol Hill.

Since revelations emerged in U.S. media of the increased use of rendition after the 2001 terrorist attacks, the Bush administration has faced intense criticism from human rights groups, European governments and politicians.

The transport of suspects by the CIA to countries such as Egypt, Jordan, Syria, Morocco and Uzbekistan has come in for particular criticism, along with the use of formerly² secret detention³ facilities in east European countries and use of European airspace by CIA aircraft.

Critics allege⁴ prisoners are deliberately⁵ sent to places where they would be subject to torture, outside of the confines of the U.S. judicial⁶ system.

Bush administration and CIA officials have said the United States does not conduct or condone⁷ torture, and that interrogation measures are conducted lawfully⁸, adding that the U.S. seeks assurances from foreign governments that torture will not be used.

But witnesses appearing before the House human rights subcommittee defended a European Parliament report, which found among other things that rendition involved such things as incommunicado detention and torture.

Jonathan Evans, chairman of the European Parliament delegation⁹ for relations with the United States, asserts that rendition is viewed in the United States as well as Europe as a violation¹⁰ of due process.

"Let's never forget, we are allies who share common values, of freedom, democracy and the rule of law," said Jonathan Evans. "In promoting these values elsewhere in the world, we must ensure the maintenance of those values in our own countries."

In its report released earlier this year, the European Parliament said many European states tolerated what were called illegal actions by the CIA, and criticized several European governments for an unwillingness¹¹ to cooperate with investigations¹².

Baroness13 Sarah Ludford (2006 photo)" hspace="2" src="/upimg/allimg/070531/1429330.jpg" width="162" vspace="2" border="0" />

Baroness Sarah Ludford (2006 photo)

European Parliament member Baroness Sarah Ludford:

"We did undertake a sound and thorough inquiry¹⁴, and our conclusion, our core conclusion, that systematic¹⁵ breaches¹⁶ of human rights, took place in Europe and affecting European citizens and legal residents, with the collusion of European governments, is well-founded," said Baroness Ludford.

Congressional critics say rendition, first used during the Clinton administration as a tool against extremists, has been abused under President Bush.

Democratic Congressman¹⁷ William Delahunt chairs the House panel, and says the practice undermines the ability of the U.S. to speak credibly¹⁸ about respect for democracy and the rule of law.

"The people across the globe have admired our historical commitment to freedom and the rule of law," said William Delahunt. "But they are appalled¹⁹ at our hypocrisy²⁰ when we betray our values."

Republican Congressman Dana Rohrabacher calls rendition a perfectly-acceptable method that must be used to protect citizens of all countries in a new kind of war.

He describes as anti-American vitriol a portion of the European Parliament report that mentions the trial in June of 26 U.S. citizens, including the CIA chief in Italy and other CIA agents and nine Italians, in connection with the 2003 rendition to Egypt of a radical²¹ Islamist cleric:

 

"When people who are defending us, who put their lives in jeopardy²², but then to put them in jeopardy of being paraded through a foreign court and tossed in jail for doing what our government has asked them to do, and what our government asked them to do in cooperation with those very same European governments, this is a travesty²³, we should be supporting these people rather than trying to make their job more difficult," said Congressman Rohrabacher. "Is is truly a disappointment."

Michael Scheuer, the former head of the CIA special unit on Osama Bin¹ Laden²⁴, defends rendition, saying the program was strengthened for the better by President Bush, and had this harsh assessment²⁵ criticisms of Europe where he said, terrorists have safe haven²⁶:

"Indeed, it is strange that European leaders are here today to complain about a very successful and security-enhancing U.S. government counter-terrorist operation, when their European Union presides over the earth's single largest terrorist safe-haven [in Europe] and has done so for a quarter century," said Scheuer.

Tuesday's hearing coincided with a report in The Washington Post saying CIA Director Michael Hayden complained last month to European diplomats²⁷ about criticisms by officials in their countries of the U.S. rendition program.

Quoting un-named diplomats and officials, the newspaper said Hayden asserted that fewer than 100 people had been held in secret detention facilities since 2002, and that fewer than half had been subjected to what President Bush described as "alternative procedures" during interrogations.

1 bin   

n.箱柜；vt.放入箱内；[计算机] DOS文件名:二进制目标文件

参考例句：

• He emptied several bags of rice into a bin.他把几袋米倒进大箱里。
• He threw the empty bottles in the bin.他把空瓶子扔进垃圾箱。

2 formerly   

adv.从前，以前

参考例句：

• We now enjoy these comforts of which formerly we had only heard.我们现在享受到了过去只是听说过的那些舒适条件。
• This boat was formerly used on the rivers of China.这船从前航行在中国内河里。

3 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。

4 allege   

vt.宣称，申述，主张，断言

参考例句：

• The newspaper reporters allege that the man was murdered but they have given no proof.新闻记者们宣称这个男人是被谋杀的，但他们没提出证据。
• Students occasionally allege illness as the reason for absence.学生时不时会称病缺课。

