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　　The African Union's reputation suffered a setback¹ during the past week when its leaders faltered² in the face of Robert Mugabe's blunt challenge to democratic norms in Zimbabwe. But while the organization may be weakened, there is cause for hope in the expressions of dissent³ by a small, but increasingly vocal⁴, group of African leaders determined⁵ to distance themselves from the continent's authoritarian⁶ despots.
非洲联盟的声誉上星期遭遇挫折，因为面对穆加贝对津巴布韦民主准则的粗暴挑战，非盟领导人没有明确表明立场。不过尽管非盟的声誉被削弱，但是从非洲国家领导人一些不同的声音中，人们看到了希望。这些非洲国家领导人尽管人数不多，但是越来越敢于表达意见，决心把自己跟非洲大陆的集权专制者分开。
U.N. Deputy Secretary-General Asha Rose Migiro called this a "moment of truth" for Africa's leaders. But if it was, the truth was unpleasant.
联合国副秘书长阿沙.罗斯.米基罗认为，对于非洲国家领导人来说，目前是“讲真话的时刻”。不过，如果真是“讲真话的时刻”的话，非洲国家领导人讲的真话并不好听。
In an address to a pre-summit session, Migiro, a former Tanzanian foreign minister, described the failure of democracy in Zimbabwe as the single greatest challenge to stability in southern Africa.
前坦桑尼亚外长米基罗在非盟首脑会议的预备会议上讲话时把津巴布韦民主制的挫折称为对南部非洲稳定的一次最大的挑战。
On the summit sidelines, America's top diplomat⁷ for Africa Jendayi Frazier described Robert Mugabe's claim to a sixth term as Zimbabwe's president "an open expression of tyranny." She said the world would be watching to see how Africa's leaders would respond.
在非盟首脑会议期间，美国负责非洲问题的最高外交官让达伊.弗雷泽说，穆加贝自称是津巴布韦第六任总统，这是“公开的暴政语言”。她说，全世界将拭目以待，看看非洲国家领导人做出何种反应。
The British Minister Mark Malloch Brown bluntly told reporters "Mr. Mugabe has to go."
英国首相布朗直截了当地对记者说：“穆加贝必须下台。”
But these expressions of international outrage⁸ seemed not to matter. When Mr. Mugabe arrived at the summit hall, he was warmly greeted by the host, Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, whose 27 years in office is one less than Mr. Mugabe's 28.
不过，国际社会表达的愤怒似乎无足轻重。当穆加贝出现在非盟首脑会议大厅时，受到主办国埃及的总统穆巴拉克的热情欢迎。穆巴拉克在埃及执政27年，只比穆加贝少一年。
Africa's longest serving head of state at 41 years in office, Gabon's Omar Bongo hailed his Zimbabwean colleague as a hero.Muammar Gaddafi, whose 39 years in office makes him second in seniority among Africa's leaders, was also there to join the welcome.
It only underscored the point that a fair percentage of Africa's heads of state are strongmen who, one way or another, have installed themselves as leaders for life.
这突出显示，有相当一部分非洲国家首脑都是强人，他们想方设法让自己成为国家的终身领导人。
And Mr. Mugabe, through his spokesman George Charamba, made clear to reporters that he couldn't care less what the West thinks of his election.
穆加贝通过发言人查拉姆巴向记者明确表示，他毫不在乎西方国家对他当选有什么看法。
"They can go and hang. They can go and hang a thousand times. They've no claim on Zimbabwe at all, and that's exactly the issue," he said.
查拉姆巴说：“让他们见鬼去吧。让他们见鬼一千次吧。他们无权对津巴布韦指手划脚，这才是问题的关键。”
Charamba described Zimbabwe's presidential vote as an internal affair, and none of the outside world's business.
"The way out is the way defined by the Zimbabwe people free from outside interference, and that is exactly what will resolve the matter," he added.
And Africa's leaders, by and large, seemed to agree. After what was described as a heated closed door debate, the leaders issued a mild statement with no rebuke⁹.
