美国国家公共电台 NPR--Sri Lanka's president sends tanks into streets and refuses to step down

Sri Lanka's president sends tanks into streets and refuses to step down

Transcript¹

Even while the curfew was lifted, tanks patroled the streets amid a state of emergency. The Indian Ocean nation faces a political vacuum — on top of a severe economic crisis.

A MARTINEZ, HOST:

A curfew was briefly² lifted today in Sri Lanka. People were allowed out only for a few hours, but tanks are still patrolling the streets. The Indian Ocean nation is in the middle of a spiraling political crisis brought on by an economic one. NPR's Lauren Frayer reports there's lots of uncertainty³ over what's to come.

UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: (Through megaphone, non-English language spoken).

LAUREN FRAYER, BYLINE⁵: Police with megaphones have ordered anti-government demonstrators out of the protest camps that have become a fixture⁶ in Sri Lanka's capital, Colombo. The camps were attacked by government supporters earlier this week, and violence spread across the country. Now police and soldiers have orders to shoot anyone causing disturbance⁷. But some protesters still defied a curfew last night to gather in the rain and once again call for their president's ouster.

UNIDENTIFIED CROWD: (Chanting in non-English language).

FRAYER: Not far away, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa was barricaded⁸ in his official residence, protected by soldiers. From there, he gave a somber⁹ address to the nation.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

PRESIDENT GOTABAYA RAJAPAKSA: (Non-English language spoken).

FRAYER: "My brothers and sisters," he said in his first appearance since the violence began. He appealed for calm and pledged to appoint a new prime minister within a week. His older brother had been in that role, but he resigned after his supporters attacked peaceful protesters. The Rajapaksa brothers have been the focus of months of protests. Many Sri Lankans blame them for mismanaging an economic crisis that's led to food and fuel shortages and rolling blackouts.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

INDRAJIT COOMARASWAMY: This is an unprecedented¹⁰ crisis, the scale and magnitude of it.

FRAYER: Indrajit Coomaraswamy is the former governor of Sri Lanka's central bank. He spoke⁴ at an Asia Society panel last night, and he said this crisis was brewing¹¹ for years.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

COOMARASWAMI: We have had a toxic¹² mix of populist politics and an entrenched¹³ entitlement culture among the people. It has been a high budget deficit¹⁴, high inflation, high nominal¹⁵ interest rate and largely overvalued and volatile¹⁶ currency economy.

FRAYER: Those economic problems exploded under populist leadership and when global energy prices soared. President Rajapaksa was democratically elected 2 1/2 years ago. And in his address to the nation last night, he made clear he does not plan to step down. He did say he's willing to eventually abolish the executive presidency¹⁷, which gives him sweeping¹⁸ powers as head of state and as head of government. But he gave no timeline for that.

So for now, tanks patrol the streets. Sri Lanka remains¹⁹ in a state of emergency, which gives Rajapaksa even greater powers. The military is protecting him, and that's worrying, says analyst²⁰ Bhavani Fonseka at Sri Lanka's Centre for Policy Alternatives.

BHAVANI FONSEKA: Under the Rajapaksas, we have seen the strengthening and entrenching²¹ of the military in Sri Lanka in terms of governance, in terms of civil administration. And they are an extremely powerful entity²² at the moment.

FRAYER: She's worried Sri Lanka could go from being ruled by one family, the Rajapaksas, to being ruled by the military if rival politicians can't establish a civilian²³ government in the coming days.

Lauren Frayer, NPR News, Mumbai.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 briefly   

adv.简单地，简短地

参考例句：

• I want to touch briefly on another aspect of the problem.我想简单地谈一下这个问题的另一方面。
• He was kidnapped and briefly detained by a terrorist group.他被一个恐怖组织绑架并短暂拘禁。

3 uncertainty   

n.易变，靠不住，不确知，不确定的事物

参考例句：

• Her comments will add to the uncertainty of the situation.她的批评将会使局势更加不稳定。
• After six weeks of uncertainty,the strain was beginning to take its toll.6个星期的忐忑不安后，压力开始产生影响了。

4 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

5 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

6 fixture   

n.固定设备；预定日期；比赛时间；定期存款

参考例句：

• Lighting fixture must be installed at once.必须立即安装照明设备。
• The cordless kettle may now be a fixture in most kitchens.无绳电热水壶现在可能是多数厨房的固定设备。

7 disturbance   

n.动乱，骚动；打扰，干扰；(身心)失调

参考例句：

• He is suffering an emotional disturbance.他的情绪受到了困扰。
• You can work in here without any disturbance.在这儿你可不受任何干扰地工作。

8 barricaded   

设路障于，以障碍物阻塞( barricade的过去式和过去分词 )； 设路障[防御工事]保卫或固守

参考例句：

• The police barricaded the entrance. 警方在入口处设置了路障。
• The doors had been barricaded. 门都被堵住了。

9 somber   

adj.昏暗的，阴天的，阴森的，忧郁的

参考例句：

• He had a somber expression on his face.他面容忧郁。
• His coat was a somber brown.他的衣服是暗棕色的。

10 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

11 brewing   

n. 酿造, 一次酿造的量 动词brew的现在分词形式

参考例句：

• It was obvious that a big storm was brewing up. 很显然，一场暴风雨正在酝酿中。
• She set about brewing some herb tea. 她动手泡一些药茶。

12 toxic   

adj.有毒的，因中毒引起的

参考例句：

• The factory had accidentally released a quantity of toxic waste into the sea.这家工厂意外泄漏大量有毒废物到海中。
• There is a risk that toxic chemicals might be blasted into the atmosphere.爆炸后有毒化学物质可能会进入大气层。

13 entrenched   

adj.确立的，不容易改的(风俗习惯)

参考例句：

• Television seems to be firmly entrenched as the number one medium for national advertising.电视看来要在全国广告媒介中牢固地占据头等位置。
• If the enemy dares to attack us in these entrenched positions,we will make short work of them.如果敌人胆敢进攻我们固守的阵地，我们就消灭他们。

14 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

15 nominal   

adj.名义上的；(金额、租金)微不足道的

参考例句：

• The king was only the nominal head of the state. 国王只是这个国家名义上的元首。
• The charge of the box lunch was nominal.午餐盒饭收费很少。

16 volatile   

adj.反复无常的，挥发性的，稍纵即逝的，脾气火爆的；n.挥发性物质

参考例句：

• With the markets being so volatile,investments are at great risk.由于市场那么变化不定，投资冒着很大的风险。
• His character was weak and volatile.他这个人意志薄弱，喜怒无常。

17 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

18 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

19 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• 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。

20 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

21 entrenching   

v.用壕沟围绕或保护…( entrench的现在分词 )；牢固地确立…

参考例句：

• It has the same effect of entrenching the elite in corrupt economies. 它有着令精英陷入腐败经济的相同效应。 来自互联网
• This in entrenching on other domains. 这是在侵占别人的领土。 来自互联网

22 entity   

n.实体，独立存在体，实际存在物

参考例句：

• The country is no longer one political entity.这个国家不再是一个统一的政治实体了。
• As a separate legal entity,the corporation must pay taxes.作为一个独立的法律实体，公司必须纳税。

23 civilian   

adj.平民的，民用的，民众的

参考例句：

• There is no reliable information about civilian casualties.关于平民的伤亡还没有确凿的信息。
• He resigned his commission to take up a civilian job.他辞去军职而从事平民工作。