美国国家公共电台 NPR--Erdogan lashes out at main rival as voters prepare to go to the polls Sunday

Erdogan lashes¹ out at main rival as voters prepare to go to the polls Sunday

Transcript²

Analysts⁴ are calling the election the most challenging election President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has faced. The one-time reformer now faces opposition⁵ over a bad economy and his own heavy-handed rule.

A MART?NEZ, HOST:

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan has led his country for 20 years, and he's seeking another five-year term in elections Sunday. He was once seen as a reformer, but over the years, he's amassed⁶ more and more power and jailed critics. Now he faces public outrage⁷ over his handling of a deep economic crisis and the country's slow response to February's devastating⁸ earthquakes. NPR's Peter Kenyon traveled to Turkey's Black Sea coast, where Erdogan made a combative⁹ campaign appearance.

PETER KENYON, BYLINE¹⁰: On stage at an arena¹¹ in the city of Ordu, Erdogan attacked his main rival with an intensity¹² that underscored how close the race appears to be. Without providing credible¹³ evidence, Erdogan tried to link opposition candidate Kemal Kilicdaroglu to pro-Kurdish militants¹⁴ who have been battling Turkish security forces for decades. Erdogan said Kilicdaroglu takes his orders from Qandil, a mountainous area in northern Iraq, where the group has bases.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

PRESIDENT RECEP TAYYIP ERDOGAN: (Non-English language spoken).

KENYON: While we are on the path of Turkey's century together with Ordu, some people are trying to undermine Turkey, he said, adding, quote, "Where does the instruction come from? Qandil. They turn to Qandil and say, we will release all your members in prison." At another rally, Erdogan had played a video, quickly branded a deepfake, which appeared to show Kurdish militants singing the theme song of Kilicdaroglu's political party. Erdogan also attacked the opposition coalition¹⁵, made up of six parties from across the political spectrum¹⁶, for supporting LGBTQ rights.

(SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING)

ERDOGAN: (Non-English language spoken).

KENYON: Erdogan said the opposition doesn't support what he called the national values of our nation. He then named all six of the opposition parties in the coalition, calling each one, quote, "LGBT-ist." The crowd cheered Erdogan's applause lines and waved the flags of the ruling Justice and Development Party. But people started to leave while the president was still speaking, and those approached by a reporter didn't have much to say. Erdogan was propelled to power in part because of the aftereffects of a deadly earthquake in 1999, which killed more than 17,000 people and depressed¹⁷ the economy. Now he's facing widespread criticism for his own government's response to this year's devastating earthquake that killed some 50,000 people and left millions homeless. Analyst³ Soli Ozel at Istanbul's Kadir Has University says after leading during Turkey's economic good times, lately, Erdogan has presided over a currency crisis and soaring inflation that have Turkish families struggling to make ends meet.

SOLI OZEL: Well, after 20 years in power and quite frankly¹⁸ in the middle of a major economic crisis where a big chunk¹⁹ of the Turkish population is getting impoverished²⁰, with the total mess in fighting the aftereffects of the devastating earthquakes of 6 February this year, it is quite remarkable²¹ that Mr. Erdogan's loyal followers²² are still at around 35 to 40% level.

KENYON: Erdogan has also had contentious²³ relations with the U.S. and Turkey's other NATO allies. Analyst Sibel Oktay at the Chicago Council for Global Affairs says it's also important to remember that Erdogan's standing²⁴ is in large part due to the government's control of the media and silencing of opposition opinions.

SIBEL OKTAY: The limitations on free speech that have become outrageous²⁵ in the last couple of years, especially after the failed coup²⁶ attempt of 2016 - these are some of the sort of scare tactics of the government to curtail²⁷ dissenting²⁸ voices.

KENYON: That's another issue voters may be considering - Erdogan's impact on Turkey's democracy as he concentrated power in his own office. If no candidate gets more than 50% of the vote Sunday, a runoff is scheduled for May 28.

Peter Kenyon, NPR News, in Ordu on Turkey's Black Sea coast.