总的说来，非洲国家领导人似乎都同意查拉姆巴的态度。经过据说是激烈的不公开辩论之后，非洲国家领导人发表一份措辞温和的声明，没有谴责津巴布韦。
Diplomats¹⁰ attending the session say Nigeria's President Umaru Yar'Adua confronted Mr. Mugabe over the conduct of his election, but that the Zimbabwean leader replied that Nigeria's election was even dirtier.
参加辩论会的外交官说，尼日利亚总统奥马鲁.亚拉杜瓦对穆加贝在选举中的行为提出质疑，不过穆加贝反驳说，尼日利亚的选举更肮脏。
Political analyst¹¹ Medhane Tadesse of Addis Ababa's Center for Policy Research and Dialogue says that kind of criticism resonates with many African leaders.
亚的斯亚贝巴的“政策研究与对话中心”政治分析人士梅德哈内.塔德塞表示，这样的批评引起许多非洲国家领导人的共鸣。
"Most of the leaders in Africa look at Zimbabwe like in a mirror their own face, which means they are not prepared to seriously pressurize Zimbabwe and President Mugabe," he explained."So on the one hand you have the advancement¹² of democratic principles. On the other hand the interest and survival instinct of political leaders doesn't cope with those advanced principles. I see that contradiction."
塔德塞说：“非洲大多数领导人把津巴布韦看成是自己国家的真实写照，这意味着他们不准备认真地向津巴布韦及其总统穆加贝施加压力。因此，一方面，在民主原则方面有所进步，另一方面，非洲政治领导人的利益和生存本能却跟这些先进的原则不适应。我看到这种矛盾。”
Medhane concludes that Africa's authoritarian rulers will not change their anti-democratic ways unless the international community steps in and forces them to do so.
"There is not an international mechanism¹³ to enforce democratic elections, which means every aspect and mechanism of change in Africa, and political transition is being shut down," he added."So there needs to be an international mechanism to enforce democratic elections and democratic election should be rewarded while undemocratic elections should pay the consequences. Unless that is done, there is not much Africa can do."
In the meantime, Africa's optimists¹⁴ point to a ray of hope. Word from inside the summit hall was that a small, but vocal minority of African leaders joined the international chorus of outrage at Mr. Mugabe's assault on democracy.
与此同时，非洲的乐观派让人们看到一线希望。从非盟首脑会议内部传出的消息说，少数敢于直言的非洲领导人跟国际社会一道愤怒指责穆加贝对民主制度的攻击。
The vice-president of neighboring Botswana, Mompati Merafhe told the gathering¹⁵ Zimbabwe's election does not confer legitimacy¹⁶ on Mr. Mugabe. He urged Zimbabwe's suspension from the African Union and the regional grouping of southern African nations (SADC).
津巴布韦的邻国博茨瓦纳的副总统蒙帕蒂.梅拉费对与会者说，津巴布韦的选举没有让穆加贝具有合法性。他要求终止津巴布韦在非洲联盟和南部非洲发展共同体的成员资格。
The leaders of Nigeria, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea Bissau, Senegal and Uganda also expressed support for action against the Mugabe government.
尼日利亚、利比里亚、塞拉利昂、几内亚-比绍、塞内加尔和乌干达也表示支持对穆加贝政府采取制裁行动。
Zambia's President Levy¹⁷ Mwanawasa had been expected to be a strong voice favoring a censure¹⁸ of Mr. Mugabe, but he was struck down by a stroke shortly after arriving at the summit site, and did not attend.
Western diplomatic observers point to those dissenting¹⁹ voices as a silver lining²⁰ to the cloud hanging over the African Union. As one quipped, "If eight of Africa's 53 heads of state criticized the conduct of the election, that's a positive trend."
西方外交观察员指出，那些不同的声音是非盟上空乌云中的一线曙光。一位观察员说：“如果非洲53个国家首脑中有8个人批评津巴布韦的选举，那就是一种积极的趋势。”