VOA慢速英语--西班牙将解散加泰罗尼亚政府

Spain Dismisses Catalonia Government after Independence Declaration

Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has dismissed Catalonia’s government and called for a new election. The move came shortly after Catalonia’s parliament passed a measure declaring independence from Spain.

Rajoy announced the dismissals after a special cabinet meeting to discuss how to respond to Catalonia’s independence declaration.

He said he was also removing the head of Catalonia’s regional police, shutting its foreign affairs department and dismissing its delegates in Brussels and Madrid.

The Spanish government moves are likely to meet fierce opposition¹ in Catalonia, where thousands have been celebrating the independence vote.

Rajoy said “we never wanted to come to this point.” He added that the aim of the measures is “to return (Catalonia) to normality and legality as soon as possible.”

Spain considers Catalan moves to create an independent state a violation² of the country's constitution.

In a message on Twitter, Catalan regional President Carles Puigdemont continued to propose peaceful means to resolve the crisis. “Dialogue has been, and will always be, our choice to solve political situations and achieve peaceful solutions,” he wrote.

Catalan supporters of independence gathered near the parliament building in Barcelona to celebrate Friday’s vote. News of the latest government actions was met with loud jeers⁴ and whistles.

Demonstrators cheered officials and lawmakers and called for the Spanish flag to be removed from atop the parliament. Some said, “we are not moving.”

Catalonia has long sought independence from Spain.

Catalan leaders held an independence referendum on October 1. They said the results gave them a clear mandate⁵ to declare independence. Spain’s government and Constitutional Court declared the referendum illegal.

I’m Bryan Lynn.

Words in This Story

authority – n. official power to give orders or make decisions

impose – v. officially order something to happen

jeer³ – n. insulting words shouted at someone

referendum – n. election in which people in an area vote for or against an issue of public concern

mandate – n. approval of a large part of the population

1 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。

2 violation   

n.违反(行为)，违背(行为)，侵犯

参考例句：

• He roared that was a violation of the rules.他大声说，那是违反规则的。
• He was fined 200 dollars for violation of traffic regulation.他因违反交通规则被罚款200美元。

3 jeer   

vi.嘲弄，揶揄；vt.奚落；n.嘲笑，讥评

参考例句：

• Do not jeer at the mistakes or misfortunes of others.不要嘲笑别人的错误或不幸。
• The children liked to jeer at the awkward students.孩子们喜欢嘲笑笨拙的学生。

4 jeers   

n.操纵帆桁下部（使其上下的）索具；嘲讽( jeer的名词复数 )v.嘲笑( jeer的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They shouted jeers at him. 他们大声地嘲讽他。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The jeers from the crowd caused the speaker to leave the platform. 群众的哄笑使讲演者离开讲台。 来自辞典例句

5 mandate   

n.托管地；命令，指示

参考例句：

• The President had a clear mandate to end the war.总统得到明确的授权结束那场战争。
• The General Election gave him no such mandate.大选并未授予他这种权力。