欧洲－乌克兰：革命是否结束？

Ukraine: Is the Revolution over?

乌克兰：革命是否结束？

 

During the Orange Revolution, Viktor Yushchenko's name echoed across Kiev's Independence Square as hundreds-of-thousands of Ukrainians reversed a fraudulent presidential election and put Mr. Yushchenko in office. But after just nine months, the President's Chief of Staff resigned, after leveling corruption² charges against the highest levels of the new administration. The ensuing crisis has disenchanted many in Ukraine.

 

Expressing disappointment with politicians, however, is something ordinary Ukrainians did not have freedom to do in the past. For centuries, Ukrainian political rivalries³ were hidden from the public or led to bloody⁴ social upheavals⁶. According to Ukrainian historian Orest Subtelny of York University in Toronto, Canada, the current crisis in is unusual in Ukraine's history, but not in the history of democracies.

 

Orest Subtelny: In parliamentary democracies, we often see governments falling, governments being dismissed. For example, we see a very serious crisis in Germany right now, which everyone knows will be resolved sooner or later and the system will go on.

 

President Yushchenko initially⁷ appointed Yulia Tymoshenko as prime minister, despite the fact that her socialist⁸ economic views contradicted his own free market position. After abruptly⁹ dismissing Ms. Tymoshenko, the President, in need of votes for a new prime minister, signed a political agreement with Viktor Yanukovych, the man who allegedly tried to steal last year's presidential election.

 

Andriy Usov, a member of the Pora Party, which actively¹⁰ supported the Revolution, says the agreement was shortsighted.

 

Andriy Usov: Yanukovych has not led any political processes in Ukraine for a long time, I'm disappointed that Yushchenko's advisors¹¹ and Yushchenko himself made such a move because they revived Yanukovych as a political leader in Ukraine.

 

At the same time, the dynamics¹² of independent nationhood enable Mr. Yanukovych to advance his interests in Kiev, rather than in the capitals of former empires that once ruled Ukraine. From this perspective, historian Roman Szporluk at Harvard University's Ukrainian Research Institute says the Yushchenko-Yanukovych agreement promotes that country's political integration¹³ because it recognizes a substantial segment of voters in eastern and southern Ukraine who supported Mr. Yanukovych in the presidential election.

 

Szporluk: These people see that they do have a stake in Kiev, that their voice is heard there and that makes them, I think, more attached to the idea [and] reality of a single Ukrainian nation.

 

But with allegations of corruption even in the Yushchenko administration, some Ukrainians dismiss all politicians as dishonest. Pora Party activist¹⁴ Andriy Usov, however, notes that a certain level of corruption exists in virtually every country and calls upon ordinary Ukrainians to take an active interest in their government.

 

Andriy Usov: My fellow Ukrainians - you made a revolution, however, that was but the first and certainly not the last step. You should continue to closely monitor the actions of Ukrainian authorities and the situation in Ukraine.

 

Political observer Valeriy Chaliy at the Razumkov Center, a research group in Kiev, adds that politicians have a special obligation to institute reforms and to set an example of moral leadership.

 

Valeriy Chaliy: Today, the only important thing is that all politicians prepare not only to win a certain number of seats in Parliament, but also start thinking today about how they will compromise and how they will cooperate for the good of the country.

 

Mr. Chaliy warns that the failure of politicians to cooperate and to govern responsibly could have serious consequences.

 

Valeriy Chaliy: A desire could emerge for a return to an iron hand; to a strong form of presidential rule.

 

Many observers say that Ukraine's leaders reflect the country's corrupt¹ social and economic system, which has forced even grandmothers to trade cigarettes on the black market. They say the ideals of the Orange Revolution appear trapped in a viscous¹⁵ cycle of corruption and poverty with deep roots in the Soviet¹⁶ and Tsarist past.

 

Opposition¹⁷ activist Andriy Usov says the first organized attempt to break that cycle -- the Orange Revolution -- demonstrated the emergence¹⁸ of civil society in Ukraine and a sense that people can control the nation's destiny. Asked about the political future of President Yushchenko, Mr. Usov says recent weeks have shown that it is pointless to make predictions for individual politicians.

 

Andriy Usov: I'm more interested in making political predictions for ideas rather than people. The ideals of the Orange Revolution will surely live on because they are timeless and universal. Our position is for or against ideas. The spirit of Independence Square should continue always regardless of politics or any kind of crisis in Ukraine.

 

The Orange Revolution is admired around the world as a remarkable¹⁹ display of democratic ideals. At the same time, hard political realities make it difficult to realize those ideals. Analysts²⁰ say, to the extent that Ukrainians openly and actively seek to improve their society, they will be keeping their revolution alive.

 

For focus, I’m Peter Fedynsky.