1 lashes   

n.鞭挞( lash的名词复数 )；鞭子；突然猛烈的一击；急速挥动v.鞭打( lash的第三人称单数 )；煽动；紧系；怒斥

参考例句：

• Mother always lashes out food for the children's party. 孩子们聚会时，母亲总是给他们许多吃的。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Never walk behind a horse in case it lashes out. 绝对不要跟在马后面，以防它突然猛踢。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

4 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

5 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。

6 amassed   

v.积累，积聚( amass的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• He amassed a fortune from silver mining. 他靠开采银矿积累了一笔财富。
• They have amassed a fortune in just a few years. 他们在几年的时间里就聚集了一笔财富。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 outrage   

n.暴行，侮辱，愤怒；vt.凌辱，激怒

参考例句：

• When he heard the news he reacted with a sense of outrage.他得悉此事时义愤填膺。
• We should never forget the outrage committed by the Japanese invaders.我们永远都不应该忘记日本侵略者犯下的暴行。

8 devastating   

adj.毁灭性的，令人震惊的，强有力的

参考例句：

• It is the most devastating storm in 20 years.这是20年来破坏性最大的风暴。
• Affairs do have a devastating effect on marriages.婚外情确实会对婚姻造成毁灭性的影响。

9 combative   

adj.好战的；好斗的

参考例句：

• Mr. Obama has recently adopted a more combative tone.奥巴马总统近来采取了一种更有战斗性的语调。
• She believes that women are at least as combative as are.她相信女性至少和男性一样好斗。

10 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

11 arena   

n.竞技场，运动场所；竞争场所，舞台

参考例句：

• She entered the political arena at the age of 25. 她25岁进入政界。
• He had not an adequate arena for the exercise of his talents.他没有充分发挥其才能的场所。

12 intensity   

n.强烈，剧烈；强度；烈度

参考例句：

• I didn't realize the intensity of people's feelings on this issue.我没有意识到这一问题能引起群情激奋。
• The strike is growing in intensity.罢工日益加剧。

13 credible   

adj.可信任的，可靠的

参考例句：

• The news report is hardly credible.这则新闻报道令人难以置信。
• Is there a credible alternative to the nuclear deterrent?是否有可以取代核威慑力量的可靠办法？

14 militants   

激进分子，好斗分子( militant的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The militants have been sporadically fighting the government for years. 几年来，反叛分子一直对政府实施零星的战斗。
• Despite the onslaught, Palestinian militants managed to fire off rockets. 尽管如此，巴勒斯坦的激进分子仍然发射导弹。

15 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

16 spectrum   

n.谱，光谱，频谱；范围，幅度，系列

参考例句：

• This is a kind of atomic spectrum.这是一种原子光谱。
• We have known much of the constitution of the solar spectrum.关于太阳光谱的构成，我们已了解不少。

17 depressed   

adj.沮丧的，抑郁的，不景气的，萧条的

参考例句：

• When he was depressed,he felt utterly divorced from reality.他心情沮丧时就感到完全脱离了现实。
• His mother was depressed by the sad news.这个坏消息使他的母亲意志消沉。

18 frankly   

adv.坦白地，直率地；坦率地说

参考例句：

• To speak frankly, I don't like the idea at all.老实说，我一点也不赞成这个主意。
• Frankly speaking, I'm not opposed to reform.坦率地说，我不反对改革。

19 chunk   

n.厚片，大块，相当大的部分（数量）

参考例句：

• They had to be careful of floating chunks of ice.他们必须当心大块浮冰。
• The company owns a chunk of farmland near Gatwick Airport.该公司拥有盖特威克机场周边的大片农田。

20 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》

21 remarkable   

adj.显著的，异常的，非凡的，值得注意的

参考例句：

• She has made remarkable headway in her writing skills.她在写作技巧方面有了长足进步。
• These cars are remarkable for the quietness of their engines.这些汽车因发动机没有噪音而不同凡响。

22 followers   

追随者( follower的名词复数 )； 用户； 契据的附面； 从动件

参考例句：

• the followers of Mahatma Gandhi 圣雄甘地的拥护者
• The reformer soon gathered a band of followers round him. 改革者很快就获得一群追随者支持他。

23 contentious   

adj.好辩的，善争吵的

参考例句：

• She was really not of the contentious fighting sort.她委实不是好吵好闹的人。
• Since then they have tended to steer clear of contentious issues.从那时起，他们总想方设法避开有争议的问题。

24 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。

25 outrageous   

adj.无理的，令人不能容忍的

参考例句：

• Her outrageous behaviour at the party offended everyone.她在聚会上的无礼行为触怒了每一个人。
• Charges for local telephone calls are particularly outrageous.本地电话资费贵得出奇。

26 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。

27 curtail   

vt.截短，缩短；削减

参考例句：

• The government hopes to curtail public spending.政府希望缩减公共事业开支。
• The minister had to curtail his visit.部长不得不缩短访问日期。

28 dissenting   

adj.不同意的

参考例句：

• He can't tolerate dissenting views. 他不能容纳不同意见。
• A dissenting opinion came from the aunt . 姑妈却提出不赞同的意见。