VOA标准英语2010年-Cyprus Marks 50 Years of Independence

For 92-year old Glafcos Clerides, a British-educated lawyer and the first speaker of the Cypriot parliament, memories remain vivid of the young inexperienced first government of Archbishop Makarios.

"I can't describe that there were young politicians before the independence, because there was no parliament or no government elected in Cyprus," said Clerides. "There was a governor sent by the Colonial Office and he used to recruit some people round him, called executive councilors. It was an advisory¹ body to the government, so there was not much political life in the sense that a democracy works."

One early consensus² between new parliament members was they all saw a fundamental problem with the constitution, which was drawn³ to safeguard the rights of the nation's 100,000 Turkish Cypriots, as well as the 500,000 Greek Cypriot majority. For many it was a document that was woefully inadequate⁴.

"There was a feeling of dissatisfaction after independence both on the Greek Cypriot side and the Turkish Cypriot side," said Clerides. "For the Greek Cypriot side, the struggle was not merely to get rid of the colonial rule, but to unite Cyprus with Greece. That was not achieved. On the other side, the Turkish Cypriots' concept, was if the British had to leave, then Cyprus must be partitioned. And they did not get that either. So there were two communities that were very disappointed."

Former President George Vassiliou remembers that the constitutional wrangling⁵ between Greeks and Turks quickly led to rising tensions and eventually outright⁶ civil war.

"Everybody was pleased that Cyprus was now an independent country," said Vassiliou. "But a significant percentage of the people did not believe that this was the end. Many people felt that in someway they were cheated."

Few were surprised that conflict between both communities started, which quickly spiraled into violence. By 1964, the United Nations sent a peacekeeping force that was 7,000-strong to the island.

The situation came to a head in 1974, when the military junta⁷ in Athens instigated⁸ a coup⁹ by Greek army officers in Cyprus, seeking to achieve union with Greece. President Makarios was overthrown¹⁰ and, just day's later, Turkey invaded, splitting the island in two.

The remnants of functioning government were presented with a multitude of problems, ranging from refugees to a collapsing¹¹ economy. They were problems still being tackled a decade later when George Vassiliou became president.

"What happened after the invasion is that thousands of Cypriots went to the Middle East, and did all kinds of work there, and money they earned there they sent it to Cyprus and we developed Cyprus into an international center for offshore¹² companies and that is what really gave Cyprus the extra boost," said Vassiliou.

South Cyprus, which is marking this Independence Day, joined the European Union in 2004 and the self-proclaimed Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus is recognized only by Turkey. A new round of U.N.-led negotiations¹³ to end the division was initiated¹⁴ in late 2008 and has been described as the "last chance" for Cyprus peace.

In light of growing public pessimism¹⁵ about peace prospects¹⁶, Clerides said the specter of a permanently¹⁷ divided Cyprus looms¹⁸, if a solution cannot be found soon.

"The question is, as the time goes by, it becomes more difficult to solve the problem and the risks of a partition are looming¹⁹ in the air," he said.

Vassiliou agrees, and said, ""It's both a happy and unhappy country, people have succeeded in building their lives again. But, at the same time, they are worried about the future - not because they are afraid of being attacked or killed, but they know that this division is something that cannot stand."

The failure to agree to a deal could spell the end to any future U.N.-sponsored dialogue, and both community leaders have stressed that there is "no plan B" or other alternative.

1 advisory   

adj.劝告的，忠告的，顾问的，提供咨询

参考例句：

• I have worked in an advisory capacity with many hospitals.我曾在多家医院做过顾问工作。
• He was appointed to the advisory committee last month.他上个月获任命为顾问委员会委员。

2 consensus   

n.(意见等的)一致，一致同意，共识

参考例句：

• Can we reach a consensus on this issue?我们能在这个问题上取得一致意见吗？
• What is the consensus of opinion at the afternoon meeting?下午会议上一致的意见是什么？

