Likud Party Members Vote on Sharon's Disengagement Plan

 

Ross Dunn
 
Members of Israel's Likud Party have begun voting in a referendum on Prime Minister Ariel Sharon's disengagement plan from Palestinian areas. Mr. Sharon is seeking his party's support to unilaterally withdraw troops and Jewish settlements from the Gaza Strip and parts of the West Bank. The Likud Party opened 443 polling booths across the country early Sunday for the nearly 200,000 members eligible¹ to cast their ballot² in the referendum, which Prime Minister Sharon says is vital for Israel's future.

With voting under way, Mr. Sharon made a final appeal to members of the Likud to support his plan, saying a rejection³ of the proposals would risk harming the country's security.

His appeal came as both supporters and opponents claimed they were confident of victory.

Among those who voted in favor is Yuval Steinitz, the head of the Israeli parliamentary Foreign Affairs and Defense⁴ Committee.

He told reporters that it makes sense for Israel to withdraw from Gaza in order to bolster⁵ its claims to hold on to territory elsewhere.

"I think that from a strategic point of view it is correct for Israel to disengage itself from the Palestinian population of Gaza in order to strengthen its position in the future of negotiations⁶ about Jerusalem and security zones in Judea and Samaria [the West Bank],"

Gilad Erdan, also a Likud member of the Israeli parliament, does not agree.
Mr. Erdan campaigned intensively against the plan, which he says will only encourage more terrorism against Israel.

"We can't see anything good can come out of this plan. The only thing we see in this plan is that we are transferring the settlers from their houses and we are giving the terror organizations all the good excuses to continue with their activities."

Opinion polls published just ahead of the referendum showed that a growing number of Likud members share the views of Mr. Erdan.

But even if he is defeated in Sunday's vote, Mr. Sharon insists he will not give up on his plan.

Advisors⁷ to Mr. Sharon told reporters that regardless of the outcome of the referendum he will bring the plan to the Cabinet, and then to the Parliament, where he believes he will win majority support.

注释:
disengagement [5disin5^eidVmEnt] n. 撤离
vital [5vaitl] adj. 极为重要的
under way adv. 进行中
Yuval Steinitz 尤弗·史坦利茲，以色列国会国防及外交委员会主席
Israeli parliamentary Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee 以色列国会国防及外交委员会
makes sense 有意义
bolster [5bEulstE] v. 支持
strategic [strE5ti:dVIk] adj. 有战略意义的
correct for 做……的校正
Judea and Samaria 即"西岸"（West Bank）
Opinion polls 民意测验
outcome [5autkQm] n. 结果

 

1 eligible   

adj.有条件被选中的；(尤指婚姻等)合适(意)的

参考例句：

• He is an eligible young man.他是一个合格的年轻人。
• Helen married an eligible bachelor.海伦嫁给了一个中意的单身汉。

2 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

3 rejection   

n.拒绝，被拒，抛弃，被弃

参考例句：

• He decided not to approach her for fear of rejection.他因怕遭拒绝决定不再去找她。
• The rejection plunged her into the dark depths of despair.遭到拒绝使她陷入了绝望的深渊。

4 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

5 bolster   

n.枕垫；v.支持，鼓励

参考例句：

• The high interest rates helped to bolster up the economy.高利率使经济更稳健。
• He tried to bolster up their morale.他尽力鼓舞他们的士气。

6 negotiations   

协商( negotiation的名词复数 )； 谈判； 完成（难事）； 通过

参考例句：

• negotiations for a durable peace 为持久和平而进行的谈判
• Negotiations have failed to establish any middle ground. 谈判未能达成任何妥协。

7 advisors   

n.顾问，劝告者( advisor的名词复数 )；（指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授

参考例句：

• The governors felt that they were being strung along by their advisors. 地方长官感到他们一直在受顾问们的愚弄。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• We will consult together with advisors about her education. 我们将一起和专家商议她的教育事宜。 来自互联网