美国国家公共电台 NPR--Turkey's election becomes a referendum on the response to an earthquake

Turkey's election becomes a referendum on the response to an earthquake

Transcript¹

Turkey's elections are in May, and the president wants another term. But people angry over the government's slow response to last month's earthquake disaster may influence the vote.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

Elections in Turkey are less than two months away, and that timing² is awkward for the president, who would like another term. People have criticized the government's recent response to an earthquake. NPR's Fatma Tanis has been asking how the catastrophe³ might influence the vote.

FATMA TANIS, BYLINE⁴: On a sunny afternoon in the walled historic district of the city of Diyarbakir, crowds hang around outside a mosque⁵ after prayers. Many have nowhere else to go. Their homes were damaged in the earthquakes, and they spend days outdoors and nights in tents. One of them is 36-year-old Sukran, who only gave her first name to speak about the government's response, as some have faced arrest for criticizing it.

SUKRAN: (Through interpreter) Unfortunately, we are not getting help. The Red Crescent relief used to give out food, but now that stopped, too.

TANIS: Diyarbakir is Turkey's largest Kurdish-majority city. Four hundred people died here in the earthquakes. Two thousand buildings were damaged. But Sukran says because other cities are so much worse, people here have been overlooked.

SUKRAN: (Through interpreter) May God have mercy on all our dead everywhere. But we have survivors⁶ here, and we need to help them.

TANIS: At a coffee house nearby, 48-year-old Firat Kaymak is sitting with friends. As they smoke cigarettes and sip⁷ Turkish coffee, he recalls the night of the quakes.

FIRAT KAYMAK: (Through interpreter) I've never felt fear like that in my life. It was as though someone had picked up our building and was shaking it hard.

TANIS: Many of his friends are fired up about politics now. They noticed that government buildings, including housing for lower-income families, stayed intact while hundreds of thousands of others were damaged due to shoddy construction. Many contractors⁸ have been arrested, but Kaymak says it's not enough.

KAYMAK: (Through interpreter) Clearly, the government knows how to build its own property well. But they couldn't bother regulating all the other ones. I feel abandoned. We all feel abandoned.

TANIS: Turkey's disaster management agency and overall government institutions have suffered a great blow to their reputation, says Vahap Coskun. He's a political analyst⁹ and professor of law here at Dicle University. He says people saw loved ones die under the rubble¹⁰ as they waited for rescue teams that arrived too late. And, Coskun says, they know exactly where to point the blame.

VAHAP COSKUN: (Through interpreter) All of the government decision-making comes from one place, from one person. And this extremely centralized system was effectively crushed by the earthquake.

TANIS: Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is on the ballot¹¹ May 14. But many see the election as a vote on a change he pushed through five years ago. He held a referendum to replace the country's parliamentary system with an executive presidency¹², giving him sweeping¹³ powers and control. Now many people believe that the lack of checks and balances hollowed out government institutions, allowing corruption¹⁴ and dysfunction that made the government less responsive to disasters, as well as the poor economy.

COSKUN: (Through interpreter) This election will be about more than the candidates. It's actually a serious referendum. Do we want this system of executive presidency to continue or not?

TANIS: The Kurdish vote has often been split between Erdogan and rival parties, meaning the people here could play a pivotal role in Turkey's future. Back in the old city, Firat Kaymak says, for him, the earthquake was the last drop in the bucket.

KAYMAK: (Non-English language spoken).

TANIS: "Something has to change in this country," he says. "Otherwise, our homes will remain coffins¹⁵."

Fatma Tanis, NPR News, Diyarbakir, Turkey.

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 timing   

n.时间安排，时间选择

参考例句：

• The timing of the meeting is not convenient.会议的时间安排不合适。
• The timing of our statement is very opportune.我们发表声明选择的时机很恰当。

3 catastrophe   

n.大灾难，大祸

参考例句：

• I owe it to you that I survived the catastrophe.亏得你我才大难不死。
• This is a catastrophe beyond human control.这是一场人类无法控制的灾难。

4 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。

5 mosque   

n.清真寺

参考例句：

• The mosque is a activity site and culture center of Muslim religion.清真寺为穆斯林宗教活动场所和文化中心。
• Some years ago the clock in the tower of the mosque got out of order.几年前，清真寺钟楼里的大钟失灵了。

6 survivors   

幸存者，残存者，生还者( survivor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The survivors were adrift in a lifeboat for six days. 幸存者在救生艇上漂流了六天。
• survivors clinging to a raft 紧紧抓住救生筏的幸存者

7 sip   

v.小口地喝，抿，呷；n.一小口的量

参考例句：

• She took a sip of the cocktail.她啜饮一口鸡尾酒。
• Elizabeth took a sip of the hot coffee.伊丽莎白呷了一口热咖啡。

8 contractors   

n.（建筑、监造中的）承包人( contractor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• We got estimates from three different contractors before accepting the lowest. 我们得到3个承包商的报价后，接受了最低的报价。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Contractors winning construction jobs had to kick back 2 per cent of the contract price to the mafia. 赢得建筑工作的承包商得抽出合同价格的百分之二的回扣给黑手党。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

10 rubble   

n.（一堆）碎石，瓦砾

参考例句：

• After the earthquake,it took months to clean up the rubble.地震后，花了数月才清理完瓦砾。
• After the war many cities were full of rubble.战后许多城市到处可见颓垣残壁。

11 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

12 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。

13 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

14 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。

15 coffins   

n.棺材( coffin的名词复数 )；使某人早亡[死，完蛋，垮台等]之物

参考例句：

• The shop was close and hot, and the atmosphere seemed tainted with the smell of coffins. 店堂里相当闷热，空气仿佛被棺木的味儿污染了。 来自辞典例句
• Donate some coffins to the temple, equal to the number of deaths. 到寺庙里，捐赠棺材盒给这些死者吧。 来自电影对白