VOA标准英语2008年-Asian Region Faces Political Pressures from Ris

By Naomi Martig
Hong Kong
19 June 2008

Rising inflation is putting pressure on governments all over Asia, as angry citizens protest spiraling food and fuel costs and politicians bicker¹ over how to handle new fiscal² constraints³. Naomi Martig reports from Hong Kong.
　

Malaysian protesters hold placards reading "Revise The Fuel Price Now" during protest in downtown Kuala Lumpur, 06 Jun 2008

India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, South Korea - just a few countries in Asia where residents angry at surging fuel and food costs say they have had enough. Protests have gained steam in the past month, with demonstrators blocking traffic and in some cases disrupting the flow of fuel and food supplies.

Politicians in many of these countries also are struggling with inflation. Rising costs have forced governments throughout the region to reduce the subsidies⁴ they have long given on fuel.

Mark Thirlwell, program director for international economy at the Lowy Institute for International Policy in Australia, says subsidy⁵ cuts were bound to happen with oil prices holding over $130 dollars a barrel.

"Their initial reaction in many cases is to use subsidies to defray the impact of higher fuel prices, higher food prices," Thirlwell explained. "As that situation has been sustained for longer and longer and as you've actually seen prices bid up higher and higher, the budgetary burden has gotten greater in each case."

The problem for many governments is that most of the inflation problem is global, not local. High worldwide demand, supply bottlenecks⁶ and international monetary⁷ policy all help push up oil prices. And food prices are soaring because of tight supplies and rising demand.

That leaves governments with little room to maneuver⁸, and in countries that have long subsidized fuel or food for their citizens, budgets are being overburdened, forcing leaders to do such things as cut subsidies, raise taxes or accept growing deficits⁹.

In Malaysia, for example, government leaders recently raised fuel prices by 41 percent after being faced with $17 billion-bill to underwrite fuel subsidies. In a country used to cheap subsidized gasoline, protests erupted quickly.

In India, politicians are desperate to tame inflation - now at a seven-year high. If they fail, a voter backlash in next year's national elections is likely. Thirlwell says government leaders there are caught in a very difficult situation.

Thirlwell says governments that cut subsidies, or are not fiscally¹⁰ strong enough to handle the burden of rising inflation, face the strongest protests, and the strongest risks of political upheaval¹¹.

"On the one hand, it's fiscal pressures which say well our ability to sort of defray or provide subsidies or ameliorate these price increases is limited, on the other hand we know there is real political cost involved here if we let inflation get out of control because the voters will punish us for this," Thirlwell said.

Robert Broadfoot of the Political and Economic Risk Consultancy in Hong Kong says several governments are making a number of mistakes in handling inflation, and public concerns.

"In India, you have elections coming up and members of the ruling coalition¹² don't want anything that is going to cost them votes, which means don't get rid of the subsidies," he said. "So the politicians are making mistakes and this is a time when the countries really can't afford it."

Broadfoot says the Indian government's bill for fuel subsidies is expected to be almost $60 billion this year, because the retail¹³ price remains¹⁴ far below the cost of oil. He says considering that citizens already have taken to the streets to protest recent price increases, the Indian government can expect more strife¹⁵ if it is forced to slash¹⁶ subsidies again.

Soaring fuel and food costs also are taking a toll¹⁷ on developed economies such as Hong Kong, where groups are demanding that the government freeze prices or reduce taxes. In South Korea, truck drivers blocked roads to air their frustration¹⁸ over rising fuel prices and lower incomes.

Some countries are handling the problems better than others. Broadfoot says Indonesia should be applauded, despite recent protests over cuts to fuel subsidies.

"The current president is taking some hard decisions, like they've really reduced their subsidies on fuel and yet he's done it in a way that's made it digestible for the population," Broadfoot noted¹⁹. "He's giving poor Indonesian cash handouts²⁰, which make it a lot easier. So there have been protests but not of a scale that can bring the government down."

Indonesia raised retail fuel prices by 30 percent last month.

Many people, including government leaders, hope that relief will soon be in sight. But Thirlwell, like many analysts²¹, warns not to expect inflation to slow.

"Over time, high prices will produce a supply response, and we'll see some of the sting out of current prices come out," Thirlwell said. "But, there are all these question marks of well if there is any disruption to supply, any questions on supply, then rather than a sort of a slight retreat in prices we actually have the potential for another big spike²²."

A number of Asian countries, including India and Indonesia, face elections in the coming year. How each government handles inflation will likely affect the next campaigns. Being popular with the public is usually a top priority for elected leaders. But many economists²³ and political analysts warn such popularity can come at a higher price than some countries can afford.

