VOA标准英语2013--政治动荡威胁土耳其政府和经济

 

Political Turmoil¹ Threatens Turkey's Government, Economy 政治动荡威胁土耳其政府和经济

LONDON — Turkey's government has been hit with a corruption² scandal that appears to be part of a political rivalry³.

The scandal has brought protesters to the streets of Istanbul, demanding the prime minister's resignation. Many Turks have become increasingly angry in recent years  over what they see as excessive moves toward Islamization. The alleged⁴ corruption rekindled⁵ their activism, last seen in a series of protests during the summer.

This time, the protests were triggered by allegations that let to dozens of arrests, including the sons of two cabinet ministers alleged to have been involved in  payoffs for real estate deals involving large amounts of cash and gold.

Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan replaced those ministers this week, along with eight others, but the moves failed to stop calls for his resignation. Indeed, one of  the fired ministers said the prime minister should step down, too.

The government further stoked public anger by firing hundreds of senior police officials involved in the anti-corruption probe, including the Istanbul police chief.

Erdogan, who has been in office for 12 years, called the police operation “extremely dirty.”

He said police officers had “abused their authority,” and that the government was within its rights to remove them.

The controversy⁶ has brought into the open the increasingly bitter rivalry between the prime minister and a former political ally, the reclusive Islamic cleric  Fethullah Gulen, who lives in a private compound in the United States. He is said to wield⁷ significant influence in the Turkish police force and in the prosecution⁸  service.

A prosecutor⁹ was removed from the case Thursday after complaining that police officials were refusing to enforce court orders related to his investigation¹⁰.

At the Cumhuriyet newspaper offices in Ankara, Utku Cakirozer says reduced confidence in Turkey's government and judiciary will damage the country domestically and  internationally.

“As a candidate for European Union membership, Turkey pledged to comply with EU standards in all fields. And one of the most important is the rule of law and  maintaining the freedom and impartiality¹¹ of the justice system,” he said.

Turkey's EU membership bid is perennially¹² on the back burner, and this scandal will likely help keep it there. Erdogan will struggle to restore his damaged  credibility, especially if, as some have predicted, he himself becomes caught up in the scandal as it unfolds. 

1 turmoil   

n.骚乱，混乱，动乱

参考例句：

• His mind was in such a turmoil that he couldn't get to sleep.内心的纷扰使他无法入睡。
• The robbery put the village in a turmoil.抢劫使全村陷入混乱。

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 rivalry   

n.竞争，竞赛，对抗

参考例句：

• The quarrel originated in rivalry between the two families.这次争吵是两家不和引起的。
• He had a lot of rivalry with his brothers and sisters.他和兄弟姐妹间经常较劲。

4 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

5 rekindled   

v.使再燃( rekindle的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• As soon as they met again his dormant love for her was rekindled. 他们一见面，他对她的旧情如乾柴烈火般又重新燃起。 来自辞典例句
• Ive found rekindled my interest in re-reading the books. 我发觉这提起了我再次阅读这些书的兴趣。 来自互联网

6 controversy   

n.争论，辩论，争吵

参考例句：

• That is a fact beyond controversy.那是一个无可争论的事实。
• We ran the risk of becoming the butt of every controversy.我们要冒使自己在所有的纷争中都成为众矢之的的风险。

7 wield   

vt.行使，运用，支配；挥，使用(武器等)

参考例句：

• They wield enormous political power.他们行使巨大的政治权力。
• People may wield the power in a democracy.在民主国家里，人民可以行使权力。

8 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

9 prosecutor   

n.起诉人；检察官，公诉人

参考例句：

• The defender argued down the prosecutor at the court.辩护人在法庭上驳倒了起诉人。
• The prosecutor would tear your testimony to pieces.检查官会把你的证言驳得体无完肤。

10 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

11 impartiality   

n. 公平, 无私, 不偏

参考例句：

• He shows impartiality and detachment. 他表现得不偏不倚，超然事外。
• Impartiality is essential to a judge. 公平是当法官所必需的。

12 perennially   

adv.经常出现地；长期地；持久地；永久地

参考例句：

• He perennially does business abroad. 他常年在国外做生意。 来自辞典例句
• We want to know what is perennially new about the world. 我们想知道世上什么东西永远是新的。 来自互联网