VOA标准英语2014--埃及人想知道塞西能否治愈经济困境

 

Egyptians Wonder if Sissi Can Heal Egypt's Economic Woes 埃及人想知道塞西能否治愈经济困境

CAIRO — During his campaign, Egypt's president-elect Abdel Fattah el-Sissi promised to heal the nation's ailing¹ economy. And while many Egyptians have high hopes for newfound safety and prosperity, Sissi has called on Egyptians to make sacrifices, warning it will take years to reform the economy.

After three years of upheaval² and no clear economic program, however, it's unclear how much more such sacrifice they can take.

Once popular with tourists, this market has mostly local shoppers a few days after the presidential election. Sissi has been declared the winner. Pre-election pro-Sissi music still blares on the streets.

Locals say the tourism industry, like others in Egypt, has flat-lined [disappeared].

Poor business

Ahmed Alaa makes traditional boxes and games out of wood and mother-of-pearl. He said business has been bad since the 2011 revolution.

“Before the revolution we was working very much, and there were many tourists in Egypt. But after the revolution we feel very, very bad because the economy in Egypt - it’s not only the tourist [industry] -- everything is damaged and everything [has fallen] down," said Alaa.

Sissi’s ideas to improve the economy already were in play before the votes were counted. The government plans to cut subsidies³ and reduce the national deficit⁴.  

Mohammad Gad⁵ is a senior economic reporter at el-Sharouk, a prominent Egyptian newspaper. He said the plan could backfire, and a large reduction in fuel subsidies could cause even more unrest.

“To some degree this is an unprecedented⁶ move by the Egyptian state to deal with the subsidy⁷, but without having a clear vision and alternative policies that would ease the economic pressure on both people in dire⁸ poverty and the middle class, it could bring down the social system," said Gad.

Despite widespread poverty, the incoming president has called for sacrifices from the Egyptian people, suggesting they eat less food, walk more and use less electricity to help their economy recover.

He said he will significantly improve the economy and the security situation within two years.

“The Egyptians expected a lot of things.During two revolutions they were aspiring⁹ for bread, freedom, social justice. The Egyptians wanted to live like this.I need to give them security and stability and complete development," said Sissi.

Limited patience

But activists¹⁰ say the Egyptian public will not wait two years for change.  

Human rights worker Abdelrahman Hany said the public will lose patience.

“People will take to the streets for two reasons: first regarding Sissi, because he would not fulfill¹¹ everything he promised regarding economic recovery, or take the first steps towards economic recovery," said Hany.

Sissi will be Egypt’s third president in three-and-a-half years after the last two were ousted¹² following popular protests. Sissi, the former army chief and defense¹³ minister, has been running the country since the army imprisoned¹⁴ former president Mohamed Morsi last July.

Thousands of people have been killed or arrested since then, accused of being associated with Morsi’s party, the Muslim Brotherhood¹⁵.

Despite the turmoil¹⁶, and an income of less than $150 a month, the wood craftsman¹⁷ Ahmed said for now he can live with some sacrifices.

“We need to work more and we need to give Egypt more because we can change the life, different than now, you know," he said.

Ahmed also worried that the people will not have the patience to wait for reforms. In the meantime, though, he hopes that at least with a real president in charge again, some tourists will return to his market.

1 ailing   

v.生病

参考例句：

• They discussed the problems ailing the steel industry. 他们讨论了困扰钢铁工业的问题。
• She looked after her ailing father. 她照顾有病的父亲。

2 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。

3 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》

4 deficit   

n.亏空，亏损；赤字，逆差

参考例句：

• The directors have reported a deficit of 2.5 million dollars.董事们报告赤字为250万美元。
• We have a great deficit this year.我们今年有很大亏损。

5 gad   

n.闲逛；v.闲逛

参考例句：

• He is always on the gad.他老是闲荡作乐。
• Let it go back into the gloaming and gad with a lot of longing.就让它回到暮色中，满怀憧憬地游荡吧。

6 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。

7 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。

8 dire   

adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的

参考例句：

• There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
• We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。

9 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

10 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》

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 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

13 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

14 imprisoned   

下狱，监禁( imprison的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He was imprisoned for two concurrent terms of 30 months and 18 months. 他被判处30个月和18个月的监禁，合并执行。
• They were imprisoned for possession of drugs. 他们因拥有毒品而被监禁。

15 brotherhood   

n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊

参考例句：

• They broke up the brotherhood.他们断绝了兄弟关系。
• They live and work together in complete equality and brotherhood.他们完全平等和兄弟般地在一起生活和工作。

16 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。

17 craftsman   

n.技工，精于一门工艺的匠人

参考例句：

• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。
• The craftsman is working up the mass of clay into a toy figure.艺人把一团泥捏成玩具形状。