3 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

4 inadequate   

adj.(for,to)不充足的，不适当的

参考例句：

• The supply is inadequate to meet the demand.供不应求。
• She was inadequate to the demands that were made on her.她还无力满足对她提出的各项要求。

5 wrangling   

v.争吵，争论，口角( wrangle的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The two sides have spent most of their time wrangling over procedural problems. 双方大部分时间都在围绕程序问题争论不休。 来自辞典例句
• The children were wrangling (with each other) over the new toy. 孩子为新玩具（互相）争吵。 来自辞典例句

6 outright   

adv.坦率地；彻底地；立即；adj.无疑的；彻底的

参考例句：

• If you have a complaint you should tell me outright.如果你有不满意的事，你应该直率地对我说。
• You should persuade her to marry you outright.你应该彻底劝服她嫁给你。

7 junta   

n.团体；政务审议会

参考例句：

• The junta reacted violently to the perceived threat to its authority.军政府感到自身权力受威胁而进行了激烈反击。
• A military junta took control of the country.一个军政权控制了国家。

8 instigated   

v.使（某事物）开始或发生，鼓动( instigate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The government has instigated a programme of economic reform. 政府已实施了经济改革方案。
• He instigated the revolt. 他策动了这次叛乱。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

9 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。

10 overthrown   

adj. 打翻的，推倒的，倾覆的 动词overthrow的过去分词

参考例句：

• The president was overthrown in a military coup. 总统在军事政变中被赶下台。
• He has overthrown the basic standards of morality. 他已摒弃了基本的道德标准。

11 collapsing   

压扁[平]，毁坏，断裂

参考例句：

• Rescuers used props to stop the roof of the tunnel collapsing. 救援人员用支柱防止隧道顶塌陷。
• The rocks were folded by collapsing into the center of the trough. 岩石由于坍陷进入凹槽的中心而发生褶皱。

12 offshore   

adj.海面的，吹向海面的；adv.向海面

参考例句：

• A big program of oil exploration has begun offshore.一个大规模的石油勘探计划正在近海展开。
• A gentle current carried them slowly offshore.和缓的潮流慢慢地把他们带离了海岸。

13 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。

14 initiated   

n. 创始人 adj. 新加入的 vt. 开始，创始，启蒙，介绍加入

参考例句：

• He has not yet been thoroughly initiated into the mysteries of computers. 他对计算机的奥秘尚未入门。
• The artist initiated the girl into the art world in France. 这个艺术家介绍这个女孩加入巴黎艺术界。

15 pessimism   

n.悲观者，悲观主义者，厌世者

参考例句：

• He displayed his usual pessimism.他流露出惯有的悲观。
• There is the note of pessimism in his writings.他的著作带有悲观色彩。

16 prospects   

n.希望，前途(恒为复数)

参考例句：

• There is a mood of pessimism in the company about future job prospects. 公司中有一种对工作前景悲观的情绪。
• They are less sanguine about the company's long-term prospects. 他们对公司的远景不那么乐观。

17 permanently   

adv.永恒地，永久地，固定不变地

参考例句：

• The accident left him permanently scarred.那次事故给他留下了永久的伤疤。
• The ship is now permanently moored on the Thames in London.该船现在永久地停泊在伦敦泰晤士河边。

18 looms   

n.织布机( loom的名词复数 )v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的第三人称单数 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近

参考例句：

• All were busily engaged,men at their ploughs,women at their looms. 大家都很忙，男的耕田，女的织布。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The factory has twenty-five looms. 那家工厂有25台织布机。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 looming   

n.上现蜃景（光通过低层大气发生异常折射形成的一种海市蜃楼）v.隐约出现，阴森地逼近( loom的现在分词 )；隐约出现，阴森地逼近

参考例句：

• The foothills were looming ahead through the haze. 丘陵地带透过薄雾朦胧地出现在眼前。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Then they looked up. Looming above them was Mount Proteome. 接着他们往上看，在其上隐约看到的是蛋白质组山。 来自英汉非文学 - 生命科学 - 回顾与展望