VOA常速英语2014--Turkey’s Fading Economy Fuels Corruption Scandal 土耳其经济衰退引爆腐败丑闻

 

Turkey’s Fading Economy Fuels Corruption¹ Scandal 土耳其经济衰退引爆腐败丑闻

LONDON — Turkey’s prime minister is battling corruption allegations amid a power struggle that goes to the heart of the political elite². Analysts⁴ say the feud⁵, which has seen three Cabinet ministers lose their jobs, was triggered by slowdown in a country long seen as a rising economic power in the region.  

伦敦 — 在牵动政治精英的权力争斗中，土耳其总理正在穷于应对腐败指控。分析人士说，土耳其长期以来被认为是该地区一支不断上升的经济力量，而经济下滑触发了这次权力之争，并且已经导致三名内阁部长丢掉了工作。

Rival lawmakers started a brawl⁶ in Turkey’s parliament Sunday as the political feud intensified⁷.

土耳其的政治争斗这星期演变成了一场议会争吵。

They clashed over a draft bill that will give the government a bigger role in appointing judges and prosecutors⁸. The opposition⁹ claims it is an effort to stifle¹⁰ a corruption scandal.

观点对立的议员们就一项议案发生冲突，这个议案将使政府在任命法官和检察官时起到更大的作用。

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has cast the corruption allegations as an attempted "judicial¹¹ coup¹²" - and blames foreign powers. Speaking last month, he said propaganda has been launched against the government. There is a gang, a cabal¹³ plotting against the state, he said.

反对派声称这是要阻止一个腐败丑闻曝光。

总理埃尔多安称所谓的腐败指控是外国力量试图发动的一场“司法政变”。他说： “他们发动了针对我们的宣传攻势。在国内有一个团伙正在策划一个阴谋。”

Far-reaching allegations

More than 10,000 anti-corruption protesters took to the streets of Ankara last week.

1万多名反腐抗议者上周走上安卡拉街头。

Gul Berna Ozcan of Royal Holloway University of London said the allegations extend to the top of Turkish business and politics.

“Corruption has actually been increasing as the economy got bigger and more affluent," said Ozcan. "The most critical part of the current government’s corruption index so to speak has to do with public procurements, municipal services, land planning, urban planning and privatization, in particular of former state assets.”

伦敦皇家霍洛威大学的奥兹坎说，腐败指控涉及到土耳其商业和政治的最高层。她说： “随着经济壮大和更加富裕，腐败实际上在增加。现政府的腐败指数中最重要的部分涉及政府采购、市政服务、土地规划、城市规划和私有化，特别是前国有资产的私有化。”

The scandal has seen three Cabinet ministers resign. Several police chiefs and 350 police officers have been fired. Dozens have been arrested.

已经有三名内阁部长因为丑闻辞职。几名警察局长和350名警官被开除。数十人被逮捕。

Observers say the purge¹⁴ is targeting followers¹⁵ of a powerful conservative movement known as Hizmet, founded by a U.S.-based Islamic scholar, Fethullah Gulen.

观察人士说，这场清洗的目标是一个强大的保守运动的追随者。这个运动由旅美伊斯兰学者葛兰创立。

“The Gulen movement, which is a form of solidarity¹⁶ platform, has also been part of this economic reallocation. Reallocation through privatization, municipal real estate arrangements… And they perhaps have been increasingly squeezed out of these big fortunes,” said Ozcan.

奥兹坎说： “葛兰运动是一个坚实的平台，也是这场经济再分配的一部分。经济再分配通过私有化、都市房地产安排等等来实现。这些人可能越来越被排挤到这些巨大财富之外了。”

Faltering¹⁸ economy

An average economic growth rate of 5.2% per year during the last decade has helped Erdogan win three terms in office. But since 2011, that growth has begun to falter¹⁷, said Fadi Hakura, Turkey analyst³ at policy institute Chatham House.

过去十年平均每年5.2%的经济增长率帮助埃尔多安连任三届总理。但是，查塔姆政策研究所的土耳其分析人士哈库拉说，2011年以来，增长开始减缓。

“Now that the pie is shrinking, each side wants to have a bigger slice of a shrinking pie, and that’s generating an enormous amount of feuding¹⁹ and disagreement between conservative forces in Turkey,” said Hakura.

他说：“现在饼正在变小，而每方却都希望得到更大的一块，这就在土耳其保守势力间造成了大量的对抗和分歧。”

Hakura said Turkey has become stuck in what economists²⁰ call a middle-income trap. “What is important is productivity growth, the quality of human capital, robust²¹ state institutions, transparency and the rule of law. And on all these criteria²², Turkey is seriously lacking."

