VOA标准英语2010年-US Pro-Democracy Stance Has Limited Im

Less than a year ago, U.S. President Barack Obama gave a speech in Cairo, calling for a new beginning in America's relations with the Muslim world while pledging to support the advance of democracy and human rights.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton renewed the president's pledge just last month in a speech to the U.S.-Islamic world forum¹ in Doha, Qatar.

But some rights activists² say that, despite those American promises, freedom and human rights are still under assault across the Arab world. A new survey finds the status of human rights in the Arab region deteriorated³ last year, compared to 2008.

Deteriorating⁴ conditions

Twelve Arab countries are profiled in the report by the non-profit Cairo Institute for Human Rights Studies. The study finds that developments over the past year have threatened progress toward improved human rights. It suggests that governments have acted "with impunity," particularly in Egypt, to suppress dissent⁵ by illegally jailing critics and political opponents and enacting⁶ harsh anti-terrorism laws.

 

Bahey el-din Hassan, general director of the Cairo Institute, says an American push for real democratic reforms in Egypt could serve as a model for reform efforts across the region.

Bahey el-din Hassan, general director of the Cairo Institute, says an American push for real democratic reforms in Egypt could serve as a model for reform efforts across the region.

"The U.S. under the Obama administration has an exceptional moral authority, and it should use such moral authority in the right way and not… think that the U.S. has to choose between its security interests and promoting human rights," says el-din Hassan.

He says many people in the Muslim world are beginning to doubt whether U.S. actions will ever match President Obama's stated vision of a "new way forward."

In February, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton addressed those concerns in her remarks at the second U.S-Muslim World Forum in Doha, Qatar.

"We supported and will continue to support those who build the foundations of democracy: transparent⁷ and trustworthy institutions, the rule of law, a vibrant⁸ civil society that shines a light on government abuses and those overlooked corners of society where the powerless and disenfranchised can be found," said Clinton. "But none of this can - or should be - imposed from the outside. It must emerge from citizens themselves."

Push for reform

But the director of the Cairo Institute doubts citizens will be able to act, especially in some of the Gulf⁹ region's failed states. He points to Yemen is an example of a country where U.S. aid has increased significantly, but the human rights situation has deteriorated.

"The support for authoritarian¹⁰ regimes does not lead only to the deterioration¹¹ of human rights, but also to serious damage to the U.S. image and then motivates people to support terrorists against such despotic regime, which is supported by the U.S. administration," says el-din Hassan.

The Cairo Institute report calls for a demonstrated, sustained commitment to helping¹² local actors in the region realize those objectives.

 

Mideast affairs analyst¹³ Nathan Brown says U.S. efforts to advance democracy in the region should consider each country's level of social and economic development.

Nathan Brown, a Mideast affairs analyst with the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, says so far, such a commitment seems to be missing from U.S. Mideast policy.

"I am not sure it is within the American power to implement¹⁴ democracy in the Arab world, but I think it has to be some kind of integration¹⁵ of the most political aspects (of democracy promotion) into American policy, not necessarily the centerpiece, but as an essential element of the region's policy," says Brown.

He adds that U.S. efforts to advance democracy in the region should take into account each country's level of social and economic development.

Reaching out

U.S. officials insist the Obama administration is taking just such a nuanced approach in its efforts to promote democracy and human rights in the Arab world. Tamara Wittes, deputy assistant secretary of state for Near East Affairs, recently toured four Arab countries to assess their civil society needs.

Wittes says the Obama administration has regular conversations not only with Arab governments that have made commitments to reform, but also with democratic reform activists across the region.

"We have an ongoing¹⁶ engagement with civil societies, with political parties, with aspiring¹⁷ candidates and politicians for whom we provide training and other kinds of support and we really are engaged at the government and non-governmental levels to try to advance the ball down the field in terms of democratic reform," says Wittes.

She points out that during her recent visit to Cairo, she met openly with democracy and human rights activists to discuss their role in Egypt's upcoming parliamentary elections.
 

1 forum   

n.论坛，讨论会

参考例句：

• They're holding a forum on new ways of teaching history.他们正在举行历史教学讨论会。
• The organisation would provide a forum where problems could be discussed.这个组织将提供一个可以讨论问题的平台。

2 activists   

n.（政治活动的）积极分子，活动家( activist的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• His research work was attacked by animal rights activists . 他的研究受到了动物权益维护者的抨击。
• Party activists with lower middle class pedigrees are numerous. 党的激进分子中有很多出身于中产阶级下层。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 deteriorated   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Her health deteriorated rapidly, and she died shortly afterwards. 她的健康状况急剧恶化，不久便去世了。
• His condition steadily deteriorated. 他的病情恶化，日甚一日。

4 deteriorating   

恶化，变坏( deteriorate的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The weather conditions are deteriorating. 天气变得越来越糟。
• I was well aware of the bad morale and the deteriorating factories. 我很清楚，大家情绪低落，各个工厂越搞越坏。

5 dissent   

n./v.不同意，持异议

参考例句：

• It is too late now to make any dissent.现在提出异议太晚了。
• He felt her shoulders gave a wriggle of dissent.他感到她的肩膀因为不同意而动了一下。

6 enacting   

制定（法律），通过（法案）( enact的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Generally these statutes apply only to wastes from reactors outside the enacting state. 总之，这些法令只适宜用在对付那些来自外州的核废料。 来自英汉非文学 - 环境法 - 环境法
• In addition, the complexion of enacting standards for live working is described. 另外，介绍了带电作业标准的制订情况。

7 transparent   

adj.明显的，无疑的；透明的

参考例句：

• The water is so transparent that we can see the fishes swimming.水清澈透明，可以看到鱼儿游来游去。
• The window glass is transparent.窗玻璃是透明的。

8 vibrant   

adj.震颤的，响亮的，充满活力的，精力充沛的，(色彩)鲜明的

参考例句：

• He always uses vibrant colours in his paintings. 他在画中总是使用鲜明的色彩。
• She gave a vibrant performance in the leading role in the school play.她在学校表演中生气盎然地扮演了主角。

9 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

10 authoritarian   

n./adj.专制(的)，专制主义者，独裁主义者

参考例句：

• Foreign diplomats suspect him of authoritarian tendencies.各国外交官怀疑他有着独裁主义倾向。
• The authoritarian policy wasn't proved to be a success.独裁主义的政策证明并不成功。

11 deterioration   

n.退化；恶化；变坏

参考例句：

• Mental and physical deterioration both occur naturally with age. 随着年龄的增长，心智和体力自然衰退。
• The car's bodywork was already showing signs of deterioration. 这辆车的车身已经显示出了劣化迹象。

12 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

13 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

14 implement   

n.(pl.)工具，器具；vt.实行，实施，执行

参考例句：

• Don't undertake a project unless you can implement it.不要承担一项计划，除非你能完成这项计划。
• The best implement for digging a garden is a spade.在花园里挖土的最好工具是铁锹。

15 integration   

n.一体化，联合，结合

参考例句：

• We are working to bring about closer political integration in the EU.我们正在努力实现欧盟內部更加紧密的政治一体化。
• This was the greatest event in the annals of European integration.这是欧洲统一史上最重大的事件。

16 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

17 aspiring   

adj.有志气的；有抱负的；高耸的v.渴望；追求

参考例句：

• Aspiring musicians need hours of practice every day. 想当音乐家就要每天练许多小时。
• He came from an aspiring working-class background. 他出身于有抱负的工人阶级家庭。 来自辞典例句