中东－黎巴嫩的民主主张有可能动摇阿拉伯世界

 

Democracy Demands in Lebanon May

Shake Arab World

 

They've dubbed¹ it the cedar² revolution, referring to the cedar tree, Lebanon's national symbol.

 

In one protest march alone, close to one million Lebanese took to the streets of Beirut, an enormous turnout in a country with a population of 3.5 million.

 

Even now, more than a month after the Hariri assassination³, demonstrators still come to Martyrs⁴ Square, along Beirut's seafront, to make their voices heard.

 

One demonstration⁵: I think it's my duty to fight for my children. I want them to be able to have a free country. I think for us the last corner of the world where we can live in peace.

 

Do you think there is a good chance for that now?

 

Demonstration: I am very optimistic.

 

Why , why are you optimistic?

 

Demonstration: because … this is the first time ever, we're not afraid to ask for the truth, to ask for freedom, ask liberty to be in a really democratic country.

 

The demonstrators support the political opposition⁶, and are demanding the withdrawal⁷ of Syrian forces, the truth about who killed Rafik Hariri, the removal of pro-Syrian Lebanese security officials and free and fair general elections, held on time, in May.

 

Christian⁸ opposition politician Samir Franjieh tells VOA, the demonstrations⁹ have brought the Lebanese together like never before. He says they are also bringing a final closure to the divisions of the country's brutal¹⁰ 15-year civil war in the 1970's and '80's.

 

Samir Franjieh: This is new for Lebanon, but also new for all the area. We gave, in the past, a model of violence and killing¹¹, and we are giving now the other model, a model of peace, of non-violent, democratic action.

 

Mr. Franjieh says the Lebanese were inspired by the non-violent, so-called "orange revolution" in Ukraine, but he says they were also expressing long-repressed anger and frustration¹² about Syrian dominance of the country.

 

Not everyone agrees that the demonstrations are a model for democratic reform. Sheikh Mohammed Katharani is a member of the political bureau of Hezbollah, a militant¹³ group the United States considers a terrorist organization and says must be disarmed¹⁴.

 

Sheikh Katharani tells VOA the demonstrations are an expression of emotions. He says they come from the heart, not the head. They're not really political, he says.

 

Hezbollah did get its own supporters out into the streets - about a-half-a-million demonstrators showed up in support of Syria and Lebanon's pro-Syrian government.

 

And, there have been protest rallies in front of the American Embassy in Beirut, denouncing what many see as U.S. meddling¹⁵ in Lebanon, in order to serve Washington's interests and those of its ally, Israel.

 

Rallies from both sides of the political divide have been peaceful, and that has been hailed as a good sign for the future. But whether they can come together to solve Lebanon's problems is uncertain.

 

Lebanon has no working government, with caretaker Prime Minister Omar Karame threatening to resign for a second time, if he is unable to form a unity¹⁶ Cabinet that includes the opposition. The opposition is accusing him and his Syrian backers of stalling to delay elections the government is likely to lose.

 

Political analyst¹⁷ Sami Baroudi of Beirut's Lebanese American University says the Lebanese people want elections and greater democracy, but with guaranteed sectarian representation for its Christian, Muslim and Druze communities.

 

Mr. Baroudi: I think, definitely, there is this euphoria. There is this sense of unity. But, at the end, we also identify with the small sects¹⁹, the islands that we belong to. We are proud Lebanese, but at the same time, also we feel that the sect¹⁸ to which we belong ought to get its fair representation in the system.

 

The Taif peace agreement of 1989 that ended Lebanon's civil war set out guaranteed representation for the country's diverse population groups.

 

Opposition leader Samir Franjieh says Lebanon can set an example to others by demonstrating that democracy and stability are possible in a multi-sectarian society. He says other countries in the region need to pay attention.

 

Mr. Franjieh: The fall of Baghdad is like the fall of the Berlin Wall for the Arab world, so everything began to move.

 

The Bush administration has hailed the fall of Saddam Hussein and the recent elections in Iraq as an opening for democratic change in the whole region, and cited some signs of democratic reforms in places like Egypt and Saudi Arabia.

 

Many in the region have, however, warned against overly optimistic assessments²⁰, and against outside imposition of democracy.

