【730-732】英语慢速听力3篇:英国议会否决首相脱欧计划&英国南部海岸试航寻求庇护者&国际法院裁定科特迪瓦前领导人无罪
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AS IT IS
British Parliament Rejects Prime Minister's Brexit Plan
January 15, 2019
Prime Minister Theresa May sits down in Parliament after the vote on May's Brexit deal, in London, Britain, Jan. 15, 2019 in this image taken from video.
Prime Minister Theresa May sits down in Parliament after the vote on May's Brexit deal, in London, Britain, Jan. 15, 2019 in this image taken from video.
The British parliament has rejected Prime Minister Theresa May's plan for Britain to leave the European Union.
The House of Commons voted 432 to 202 against the plan negotiated by members of May’s government. The prime minister said she is trying to carry out the "democratic decision" voters made 18 months ago to leave the EU.
Opposition Labor Party leader Jeremy Corbin called the vote a "catastrophic defeat" for May's Conservative Party. He also demanded a parliamentary vote be held Wednesday on whether to withdraw support from her government. He criticized the British government as incompetent.
The vote against May’s plan was widely expected, but it is not clear what comes next for the withdrawal, known as Brexit. Before the vote, May warned members of parliament that the EU would not offer an "alternative deal."
One of the main terms of her plan was to avoid a hard border between EU member Ireland and British Northern Ireland. She wanted to prevent the return of border measures if Britain and the EU failed to reach a free trade agreement.
May's deal would have left unchanged the rights of more than three million EU citizens living in Britain and the one million Britons living in the EU. Britain would have paid $51 billion to settle its financial responsibilities with the EU.
May’s plan faced opposition from both sides of the debate over Brexit. Those supporting the break argued that her deal would still leave Britain tied to EU rules. Opponents to Brexit wanted even stronger economic links to the EU.
Groups of pro-EU and pro-Brexit activists demonstrated near parliament in London, Tuesday.
Negotiators from Britain and the EU agreed to the terms of the Brexit deal in November after long and difficult talks. It is unclear what will happen next.
May has until next Monday to present a new proposal.
I'm Caty Weaver.
VOANews reported this story. Caty Weaver adapted it for Learning English. Mario Ritter Jr. was the editor.
___________________________________________________
Words in This Story
catastrophic –adj. something that is a disaster
incompetent –adj. lacking necessary ability or skills
alternative –n. something that offers another choice
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AS IT IS
International Court Finds Former Ivorian Leader Not Guilty
January 15, 2019
Former Ivory Coast President Laurent Gbagbo greets his legal team as he enters the courtroom of the International Criminal Court in The Hague, Netherlands, Jan. 15, 2019. Judges found Gbagbo and ex-government minister Charles Ble Goude not guilty because of a lack of evidence.
The International Criminal Court (ICC) has dismissed all war crimes charges against Laurent Gbagbo, former president of Ivory Coast.
The court announced the decision Tuesday at its offices in The Hague.
The chief judge said prosecutors had failed to prove the accusations against Gbagbo and another defendant, Blé Goudé.
Judge Cuno Tarfusser also said the prosecution failed to show that the former president’s speeches directly incited any crime.
Gbagbo’s defense lawyer said that, “He is happy to have put his faith in the justice process.”
Outside the courthouse, Gbagbo's supporters cheered and danced at the announcement.
But rights groups said the decision denied justice to victims of Ivory Coast’s post-election violence, which lasted from December 2010 to April 2011.
At the time, Gbagbo refused to accept results of the 2010 presidential election. The official results showed that he lost to Alassane Ouattara, who now serves as president of Ivory Coast.
An estimated 3,000 people were killed in the post-election unrest. Jim Wormington of Human Rights Watch told the Reuters news agency that, “Forces loyal to both Gbagbo and Ouattara were responsible for shocking violence.”
ICC faces criticism
Emmanuel Altit (R) defense lawyer of Former Ivory Coast president Laurent Gbagbo talks to prosecutor Fatou Bensouda (L) as they wait for the start of Gbagbo trial at the International Criminal Court in The Hague on January 28, 2016. The dismissal of the charges again Gbagbo marked another defeat for ICC lawyers. They also lost a case against Jean-Pierre Bemba, a former vice-president of the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The ICC ruling against Bemba and his sentence for war crimes charges were overturned in 2018 because of mistakes by the court. Charges against Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta were dropped in 2015.
