2006年VOA标准英语-Haitian Elections Bring Back Long History
时间:2019-01-31 作者:英语课 分类:2006年VOA标准英语(二月)
By Bill Rodgers
Washington, D.C.
08 February 2006
watch Avid 1 report
Throngs 2 of voters turned out for elections in Haiti, exactly two decades after the downfall of the Duvalier dictatorship and almost two years after populist president Jean Bertrand Aristide was forced out of office. Tuesday's election took place in a country wracked by violence, political turmoil 3, and poverty -- in which a United Nations peacekeeping force has been unable to completely restore order.
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People line up to vote in the Petionville suburb of Port-au-Prince
Haitians have gone two years without a democratically-elected president -- ever since President Jean Bertrand Aristide was ousted 4.
Jean Bertrand Aristide
Mr. Aristide, a former priest who had a wide following among Haiti's poor, had been overthrown 5 before in 1991 but was returned to power by U.S. troops in 1994. He was elected again in 2000, but his rule was marred 6 by corruption 7 and violence -- and tension between his government and Haiti's minority elite 8. Despite this, he remains 9 popular among many poor Haitians -- and the leading candidate in Tuesday's vote, former President Rene Preval, is viewed as his protégé.
Robert Maguire
However, Robert Maguire of Trinity University in Washington says Mr. Preval, who governed the country in the late 1990s, appears to have put some distance between himself and Mr. Aristide.
"There's no doubt that in the past Preval and Aristide were very, very close; in fact they were called ‘The Twins,’ said Mr. Maguire. “And Preval was Aristide's prime minister in 1991 when Aristide was elected and stuck with him throughout. But they are not twins anymore. I think Mr. Preval has distanced himself both personally and politically from Aristide."
Former President Rene Preval
According to reports, many voters believe if Mr. Preval is elected, he would allow the exiled former president to return. But the Haitian ambassador to the U.S., Raymond Joseph, says this would be a mistake.
"If Aristide were to come back then I would expect the same cycle of violence and problems that he installed in Haiti over the past 15 years. So it's up to the person who becomes president to know whether he is going to invite him," said the ambassador.
Ambassador Raymond Joseph
Tuesday's vote is the latest chapter in Haiti's struggle to emerge from poverty and destitution 10. It is the poorest country in the western hemisphere, where life expectancy 11 is only about 50 years.
Haiti's interim 12 government, led by technocrat 13 Gerard Latortue, has been faulted for its inability to improve conditions. Also, the UN peacekeeping force led by Brazil that was deployed 14 in 2004 has failed to stop rampant 15 violence.
Ambassador Joseph says the situation would have been different if U.S. troops were on the ground now.
"I think the Haitians have more respect for American marines than they have for Brazilian soccer players,” said Mr. Joseph. “They love the Brazilian soccer players but they respect the marines, and if the marines had stayed a little longer perhaps we would not be in the mess we are today."
Voters lined up by the thousands to vote in Haiti's presidential election
But Haiti expert Maguire draws a different lesson from the events of the past few years.
"If Haiti is a weak state, which it no doubt is, in order for it to strengthen itself you've got to strengthen the institutions. The dilemma 16 being: what if you don't like the leader? Well, if you don't try and find a way of working with the state and strengthening its institutions it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy that this state is going to fail and is going to become chaotic 17."
Despite the election, Haiti's future remains uncertain, as does the future role of the international community in the Caribbean nation.
- He is rich,but he is still avid of more money.他很富有,但他还想贪图更多的钱。
- She was avid for praise from her coach.那女孩渴望得到教练的称赞。
- She muscled through the throngs of people, frantically searching for David. 她使劲挤过人群,拼命寻找戴维。 来自辞典例句
- Our friends threaded their way slowly through the throngs upon the Bridge. 我们这两位朋友在桥上从人群中穿过,慢慢地往前走。 来自辞典例句
- His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
- The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。
- 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。
- The game was marred by the behaviour of drunken fans. 喝醉了的球迷行为不轨,把比赛给搅了。
- Bad diction marred the effectiveness of his speech. 措词不当影响了他演说的效果。
- 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。
- The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
- We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。
- He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
- The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。
- The people lived in destitution. 民生凋敝。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
- His drinking led him to a life of destitution. 酗酒导致他生活贫穷。 来自辞典例句
- Japanese people have a very high life expectancy.日本人的平均寿命非常长。
- The atomosphere of tense expectancy sobered everyone.这种期望的紧张气氛使每个人变得严肃起来。
- 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。
- He is a distant technocrat who is unable to connect with ordinary voters.作为一个冷淡的技术官僚,他不能做到与普通选民息息相通。
- Jack Lew,the new budget director,is the quintessential technocrat.新预算主管杰克·卢就是一个典型的技术官僚。
- Tanks have been deployed all along the front line. 沿整个前线已部署了坦克。
- The artillery was deployed to bear on the fort. 火炮是对着那个碉堡部署的。
- Sickness was rampant in the area.该地区疾病蔓延。
- You cannot allow children to rampant through the museum.你不能任由小孩子在博物馆里乱跑。
- I am on the horns of a dilemma about the matter.这件事使我进退两难。
- He was thrown into a dilemma.他陷入困境。