Widespread demonstrations mark World Cup draw

 　　RIO DE JANEIRO, July 30 (Xinhua) -- With the world watching the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil Preliminary Draw in the city of Rio de Janeiro, protestors took to the streets on Saturday.

　　A variety of causes took people to the Gloria Marina, the location of the Draw, but a heavy police force has been installed to make sure that the demonstrators stay well away from the event.

　　Rio de Janeiro's city and state government used roughly 20 million US dollars of taxpayer¹ money in order to host the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil Preliminary Draw in the city of Rio de Janeiro on Saturday.

　　Ironically, the event was not open to the public and demonstrators expressed their disapproval² outside of the venue³. One such sign displayed in English read, "20 million US dollars public money spent in this private 'party'." Another sign read "where is the money?"

　　Participants in the demonstration⁴ believe it is a serious injustice⁵ to the city, wasting money that could and should be used towards more important issues such as improving public hospitals and schools.

　　Another branch of protestors called for the president of the Brazilian Confederation of Soccer (CBF) Ricardo Teixeira to step down, carrying signs that read "Out Ricardo Teixeira."

　　Teixeira has been in command of the CBF for nearly 20 years. He recently announced his plan to step down in 2015 and candidate himself for the president of FIFA.

　　Perhaps the most legitimate⁶ group to demonstrate in front of the FIFA World Cup Brazil Preliminary Draw was The Social Committee of the 2014 World Cup and Olympic Games (or Comite Social da Copa 2014 e dos Jogos Olimpicos, in Portuguese).

　　Led by professor Marcelo Braga Edmundo of the UFRJ (the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro), the organization hopes to catch the attention of the international media and expose the problems that the World Cup and Olympic Games have brought to the community, principally the poor.

　　According to Edmundo, some 20,000 people from eight communities will be forced to leave their homes in order for the widening of roads near stadiums such as the Engenhao and the Maracana stadium. The committee hopes to reach its goal of 2,000 activists⁷ in Saturday's demonstration.

　　Additionally, a new expressway will be built, called the Transcarioca, connecting Rio's international airport to the West Zone and Barra de Tijuca, the center of athlete housing and competition, causing further need to destroy housing in order to build roadway. Habitants of Vila Harmonia, Restinga and Recreio 2 that have already been forced to leave their homes have yet to receive any sort of compensation and/or alternative locations to live.

　　Another disturbing fact presented by the group of professors is the lack of transparency in relation to costs of construction.

　　Professor Edmundo cites that the initial estimates regarding the reformation of the Maracana stadium have since tripled without any explanation to the public as to why the costs have gone up.

　　Edmundo claimed that the World Cup and Olympic Games are not merely about sport, but are also heavily influenced by business interests and the idea of generating as much money as possible.

　　The professor and the organization hope to create a more transparent⁸ form of information flow regarding money spent, its origin and its final destination as well as the purpose behind constructions.

　　The professor argues that the specific removal of lower-class housing and the arbitrary information given by organizers of the World Cup and Olympic Games will only lead to further segregation⁹ of the city's population over the next 10 years.

　　Aware that no immediate¹⁰ results will be attained¹¹ by Saturday's protests, each respective group of demonstrators have one thing in common: the search for a more transparent World Cup organization in Brazil and a better relationship between organizers and the public.

　　Protestors attempted to march towards the entrance of the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil Preliminary Draw, but the police quickly blocked any progress by the crowd of demonstrators.

　　Police on horseback, the K-9 unit, the SWAT team and snipers were all assigned to protect the event that is Brazil's first opportunity to show that they are competent of holding a big-time international event. Thus far, no altercations¹² have been registered.

1 taxpayer   

n.纳税人

参考例句：

• The new scheme will run off with a lot of the taxpayer's money.这项新计划将用去纳税人许多钱。
• The taxpayer are unfavourably disposed towards the recent tax increase.纳税者对最近的增加税收十分反感。

2 disapproval   

n.反对，不赞成

参考例句：

• The teacher made an outward show of disapproval.老师表面上表示不同意。
• They shouted their disapproval.他们喊叫表示反对。

3 venue   

n.犯罪地点，审判地，管辖地，发生地点，集合地点

参考例句：

• The hall provided a venue for weddings and other functions.大厅给婚礼和其他社会活动提供了场所。
• The chosen venue caused great controversy among the people.人们就审判地点的问题产生了极大的争议。

4 demonstration   

n.表明，示范，论证，示威

参考例句：

• His new book is a demonstration of his patriotism.他写的新书是他的爱国精神的证明。
• He gave a demonstration of the new technique then and there.他当场表演了这种新的操作方法。

5 injustice   

n.非正义，不公正，不公平，侵犯（别人的）权利

参考例句：

• They complained of injustice in the way they had been treated.他们抱怨受到不公平的对待。
• All his life he has been struggling against injustice.他一生都在与不公正现象作斗争。

6 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

7 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》

8 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。

9 segregation   

n.隔离，种族隔离

参考例句：

• Many school boards found segregation a hot potato in the early 1960s.在60年代初，许多学校部门都觉得按水平分班是一个棘手的问题。
• They were tired to death of segregation and of being kicked around.他们十分厌恶种族隔离和总是被人踢来踢去。

10 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

11 attained   

（通常经过努力）实现( attain的过去式和过去分词 )； 达到； 获得； 达到（某年龄、水平、状况）

参考例句：

• She has attained the degree of Master of Arts. 她已获得文学硕士学位。
• Lu Hsun attained a high position in the republic of letters. 鲁迅在文坛上获得崇高的地位。

12 altercations   

n.争辩，争吵( altercation的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Have I been in physical altercations with men? 我有和男人们发生肢体上冲突么？ 来自互联网