ICC lawyers have won three war crimes cases in the past 15 years.
Fatou Bensouda of Gambia has served as the chief prosecutor at the ICC since 2012. She is to be replaced next year.
James A. Goldston is a director with the rights group Open Society Justice Initiative, which is based in New York City. Goldston said it is important that the process to choose another top lawyer produces “a person of integrity and sound judgement who is highly skilled at criminal investigations.”
Gbagbo faced four charges including murder, rape, persecution and other inhumane acts. His release means he may return to Ivory Coast to influence or take part in the 2020 presidential election there.
Ivory Coast has one of West Africa’s largest economies and is the world’s biggest producer of cocoa.
I’m Mario Ritter Jr.
Mario Ritter Jr. adapted this Reuters story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor.
________________________________________________________________
Words in This Story
prosecutor – n. a lawyer who represents a government agency in a court
faith – n. belief or trust
post - prefix. after or later; later than
integrity –n. the quality of being honest and fair
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AS IT IS
Asylum Seekers in Boats Test Britain’s Southern Coast
January 15, 2019
FILE - British Home Secretary Sajid Javid meets Border Force staff on board the HMC Searcher in Dover, Britain, Jan. 2, 2019.
There is increasing debate over migration in Britain as more asylum seekers arrive on the country’s southern coast in small boats.
A small number of migrants usually attempts the crossing from France each year. However, the government says that more than 400 people have tried to cross the 30-kilometer-wide English Channel in the last four months. The government has called it a major problem and has redeployed patrol ships to the Channel from a joint European Union activity in the Mediterranean Sea.
During a visit to the port of Dover recently, Home Secretary Sajid Javid questioned why asylum seekers were coming to Britain.
“If you are a genuine asylum seeker then why have you not sought asylum in the first safe country that you arrived in? Because France is not a country where anyone would argue is not safe.”
Most of the recent asylum seekers appear to have come from Iran. They are trying to cross in air-filled boats in the middle of winter. The trip is dangerous because the English Channel is one of the world’s busiest shipping paths and because of strong tides and currents.
Critics say the number of asylum seekers is still low. They accuse the government of falsely claiming there is a crisis. The government denies this.
Most asylum seekers arrive on airplanes. Many others hide under or inside trucks heading to Britain.
Experts suggest increased security in French ports could be driving migrants to attempt the crossing by sea.
Noorulhadi Oryakheil is from Afghanistan. He fled the Taliban in his country. He came to Britain hidden inside a refrigerated truck three years ago when he was 16 years old.
“That was too cold…,” he told VOA. The Afghan said the group he was with ran when the truck driver opened the door, but that police captured them as they were walking on the road.
Oryakheil gained asylum in Britain. He was helped by the aid organization Kent Refugee Action Network (KRAN). The group says it helps unaccompanied migrant children with housing, education and basic needs.
Bridget Chapman is with the group. She discussed the seriousness of the problem.
“It’s a crisis in that people are being forced to put their lives at risk to make a claim for asylum, that’s completely unacceptable.”
But she said that the number of people crossing the channel was relatively small. She blamed politicians for making migration a political issue.
The government denies such accusations. It says deploying naval ships will help prevent smugglers and migrants from making the dangerous crossing.
Still others say that naval ships will only lead more migrants to make the sea crossing in hopes they will be rescued.
I’m Mario Ritter Jr.
Henry Ridgwell reported this story for VOA News. Mario Ritter adapted it for VOA Learning English. Caty Weaver was the editor.
________________________________________________________________
Words in This Story
patrol –n. the act of guarding an area, describing something that is used to guard and keep an area safe
genuine –adj. actual, real or true
tide –n. the regular up or downward movement of the level of the sea
refrigerated –adj. a vehicle came very cold to keep food fresh and safe to eat
unaccompanied –adj. without another person, alone
smuggler –n. to move people or goods from one country to another illegally or secretly
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