1 bicker   

vi.(为小事)吵嘴，争吵

参考例句：

• The two children used to bicker about who should do the washing-up.这两个小孩子过去常为该由谁洗餐具一事而争吵。
• They always bicker when they meet at school.在学校见面时他们总是争吵。

2 fiscal   

adj.财政的，会计的，国库的，国库岁入的

参考例句：

• The increase of taxation is an important fiscal policy.增税是一项重要的财政政策。
• The government has two basic strategies of fiscal policy available.政府有两个可行的财政政策基本战略。

3 constraints   

强制( constraint的名词复数 )； 限制； 约束

参考例句：

• Data and constraints can easily be changed to test theories. 信息库中的数据和限制条件可以轻易地改变以检验假设。 来自英汉非文学 - 科学史
• What are the constraints that each of these imply for any design? 这每种产品的要求和约束对于设计意味着什么？ 来自About Face 3交互设计精髓

4 subsidies   

n.补贴，津贴，补助金( subsidy的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• European agriculture ministers failed to break the deadlock over farm subsidies. 欧洲各国农业部长在农业补贴问题上未能打破僵局。
• Agricultural subsidies absorb about half the EU's income. 农业补贴占去了欧盟收入的大约一半。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 subsidy   

n.补助金，津贴

参考例句：

• The university will receive a subsidy for research in artificial intelligence.那个大学将得到一笔人工智能研究的补助费。
• The living subsidy for senior expert's family is included in the remuneration.报酬已包含高级专家家人的生活补贴。

6 bottlenecks   

n.瓶颈( bottleneck的名词复数 )；瓶颈路段（常引起交通堵塞）；（尤指工商业发展的）瓶颈；阻碍

参考例句：

• Roadworks are causing bottlenecks in the city centre. 道路施工导致市中心交通阻塞。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• At five o'clock in the afternoon the city streets are a series of bottlenecks. 下午五点市中心的街道就成了拥挤不堪的窄路。 来自《现代英汉综合大词典》

7 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

8 maneuver   

n.策略[pl.]演习；v.(巧妙)控制；用策略

参考例句：

• All the fighters landed safely on the airport after the military maneuver.在军事演习后，所有战斗机都安全降落在机场上。
• I did get her attention with this maneuver.我用这个策略确实引起了她的注意。

9 deficits   

n.不足额( deficit的名词复数 )；赤字；亏空；亏损

参考例句：

• The Ministry of Finance consistently overestimated its budget deficits. 财政部一贯高估预算赤字。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Many of the world's farmers are also incurring economic deficits. 世界上许多农民还在遭受经济上的亏损。 来自辞典例句

10 fiscally   

在国库方面，财政上，在国库岁入方面

参考例句：

• Nor will fiscally stretched governments pump more money into the political equivalent of a leper colony. 财政吃紧的政府也不愿将更多的钱投入这个避之唯恐不及的政治瘟疫区。
• We are more fiscally constrained, which forces us to work smarter and more efficiently. 与F-15相比我们资金上的限制更大了，美女类小游戏，这迫使我们更为精心和有效地工作。

11 upheaval   

n.胀起，(地壳)的隆起；剧变，动乱

参考例句：

• It was faced with the greatest social upheaval since World War Ⅱ.它面临第二次世界大战以来最大的社会动乱。
• The country has been thrown into an upheaval.这个国家已经陷入动乱之中。

12 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

13 retail   

v./n.零售；adv.以零售价格

参考例句：

• In this shop they retail tobacco and sweets.这家铺子零售香烟和糖果。
• These shoes retail at 10 yuan a pair.这些鞋子零卖10元一双。

14 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

15 strife   

n.争吵，冲突，倾轧，竞争

参考例句：

• We do not intend to be drawn into the internal strife.我们不想卷入内乱之中。
• Money is a major cause of strife in many marriages.金钱是造成很多婚姻不和的一个主要原因。

16 slash   

vi.大幅度削减；vt.猛砍，尖锐抨击，大幅减少；n.猛砍，斜线，长切口，衣衩

参考例句：

• The shop plans to slash fur prices after Spring Festival.该店计划在春节之后把皮货降价。
• Don't slash your horse in that cruel way.不要那样残忍地鞭打你的马。

17 toll   

n.过路(桥)费；损失，伤亡人数；v.敲(钟)

参考例句：

• The hailstone took a heavy toll of the crops in our village last night.昨晚那场冰雹损坏了我们村的庄稼。
• The war took a heavy toll of human life.这次战争夺去了许多人的生命。

18 frustration   

n.挫折，失败，失效，落空

参考例句：

• He had to fight back tears of frustration.他不得不强忍住失意的泪水。
• He beat his hands on the steering wheel in frustration.他沮丧地用手打了几下方向盘。

19 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

20 handouts   

救济品( handout的名词复数 )； 施舍物； 印刷品； 讲义

参考例句：

• Soldiers oversee the food handouts. 士兵们看管着救济食品。
• Even after losing his job, he was too proud to accept handouts. 甚至在失去工作后，他仍然很骄傲，不愿接受施舍。

21 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。

22 spike   

n.长钉，钉鞋；v.以大钉钉牢，使...失效

参考例句：

• The spike pierced the receipts and held them in order.那个钉子穿过那些收据并使之按顺序排列。
• They'll do anything to spike the guns of the opposition.他们会使出各种手段来挫败对手。

23 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》