VOA常速英语2008年-Belgium Political Crisis Ends With New Governme

By Lisa Bryant
Paris
18 March 2008

Belgium's rival parties say they have agreed to a new government, ending months of deadlock¹ over demands for greater autonomy by the Dutch-speaking part of the country. Lisa Bryant has more from Paris.

The deal for a coalition² government was reached by five Belgian political parties representing not only political differences - between the left and the right - but the key split between those from Francophone Wallonia and Dutch-speaking Flanders.

The agreement was reached just two days before Yves Leterme, of the Flemish, Christian³ Democratic party, is due to be sworn in as the country's new prime minister, replacing outgoing Guy Verhofstadt.

Mr. Verhofstadt has been in a caretaker position for months, as Belgium endured a political crisis over demands by the richer Dutch-speaking part for greater autonomy. The standoff threatened to split the country.

Pascal de Wit, a political scientist at the Free University of Brussels, says tough decisions remain.

"It is the first step toward the end of the crisis," he said. "It is an agreement between five parties, three political families - the Christian Democrats⁴, the Liberals and the Social Democrats. But we need a new step toward an institutional agreement."

De Wit says that the fundamental institutional agreement is expected in June or July and will be the immediate⁵ challenge for the new government. Not yet resolved, for example, are demands for state reform and improved relations among Belgium's two main linguistic⁶ communities - the French-speaking Walloons and the Dutch-speaking Flemings - and the small, German-speaking community.

Even at this early stage, Mr. Leterme suffers from low popularity ratings. A new poll shows just 10 percent of Francophones and 45 percent of Flemish speakers have confidence in their next prime minister.

1 deadlock   

n.僵局，僵持

参考例句：

• The negotiations reached a deadlock after two hours.两小时后，谈判陷入了僵局。
• The employers and strikers are at a deadlock over the wage.雇主和罢工者在工资问题上相持不下。

2 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

3 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。

4 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

6 linguistic   

adj.语言的，语言学的

参考例句：

• She is pursuing her linguistic researches.她在从事语言学的研究。
• The ability to write is a supreme test of linguistic competence.写作能力是对语言能力的最高形式的测试。