2016年6月英语四级听力改革短篇新闻练习(12)

　　听力材料：

　　BBC News with Stewart Macintosh.

　　The director general of the BBC George Entwistlehas rejected suggestions that a television report intoallegations of extensive sexual abuse by one of itsformer stars was suppressed by seniormanagement. He's been speaking at the parliamentary committee hearing how into the latepresenter Jimmy Savile abused children over several decades and why the BBC dropped thereport into the claims against him. Rob Warson has more details.

　　George Entwistle denied the charge of a cover-up against the BBC, he said believed theinvestigation into Jimmy Savile should not have been dropped, but effectively blamed theeditor of the Newsnight program for poor judgement and stopping the investigation. He saidhe'd seen no evidence there had been pressure from senior managers to do so. The MPsseem frustrated and even angered by much of Mr Entwistle's testimony, frequently criticisingthe BBC's management style and processes.

　　The head of Italy's main risk assessment agency has resigned after seven of his colleaguewere given prison sentences for underestimating the chances of a major earthquake just daysbefore one struck the city of L'Aquila in 2009. Luciano Maiani said there was now a danger thatscientists would refrain from giving advice to the Italian government.

　　The scientific committee has to give in its own judgement the advice, the advice may be wrongor may be imprecise, but if you have such heavy punishment to this, the committee will not actproperly, the committee will tend to be always on the very very very conservative side.

　　The six scientists and a former government official were sentenced to six years each formanslaughter for giving a falsely reassuring statement. The earthquake killed more 300people.

　　The lower house of Russian parliament has voted to widen the definition of high treason, itwould be redefine to including giving financial, technical or other help to those seeking todamage Russia security. Tom Esomen reports.

　　Under current Russian law, high treason largely refers to passing secret information to foreigngovernments. The new bill will apply to international organizations too. Critics say the bill mightmake it easier to criminalise the sharing of information with human rights groups or to brandsomeone a traitor.

　　Three people have been charged with plotting to poison the president of Benin and currentchairman of the African Union Thomas Boni Yayi. Prosecutors accused the president's doctor,his niece and a former cabinet minister of planning to swap his medication for poison during atrip last week to Belgium. A businessman from Benin allegedly offered them $2m to carry outthe attempted murder after his companies lost big government contracts. The businessman issaid to be on the run.

　　This is the World News from the BBC

　　Residents of one of main areas held by Islamists rebels in northern Mali say truckloads offoreign fighters have arrived in recent days as international concern grows about the instabilityin the region. The mayor of the town of Gao who has fled to the capital Bamako, said the newarrivals included about a hundred Jihadists thought to be from Western Sahara and Algeria.

　　The Nigerian Navy has detained a foreign flagged ship and its 15 crew members most of themRussian on suspicion of illegally carrying weapons. Naval spokesman said dozens of automaticweapons and more than 8,000 rounds of ammunition were seized when the vessel wasboarded near Lagos. The ship belongs to the Moran security firm. Will Ross reports fromLagos.

　　Arms smuggling is fairly common in West Africa, so is piracy, private security firms areincreasingly being hired to protect cargo ships, some of the pirate attacks not in internationalwaters but in Nigerian waters where security firms are not allowed to carry weapons. Somefirms are paying the Nigerian Navy for armed protection.

　　Tens of thousands of Hungarians have taken part in rival pro and anti-government rallies in thecapital Budapest as the country marked the 56th anniversary of its uprising against Soviet rule.Addressing his supporters, the Prime Minister Viktor Orban criticised the European Union forputting pressure on Hungry to cut spending, saying he would not be dictated to byforeigners. At the other really, a former Prime Minister Gordon Bajnai announced the creationof a new alliance to try to oust Mr Orban's government.

　　A court in Cambodia has ordered the deportation of a Chinese factory manager for ripping upphotographs of the former King Norodom Sihanouk, who died last week. The woman was givena one-year suspended jail sentence and ordered to pay a fine for intentionally damaging thephotographs after becoming annoyed that staff stopped to work to look at them.

　　And that is the latest BBC's news