美国国家公共电台 NPR Jordan's Prime Minister Resigns Amid Protests Against Austerity

 

ARI SHAPIRO, HOST:

Now to Jordan. Today the prime minister resigned, pressured by the biggest nationwide protests the country has seen in years. NPR's Jane Arraf sent this report from the Jordanian capital, Amman.

(CHANTING)

JANE ARRAF, BYLINE¹: Jordan doesn't see a lot of big protests, partly because it's under tight control and partly because it takes a lot to bring people out into the streets. But after price hikes on almost everything in the country, combined with really bad services and high unemployment, a plan to raise taxes was the last straw.

(CHANTING)

ARRAF: For four nights in a row until 2 in the morning, thousands of Jordanians came out calling for King Abdullah to replace the government. In central Amman, where the skyline is full of luxury hotels, there were more than 2,000 people out on Sunday night.

So security forces are telling people that they're fine with peaceful protests. But they're asking the protesters on the bridge to get off the bridge because they're afraid it will collapse².

In Amman and in cities across the country, these were the biggest protests since the Arab Spring seven years ago, when demonstrations³ spread across the region. For the most part, these weren't protests against King Abdullah.

HANADI DWEIK: The king has been trying to modernize⁴ the country, to let people know what their duties and what their rights are. He should call for a new government to save the country.

ARRAF: That's protester Hanadi Dweik. She used to be head of administration at a bank. Her family is solidly middle class, and she says they can't afford the water and electricity bills. There were others who can't find jobs and parents worried about their children's futures⁵, all kinds of people here. Munir al-Nuri (ph) describes himself as an entrepreneur. He was holding a sign in six languages reading, we have nothing.

MUNIR AL-NURI: I feel this time is different. If you notice here, no political parties. We are normal people without any political background. We came here to said we want some better life for us.

ARRAF: Later in the morning, prime minister Hani Al-Mulki was summoned to the palace, where he resigned. The head of Jordan's Economic And Social Policy Council, Mustafa Hamarneh, says the new prime minister will have to make sure that citizens see the government is sharing the pain.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

MUSTAFA HAMARNEH: I think they need to cut waste in government. There is tremendous waste. I mean, our public officials drive Mercedeses around. You need to cut that. You need to tighten⁶ the belt. I think a progressive, proactive government can do that.

ARRAF: Jordan hosts more than a million Syrian refugees. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have cut off funding to the country. The kingdom needs to raise money to get IMF loans. Jordanians are also angry about their U.S. ally moving its embassy in Israel to the disputed city of Jerusalem. King Abdullah in a letter released today said the country faces unprecedented⁷ challenges. Jordanians say it will take a new kind of government to solve this crisis. Jane Arraf, NPR News, Amman, Jordan.

(SOUNDBITE OF HAMPSHIRE AND FOAT'S "LULLABY")

1 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。

2 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

3 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

4 modernize   

vt.使现代化，使适应现代的需要

参考例句：

• It was their manifest failure to modernize the country's industries.他们使国家进行工业现代化，明显失败了。
• There is a pressing need to modernise our electoral system.我们的选举制度迫切需要现代化。

5 futures   

n.期货，期货交易

参考例句：

• He continued his operations in cotton futures.他继续进行棉花期货交易。
• Cotton futures are selling at high prices.棉花期货交易的卖价是很高的。

6 tighten   

v.(使)变紧；(使)绷紧

参考例句：

• Turn the screw to the right to tighten it.向右转动螺钉把它拧紧。
• Some countries tighten monetary policy to avoid inflation.一些国家实行紧缩银根的货币政策，以避免通货膨胀。

7 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。