VOA标准英语2011--Tens of Thousands Jam Cairo's Main Squar

Tens of Thousands Jam Cairo's Main Square Demanding Reforms

Tens of thousands of Egyptians gathered Friday in Cairo's Tahrir Square and several other towns to call for faster reforms and to protest this week's jail release of police officers and former government ministers. These were among the largest demonstrations¹ since the 18-day revolution in January and February.
One group of protesters chanted for retaliation² against former regime members and police officers who attacked protesters in January and February. But mostly it was a festive³ crowd, complete with a football-field-length Egyptian flag, tee shirt and hat salesmen and children with Egyptian flags painted on their faces.
"We are here today to continue our revolution," said Ahmed Ali. Ali is a young worker who restores ancient monuments and says he has been at many of the Tahrir Square protests. "The killers⁴ are free now, out of jail. They killed our children. They killed our brothers. They killed our fathers. Show us justice!"
Ali and others on the square say they came out to protest the acquittal and release of ministers from the former government who had been accused of corruption⁵, and the decision to grant bail⁶ to police officers accused of killing⁷ protesters in the town of Suez in January.
Dr. Nagham Omar says people like herself who want real reform cannot simply expect the interim⁸ government to deliver it.
OMAR: "The revolution started two months ago or three months ago but it didn't finish. We are the ones who did it so we must care for it until the end.
PESSIN: "What do you hope will be the result of today's event?"
OMAR: "Today? Nothing will come out. But we must push."
Former Egyptian Foreign Minister Amr Moussa, who just stepped down as secretary general of the Arab League, made a brief visit to the square.
Moussa, who is expected to run for the Egyptian presidency⁹, told VOA such protests are needed to ensure the revolution will succeed in the long run.
"I'm so proud to be among the people and to be received with enthusiasm by the people," Moussa said. "And we want change, and we want to move on. We want to have prosperity, stability, democracy and the voice of the people."
At least one woman on the square had a particularly personal reason to be there. Arzak Abdel Halim's son Ahmed was killed during the January protests. She came out Friday with her two young daughters, and spoke¹⁰ through the veil of her black abaya, decorated with an Egyptian-flag headband. She says people started to change after the revolution, to be closer to God and perhaps to achieve freedom.
Another veiled woman, who identified herself only as Basma, said she was there for justice. "We want to be like Switzerland. We want to be like Europe," Basma said. "We got tired of despotism. We will not get Egypt on a silver platter, but after lots of hard work, we will achieve that."
On a plastic chair at a make-shift tea shop in the middle of Tahrir Square, a long-time critic and three-time prisoner of the former regime, Professor Saad Eddin Ibrahim, couldn't suppress a smile as he looked around him. Ibrahim said protests like this one fulfill¹¹ his lifelong dream of real "people power" in Egypt.
"It is needed to remind all concerned that the revolutionary spirit is still high, and people are still determined¹² to see concrete measures of change," Ibrahim noted¹³.
Professor Ibrahim says Friday's protest was particularly noteworthy because poor people came, and people from the countryside, who, he said, at first saw the revolution as an elitist movement.
Office worker Zakariya Ahmed came with his wife, and held his young daughter in his arms. He said he wants to teach her to be brave and to defend her country.
"How long should I stay in fear? For how long? We have been suppressed for 30 years. And before that our parents were. So how long should I stay in fear?" Ahmed asked.
Egypt's transitional leaders appear to recognize the depth of feeling in the streets.? On Thursday, 25 former officials, several of them very senior, were charged with manslaughter and attempted murder for allowing an attack on protesters in February, during which officers rode horses and camels. In addition, the Interior Minister promised to fire hundreds of police officers and senior commanders connected with attacks on protesters.

1 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

2 retaliation   

n.报复，反击

参考例句：

• retaliation against UN workers 对联合国工作人员的报复
• He never said a single word in retaliation. 他从未说过一句反击的话。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 festive   

adj.欢宴的，节日的

参考例句：

• It was Christmas and everyone was in festive mood.当时是圣诞节，每个人都沉浸在节日的欢乐中。
• We all wore festive costumes to the ball.我们都穿着节日的盛装前去参加舞会。

4 killers   

凶手( killer的名词复数 )； 消灭…者； 致命物； 极难的事

参考例句：

• He remained steadfast in his determination to bring the killers to justice. 他要将杀人凶手绳之以法的决心一直没有动摇。
• They were professional killers who did in John. 杀死约翰的这些人是职业杀手。

5 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

6 bail   

v.舀（水），保释；n.保证金，保释，保释人

参考例句：

• One of the prisoner's friends offered to bail him out.犯人的一个朋友答应保释他出来。
• She has been granted conditional bail.她被准予有条件保释。

7 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

8 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

9 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

10 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。

11 fulfill   

vt.履行，实现，完成；满足，使满意

参考例句：

• If you make a promise you should fulfill it.如果你许诺了，你就要履行你的诺言。
• This company should be able to fulfill our requirements.这家公司应该能够满足我们的要求。

12 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

13 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。