VOA标准英语2010年-Public Appearances Raise Questions abo

combination photo shows Fidel Castro attending a special session of parliament in his first official government appearance in front of lawmakers in four years in Havana

A series of recent public appearances by Fidel Castro is raising questions about what role the former president is taking in Cuba's communist government, and what impact that might have on the island nation's decades-old differences with the United States.

Fidel Castro showed his age in a recent speech at Cuba's National Assembly. But his words displayed much of his fiery¹ rhetoric² toward the United States. He accused the U.S. of pushing Iran toward nuclear war. "They [U.S. officials] would be ordering the death of hundreds of millions of people, amongst them an incalculable number of residents of their own country - but also of the crew members of all the United States' naval³ ships in the waters around Iran," he said.

Mr. Castro's speech to lawmakers was his first since falling ill in 2006 and handing power to his brother, Raul Castro. The comments on Iran do not necessarily reflect a new alliance with Iran. Rather, Andy Gomez, a Cuba expert at the University of Miami, says it is a chance to antagonize the United States. "They [Cuba's government] have signed a couple of agreements with Iran. This is the small nations versus⁴ the big nations," he explains. "But it's according to how Fidel wants it."

For many Cubans, Mr. Castro's speech offered little on domestic issues, especially the struggling economy. Philip Peters, vice⁵ president of the Lexington Institute, says that may be on purpose. "The old Fidel would have gone into microscopic⁶ detail about the government's decisions on domestic policy and he's not touching⁷ that," Peters said. "Most importantly, he has not raised a word or given the slightest hint of objection to the release of political prisoners that Raul Castro is engaging in now."

In July, Cuba released 21 jailed dissidents, including several who were sent to Spain. President Barack Obama has been pressing Cuba to free all political prisoners, especially amid hunger strikes by prominent dissidents.

Guillermo Farinas was recently hospitalized during a four-month hunger strike to demand the release of dissidents.

Gomez says the prisoner release may appease⁸ the U.S. and other foreign critics, but by sending dissidents abroad the government weakens the opposition⁹. "You're trying to get rid of the opposition. It's a smart move on their part. On the other hand, these people [dissidents] finally got the freedom they deserve. Unfortunately, they had to leave their country," he said.

Gomez says President Obama may respond to the release by loosening some restrictions¹⁰ on Cuba, such as allowing more Americans to visit the island. The president has said he will work with Cuba if it opens up to democratic reforms.

Philip Peters says that may be a slow process of reform, as long as the Castros are in power. "I don't for a minute believe that Fidel Castro is ceding¹¹ anything, but it does seem pretty clear that Raul Castro is proceeding¹² with his very cautious step-by-step economic reforms. And they are going to take a while to play out. They're going to take longer to play out than most of us would like," Peters said.

The question is how U.S. officials may respond to such an approach.

 

1 fiery   

adj.燃烧着的，火红的；暴躁的；激烈的

参考例句：

• She has fiery red hair.她有一头火红的头发。
• His fiery speech agitated the crowd.他热情洋溢的讲话激动了群众。

2 rhetoric   

n.修辞学，浮夸之言语

参考例句：

• Do you know something about rhetoric?你懂点修辞学吗？
• Behind all the rhetoric,his relations with the army are dangerously poised.在冠冕堂皇的言辞背后，他和军队的关系岌岌可危。

3 naval   

adj.海军的，军舰的，船的

参考例句：

• He took part in a great naval battle.他参加了一次大海战。
• The harbour is an important naval base.该港是一个重要的海军基地。

4 versus   

prep.以…为对手，对；与…相比之下

参考例句：

• The big match tonight is England versus Spain.今晚的大赛是英格兰对西班牙。
• The most exciting game was Harvard versus Yale.最富紧张刺激的球赛是哈佛队对耶鲁队。

5 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

6 microscopic   

adj.微小的，细微的，极小的，显微的

参考例句：

• It's impossible to read his microscopic handwriting.不可能看清他那极小的书写字迹。
• A plant's lungs are the microscopic pores in its leaves.植物的肺就是其叶片上微细的气孔。

7 touching   

adj.动人的，使人感伤的

参考例句：

• It was a touching sight.这是一幅动人的景象。
• His letter was touching.他的信很感人。

8 appease   

v.安抚，缓和，平息，满足

参考例句：

• He tried to appease the crying child by giving him candy.他试图给那个啼哭的孩子糖果使他不哭。
• The government tried to appease discontented workers.政府试图安抚不满的工人们。

9 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。

10 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

11 ceding   

v.让给，割让，放弃( cede的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• He was ceding line but more slowly all the time. 他正在放出钓索，然而越来越慢了。 来自英汉文学 - 老人与海
• Settlement would require ceding some Egyptian territory. 解决办法将要求埃及让出一些领土。 来自辞典例句

12 proceeding   

n.行动，进行，(pl.)会议录，学报

参考例句：

• This train is now proceeding from Paris to London.这次列车从巴黎开往伦敦。
• The work is proceeding briskly.工作很有生气地进展着。