The Growing Corruption and Economic Crisis in Spain

 

This is AS IT IS.

Hello, I'm Caty Weaver¹. On the show today, we talk about the growing corruption² and economic crisis in Spain.

And, we hear about some disputed social issues in Turkey and France.

Hundreds of thousands of people demonstrated across Spain last Saturday. The protesters said they were growing tired of government spending cuts and reported corruption among top officials. Some observers say the corruption claims could harm Spain's economic recovery. Mario Ritter has more.

The Spanish newspaper El Pais was first to report on the claims. It said the ruling party, Partido Popular, operated a secret program that provided money to party officials like Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy. The newspaper said its information came from handwritten notes. Partido Popular fought back, questioning where the information came from.

Later, El Pais reported that handwriting experts confirmed that the documents were, in fact, real. And they said there was no evidence of anyone changing them.

There were reports that the party continued until December to make payments to its former treasurer³, Luis Barcenas.

This is just the latest example of reported corruption in Spain. Jesus Lizcano is head of Transparency International Spain, a non-government group.

He says the corruption scandals are affecting Spain's image and not helpful in winning foreign investment. But he believes their influence on investors⁴ will be limited.

Joe Rundle is president of trading at ETX Capital, a financial business in London.

He says the financial crisis in Europe has not yet ended. Mr. Rundle says investors may pressure the European Central Bank to take steps to end it. But he says any financial rescue plan would have "massive" consequences.

"France isn't really in a position to do the bailout, and it's going to come down to Germany to decide how the Euro Zone is going to be shaped in the coming years."

A financial rescue plan may be what investors would like. But it is not something either Spain or Germany want.

For now, Spain is working on improving its image. The government proposed a transparency bill last year. Prime Minister Rajoy said the bill would increase openness, both in the government and among political parties. Critics have argued the measure is difficult to enforce, but could be a good start.

VOA's Mario Ritter, reporting.

You are listening to AS IT IS, from VOA Learning English.

Women's groups in Turkey are accusing the government of carrying out a systematic⁵ campaign to limit abortions⁷. Karen Leggett has more.

Women's rights groups demonstrated in Istanbul earlier this month in support of a right to abortion⁶. Activists⁸ claim the Turkish government is using what they are calling back-door methods to ban the operations.

One of the protesters was Pinar. She helped to create the group Women for Women's Human Rights.

"Now we know that all of Turkey's clinics or hospitals which feel politically close to the government or prime minister are refusing to perform abortions."

Both a woman and her doctor can face prison time for an abortion if the operation is performed after the legal limit of ten weeks. Married women still need to have their husband's permission to end a pregnancy⁹.

To let women know what the government is doing, a group called "Abortion is a Right, Choice Belongs to Women" released a video. The government says it is only enforcing laws and rules on abortion. Last month,

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan restated his opposition¹⁰ to abortion. He has said abortions are one reason the country's birth rate is falling.

The government is now considering a new abortion law. No details have been given, but ministers have promised that the operations will not be banned.

Ayse Duzkan is with the group "Abortion is a Right." She says even if the government does not ban abortion, proposed laws could make it almost impossible for women to get one.

"We believe there will be more limitations, legal limitations, for private hospitals where women have more freedom to have access to an abortion. It will be a ban on the public hospitals. There will be some limitations, especially for unmarried women."

Pinar Ilkkaracan worked on a women's development project in southeastern Turkey. She says self-induced abortions are already a problem – one that could get worse if more restrictions¹¹ are approved. I'm Karen Leggett.

France is expected soon to permit same sex marriage as several other European nations have already. The lower house of the French Parliament has approved a gay marriage proposal on Tuesday. Senate passage is guaranteed by the Socialist¹²

Party, which controls parliament and supports the measure.

However, people in mainly Roman Catholic France are not all in agreement on the issue. Jim Tedder¹³ explores the debate in the country.

Frenchman Elie Geffray is in a difficult position in the dispute over same sex marriage. He is a retired¹⁴ Catholic clergyman, who still leads church services and other religious events. As such, he obeys the teachings of a church that opposes same sex unions.

But, Elie Geffray also holds political office and, as such, obeys the laws of the land. He is mayor of Ereac, a farming village in Brittany.

Mayor Geffray says he will marry people of the same sex in civil ceremonies when the measure becomes law. He says he will not officiate, however, at church weddings.

But the mayor also says the time has come to recognize homosexuals --- and that means recognizing their rights. Opinion studies suggest the majority of French agree with him.

In recent weeks, tens of thousands of people have taken part in protests in Paris.

Like 19-year-old Elenore Demacebu.

"I'm here because I think it's very important to defend marriage between a man and a woman. This is absolutely necessary fo children because they need a father and a mother."

Thirty-two year old Phillipe Landais is a factory worker and a neighbor of the mayor. At a drinking place, Mister Landais noted¹⁵ that he holds traditional ideas about marriage.

But he also said he respects his neighbor, Elie Geffray. And he said he expects Ereac will come to accept same sex union.

The owner of the bar, Cecile Gastine, disagrees. She says the rural community is conservative.

"We are in the country and they don't know…they have never met…gay people. In big towns, it's normal to see gay people. Not in (the) country."

For AS IT IS, I'm Jim Tedder.

And that's AS IT IS for today. I'm Caty Weaver.

Join us tomorrow when we visit the Harlem neighborhood of New York City.

And remember, you can get the latest world news on VOA at the beginning of the hour Universal Time.

1 weaver   

n.织布工；编织者

参考例句：

• She was a fast weaver and the cloth was very good.她织布织得很快，而且布的质量很好。
• The eager weaver did not notice my confusion.热心的纺织工人没有注意到我的狼狈相。

2 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。

3 treasurer   

n.司库，财务主管

参考例句：

• Mr. Smith was succeeded by Mrs.Jones as treasurer.琼斯夫人继史密斯先生任会计。
• The treasurer was arrested for trying to manipulate the company's financial records.财务主管由于试图窜改公司财政帐目而被拘留。

4 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

5 systematic   

adj.有系统的，有计划的，有方法的

参考例句：

• The way he works isn't very systematic.他的工作不是很有条理。
• The teacher made a systematic work of teaching.这个教师进行系统的教学工作。

6 abortion   

n.流产，堕胎

参考例句：

• She had an abortion at the women's health clinic.她在妇女保健医院做了流产手术。
• A number of considerations have led her to have a wilful abortion.多种考虑使她执意堕胎。

7 abortions   

n.小产( abortion的名词复数 )；小产胎儿；（计划）等中止或夭折；败育

参考例句：

• The Venerable Master: By not having abortions, by not killing living beings. 上人：不堕胎、不杀生。 来自互联网
• Conclusion Chromosome abnormality is one of the causes of spontaneous abortions. 结论：染色体异常是导致反复自然流产的原因之一。 来自互联网

8 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》

9 pregnancy   

n.怀孕，怀孕期

参考例句：

• Early pregnancy is often accompanied by nausea.怀孕早期常有恶心的现象。
• Smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of miscarriage.怀孕期吸烟会增加流产的危险。

10 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

11 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

12 socialist   

n.社会主义者；adj.社会主义的

参考例句：

• China is a socialist country,and a developing country as well.中国是一个社会主义国家，也是一个发展中国家。
• His father was an ardent socialist.他父亲是一个热情的社会主义者。

13 tedder   

n.（干草）翻晒者，翻晒机

参考例句：

• Jim Tedder has more. 吉姆？特德将给我们做更多的介绍。 来自互联网
• Jim Tedder tells us more. 吉姆？泰德给我们带来更详细的报道。 来自互联网

14 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

15 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。