VOA标准英语2011--Mubarak Trial Carries Many Uncertainties

Mubarak Trial Carries Many Uncertainties¹ for Nervous Egypt

Egypt's deposed² President Hosni Mubarak is scheduled to go on trial August 3 on corruption³ and murder charges related to his 30-year tenure⁴ and the crackdown on protesters during the revolution that ousted⁵ him in January and February. The trial is an important step for Egypt, but also carries many uncertainties.
Egypt's 18-day revolution was mostly peaceful. But as the huge daily protests began to threaten to bring down the government, police and troops reacted with violence.
By the time Mr. Mubarak handed over power to a military council, anger was running high. And it still is.
The anger spilled over into a violent clash July 23rd between supporters of the interim⁶ military government and protesters who say reforms are not happening quickly enough.
But state media quote Egypt's deputy justice minister as saying the trial will begin August 3, and be held at Cairo's convention center.
Those protesters marched out from the ongoing⁷ sit-in at Tahrir Square, the center of the revolution, where emotions still run high.
"There is a lot of things to be judged, a lot of things for those people to be convicted for, but there is nothing at all," said a protester. "They are just delaying the trials. Delay, delays, delays."
"We didn't see justice," said another. "My friends die here but we didn't see justice."
There is speculation⁸ the trial might be postponed⁹ because Mr. Mubarak has been ill.
But analysts¹⁰ say that would be a mistake. Professor Saad Eddin Ibrahim has written about Egyptian society for decades and was jailed several times for speaking out against the Mubarak regime.
"A trial under the public eye would itself serve a great, shall we say, cathartic¹¹ function," said Professor Ibrahim. "It will absorb a great deal of the tension that we have seen recently."
But Professor Ibrahim is concerned that Egypt's current military leaders may be reluctant to see their former boss in a defendant's cage and, potentially, sentenced to death.
"Having appointed them, having them think of him as one of their senior colleagues," he said. "He was their commander in chief. I don't they'd like to see him humiliated¹² because that reflects on the whole military."
It's a delicate balance for the top military officers - satisfying people's demands for justice while also safeguarding their own positions.
And editor Rania al-Malky of Daily News Egypt says there's another issue. She believes the Egyptian leaders are also under pressure from autocratic regimes elsewhere in the region, several of which have also faced large-scale protests.
"He would be the first Arab dictator ever to face this situation, I think, in the history of this region," said al-Malky. "So this is setting a very dangerous precedent¹³ maybe for other leaders who are afraid for themselves."
But veteran journalist Hisham Kassem says there is more at stake than Mr. Mubarak's fate, or that of other leaders in the region.
"My real concern is that due process is observed because as we enter a new republic we have to uphold rule of law," said Kassem. "And Mubarak must get fair trial.
So, it mustn't be a question of revenge, of getting back at Mubarak."
People on Tahrir Square would like revenge, or at least justice, and they want it in a Mubarak trial starting Wednesday, as scheduled.

1 uncertainties   

无把握( uncertainty的名词复数 )； 不确定； 变化不定； 无把握、不确定的事物

参考例句：

• One of the uncertainties of military duty is that you never know when you might suddenly get posted away. 任军职不稳定的因素之一是你永远不知道什么时候会突然被派往它处。
• Uncertainties affecting peace and development are on the rise. 影响和平与发展的不确定因素在增加。 来自汉英非文学 - 十六大报告

2 deposed   

v.罢免( depose的过去式和过去分词 )；（在法庭上）宣誓作证

参考例句：

• The president was deposed in a military coup. 总统在军事政变中被废黜。
• The head of state was deposed by the army. 国家元首被军队罢免了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 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。

4 tenure   

n.终身职位；任期；(土地)保有权，保有期

参考例句：

• He remained popular throughout his tenure of the office of mayor.他在担任市长的整个任期内都深得民心。
• Land tenure is a leading political issue in many parts of the world.土地的保有权在世界很多地区是主要的政治问题。

5 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

6 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

7 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

8 speculation   

n.思索，沉思；猜测；投机

参考例句：

• Her mind is occupied with speculation.她的头脑忙于思考。
• There is widespread speculation that he is going to resign.人们普遍推测他要辞职。

9 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。

10 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

11 cathartic   

adj.宣泄情绪的；n.泻剂

参考例句：

• His laughter was cathartic,an animal yelp that brought tears to his eyes.他哈哈大笑以宣泄情绪，声音如野兽般尖厉，眼泪都笑出来了。
• The drug had a cathartic effect.这药有导泻的作用。

12 humiliated   

感到羞愧的

参考例句：

• Parents are humiliated if their children behave badly when guests are present. 子女在客人面前举止失当，父母也失体面。
• He was ashamed and bitterly humiliated. 他感到羞耻，丢尽了面子。

13 precedent   

n.先例，前例；惯例；adj.在前的，在先的

参考例句：

• Is there a precedent for what you want me to do?你要我做的事有前例可援吗？
• This is a wonderful achievement without precedent in Chinese history.这是中国历史上亘古未有的奇绩。