美国国家公共电台 NPR--Haiti is in the midst of one of the worst political crises in its history

Haiti is in the midst of one of the worst political crises in its history

Transcript¹

An increasing power vacuum is making things worse. There is not a single elected official with a valid² term, and many people are asking: How long will the defacto prime minister cling to power?

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

We go next to Haiti, where it seems democracy has fallen apart. The country does not have a single regularly elected official. Everybody's terms expired, and nobody has held new elections. Last week, some police turned on the de facto prime minister. NPR's Eyder Peralta reports.

EYDER PERALTA, BYLINE³: Prime Minister Ariel Henry had just returned to the country when he found himself surrounded by angry protesters at the airport in Port au Prince.

(SOUNDBITE OF PROTEST)

PERALTA: In previous weeks, more than 10 police officers had been killed by gangs, so some of them turned on the country's de facto prime minister. They blocked roads by burning tires, and some of them made it to the terminal building, destroying some property.

ROBERT FATTON: So you have a really critical situation in the police, and that is the only real institutional force that could reestablish a semblance⁴ of order. And it's falling apart itself.

PERALTA: That's Robert Fatton, who studies Haiti at the University of Virginia. He says right now, there is very little keeping Haiti together. Gangs are running rampant⁵. The country hasn't held elections in so long, it doesn't have a single legitimately⁶ elected official. And now that Prime Minister Henry has seemingly lost the police, he can only head in one direction, hoping for the continued support of the international community.

FATTON: So we are indeed facing the precipice⁷, and it's very unclear what might happen.

PERALTA: Henry came to power in the summer of 2021. The president of Haiti, Jovenel Moise, was assassinated⁸. And amid a power struggle, the U.S., Canada, France and other members of the so-called core group put their weight behind Henry. Later, Haitian authorities expressed suspicion that Henry was involved in the assassination⁹ of the president. Cecile Accilien, a professor at Kennesaw University, says this is the historical pattern in Haiti. Western powers have always chosen their interests and stability over doing what's right for the Haitian people.

CECILE ACCILIEN: Yes, Haitians are responsible. You've had ongoing¹⁰ corrupt¹¹ government, but the U.S. has supported this corruption¹².

PERALTA: For decades, Accilien says, the U.S. has supported the governments that created the gangs, and now that the leader they helped bring to power has failed, she says, the U.S. has to own it.

ACCILIEN: Yes. They have to untangle this. It's their mess.

PERALTA: Henry has called for an international force to help stabilize¹³ Haiti. But the U.S. says it's unwilling¹⁴ to lead that force, and they haven't been able to convince anyone else to take the plunge¹⁵. In a statement to NPR, a State Department spokesperson would not say whether the U.S. still supports the prime minister, but they said they were encouraged by a recent political accord. The so-called national consensus¹⁶ plan would form a transitional council that would plan elections for this year. Monique Clesca, who is part of a group of Haitians looking for a holistic¹⁷ solution to the crisis, laughs at the suggestion.

MONIQUE CLESCA: We can't even go to the bank. You can't go anywhere. And they want him to be organizing elections this year. This is a farce¹⁸.

PERALTA: If things are to change for good in Haiti, she says, the U.S. and its allies need to stop propping¹⁹ up corrupt regimes.

CLESCA: It's not at all going to be easy, but we must start. We can't just keep saying it's OK to have a criminal organization running a country.

PERALTA: Part of that, says Clesca, means ending support for Prime Minister Henry. Eyder Peralta, NPR News, Mexico City.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 valid   

adj.有确实根据的；有效的；正当的，合法的

参考例句：

• His claim to own the house is valid.他主张对此屋的所有权有效。
• Do you have valid reasons for your absence?你的缺席有正当理由吗？

3 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

4 semblance   

n.外貌，外表

参考例句：

• Her semblance of anger frightened the children.她生气的样子使孩子们感到害怕。
• Those clouds have the semblance of a large head.那些云的形状像一个巨大的人头。

5 rampant   

adj.(植物)蔓生的；狂暴的，无约束的

参考例句：

• Sickness was rampant in the area.该地区疾病蔓延。
• You cannot allow children to rampant through the museum.你不能任由小孩子在博物馆里乱跑。

6 legitimately   

ad.合法地；正当地，合理地

参考例句：

• The radio is legitimately owned by the company. 该电台为这家公司所合法拥有。
• She looked for nothing save what might come legitimately and without the appearance of special favour. 她要的并不是男人们的额外恩赐，而是合法正当地得到的工作。 来自英汉文学 - 嘉莉妹妹

7 precipice   

n.悬崖，危急的处境

参考例句：

• The hut hung half over the edge of the precipice.那间小屋有一半悬在峭壁边上。
• A slight carelessness on this precipice could cost a man his life.在这悬崖上稍一疏忽就会使人丧生。

8 assassinated   

v.暗杀( assassinate的过去式和过去分词 )；中伤；诋毁；破坏

参考例句：

• The prime minister was assassinated by extremists. 首相遭极端分子暗杀。
• Then, just two days later, President Kennedy was assassinated in Dallas. 跟着在两天以后，肯尼迪总统在达拉斯被人暗杀。 来自辞典例句

9 assassination   

n.暗杀；暗杀事件

参考例句：

• The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
• Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年，林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。

10 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。

11 corrupt   

v.贿赂，收买；adj.腐败的，贪污的

参考例句：

• The newspaper alleged the mayor's corrupt practices.那家报纸断言市长有舞弊行为。
• This judge is corrupt.这个法官贪污。

12 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。

13 stabilize   

vt.（使）稳定，使稳固，使稳定平衡；vi.稳定

参考例句：

• They are eager to stabilize currencies.他们急于稳定货币。
• His blood pressure tended to stabilize.他的血压趋向稳定。

14 unwilling   

adj.不情愿的

参考例句：

• The natives were unwilling to be bent by colonial power.土著居民不愿受殖民势力的摆布。
• His tightfisted employer was unwilling to give him a raise.他那吝啬的雇主不肯给他加薪。

15 plunge   

v.跳入，(使)投入，(使)陷入；猛冲

参考例句：

• Test pool's water temperature before you plunge in.在你跳入之前你应该测试水温。
• That would plunge them in the broil of the two countries.那将会使他们陷入这两国的争斗之中。

16 consensus   

n.(意见等的)一致，一致同意，共识

参考例句：

• Can we reach a consensus on this issue?我们能在这个问题上取得一致意见吗？
• What is the consensus of opinion at the afternoon meeting?下午会议上一致的意见是什么？

17 holistic   

adj.从整体着眼的，全面的

参考例句：

• There is a fundamental ambiguity in the use of word "whole" in recent holistic literature.在近代的整体主义著作中，“整体”这个词的用法极其含混。
• In so far as historicism is technological,its approach is not piecemeal,but "holistic".仅就历史决定论是一种技术而论，它的方法不是渐进的，而是“整体主义的”。

18 farce   

n.闹剧，笑剧，滑稽戏；胡闹

参考例句：

• They played a shameful role in this farce.他们在这场闹剧中扮演了可耻的角色。
• The audience roared at the farce.闹剧使观众哄堂大笑。

19 propping   

支撑

参考例句：

• You can usually find Jack propping up the bar at his local. 你常常可以看见杰克频繁出没于他居住的那家酒店。
• The government was accused of propping up declining industries. 政府被指责支持日益衰败的产业。