VOA标准英语2012--Mau Mau Torture Hearing Concludes in London
时间：2018-12-16 作者：英语课 分类：VOA标准英语2012年(八月)
Mau Mau Torture Hearing Concludes in London
At the Royal Courts of Justice building in London, veterans from Kenya’s Mau Mau uprising, an anti-colonial movement, are gearing up for what they hope will be the final chapter in a 50-year struggle. They are suing the British government for torture they suffered in colonial Kenya.
The Foreign Office has acknowledged that abuses occurred at the hands of the Kenyan colonial authorities. However, it claims liability was transferred to the Kenyan government upon independence in 1963.
George Morara is the program officer at the Kenya Human Rights Commission, which is spearheading the case. He told reporters the Foreign Office argues that too much time has passed to sustain a fair trial.
"Most of those people who would have come before court to give evidence have died and the ones who are still alive have a poor recollection of those events," said Morara.
Though many of the victims have died, thousands of Kenyans have come forward citing unlawful detention 1 and acts of torture. For this hearing, four Mau Mau veterans traveled from their homes in rural Kenya to testify in London.
One of the claimants, Jane Muthoni Mara, was accused of being a Mau Mau scout 2. At the age of 17 she was arrested and detained for three years.
"We were taken to the camps where we were beaten thoroughly," said Mara. "Soldiers stepped on my feet every day and bottles were inserted into my private parts."
At the end of the hearing, Justice Richard McCombe declared he would withhold 3 his ruling until at least October. He will either dismiss the case or recommend it go to full trial.
"We are hoping that the young generation in England are realistic and will listen to us and it may even be that they apologize for what perhaps their fathers or forefathers 4 did to the people of Kenya," said Gitu wa Kahengeri, the spokesperson for the Mau Mau War Veterans Association.
If the case goes to trial, the Mau Mau hope the British government will settle to avoid a long and expensive legal battle.
- 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。
- He was mistaken for an enemy scout and badly wounded.他被误认为是敌人的侦察兵，受了重伤。
- The scout made a stealthy approach to the enemy position.侦察兵偷偷地靠近敌军阵地。
- It was unscrupulous of their lawyer to withhold evidence.他们的律师隐瞒证据是不道德的。
- I couldn't withhold giving some loose to my indignation.我忍不住要发泄一点我的愤怒。
- They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left. 它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。 来自《简明英汉词典》
- All of us bristled at the lawyer's speech insulting our forefathers. 听到那个律师在讲演中污蔑我们的祖先，大家都气得怒发冲冠。 来自《简明英汉词典》