纽约时报 可怕的控告指向沙特王子 “沙漠达沃斯”因此蒙尘(1)（在线收听）

Saudi Prince's Showcase Tarnished by a Grisly Report

可怕的控告指向沙特王子 “沙漠达沃斯”因此蒙尘

By Mark Landler and Kate Kelly

文/马克·兰德勒，凯特·凯利

The participants nicknamed it “Davos in the Desert,”

参与者给这次会议起了个昵称——“沙漠达沃斯，”

which captures the lofty ambitions of the annual investor conference scheduled to convene in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, this month.

这一昵称恰好说明了本月计划在沙特利雅得召开的年度投资者会议有着远大的抱负。

Initially planned as an intimate gathering, it grew quickly in size and scope,

原本计划只作亲密聚会的会议规模和范围迅速扩大，

and the inaugural meeting last year reflected the determination of its host, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, to be a player on the world stage.

去年召开的首次会议便反映了其主持人穆罕默德·本·萨勒曼王子登上世界舞台的决心。

In keeping with Muslim practice, no alcohol was served.

为了遵从穆斯林的习俗，会议期间没有提供酒精饮料。

Waiters roamed the vast, opulent Ritz-Carlton Hotel, offering pale Saudi coffee and exotic fruit drinks.

服务员漫步在宽敞豪华的丽思卡尔顿酒店，为嘉宾们提供淡淡的沙特咖啡和充满异域风情的果汁。

Outside the hotel, female executives kept their arms and legs covered.

在酒店外，女领导人们便将自己的双腿和双臂遮了起来。

But the gathering was an extravagant embodiment of Crown Prince Mohammed’s dream to modernize Saudi Arabia and wean it off its reliance on oil by 2030.

然而，这次集会极尽奢华地体现了穆罕默德王储实现沙特阿拉伯社会的现代化，并使其在2030年前摆脱对石油的依赖的梦想。

Speaking on stage to the Fox Business Network anchor Maria Bartiromo,

在台上接受“福克斯商业新闻网”主持人玛丽亚·巴蒂罗姆的采访时，

the prince said Saudi Arabia “and all of its projects and programs can reach new horizons in the world.”

王子说沙特阿拉伯“及其所有项目和计划都可以在世界舞台上迈向新的高度。”

Then he presented his blueprint for Neom, a $500 billion planned city that would rise from the sands —

之后他介绍了他设计的Neom蓝图，这是一个将耗资5000亿美元打造的沙漠城市——

a futuristic Xanadu of high-tech jobs and robot workers.

一个以高科技岗位和机器人员工为特色的未来乌托邦。

Last week, that vision collided with the brutal realities of the Middle East —

上周，这一愿景与中东的残酷现实发生了冲突——

a swirl of allegations that Crown Prince Mohammed’s family ordered the murder of a Saudi journalist in Turkey.

一连串指控都称穆罕默德王储的家人曾下令在土耳其谋杀一名沙特记者。

The ensuing furor has tarnished the future king’s reputation and left his conference in tatters, as foreign investors confront the dark side of his Arabian dreams.

这些指控激起的民愤不仅玷污了这位未来国王的声誉，还让他主持的这场会议因为外国投资者看清了他的阿拉伯梦的阴暗面而变得支离破碎。

If last year’s conference served as a grand coming-out party for Crown Prince Mohammed,

如果说去年的会议是穆罕默德王储举行的一次盛大的进场派对，

this year’s gathering is a symbol of the West’s deepening disillusionment with the young leader.

那么，今年的聚会就是西方对这位年轻领导人进一步的幻灭的象征。

No longer the bold reformer bent on modernizing his kingdom — a favorite of President Trump and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner —

如今，他已不再是那个下定决心要让他的王国实现现代化——朗普总统和他的女婿杰瑞德库什纳的最爱——的大胆改革之人，

he is now regarded as an impulsive, unreliable autocrat who falls back on crude tactics to crush dissent.

而成了人们眼中的一个冲动而不可靠，依靠粗暴的策略来粉碎异议者的独裁分子。

The grisly, if unconfirmed, reports about the journalist, Jamal Khashoggi, have prompted a growing list of attendees and sponsors to bail out of the Riyadh meeting.

关于记者贾马尔·卡尔佐吉的那些可怕，尽管还未被证实，的报道，已经让越来越多的与会者和赞助商退出了利雅得会议。

And by week’s end, The New York Times and every other major Western news media organization, except Fox Business Network, had canceled its participation.

截至周末，《纽约时报》和除“福克斯商业新闻网”之外的其他主要西方新闻媒体组织都已放弃了各自的参会资格。