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(单词翻译:双击或拖选)
泰国总理拒绝示威者辞职要求
BANGKOK — Thailand's prime minister says she is open to negotiations1 to defuse the country's political crisis, but remains2 unwilling3 to bow to her opponents’ demands to turn over the government to an unelected council. Yingluck Shinawatra also says the country's influential4 military will remain neutral in the standoff.
Bangkok's street rallies, which began weeks ago, have escalated5 into increasingly violent confrontations6 as protest leaders vow7 to topple the government this week.
Outside the prime minister's offices, police fired rubber bullets, tear gas canisters and deployed8 water cannons9 to contain the protesters.
Despite the chaos10 at some rally sites, business in the city largely continued unimpeded Monday and most government workers appeared to ignore the opposition11's call for a strike.
But demonstrators remain committed to their cause. Protester Watcharapon Vichayathanatom, says the fact that Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra’s party won an election landslide12 in 2011 is meaningless.
She said the prime minister’s election resulted from vote buying and buying the votes of politicians. So she may have won the election but millions of people have now come out, so she cannot say any longer that she has the majority of votes.
Yingluck said the opposition is neither asking for her resignation nor for the dissolution of parliament, but rather that the prime minister’s power be returned to the people.
“I don’t know how we can proceed with this offer because this offer does not exist under the practice of this constitutional law,” Yingluck said.
To some of the protesters, such as Raewat Pampradit, people power - although not clearly defined - is the only solution. He said power must be returned to the people and a people’s council established.
Tight corner
Thailand has been politically unstable13 for seven years since Yingluck’s brother, Thaksin Shinawatra, was deposed14 in a military coup15. But the governing party has won every election since 2001.
Chulalongkorn University political science professor Thitinan Pongsudhirak said the prime minister finds herself in a tight corner even though what the opposition proposes is likely not acceptable to a majority of the electorate16.
“It’s a kind of civilian17 coup led by the protest movement backed by the Democrat18 Party machinery19 and representing many minority voters who have been losing the elections in Thailand. They have become fed up, disillusioned20 with the election system and Thailand electoral democracy,” said Thitinan.
Democracy has long been fragile here with the military conducting 18 coups21 since the end of absolute monarchy22 rule in 1932.
Yingluck said the generals will remain neutral. But many observers believe the military will ultimately be the deciding factor, in the days ahead, in whether this government survives.
点击收听单词发音
1 negotiations | |
协商( negotiation的名词复数 ); 谈判; 完成(难事); 通过 | |
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2 remains | |
n.剩余物,残留物;遗体,遗迹 | |
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3 unwilling | |
adj.不情愿的 | |
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4 influential | |
adj.有影响的,有权势的 | |
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5 escalated | |
v.(使)逐步升级( escalate的过去式和过去分词 );(使)逐步扩大;(使)更高;(使)更大 | |
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6 confrontations | |
n.对抗,对抗的事物( confrontation的名词复数 ) | |
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7 vow | |
n.誓(言),誓约;v.起誓,立誓 | |
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8 deployed | |
(尤指军事行动)使展开( deploy的过去式和过去分词 ); 施展; 部署; 有效地利用 | |
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9 cannons | |
n.加农炮,大炮,火炮( cannon的名词复数 ) | |
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10 chaos | |
n.混乱,无秩序 | |
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11 opposition | |
n.反对,敌对 | |
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12 landslide | |
n.(竞选中)压倒多数的选票;一面倒的胜利 | |
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13 unstable | |
adj.不稳定的,易变的 | |
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14 deposed | |
v.罢免( depose的过去式和过去分词 );(在法庭上)宣誓作证 | |
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15 coup | |
n.政变;突然而成功的行动 | |
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16 electorate | |
n.全体选民;选区 | |
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17 civilian | |
adj.平民的,民用的,民众的 | |
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18 democrat | |
n.民主主义者,民主人士;民主党党员 | |
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19 machinery | |
n.(总称)机械,机器;机构 | |
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20 disillusioned | |
a.不再抱幻想的,大失所望的,幻想破灭的 | |
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21 coups | |
n.意外而成功的行动( coup的名词复数 );政变;努力办到难办的事 | |
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22 monarchy | |
n.君主,最高统治者;君主政体,君主国 | |
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