 

注释：

fraudulent [5frC:djulEnt] adj. 欺诈的，欺骗性的

ensuing [in5sju:iN] adj. 跟着发生的

disenchant [7disin5tFB:nt] vt. 使清醒

upheaval⁵ [Qp5hi:v(E)l] n. 动乱；剧变

Toronto [tE5rCntEu] n. 多伦多（加拿大）

contradict [kCntrE5dikt] vt. 同……矛盾，同……抵触

shortsighted [FC:t5saitid] adj. 近视的，眼光短浅的

Kiev [5ki:ev] n. 基辅（乌克兰共和国首都）

obligation [Rbli5^eiF(E)n] n. 义务；职责；责任

destiny [5destini] n. 命运

Orange Revolution 2004年乌克兰的橘色革命

1 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。

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 rivalries   

n.敌对，竞争，对抗( rivalry的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The new government was torn by rivalries. 新政府由于各派对立而四分五裂。 来自辞典例句
• Rivalries could bring about pain and hatred or give rise to fighting. 竞争会带来痛苦、仇恨，或者引起争斗。 来自互联网

4 bloody   

adj.非常的的；流血的；残忍的；adv.很；vt.血染

参考例句：

• He got a bloody nose in the fight.他在打斗中被打得鼻子流血。
• He is a bloody fool.他是一个十足的笨蛋。

5 upheaval   

n.胀起，(地壳)的隆起；剧变，动乱

参考例句：

• It was faced with the greatest social upheaval since World War Ⅱ.它面临第二次世界大战以来最大的社会动乱。
• The country has been thrown into an upheaval.这个国家已经陷入动乱之中。

6 upheavals   

突然的巨变( upheaval的名词复数 )； 大动荡； 大变动； 胀起

参考例句：

• the latest upheavals in the education system 最近教育制度上的种种变更
• These political upheavals might well destroy the whole framework of society. 这些政治动乱很可能会破坏整个社会结构。

7 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

8 socialist   

n.社会主义者；adj.社会主义的

参考例句：

• China is a socialist country,and a developing country as well.中国是一个社会主义国家，也是一个发展中国家。
• His father was an ardent socialist.他父亲是一个热情的社会主义者。

9 abruptly   

adv.突然地，出其不意地

参考例句：

• He gestured abruptly for Virginia to get in the car.他粗鲁地示意弗吉尼亚上车。
• I was abruptly notified that a half-hour speech was expected of me.我突然被通知要讲半个小时的话。

10 actively   

adv.积极地，勤奋地

参考例句：

• During this period all the students were actively participating.在这节课中所有的学生都积极参加。
• We are actively intervening to settle a quarrel.我们正在积极调解争执。

11 advisors   

n.顾问，劝告者( advisor的名词复数 )；（指导大学新生学科问题等的）指导教授

参考例句：

• The governors felt that they were being strung along by their advisors. 地方长官感到他们一直在受顾问们的愚弄。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• We will consult together with advisors about her education. 我们将一起和专家商议她的教育事宜。 来自互联网

12 dynamics   

n.力学，动力学，动力，原动力；动态

参考例句：

• In order to succeed,you must master complicated knowledge of dynamics.要取得胜利，你必须掌握很复杂的动力学知识。
• Dynamics is a discipline that cannot be mastered without extensive practice.动力学是一门不做大量习题就不能掌握的学科。

13 integration   

n.一体化，联合，结合

参考例句：

• We are working to bring about closer political integration in the EU.我们正在努力实现欧盟內部更加紧密的政治一体化。
• This was the greatest event in the annals of European integration.这是欧洲统一史上最重大的事件。

14 activist   

n.活动分子，积极分子

参考例句：

• He's been a trade union activist for many years.多年来他一直是工会的积极分子。
• He is a social activist in our factory.他是我厂的社会活动积极分子。

15 viscous   

adj.粘滞的，粘性的

参考例句：

• Gases are much less viscous than liquids.气体的粘滞性大大小于液体。
• The mud is too viscous.You must have all the agitators run.泥浆太稠，你们得让所有的搅拌机都开着。

16 Soviet   

adj.苏联的，苏维埃的；n.苏维埃

参考例句：

• Zhukov was a marshal of the former Soviet Union.朱可夫是前苏联的一位元帅。
• Germany began to attack the Soviet Union in 1941.德国在1941年开始进攻苏联。

17 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。

18 emergence   

n.浮现，显现，出现，（植物）突出体

参考例句：

• The last decade saw the emergence of a dynamic economy.最近10年见证了经济增长的姿态。
• Language emerges and develops with the emergence and development of society.语言是随着社会的产生而产生，随着社会的发展而发展的。

19 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。

20 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。