VOA标准英语2009年-Sri Lankan Government Savors Victory While

The defeat of the Tamil Tigers and the death of Velupillai Prabhakaran, the rebel group's leader, seemed to deepen the sense of confusion felt by many in Sri Lanka's Tamil population. What's next for them?
　
Sri Lankans celebrate the military victory over Tamil Tiger rebels in Colombo, 20 May 2009

A group of children in the capital have gathered around this effigy¹ of slain² Tamil Tiger leader Velupillai Prabhakaran. Like many in this Indian Ocean capital, they are celebrating his death with cheering, flag waving and fireworks. But in other parts of the city, the change in mood is stark³, as many Tamils discreetly⁴ mourned Prabhakaran and the passing of an era that he represented.

Fear and uncertainty⁵

Jeya Balathura, 32, is a former aid worker. Her mother and sister escaped the war-rattled north to live with her in Colombo.

"We are fearing," she said. "What are we going to do? We don't know. Maybe Tamil people are going to face big problems. We don't know."

Balathura's sense of uncertainty is widespread in the Tamil community. With Prabhakaran gone, many are asking who is left to champion the cause of the Sri Lanka's more than three million ethnic⁶ Tamils, including the estimated 300,000 Tamils crowded into government-run camps in the island's north.
　
Tamil Tiger rebel leader Velupillai Prabhakaran (File)

Prabhakaran was an almost mythical⁷ figure who fought for more than a quarter century for a separate Tamil homeland, a dream that some say has all but evaporated with Prabhakaran's death.

Reconciliation⁸

Lal Wickrematunge is the editor of one of Sri Lanka's largest independent newspapers. "Right now the euphoria is that the LTTE is vanquished⁹ and that's it. There is nothing beyond that," he said.

Wickrematunge says he is encouraged by the recent public speeches of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who has pledged to share power with Tamil leaders in an effort to unite all Sri Lankans under one flag.

"The president has his work cut out," said Wickrematunge. "Of course, he's very, very popular right now. He's at the zenith of his popularity. He should use that to unite all communities and not even talk of ethnicity, but of rebuilding Sri Lanka."

Still, Wickrematunge doubts that Sri Lanka's government will follow through on its promise to address the grievance¹⁰ of the country's Tamil community, which includes a long list of civil and human rights abuses by Sri Lankan security forces, not to mention claims of widespread job discrimination at the hands of the island's Sinhala majority.

Wikrematunge's brother, Lasantha, the newspaper's former editor and an outspoken¹¹ critic of the government, was killed earlier this year. His murder remains¹² unsolved, but many here claim government security forces had a hand in his death.

Suresh Premachandran is a Tamil leader and a member of parliament. He says that for Tamils to feel empowered, there has to be a change in thinking at the top levels of government.

"We are the people who are elected democratically," said Premachandran. "Even when we start to speak in parliament, immediately all the people in the ruling part start to shout, 'You LTTE bugger' and things like that. They are not prepared to listen to us. The Sri Lankan government does not want to share the power with the Tamil people. That is the whole reason why this thing started."

Analysts¹³ here say the government must reach out to Tamil leaders like Premachandran if it expects to win the hearts and minds of Tamils here.

What now?
　
Lakshman Hulugalle (file photo)

Lakshman Hulugalle, a Sri Lankan government spokesman, says that with the military phase of the conflict largely finished, the government is shifting its focus to the political phase.

"The future of the Tamils have to be equal to any other citizen," said Hulugalle. "In my personal view, we have to share. Power sharing should be there. Once the power sharing is equally given, the Tamil people can live happily and in harmony."

He says that the Tamil Tigers out of the picture, moderate voices within Tamil community can flourish. Before, moderate Tamil leaders feared for their lives for not kow-towing to the Tamil Tigers' all-or-nothing quest for a separate homeland.

For now, much of the focus is on the Tamil diaspora, which appears to be waging a public relations war against the Sri Lankan government at foreign embassies from around the world.

It was the Tamil diaspora that - either willingly or begrudgingly¹⁴ - financed the Tamil Tigers. Now, Sri Lanka's government wants them to lend a hand in rebuilding the country now that 26 years of fighting has come to an end.

1 effigy   

n.肖像

参考例句：

• There the effigy stands,and stares from age to age across the changing ocean.雕像依然耸立在那儿，千秋万载地凝视着那变幻无常的大海。
• The deposed dictator was burned in effigy by the crowd.群众焚烧退位独裁者的模拟像。

2 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。

3 stark   

adj.荒凉的；严酷的；完全的；adv.完全地

参考例句：

• The young man is faced with a stark choice.这位年轻人面临严峻的抉择。
• He gave a stark denial to the rumor.他对谣言加以完全的否认。

4 discreetly   

ad.(言行)审慎地，慎重地

参考例句：

• He had only known the perennial widow, the discreetly expensive Frenchwoman. 他只知道她是个永远那么年轻的寡妇，一个很会讲排场的法国女人。
• Sensing that Lilian wanted to be alone with Celia, Andrew discreetly disappeared. 安德鲁觉得莉莲想同西莉亚单独谈些什么，有意避开了。

5 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。

6 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。

7 mythical   

adj.神话的；虚构的；想像的

参考例句：

• Undeniably,he is a man of mythical status.不可否认，他是一个神话般的人物。
• Their wealth is merely mythical.他们的财富完全是虚构的。

8 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

9 vanquished   

v.征服( vanquish的过去式和过去分词 )；战胜；克服；抑制

参考例句：

• She had fought many battles, vanquished many foes. 她身经百战，挫败过很多对手。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I vanquished her coldness with my assiduity. 我对她关心照顾从而消除了她的冷淡。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

10 grievance   

n.怨愤，气恼，委屈

参考例句：

• He will not easily forget his grievance.他不会轻易忘掉他的委屈。
• He had been nursing a grievance against his boss for months.几个月来他对老板一直心怀不满。

11 outspoken   

adj.直言无讳的，坦率的，坦白无隐的

参考例句：

• He was outspoken in his criticism.他在批评中直言不讳。
• She is an outspoken critic of the school system in this city.她是这座城市里学校制度的坦率的批评者。

12 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。

13 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

14 begrudgingly   

小气地，吝啬地

参考例句：

• Then, begrudgingly, I clean up – which doesn't really take that much time. 于是，为了省钱，我打扫干净－－那也不需要花很多时间。
• His terrible directness made me feel peeved, and begrudgingly I conceded that he was right. 他的坦率让我恼火。我承认他是对的，但十分不甘心。