 

The popular calls for change that have echoed through the streets in Beirut have sparked both optimism and uncertainty²¹ for what lies ahead, but there is a sense that the months to come will be the real test for Lebanon's democratic future.

 

Sonja Pace, VOA News, Beirut.

 

注释:

cedar [5si:dE] n. 雪松，杉树

turnout [5tE:naut] n. 聚集的人群

assassination [E7sAsi5neiFEn] n. 暗杀

seafront [5si:frQnt] n. 沿海岸而筑的马路

optimistic [7Cpti5mistik] adj. 乐观的

removal [ri5mu:vEl] n. 免职

brutal [5bru:tl] adj. 残酷的

embassy [5embEsi] n. 大使馆

denounce [di5nauns] vt. 公开指责

sectarian [sek5tZEriEn] n. 宗派主义者

euphoria [ju:5fC:riE] n. 愉快

Saudi Arabia [5saudi E5reibjE] n. 沙特阿拉伯

1 dubbed   

v.给…起绰号( dub的过去式和过去分词 )；把…称为；配音；复制

参考例句：

• Mathematics was once dubbed the handmaiden of the sciences. 数学曾一度被视为各门科学的基础。
• Is the movie dubbed or does it have subtitles? 这部电影是配音的还是打字幕的？ 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 cedar   

n.雪松，香柏(木)

参考例句：

• The cedar was about five feet high and very shapely.那棵雪松约有五尺高,风姿优美。
• She struck the snow from the branches of an old cedar with gray lichen.她把长有灰色地衣的老雪松树枝上的雪打了下来。

3 assassination   

n.暗杀；暗杀事件

参考例句：

• The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
• Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年，林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。

4 martyrs   

n.martyr的复数形式；烈士( martyr的名词复数 )；殉道者；殉教者；乞怜者（向人诉苦以博取同情）

参考例句：

• the early Christian martyrs 早期基督教殉道者
• They paid their respects to the revolutionary martyrs. 他们向革命烈士致哀。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

6 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

7 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

8 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

9 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。

10 brutal   

adj.残忍的，野蛮的，不讲理的

参考例句：

• She has to face the brutal reality.她不得不去面对冷酷的现实。
• They're brutal people behind their civilised veneer.他们表面上温文有礼，骨子里却是野蛮残忍。

11 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

12 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。

13 militant   

adj.激进的，好斗的；n.激进分子，斗士

参考例句：

• Some militant leaders want to merge with white radicals.一些好斗的领导人要和白人中的激进派联合。
• He is a militant in the movement.他在那次运动中是个激进人物。

14 disarmed   

v.裁军( disarm的过去式和过去分词 )；使息怒

参考例句：

• Most of the rebels were captured and disarmed. 大部分叛乱分子被俘获并解除了武装。
• The swordsman disarmed his opponent and ran him through. 剑客缴了对手的械，并对其乱刺一气。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 meddling   

v.干涉，干预（他人事务）( meddle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He denounced all "meddling" attempts to promote a negotiation. 他斥责了一切“干预”促成谈判的企图。 来自辞典例句
• They liked this field because it was never visited by meddling strangers. 她们喜欢这块田野，因为好事的陌生人从来不到那里去。 来自辞典例句

16 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

17 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。

18 sect   

n.派别，宗教，学派，派系

参考例句：

• When he was sixteen he joined a religious sect.他16岁的时候加入了一个宗教教派。
• Each religious sect in the town had its own church.该城每一个宗教教派都有自己的教堂。

19 sects   

n.宗派，教派( sect的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Members of these sects are ruthlessly persecuted and suppressed. 这些教派的成员遭到了残酷的迫害和镇压。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• He had subdued the religious sects, cleaned up Saigon. 他压服了宗教派别，刷新了西贡的面貌。 来自辞典例句

20 assessments   

n.评估( assessment的名词复数 )；评价；（应偿付金额的）估定；（为征税对财产所作的）估价

参考例句：

• He was shrewd in his personal assessments. 他总能对人作出精明的评价。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Surveys show about two-thirds use such assessments, while half employ personality tests. 调查表明，约有三分之二的公司采用了这种测评；而一半的公司则采用工作人员个人品质测试。 来自百科语句

21 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。