VOA标准英语2013--埃及妇女努力克服政治分歧

 

Egyptian Woman Works to Overcome Political Divide 埃及妇女努力克服政治分歧

CAIRO — Egypt is in the midst of profound polarization, with supporters and opponents of the government facing off on the national stage, as well as the personal one. 

In a country divided over the ousting² of President Mohamed Morsi, Sherien Fadel is on the losing side.

Outside her apartment in the northeast of Cairo, a poster of Morsi has been defaced, a metaphor³ for the government's efforts to erase⁴ all traces of his Muslim Brotherhood⁵ from Egyptian public life.

Fadel, who wears a niqab, is devout⁶. But for her, the issue is not the loss of an Islamist leader, it's the subversion⁷ of the process that brought him to power.

"I believe in democracy," Fadel said. "I was happy when we had elections, when we had a constitution. I was happy to see people standing⁸ in queues to vote. It was an amazing picture.”

Fadel is one of Egypt's politically engaged, taking to Tahrir Square against the government in 2011, and again in August, dodging⁹ bullets in Rabaa Square against defacto leader Gen. Abdel Fatah el-Sissi.

It's a national divided mirrored in Fadel's family.

"My parents, my sisters, my brothers-in-law, no," she said. "They all, also my aunts, I have two aunts, and they're also Sissi supporters."

None of her family members would join Fadel to talk about Egypt's polarization. Fadel says that even in victory, they find the atmosphere stifling¹⁰, with the resumption of emergency law and old fears of the police state renewed.

"The first thing they think about is, 'We shouldn't talk. We shouldn't talk about politics. We shouldn't talk about anything,'" she said.

Not so Fadel, who keeps the memory of those killed in the crackdown on Morsi supporters alive via Facebook. Her homepage features a tribute to those who fell, standing next to her during the government crackdown on August 14.

Fadel also runs civil disobedience campaigns, including a boycott¹¹ of telecommunications companies that cut off service to the area during the protests, as well as urging people not to pay their government utility bills.

"This campaign is [to] very hard punish our government, because they don't have any revenue," she said.

It's enough to keep her father from even viewing her page, for fear the government monitors online activity.

But for all the stand-taking, Fadel is a great believer in reconciliation¹², something in short supply as both the military and the Islamists harden their positions and a zero-sum political game seems the only one being played.

She is still close with her family and maintains friendships across the political divide. She shows photos of her and her friends, smiling as they display the symbols of the rival pro¹ and anti-government camps.

"We have different opinions but, at the end, we are humans," she said. "We should be together. That's the point that most didn't recognize."

Fadel says that if the other side can win in proper elections, not a coup¹³, she will support them. Respect, she says, is a simple act of democracy, one she hopes more people here will some day show. 

1 pro   

n.赞成，赞成的意见，赞成者

参考例句：

• The two debating teams argued the question pro and con.辩论的两组从赞成与反对两方面辩这一问题。
• Are you pro or con nuclear disarmament?你是赞成还是反对核裁军？

2 ousting   

驱逐( oust的现在分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• The resulting financial chaos led to the ousting of Bristol-Myers' s boss. 随后引发的财政混乱导致了百时美施贵宝的总裁下台。
• The ousting of the president has drawn widespread criticism across Latin America and the wider world. 洪都拉斯总统被驱逐时间引起拉丁美洲甚至全世界的广泛批评。

3 metaphor   

n.隐喻，暗喻

参考例句：

• Using metaphor,we say that computers have senses and a memory.打个比方，我们可以说计算机有感觉和记忆力。
• In poetry the rose is often a metaphor for love.玫瑰在诗中通常作为爱的象征。

4 erase   

v.擦掉；消除某事物的痕迹

参考例句：

• He tried to erase the idea from his mind.他试图从头脑中抹掉这个想法。
• Please erase my name from the list.请把我的名字从名单上擦去。

5 brotherhood   

n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊

参考例句：

• They broke up the brotherhood.他们断绝了兄弟关系。
• They live and work together in complete equality and brotherhood.他们完全平等和兄弟般地在一起生活和工作。

6 devout   

adj.虔诚的，虔敬的，衷心的 (n.devoutness)

参考例句：

• His devout Catholicism appeals to ordinary people.他对天主教的虔诚信仰感染了普通民众。
• The devout man prayed daily.那位虔诚的男士每天都祈祷。

7 subversion   

n.颠覆，破坏

参考例句：

• He was arrested in parliament on charges of subversion for organizing the demonstration.他因组织示威活动在议会上被以颠覆破坏罪名逮捕。
• It had a cultural identity relatively immune to subversion from neighboring countries.它的文化同一性使它相对地不易被邻国所颠覆。

8 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

9 dodging   

n.避开，闪过，音调改变v.闪躲( dodge的现在分词 )；回避

参考例句：

• He ran across the road, dodging the traffic. 他躲开来往的车辆跑过马路。
• I crossed the highway, dodging the traffic. 我避开车流穿过了公路。 来自辞典例句

10 stifling   

a.令人窒息的

参考例句：

• The weather is stifling. It looks like rain. 今天太闷热，光景是要下雨。
• We were stifling in that hot room with all the windows closed. 我们在那间关着窗户的热屋子里，简直透不过气来。

11 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。

12 reconciliation   

n.和解，和谐，一致

参考例句：

• He was taken up with the reconciliation of husband and wife.他忙于做夫妻间的调解工作。
• Their handshake appeared to be a gesture of reconciliation.他们的握手似乎是和解的表示。

13 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。