VOA标准英语2011--Prosperity in Turkey Creates Iftar Divid

Prosperity in Turkey Creates Iftar Divide

In Turkey, the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan has put the spotlight¹ on the increasing divide between rich and poor. The country's growing affluent² class, a product of a decade of unprecedented³ economic growth, has resulted in increasing numbers of people celebrating the iftar dinner at luxurious⁴ restaurants and hotels. But that has sparked a growing controversy⁵ in the country.
At a park in downtown Istanbul, student Rumeysa Camdereli is helping⁶ with the preparations for an iftar dinner in the shadow of 5 star hotels. The meal is free to anyone and it marks the end of a day's fasting during Ramadan. But as Camdereli explains, the weekly event is also to protest the growing conspicuous⁷ display of wealth during the Islamic holy month.
"Ramadan is a time that we have to remember the poor and remember that we can be hungry sometime and we have to give our money to poor. This protest tries to say that to people who are having their meals in these luxury hotels," Camdereli said.
The simple menu of soup, cheese and dates is in stark⁸ contrast to the iftar dinners at the surrounding 5 star hotels. They cost $100 or more.
At one of those 5 star hotels, restaurant manager Ilker Sonuk is carefully supervising last minute preparations. There is a lavish⁹ array of food, including a whole lamb cooking slowly on a spit. Turkey has enjoyed record economic growth for nearly a decade. And celebrating iftar at restaurants like this one is increasingly popular. Ilker Sonuk says there is nothing wrong with people wanting to break their fast at such a luxury place. It's all about choice.
"There are some people who want to have iftar at home with their families, some who want to have iftar with their clients and business friends at hotels. As you can see, we are in the garden. It is a very good atmosphere to have dinner and iftar. For example on Monday. we are going to organize for 500 persons -- 500 person iftar for one of the business companies," Sonuk said.
Members of the government are frequently seen at 5 star iftar dinners. But stung by the protesters' message, the pious¹⁰ Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan has criticized ostentatious iftars. And Cemil Cicek, the speaker of parliament and a member of the ruling AK party, launched a blistering¹¹ attack on expensive iftars while attending one.
"This should be the last Ramadan meal that we are have in such a setting", he said. "Believe me, there are people who need the crumbs¹² of the food that you will send back to kitchen."
The ruling AK Party claims it is the party of the poor. But despite record economic growth, the number of Turks living in poverty has not decreased. Over the nine years that the AK party has been in power, it has remained largely unchanged at 18 percent.
Back at the protest dinner in the nearby park, food is being distributed to the hundreds of people eagerly waiting to break their fast.
The meal starts with prayers. There is not only a hunger for the food, but also the ideas that the iftar stands for, as this woman points out.
"While some people cannot even find food to eat, there are others who pay $300 for an iftar meal -- that is about the minimum monthly wage," she said. "The meaning of fasting is for all Muslims to be equal and to understand each other's situation. That's why we see these luxurious iftars as superfluous¹³ and wasteful¹⁴."
As the iftar slowly winds down, the big clean-up begins for student Camdereli . She says the protest is like Ramadan itself -- it is not about creating divisions but rather bridging the divide in Turkish society.
"Muslim people, non-Muslim people, Turkish people, Kurdish people, everybody in Turkey, can eat their meal together, can share their meal, so that we can bring happiness and justice to this country or to the world in the name of Ramadan," Camdereli said.
The ruling AK party prides itself on its economic record. But that success has also led to a growing divide between rich and poor. Bridging that gap, observers say, could yet be the party's greatest challenge.

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 affluent   

adj.富裕的，富有的，丰富的，富饶的

参考例句：

• He hails from an affluent background.他出身于一个富有的家庭。
• His parents were very affluent.他的父母很富裕。

3 unprecedented   

adj.无前例的，新奇的

参考例句：

• The air crash caused an unprecedented number of deaths.这次空难的死亡人数是空前的。
• A flood of this sort is really unprecedented.这样大的洪水真是十年九不遇。

4 luxurious   

adj.精美而昂贵的；豪华的

参考例句：

• This is a luxurious car complete with air conditioning and telephone.这是一辆附有空调设备和电话的豪华轿车。
• The rich man lives in luxurious surroundings.这位富人生活在奢侈的环境中。

5 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

6 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。

7 conspicuous   

adj.明眼的，惹人注目的；炫耀的，摆阔气的

参考例句：

• It is conspicuous that smoking is harmful to health.很明显，抽烟对健康有害。
• Its colouring makes it highly conspicuous.它的色彩使它非常惹人注目。

8 stark   

adj.荒凉的；严酷的；完全的；adv.完全地

参考例句：

• The young man is faced with a stark choice.这位年轻人面临严峻的抉择。
• He gave a stark denial to the rumor.他对谣言加以完全的否认。

9 lavish   

adj.无节制的；浪费的；vt.慷慨地给予，挥霍

参考例句：

• He despised people who were lavish with their praises.他看不起那些阿谀奉承的人。
• The sets and costumes are lavish.布景和服装极尽奢华。

10 pious   

adj.虔诚的；道貌岸然的

参考例句：

• Alexander is a pious follower of the faith.亚历山大是个虔诚的信徒。
• Her mother was a pious Christian.她母亲是一个虔诚的基督教徒。

11 blistering   

adj.酷热的；猛烈的；使起疱的；可恶的v.起水疱；起气泡；使受暴晒n.[涂料] 起泡

参考例句：

• The runners set off at a blistering pace. 赛跑运动员如脱缰野马般起跑了。
• This failure is known as preferential wetting and is responsible for blistering. 这种故障称为优先吸湿，是产生气泡的原因。 来自辞典例句

12 crumbs   

int. (表示惊讶)哎呀 n. 碎屑 名词crumb的复数形式

参考例句：

• She stood up and brushed the crumbs from her sweater. 她站起身掸掉了毛衣上的面包屑。
• Oh crumbs! Is that the time? 啊，天哪！都这会儿啦？

13 superfluous   

adj.过多的，过剩的，多余的

参考例句：

• She fined away superfluous matter in the design. 她删去了这图案中多余的东西。
• That request seemed superfluous when I wrote it.我这样写的时候觉得这个请求似乎是多此一举。

14 wasteful   

adj.（造成）浪费的，挥霍的

参考例句：

• It is a shame to be so wasteful.这样浪费太可惜了。
• Duties have been reassigned to avoid wasteful duplication of work.为避免重复劳动浪费资源，任务已经重新分派。