VOA标准英语2012--Aboul Fotouh Courts Egypt's Broad Political Base

 

Aboul Fotouh Courts Egypt's Broad Political Base

He has done what few Egyptians thought possible, by projecting a calm and unifying¹ presence during a tense and polarized time. 

A self-described moderate Islamist, the head of the Arab Medical Union appeals to the vast middle of Egypt's Muslim majority. But he has also attracted fundamentalist Salafis, while having a political adviser² who is an unveiled, female Marxist.

Aboul Fotouh rose to fame as a student who dared to debate President Anwar Sadat. And despite five years as a Mubarak-era political prisoner, he uses humorous puppets in his campaign ads.

How can he be seemingly all things to all people? Aboul Fotouh says his supporters are united in seeking social justice, equality and freedom.

Speaking at a political conference in Cairo, he said some people want to portray³ his Islamic program as contradictory⁴. But, he adds, it combines "noble and humanitarian⁵ values."

However, some aspects of Aboul Fotouh's program might not appeal to everyone. His rhetoric⁶, for example, challenges Egypt's 30-year peace agreement with Israel. At a recent debate, he described Israel as an enemy. He has also questioned whether Islamic militants⁷ were responsible for the 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States.

Aboul Fotouh says he wants to keep the conversation on improving the daily lives of Egyptians. Before the revolution, the economy was stagnant⁸. Since the uprising, most change has been for the worse. Some question whether Aboul Fotouh is up to the task of reversing the trend.

University student Shereen Mustafa says she does not support Aboul Fotouh because he does not have a background in politics and she has never seen anything he has done. That leaves her doubtful about his achievements in the future.

But the independent candidate wants Egypt to break from the politics of the past, with the next president trading cronyism⁹ and corruption¹⁰ for an economy based on abilities.

Aboul Fotouh says he envisions a type of technocracy, with the president inspiring, monitoring and empowering specialists as they carry out their work. He says Egypt is rich enough in human and natural resources that, with proper management, it could be one of the 20 richest countries in the next decade.

For some, that is that kind of pledge that draws such a diverse group of supporters. For others, it seems that Aboul Fotouh has promised too much.

1 unifying   

使联合( unify的现在分词 )； 使相同； 使一致； 统一

参考例句：

• In addition, there were certain religious bonds of a unifying kind. 此外，他们还有某种具有一种统一性质的宗教上的结合。
• There is a unifying theme, and that is the theme of information flow within biological systems. 我们可以用一个总的命题，把生物学系统内的信息流来作为这一研究主题。

2 adviser   

n.劝告者，顾问

参考例句：

• They employed me as an adviser.他们聘请我当顾问。
• Our department has engaged a foreign teacher as phonetic adviser.我们系已经聘请了一位外籍老师作为语音顾问。

3 portray   

v.描写，描述；画(人物、景象等)

参考例句：

• It is difficult to portray feelings in words.感情很难用言语来描写。
• Can you portray the best and worst aspects of this job?您能描述一下这份工作最好与最坏的方面吗？

4 contradictory   

adj.反驳的，反对的，抗辩的；n.正反对，矛盾对立

参考例句：

• The argument is internally contradictory.论据本身自相矛盾。
• What he said was self-contradictory.他讲话前后不符。

5 humanitarian   

n.人道主义者，博爱者，基督凡人论者

参考例句：

• She has many humanitarian interests and contributes a lot to them.她拥有很多慈善事业，并作了很大的贡献。
• The British government has now suspended humanitarian aid to the area.英国政府现已暂停对这一地区的人道主义援助。

6 rhetoric   

n.修辞学，浮夸之言语

参考例句：

• Do you know something about rhetoric?你懂点修辞学吗？
• Behind all the rhetoric,his relations with the army are dangerously poised.在冠冕堂皇的言辞背后，他和军队的关系岌岌可危。

7 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

8 stagnant   

adj.不流动的，停滞的，不景气的

参考例句：

• Due to low investment,industrial output has remained stagnant.由于投资少，工业生产一直停滞不前。
• Their national economy is stagnant.他们的国家经济停滞不前。

9 cronyism   

n.任人唯亲，对好朋友的偏袒

参考例句：

• Many small town mayor and city official practice cronyism.许多小镇的市长和大城市的官员都有任人唯亲的行为。
• Bringing business people into politics can also produce corruption and cronyism.商人从政也容易带来腐败和任人唯亲。

10 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。