2006年VOA标准英语-Iran Reformists Say They Are Down, But Not Out

By Gary Thomas
Tehran
13 July 2006

 
Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad  
  
The election of a hard-line conservative to the Iranian presidency¹ last year was a shock for reformists, who had been hoping for a more liberal successor to former President Mohammad Khatemi.   But as VOA correspondent Gary Thomas reports from Tehran, the reformists have not gone away.

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One year after the election of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, the reformist movement in Iran is still around, but somewhat quiet. 

Mohammad Atrianfar, editor of the reformist newspaper Sharq and an associate of political leader and former president Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, says the reformists are like a caged animal in hibernation².  They will awaken³, he says.

The 2005 election split the reformist movement.  There were divisions over whether to support Rafsanjani when their first choice, Mustafa Moin, lost in the first round of voting, or to boycott⁴ the second round.

After Mr. Ahmadinejad defeated Rafsanjani there was much mutual⁵ recrimination within the reform movement as factions⁶ accused each other of losing the election, says democracy activist⁷ Edmadeddin Baghi.

While keeping a low profile, the reformists are monitoring every move of the government.  The new strategy appears to be to lay back and let the government self-destruct. 

Mohammad Atrianfar says inept⁸ and inefficient⁹ economic policies will do what the reformists could not.

"And this economy will break the back of the government," Atrianfar says.

Promoting democracy is a tricky¹⁰ and sometimes dangerous business in a country like Iran.  On June 12, police used heavy force to break up a protest against discrimination against women.

It is also an unequal contest, reformists point out, since the government has control of the airwaves, while the reformists rely on newspapers to get their message out.
 
According to both reformists and diplomats¹¹ here, there is also intense internal debate within the reform movement over accepting outside help for democratization in Iran.

The Bush Administration has pledged millions of dollars to boost broadcasts to Iran and promote other avenues of pro-democracy activism in Iran. 

Emameddin Baghi says the answer is thanks, but no thanks.  He says accepting outside aid just helps the government by letting it label reformists as foreign agents.

"I admire America as a dynamic democratic country, he says, but I cringe at U.S. statements about promoting democracy in Iran," Baghi ssays.

Baghi, who works on behalf of political prisoners in Iran, says democracy has to be indigenous¹² and homegrown so people do not, as he put it, think that it was bought with Bush Administration broadcasts and money. 

1 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。

2 hibernation   

n.冬眠

参考例句：

• Bears wake up in the spring after a winter of hibernation.熊经过一个冬天的冬眠后在春季苏醒。
• The tortoise spends the winter months in hibernation.乌龟在冬眠中度过寒冬季节。

3 awaken   

vi.醒，觉醒；vt.唤醒，使觉醒，唤起，激起

参考例句：

• Old people awaken early in the morning.老年人早晨醒得早。
• Please awaken me at six.请于六点叫醒我。

4 boycott   

n./v.(联合)抵制，拒绝参与

参考例句：

• We put the production under a boycott.我们联合抵制该商品。
• The boycott lasts a year until the Victoria board permitsreturn.这个抗争持续了一年直到维多利亚教育局妥协为止。

5 mutual   

adj.相互的，彼此的；共同的，共有的

参考例句：

• We must pull together for mutual interest.我们必须为相互的利益而通力合作。
• Mutual interests tied us together.相互的利害关系把我们联系在一起。

6 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别

7 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

8 inept   

adj.不恰当的，荒谬的，拙劣的

参考例句：

• Whan an inept remark to make on such a formal occasion.在如此正式的场合，怎么说这样不恰当的话。
• He's quite inept at tennis.他打网球太笨。

9 inefficient   

adj.效率低的，无效的

参考例句：

• The inefficient operation cost the firm a lot of money.低效率的运作使该公司损失了许多钱。
• Their communication systems are inefficient in the extreme.他们的通讯系统效率非常差。

10 tricky   

adj.狡猾的，奸诈的；(工作等)棘手的，微妙的

参考例句：

• I'm in a rather tricky position.Can you help me out?我的处境很棘手，你能帮我吗？
• He avoided this tricky question and talked in generalities.他回避了这个非常微妙的问题，只做了个笼统的表述。

11 diplomats   

n.外交官( diplomat的名词复数 )；有手腕的人，善于交际的人

参考例句：

• These events led to the expulsion of senior diplomats from the country. 这些事件导致一些高级外交官被驱逐出境。
• The court has no jurisdiction over foreign diplomats living in this country. 法院对驻本国的外交官无裁判权。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。