VOA常速英语2008年-Chechnya Hangs On to Uneasy Peace

By Peter Fedynsky
Grozny
22 February 2008

Wars of independence from Russia have been waged in the republic of Chechnya since the 19th century. Two of them have been fought in the past 14 years. VOA Moscow Correspondent Peter Fedynsky recently visited the Chechen capital, Grozny, and reports an uneasy peace has settled over people that remain proud of their ethnic¹ heritage, but tired of war.

Chechen leaders today often speak in categorical terms, saying their small republic will forever be part of Russia; that will remain in the hearts of Chechens for eternity²; and that local election turnout misses 100 percent participation³ by a mere⁴ four-tenths of one percent.

Chechen Central Election Committee chief Ismail Baikhanov explains the near perfect figure, which is typically associated with falsified elections in authoritarian⁵ states.

Baikhanov says the voter turnout represents trust in the incumbent⁶ authorities. He adds that positive changes in the republic over the past two years compel every citizen to participate in the electoral process.

Portraits of Chechen President Ramzan Kadyrov, his slain⁷ father and Russian leader Vladimir Putin dot the landscape, hang in schools and government offices and greet passengers at the Grozny airport.

The 31-year-old Chechen leader, an amateur boxer⁸, lists his priorities.

Kadyrov says security comes first, then construction, and the economy. For this, he says his administration has developed a strategy, procedures, and deadlines, which he says he keeps.

Chechen officials give President Kadyrov credit for rebuilding cities destroyed during the two most recent wars. Grozny shows few battle scars and authorities in nearby Shali boast that their heavily damaged city was rebuilt in a mere three months.

But a heavily armed and visible police presence betrays continuing tension in the mountainous republic.

The Interfax news agency reports interior ministry⁹ forces conducted 2,000 operations against Chechen rebels in the past year, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in January that Chechnya remains¹⁰ too dangerous for independent travel by journalists.

Accordingly, his ministry recently sponsored a strictly¹¹ supervised 48-hour tour for foreign correspondents, allowing only 90 minutes to mingle¹² with people in Grozny.

A quick visit to a market revealed that many people are tired of war but not in agreement with official claims of popular support and economic success. However, not a single individual would say so on camera, citing fear of retribution.

Complaints ranged from unemployment, homelessness, corruption¹³, police shakedowns of shopkeepers, and frustrated¹⁴ aspirations¹⁵ of independence from Russia.

Chechen pride is expressed by young and old alike - a rookie TV journalist who resents demeaning Russian terms for people from the Caucasus; an elderly man choked with emotion at the indignity¹⁶ of mass deportation¹⁷ of Chechens after World War II; and school teacher Asma Arsanova who laments¹⁸ damage to her native language and culture.

Arsanova says she tells children she too is a product of Soviet¹⁹ times, when the Chechen language was restricted. She says they use dictionaries to look up Chechen terms they do not know, adding that she does not hide her ignorance of certain words.

Chechens have been fighting Russians since the mid-19th century, when czarist troops invaded their land. Chechnya declared independence after World War I and fought against Soviet troops during World War II. As many as 100,000 people - nearly ten percent of the population - are believed to have died in the two wars since 1994. Half a million were displaced and many ethnic Russians fled the republic altogether.

President Kadyrov says Chechens now want to be part of Russia for all time.

1 ethnic   

adj.人种的，种族的，异教徒的

参考例句：

• This music would sound more ethnic if you played it in steel drums.如果你用钢鼓演奏，这首乐曲将更具民族特色。
• The plan is likely only to aggravate ethnic frictions.这一方案很有可能只会加剧种族冲突。

2 eternity   

n.不朽，来世；永恒，无穷

参考例句：

• The dull play seemed to last an eternity.这场乏味的剧似乎演个没完没了。
• Finally,Ying Tai and Shan Bo could be together for all of eternity.英台和山伯终能双宿双飞，永世相随。

3 participation   

n.参与，参加，分享

参考例句：

• Some of the magic tricks called for audience participation.有些魔术要求有观众的参与。
• The scheme aims to encourage increased participation in sporting activities.这个方案旨在鼓励大众更多地参与体育活动。

4 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

5 authoritarian   

n./adj.专制(的)，专制主义者，独裁主义者

参考例句：

• Foreign diplomats suspect him of authoritarian tendencies.各国外交官怀疑他有着独裁主义倾向。
• The authoritarian policy wasn't proved to be a success.独裁主义的政策证明并不成功。

6 incumbent   

adj.成为责任的，有义务的；现任的，在职的

参考例句：

• He defeated the incumbent governor by a large plurality.他以压倒多数票击败了现任州长。
• It is incumbent upon you to warn them.你有责任警告他们。

7 slain   

杀死，宰杀，杀戮( slay的过去分词 )； (slay的过去分词)

参考例句：

• The soldiers slain in the battle were burried that night. 在那天夜晚埋葬了在战斗中牺牲了的战士。
• His boy was dead, slain by the hand of the false Amulius. 他的儿子被奸诈的阿缪利乌斯杀死了。

8 boxer   

n.制箱者，拳击手

参考例句：

• The boxer gave his opponent a punch on the nose.这个拳击手朝他对手的鼻子上猛击一拳。
• He moved lightly on his toes like a boxer.他像拳击手一样踮着脚轻盈移动。

9 ministry   

n.(政府的)部；牧师

参考例句：

• They sent a deputation to the ministry to complain.他们派了一个代表团到部里投诉。
• We probed the Air Ministry statements.我们调查了空军部的记录。

10 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。

11 strictly   

adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地

参考例句：

• His doctor is dieting him strictly.他的医生严格规定他的饮食。
• The guests were seated strictly in order of precedence.客人严格按照地位高低就座。

12 mingle   

vt.使混合，使相混；vi.混合起来；相交往

参考例句：

• If we mingle with the crowd,we should not be noticed.如果我们混在人群中，就不会被注意到。
• Oil will not mingle with water.油和水不相融。

13 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• 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。

14 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 aspirations   

强烈的愿望( aspiration的名词复数 )； 志向； 发送气音； 发 h 音

参考例句：

• I didn't realize you had political aspirations. 我没有意识到你有政治上的抱负。
• The new treaty embodies the aspirations of most nonaligned countries. 新条约体现了大多数不结盟国家的愿望。

16 indignity   

n.侮辱，伤害尊严，轻蔑

参考例句：

• For more than a year we have suffered the indignity.在一年多的时间里,我们丢尽了丑。
• She was subjected to indignity and humiliation.她受到侮辱和羞辱。

17 deportation   

n.驱逐，放逐

参考例句：

• The government issued a deportation order against the four men.政府发出了对那4名男子的驱逐令。
• Years ago convicted criminals in England could face deportation to Australia.很多年以前，英国已定罪的犯人可能被驱逐到澳大利亚。

18 laments   

n.悲恸，哀歌，挽歌( lament的名词复数 )v.（为…）哀悼，痛哭，悲伤( lament的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• In the poem he laments the destruction of the countryside. 在那首诗里他对乡村遭到的破坏流露出悲哀。
• In this book he laments the slight interest shown in his writings. 在该书中他慨叹人们对他的著作兴趣微弱。 来自辞典例句

19 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。