哈库拉说土耳其正陷入经济学家所说的中等收入陷阱。他说：“重要的是生产力增长、人力资本的质量、健全的国家机构、透明度和法治。而按照所有这些标准衡量，土耳其都远远落后。”

And the latest corruption allegations spell further economic trouble, said Ozcan. “The rule of law is definitely in serious danger. No one would like to invest in a country where the judiciary is controlled by the government.”

奥兹坎说，最新的腐败指控预示着更深层的经济困难。他说： “法治肯定正面临严重危险。没有人愿意在一个司法由政府操控的国家投资。”

 

Erdogan claims the allegations are false and aimed at derailing his bid to become president in elections scheduled for September.

总理埃尔多安称，腐败指控是假的，目的是削弱他在今年9月总统选举中的竞争力。

1 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。

2 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。

3 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。

4 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。

5 feud   

n.长期不和；世仇；v.长期争斗；世代结仇

参考例句：

• How did he start his feud with his neighbor?他是怎样和邻居开始争吵起来的？
• The two tribes were long at feud with each other.这两个部族长期不和。

6 brawl   

n.大声争吵，喧嚷；v.吵架，对骂

参考例句：

• They had nothing better to do than brawl in the street.他们除了在街上斗殴做不出什么好事。
• I don't want to see our two neighbours engaged in a brawl.我不希望我们两家吵架吵得不可开交。

7 intensified   

v.（使）增强， （使）加剧( intensify的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Violence intensified during the night. 在夜间暴力活动加剧了。
• The drought has intensified. 旱情加剧了。 来自《简明英汉词典》

8 prosecutors   

检举人( prosecutor的名词复数 )； 告发人； 起诉人； 公诉人

参考例句：

• In some places,public prosecutors are elected rather than appointed. 在有些地方，检察官是经选举而非任命产生的。 来自口语例句
• You've been summoned to the Prosecutors' Office, 2 days later. 你在两天以后被宣到了检察官的办公室。

9 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

10 stifle   

vt.使窒息；闷死；扼杀；抑止，阻止

参考例句：

• She tried hard to stifle her laughter.她强忍住笑。
• It was an uninteresting conversation and I had to stifle a yawn.那是一次枯燥无味的交谈，我不得不强忍住自己的呵欠。

11 judicial   

adj.司法的，法庭的，审判的，明断的，公正的

参考例句：

• He is a man with a judicial mind.他是个公正的人。
• Tom takes judicial proceedings against his father.汤姆对他的父亲正式提出诉讼。

12 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。

13 cabal   

n.政治阴谋小集团

参考例句：

• He had been chosen by a secret government cabal.他已被一个秘密的政府阴谋集团选中。
• The illegal aspects of the cabal's governance are glaring and ubiquitous.黑暗势力的非法统治是显而易见的并无处不在。

14 purge   

n.整肃，清除，泻药，净化；vt.净化，清除，摆脱；vi.清除，通便，腹泻，变得清洁

参考例句：

• The new president carried out a purge of disloyal army officers.新总统对不忠诚的军官进行了清洗。
• The mayoral candidate has promised to purge the police department.市长候选人答应清洗警察部门。

15 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

16 solidarity   

n.团结；休戚相关

参考例句：

• They must preserve their solidarity.他们必须维护他们的团结。
• The solidarity among China's various nationalities is as firm as a rock.中国各族人民之间的团结坚如磐石。

17 falter   

vi.(嗓音)颤抖，结巴地说；犹豫；蹒跚

参考例句：

• His voice began to falter.他的声音开始发颤。
• As he neared the house his steps faltered.当他走近房子时，脚步迟疑了起来。

18 faltering   

犹豫的，支吾的，蹒跚的

参考例句：

• The economy shows no signs of faltering. 经济没有衰退的迹象。
• I canfeel my legs faltering. 我感到我的腿在颤抖。

19 feuding   

vi.长期不和（feud的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• Riccardo and Cafiero had been feuding so openly that the whole town knew about it. 里卡多和卡菲埃罗一直公开地闹别扭，全城的人都知道此事。 来自辞典例句
• The two families have been feuding with each other for many generations. 这两个家族有好多代的世仇了。 来自互联网

20 economists   

n.经济学家，经济专家( economist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The sudden rise in share prices has confounded economists. 股价的突然上涨使经济学家大惑不解。
• Foreign bankers and economists cautiously welcomed the minister's initiative. 外国银行家和经济学家对部长的倡议反应谨慎。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 robust   

adj.强壮的，强健的，粗野的，需要体力的，浓的

参考例句：

• She is too tall and robust.她个子太高，身体太壮。
• China wants to keep growth robust to reduce poverty and avoid job losses,AP commented.美联社评论道，中国希望保持经济强势增长，以减少贫困和失业状况。

22 criteria   

n.标准

参考例句：

• The main criterion is value for money.主要的标准是钱要用得划算。
• There are strict criteria for inclusion in the competition.参赛的标准很严格。