VOA标准英语2010年-Rural Anger Fuels Thailand's Red Shirt

Farm workers in a field near the city of Udon Thani in Thailand's impoverished¹ northeast, 14 May 2010

Thai Government Concerned Over Rising Casualties, Blames Militias² for Violence
Many of the red shirt protesters who have been battling the army for the past few days on the streets of Bangkok come from Thailand's poor rural hinterland.

 

The sandy dirt and dried-out fields of Thailand's northeast look little like the country's tourist brochures. The region, known as Isaan, is the country's poorest. It is also the stronghold of the red-shirt movement, which has brought downtown Bangkok to a halt in two months of protests that have seen repeatedly turned violent.

Many here are enthusiastic supporters of former prime minister Thaksin Shinawatra, who was ousted³ in a 2006 military coup⁴. They are angry at his ouster and court cases that removed an elected Thaksin-allied government in 2008. Mr. Thaksin is a chief backer of the red shirts.

Lamoon Woratnam is a rice farmer in the village of Kumbong. He says, like most farmers here, he saw his livelihood⁵ improve under Mr. Thaksin's policies aimed at Thailand's poor.

Those policies included cheap healthcare and a low-interest village loan program that has allowed him to buy fertilizer and hire workers, increasing his income.

He says Mr. Thaksin was the first prime minister to listen to the poor here. He says the 2006 coup went against the democratic will of the people and that the current government of Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva is afraid to even come to the northeast.

When Mr. Abhisit attempted to visit the nearby town of Nong Khai in March, angry red shirts forced him to flee by helicopter.

Red-shirt crowds in several provinces have also in recent weeks blocked roads and rail lines believed to be carrying troops and supplies to Bangkok.

Incomes in Isaan fall well below the national average and are miniscule in comparison to Bangkok, where they are protesting.

The local economy is ruled by agriculture, but the soil is infertile⁶ and much of the northeast is in the grip of a drought. For generations poor northeasterners have migrated to richer parts of Thailand or abroad to make a living in menial jobs from driving taxis to dancing in sleazy go-go bars.

Red shirt movement

But everywhere there are signs of the prosperity that arrived under Mr. Thaksin. Some farms have replaced buffalos with tractors and many houses boast new extensions and satellite dishes. Many of the pickup⁷ trucks that carry protesters to Bangkok were bought thanks to a surge in rural credit.

Jakapong Saengkum

One person helping⁸ to fill those pickups is Jakapong Saengkum, a deejay on We Love Udon, a radio station in nearby Udon Thani city. The station was set up by local red shirt leader.

Jakapong says the red shirts have registered 500,000 members in Udon Thani province. His radio station keeps members informed of developments in Bangkok and runs fundraising drives to keep the city protest camp supplied. In between, he plays looktung, Thai country music popular in the region.

He says the red shirt movement has spread from the countryside into the city. He says many city officials in Udon Thani, and most police, support the red shirts.

He says every time the government tries to shut down the station, they get tip offs from the police force, allowing them to rally supporters.

Liam Moonguaklang is a former rural resident back on a visit from the United States, where she runs a Thai restaurant. She says red shirt support is so strong because Mr. Thaksin taught country people to stand up for themselves.

She points to village houses at both end of the road, where cooperative loans have helped bring the beginnings of prosperity.

"Before we not that smart. Now we know what going on, how much they cheat us, how much they want us to be slave for them," she said.

Backers of the current government argue that Mr. Thaksin had to be removed because of corruption⁹, but that argument gets little support here.

Local red shirt supporters are also not swayed by the fact that Mr. Abhisit's government has kept many of the policies that made Thaksin popular.

In Isaan's dry countryside, many say they are angry simply because they are no longer being listened to.

And that anger is translating into street violence in Bangkok. Since the protests began two months ago, more than 30 people have died - protesters, security personnel and bystanders, and more than 1,000 injured. Since Thursday night, there have been sporadic¹⁰ street battles around the red-shirt camp in the middle of an upscale commercial, hotel and residential¹¹ district in Bangkok.
 

1 impoverished   

adj.穷困的，无力的，用尽了的v.使（某人）贫穷( impoverish的过去式和过去分词 )；使（某物）贫瘠或恶化

参考例句：

• the impoverished areas of the city 这个城市的贫民区
• They were impoverished by a prolonged spell of unemployment. 他们因长期失业而一贫如洗。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 militias   

n.民兵组织，民兵( militia的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The troops will not attempt to disarm the warring militias. 部队并不打算解除战斗中的民兵武装。 来自辞典例句
• The neighborhood was a battleground for Shiite and Sunni militias. 那里曾是什叶派和逊尼派武装分子的战场。 来自互联网

3 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

4 coup   

n.政变；突然而成功的行动

参考例句：

• The monarch was ousted by a military coup.那君主被军事政变者废黜了。
• That government was overthrown in a military coup three years ago.那个政府在3年前的军事政变中被推翻。

5 livelihood   

n.生计，谋生之道

参考例句：

• Appropriate arrangements will be made for their work and livelihood.他们的工作和生活会得到妥善安排。
• My father gained a bare livelihood of family by his own hands.父亲靠自己的双手勉强维持家计。

6 infertile   

adj.不孕的；不肥沃的，贫瘠的

参考例句：

• Plants can't grow well in the infertile land.在贫瘠的土地上庄稼长不好。
• Nobody is willing to till this infertile land.这块薄田没有人愿意耕种。

7 pickup   

n.拾起，获得

参考例句：

• I would love to trade this car for a pickup truck.我愿意用这辆汽车换一辆小型轻便卡车。||The luck guy is a choice pickup for the girls.那位幸运的男孩是女孩子们想勾搭上的人。

8 helping   

n.食物的一份&adj.帮助人的，辅助的

参考例句：

• The poor children regularly pony up for a second helping of my hamburger. 那些可怜的孩子们总是要求我把我的汉堡包再给他们一份。
• By doing this, they may at times be helping to restore competition. 这样一来, 他在某些时候,有助于竞争的加强。

9 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。

10 sporadic   

adj.偶尔发生的 [反]regular；分散的

参考例句：

• The sound of sporadic shooting could still be heard.仍能听见零星的枪声。
• You know this better than I.I received only sporadic news about it.你们比我更清楚，而我听到的只是零星消息。

11 residential   

adj.提供住宿的；居住的；住宅的

参考例句：

• The mayor inspected the residential section of the city.市长视察了该市的住宅区。
• The residential blocks were integrated with the rest of the college.住宿区与学院其他部分结合在了一起。