5 deliberately   

adv.审慎地；蓄意地；故意地

参考例句：

• The girl gave the show away deliberately.女孩故意泄露秘密。
• They deliberately shifted off the argument.他们故意回避这个论点。

6 judicial   

adj.司法的，法庭的，审判的，明断的，公正的

参考例句：

• He is a man with a judicial mind.他是个公正的人。
• Tom takes judicial proceedings against his father.汤姆对他的父亲正式提出诉讼。

7 condone   

v.宽恕；原谅

参考例句：

• I cannot condone the use of violence.我不能宽恕使用暴力的行为。
• I will not condone a course of action that will lead us to war.我绝不允许任何导致战争的行为。

8 lawfully   

adv.守法地，合法地；合理地

参考例句：

• Lawfully established contracts shall be protected by law. 依法成立的合同应受法律保护。 来自口语例句
• As my lawfully wedded husband, in sickness and in health, till death parts us. 当成是我的合法丈夫，无论疾病灾难，直到死亡把我们分开。 来自电影对白

9 delegation   

n.代表团；派遣

参考例句：

• The statement of our delegation was singularly appropriate to the occasion.我们代表团的声明非常适合时宜。
• We shall inform you of the date of the delegation's arrival.我们将把代表团到达的日期通知你。

10 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。

11 unwillingness   

n. 不愿意，不情愿

参考例句：

• Her unwillingness to answer questions undermined the strength of her position. 她不愿回答问题，这不利于她所处的形势。
• His apparent unwillingness would disappear if we paid him enough. 如果我们付足了钱，他露出的那副不乐意的神情就会消失。

12 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

13 baroness   

n.男爵夫人，女男爵

参考例句：

• I'm sure the Baroness will be able to make things fine for you.我相信男爵夫人能够把家里的事替你安排妥当的。
• The baroness,who had signed,returned the pen to the notary.男爵夫人这时已签过字，把笔交回给律师。

14 inquiry   

n.打听，询问，调查，查问

参考例句：

• Many parents have been pressing for an inquiry into the problem.许多家长迫切要求调查这个问题。
• The field of inquiry has narrowed down to five persons.调查的范围已经缩小到只剩5个人了。

15 systematic   

adj.有系统的，有计划的，有方法的

参考例句：

• The way he works isn't very systematic.他的工作不是很有条理。
• The teacher made a systematic work of teaching.这个教师进行系统的教学工作。

16 breaches   

破坏( breach的名词复数 )； 破裂； 缺口； 违背

参考例句：

• He imposed heavy penalties for breaches of oath or pledges. 他对违反誓言和保证的行为给予严厉的惩罚。
• This renders all breaches of morality before marriage very uncommon. 这样一来，婚前败坏道德的事就少见了。

17 Congressman   

n.（美）国会议员

参考例句：

• He related several anecdotes about his first years as a congressman.他讲述自己初任议员那几年的几则轶事。
• The congressman is meditating a reply to his critics.这位国会议员正在考虑给他的批评者一个答复。

18 credibly   

ad.可信地；可靠地

参考例句：

• I am credibly informed that. 由可靠方面听说。
• An effective management software ensures network to run credibly. 一个高效的网管软件是网络运行的可靠保证。

19 appalled   

v.使惊骇，使充满恐惧( appall的过去式和过去分词)adj.惊骇的；丧胆的

参考例句：

• The brutality of the crime has appalled the public. 罪行之残暴使公众大为震惊。
• They were appalled by the reports of the nuclear war. 他们被核战争的报道吓坏了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

20 hypocrisy   

n.伪善，虚伪

参考例句：

• He railed against hypocrisy and greed.他痛斥伪善和贪婪的行为。
• He accused newspapers of hypocrisy in their treatment of the story.他指责了报纸在报道该新闻时的虚伪。

21 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。

22 jeopardy   

n.危险；危难

参考例句：

• His foolish behaviour may put his whole future in jeopardy.他愚蠢的行为可能毁了他一生的前程。
• It is precisely at this juncture that the boss finds himself in double jeopardy.恰恰在这个关键时刻，上司发现自己处于进退两难的境地。

23 travesty   

n.歪曲，嘲弄，滑稽化

参考例句：

• The trial was a travesty of justice.这次审判嘲弄了法律的公正性。
• The play was,in their view,a travesty of the truth.这个剧本在他们看来是对事实的歪曲。

24 laden   

adj.装满了的；充满了的；负了重担的；苦恼的

参考例句：

• He is laden with heavy responsibility.他肩负重任。
• Dragging the fully laden boat across the sand dunes was no mean feat.将满载货物的船拖过沙丘是一件了不起的事。

25 assessment   

n.评价；评估；对财产的估价，被估定的金额

参考例句：

• This is a very perceptive assessment of the situation.这是一个对该情况的极富洞察力的评价。
• What is your assessment of the situation?你对时局的看法如何？

26 haven   

n.安全的地方，避难所，庇护所

参考例句：

• It's a real haven at the end of a busy working day.忙碌了一整天后，这真是一个安乐窝。
• The school library is a little haven of peace and quiet.学校的图书馆是一个和平且安静的小避风港。

27 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》