英语听力—环球英语 1475 The Internet and Social Change in Indonesia

 　　Voice 1

　　Welcome to Spotlight¹. I’m Liz Waid.

　　Voice 2

　　And I’m Ryan Geertsma. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.

　　Voice 1

　　It is a warm day in Jakarta, Indonesia. A young woman sits in her car. The traffic is busy.  None of the cars are able to move. The woman looks at the empty driving lane next to her. This space is a special part of the road. It is only for buses and emergency vehicles. As she watches, a car drives past. This car is driving in the special lane. She recognizes the car.  It is the car of a government official named Salim Segaf Aljufrie! She holds up her telephone.  She takes a picture. She puts the picture on the Internet using Twitter. Many people see the picture on this social media website. The very next day, the police appear at Aljufrie’s office. And they give him a fine for breaking traffic laws!

　　Voice 2

　　The Internet is a powerful tool for communication, learning, and sharing. But it is also a tool for political change. Today’s Spotlight is on how Indonesians are using the Internet to change their government and society.

　　Voice 1

　　Indonesia is a large country in Southeast Asia. Over 240 million people live there. For the last 20 years, Indonesia has worked to become a fully² democratic state.  Much of that work has been successful.  However, many Indonesians still identify problems with their country.  Some citizens complain about poor government. Others worry about the country’s lack of security. And still others describe the country’s poor economic situation.

　　Voice 2

　　Many Indonesians work hard to change these negative issues. Some citizens protest to show their opposition³. Others join political movements or work with social organizations to encourage social change. But most recently, Indonesians have been working for change in a new way - by using social media.

　　Voice 1

　　Indonesians are major users of social media.  They enjoy using these Internet websites to connect with other people.  Nearly 17% of Indonesians uses social media websites every day. The most popular social media websites are Twitter and Facebook. And Indonesia has the second highest number of Facebook users in all of Asia.

　　Voice 2

　　This high use of social media has begun to influence how Indonesians encourage change.  More and more people are using social media to share their opinions about social and political issues. Social media helps many Indonesians become involved. It helps them feel like they have power to influence their government. And news spreads more quickly. If a politician says or does something wrong, people can discuss it on social media. And this can change public opinion.

　　Voice 1

　　In October of 2012, social media influenced the actions of the Indonesian President. In the Indonesian government, there is a group called the Corruption⁵ Eradication⁶ Commission⁷ or KPK. The KPK works to find corrupt⁴ or dishonest officials. Corrupt officials often accept money or bribes⁸ to do illegal things for people.  The KPK works to find corruption and punish the people responsible.

　　Voice 2

　　In 2012, the KPK was investigating one of the country’s top police officials.  The police were not happy with the KPK’s investigation⁹. The police were using their power to block the KPK’s work. This action made many Indonesians angry. They believed the KPK should be able to work freely. So they talked about it on social media.

　　Voice 1

　　On Facebook, people started a “Save KPK” movement. And on Twitter, “Save KPK” became a very popular conversation subject. People criticized the President for being quiet on the issue. The “Save KPK” movement became so popular that news organizations were talking about it!  Soon, the President ordered the police to stop interfering¹⁰ with the KPK investigation. And he said that Indonesians on social media made it clear that he needed to act!

　　Voice 2

　　Social media has also been important for Indonesians who are fighting for their rights. In 2008, Prita Mulyasari had a terrible experience at the hospital. Her doctors treated her poorly.  They told her wrong information about her condition. And they ordered tests that were not needed. She was very angry about her experience. When she got home, she wrote an email about it to friends and family.

　　Voice 1

　　Some of Mulyasari’s friends sent the email to other people. Soon, it spread all over the Internet. A news organization even reported on it! And Mulyasari’s doctors saw the report. They were angry, too. They did not think Mulyasari should have written negative things about them. So they took her to court. They wanted her to pay money and to go to prison.

　　Voice 2

　　Many people in Indonesia believed the doctors were wrong. But, they also thought the doctors would probably win.  They believed this because the doctors had money to pay for a good legal expert.  And Mulyasari did not.  So, a group of people started a movement on Facebook. The movement raised money to help Mulyasari pay for her court case. Without the power of the Internet, Mulyasari probably would have lost her case.  But in 2012, court officials ruled that Mulyasari was innocent. It was because of social media that Mulyasari did not go to prison for expressing her opinion.

　　Voice 1

　　Social media is a way for people to easily and quickly share their ideas and experiences. Sometimes, this can create action and influence real change.  However, it does not always lead to permanent change. In Mulyasari’s case, politicians became involved. Her simple email became a national discussion about health care and the courts. But, court officials did not change any laws. Arjuna Dibley is a writer for the magazine Inside Indonesia. She wrote about the Mulyasari case. She talked about why there was no change in the law. She said:

　　Voice 3

　　“Today, social media action in Indonesia is concentrated on short messages and quick reaction to new cases. Social media lacks the long term, deep power required to create legal changes. Mulyasari’s case shows that once the early popularity¹¹ of a particular case is gone, the discussion ‘moves on’ to new issues.  But the difficult, complex and longer term goal of creating legal change remains¹² unanswered.”

　　Voice 2

　　What do you think about social media? Do you think it has the power to change governments and even laws?  How do people use social media in your country?  You can leave your comments on the script page of this program. Or you can email us at [email protected].

　　Voice 1

　　The writer and producer of this program was Dianna Anderson. The voices you heard were from the United States. All quotes were adapted for this program and voiced by Spotlight. You can listen to this program again and read it on the Internet at http://www.radioenglish.net This .program is called, “The Internet and Social Change in Indonesia.”

　　Voice 2

　　We hope you can join us again for the next Spotlight program! Goodbye!

1 spotlight   

n.公众注意的中心，聚光灯，探照灯，视听，注意，醒目

参考例句：

• This week the spotlight is on the world of fashion.本周引人瞩目的是时装界。
• The spotlight followed her round the stage.聚光灯的光圈随着她在舞台上转。

2 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

3 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。

4 corrupt   

v.贿赂，收买；adj.腐败的，贪污的

参考例句：

• The newspaper alleged the mayor's corrupt practices.那家报纸断言市长有舞弊行为。
• This judge is corrupt.这个法官贪污。

5 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。

6 eradication   

n.根除

参考例句：

• The eradication of an established infestation is not easy. 根除昆虫蔓延是不容易的。
• This is often required for intelligent control and eradication. 这经常需要灵巧的控制与消除。

7 commission   

n.委托，授权，委员会，拥金，回扣，委任状

参考例句：

• The salesman can get commission on everything he sells.这个售货员能得到所售每件货物的佣金。
• The commission is made up of five people,including two women.委员会由五人组成，其中包括两名妇女。

8 bribes   

n.贿赂( bribe的名词复数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂v.贿赂( bribe的第三人称单数 )；向（某人）行贿，贿赂

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。
• corrupt officials accepting bribes 接受贿赂的贪官污吏

9 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。

10 interfering   

adj. 妨碍的 动词interfere的现在分词

参考例句：

• He's an interfering old busybody! 他老爱管闲事！
• I wish my mother would stop interfering and let me make my own decisions. 我希望我母亲不再干预，让我自己拿主意。

11 popularity   

n.普及，流行，名望，受欢迎

参考例句：

• The story had an extensive popularity among American readers.这本小说在美国读者中赢得广泛的声望。
• Our product enjoys popularity throughout the world.我们的产品饮誉全球。

12 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。