VOA标准英语2013--马达加斯加选民不确定选举能结束危机

 

Voters Unsure Madagascar Election Will End Crisis 马达加斯加选民不确定选举能结束危机

WASHINGTON — Voters in Madagascar are returning to the polls Friday to elect a new president and parliament. Hopes are high that the new leadership will end a five- year political and economic crisis in the Indian Ocean island nation, where a former mayor of the capital, Antananarivo, ousted¹ a democratically elected president in  2009.

The election runoff is being held after the first round on October 25 failed to produce an outright² winner.  Richard Jean-Louis Robinson of the Avana party, a former  health minister in the government of ousted president Marc Ravalomanana, won about 30 percent of the vote in the first round. His rival, Hery Martial³ Rokotoarimanana  Rajaonarimampianina, former finance minister in the transitional government headed by incumbent⁴ Andry Rajoelina, won about 15 percent.

Both candidates have promised to work on national reconciliation⁵ if elected, but after years of unrest following the 2009 coup⁶, many in Madagascar are doubtful.

"The leaders say they want national reconciliation, but they can't even agree on just one debate," said Dizo Henri, a Antananarivo resident.

In 2009, the young mayor of Antananarivo, former disk jockey Andry Rajoelina, ousted the legally elected government of President Marc Ravalomanana with the backing of  the army. Violence and political wrangling⁷ has left the country without a constitutional government since.

"The duration of this crisis has been too long. It's enough. By now we should have an elected president," said Roland Razafi, who is planning to vote at the upcoming  poll.

After the coup, Madagascar came under international sanctions which caused the nation to lose foreign aid. Its tourism industry suffered as well.

Both presidential candidates say they will focus on rebuilding the economy, but political analyst⁸ Gilbert Raharizatovo think both lack the necessary experience.

"What Madagascar is looking for now is a man who's able to organize [things], who has a vision, so that's called a statesman. In Madagascar, it doesn't really exist.  Why? Simply because, in my opinion, a statesman is a man who's been trained for long years to recognize what are the ethics⁹ of governance, the deontology of governance  or the deontology of politics," said Raharizatovo.

Perhaps more importantly, the two candidates are seen as proxies¹⁰ for longtime rivals Rajoelina and Ravalomanana, both of whom are barred from running. For some voters,  that means no end to the political impasse¹¹.

"This election is not a way out of the crisis, but the Madagascan people have no choice other than to choose between the two candidates," said one voter.

The run-off is taking place on the same day as parliamentary elections. The newly elected lawmakers will then nominate Madagascar's prime minister.

1 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

2 outright   

adv.坦率地；彻底地；立即；adj.无疑的；彻底的

参考例句：

• If you have a complaint you should tell me outright.如果你有不满意的事，你应该直率地对我说。
• You should persuade her to marry you outright.你应该彻底劝服她嫁给你。

3 martial   

adj.战争的，军事的，尚武的，威武的

参考例句：

• The sound of martial music is always inspiring.军乐声总是鼓舞人心的。
• The officer was convicted of desertion at a court martial.这名军官在军事法庭上被判犯了擅离职守罪。

4 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。

5 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。

6 coup   

n.政变；突然而成功的行动

参考例句：

• The monarch was ousted by a military coup.那君主被军事政变者废黜了。
• That government was overthrown in a military coup three years ago.那个政府在3年前的军事政变中被推翻。

7 wrangling   

v.争吵，争论，口角( wrangle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The two sides have spent most of their time wrangling over procedural problems. 双方大部分时间都在围绕程序问题争论不休。 来自辞典例句
• The children were wrangling (with each other) over the new toy. 孩子为新玩具（互相）争吵。 来自辞典例句

8 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。

9 ethics   

n.伦理学；伦理观，道德标准

参考例句：

• The ethics of his profession don't permit him to do that.他的职业道德不允许他那样做。
• Personal ethics and professional ethics sometimes conflict.个人道德和职业道德有时会相互抵触。

10 proxies   

n.代表权( proxy的名词复数 )；（测算用的）代替物；（对代理人的）委托书；（英国国教教区献给主教等的）巡游费

参考例句：

• SOCKS and proxies are unavailable. Try connecting to XX again? socks和代理不可用。尝试重新连接到XX吗？ 来自互联网
• All proxies are still down. Continue with direct connections? 所有的代理仍然有故障。继续直接连接吗？ 来自互联网

11 impasse   

n.僵局；死路

参考例句：

• The government had reached an impasse.政府陷入绝境。
• Negotiations seemed to have reached an impasse.谈判似乎已经陷入僵局。