2006年VOA标准英语-Lebanese Debate Identity, Foreign Ties

By Challiss McDonough
Beirut
08 December 2006

In the current Lebanese political divide, each side accuses the other of being more loyal to other countries than to Lebanon.  The pro-government side says Hezbollah and its opposition¹ allies are beholden to Syria and Iran, while the opposition accuses the government of being an agent of the United States.  VOA Correspondent Challiss McDonough has more from Beirut.

 
Lebanese supporters of the Hezbollah's Christian² ally, Michel Aoun, hold the Lebanese flag and the orange Christian Aoun party flag during an anti-governemnt protest in central Beirut 3 Dec. 2006
Opposition street protests demanding a unity³ government with greater opposition representation have dragged on for more than a week, and neither side is showing any signs of backing down.  On the contrary, the political rhetoric⁴ has become angrier, and the popular tensions greater.  Each side accuses the other of being agents of hostile foreign powers. 

Carnegie Endowment visiting fellow Amal Saad-Ghorayeb says Lebanon's struggle is both internal and external.

"You know, it is essentially⁵ a struggle over Lebanon's political identity.  That is a very general theme," she said.  "That is what binds⁶ the two sides together.  The March 14 forces see the opposition as being Iranian, Syrian proxies⁷. And the opposition sees March 14 as being American instruments."

For both sides, those outside ties strike deep emotional chords. 

The government coalition⁸ is known as the March 14 movement, after the massive protests that drove Syria out of Lebanon following the assassination⁹ of former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri.  That side holds Syria responsible for not just Hariri's killing¹⁰, but a string of other assassinations¹¹ of anti-Syrian figures, most recently the minister of industry, Pierre Gemayel.

They are calling for an international tribunal to prosecute¹² the alleged¹³ killers¹⁴.  Syria opposes the idea, and says it may not cooperate, if a tribunal is created.

Syria is one of Hezbollah's staunchest backers.  In the Beirut neighborhood of Tarek Jdideh, a March 14 stronghold, Nabil Kawwa says he thinks the tribunal is the real reason Hezbollah is holding these protests now.

"They are protecting Syria from truth," he said.  "They are protecting Syria from truth. This is it, this is the main.  Nothing else."

Hezbollah insists that the tribunal is not the main reason it is calling for a national unity government. But former U.N. spokesman Timor Goksel says, in many people's minds, the two issues are inextricably linked.  He says the opposition wants veto power in the Cabinet, so issues like the tribunal cannot be passed over its objections.

"By harping¹⁵ on the tribunal, they are seen as staunch defenders¹⁶ of the Syrian cause in Lebanon, and this is not going down very well with the public here," he noted¹⁷.  "And it's a very touchy¹⁸ subject for Hezbollah, to be seen as the sole representative of the Syrian interest here.  This is one thing they don't want to be seen [as], because they were never all that close to Syria anyway.  They had a convergence of interests over the years."

 
Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Siniora
At the same time, the heavy losses that Lebanon - and especially the Shi'ite population - suffered in Hezbollah strongholds during the war with Israel in July and August has made life uncomfortable for the government, which has strong backing from the United States and other Western nations.  During the war, despite the daily pleas of Prime Minister Fuad Siniora and other members of his government, Washington refused to call for an immediate¹⁹ ceasefire between Hezbollah and Israel, saying a comprehensive approach was needed.

"This adds a very sort of emotional, not only a political, tinge²⁰ to this divide," added Amal Saad-Ghorayeb.  "It is very difficult for Hezbollah and its allies, for the opposition, to see this government as being autonomous²¹ in any sense of the term.  Not only before the war, but especially after this war, when this American-backed government during the war was unable to get any assistance from the United States.  So, it came as a very big surprise to many Lebanese, actually, not only in the opposition, that the government would consider allying itself again with the United States, after the U.S. completely abandoned its Lebanese allies."

Many of the issues currently at stake in the political standoff were there before the war began, but analysts²³ say that war exacerbated²⁴ the already serious political gulf²⁵.

 
Hassan Nasrallah (file photo)
When Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah addressed the protesters Thursday night, he accused government leaders of actually conspiring²⁶ with Israel during the war.  Those allegations have become a common refrain at the demonstrations²⁷, and both the government and the army have made repeated efforts to counter them.

In the Tarek Jdideh neighborhood, Nabil Kawwa says he feels betrayed by the opposition's anti-government protests.

"Israel, yes, Israel, it's our enemy," he said.  "But it's there!  It's not in the middle of Beirut."

He recalls that he and his Sunni neighbors sheltered Shi'ites from the south during the war. 

"We bring them food," he added.  "We opened houses for them.  We did everything to help them.  We are Muslims, like them.  They shouldn't do this."

He also has harsh words for Iran, Hezbollah's other main backer.

On the other side, Shi'ite protester Issam Haraka has similarly harsh words about the prime minister:

"He's saying we are listening to foreign orders, but he should look to himself," he said.  "He is following American orders and French orders, OK?"

And the allegations continue to go round and round.  Some analysts and media reports have called the Lebanese political crisis a proxy²⁸ dispute between Iran and the United States.  But analyst²² Amal Saad-Ghorayeb says it is not that simple.

"I think it's very oversimplistic to consider this as a proxy war," she noted.  "What we're seeing in Lebanon today is essentially, at its core, an internal struggle for political power, which is supported by different national sides."

The question now is whether the leaders of Lebanon's many factions²⁹ can find enough common ground to end the crisis peacefully.

1 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。

2 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

3 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

4 rhetoric   

n.修辞学，浮夸之言语

参考例句：

• Do you know something about rhetoric?你懂点修辞学吗？
• Behind all the rhetoric,his relations with the army are dangerously poised.在冠冕堂皇的言辞背后，他和军队的关系岌岌可危。

5 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

6 binds   

v.约束( bind的第三人称单数 )；装订；捆绑；（用长布条）缠绕

参考例句：

• Frost binds the soil. 霜使土壤凝结。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Stones and cement binds strongly. 石头和水泥凝固得很牢。 来自《简明英汉词典》

7 proxies   

n.代表权( proxy的名词复数 )；（测算用的）代替物；（对代理人的）委托书；（英国国教教区献给主教等的）巡游费

参考例句：

• SOCKS and proxies are unavailable. Try connecting to XX again? socks和代理不可用。尝试重新连接到XX吗？ 来自互联网
• All proxies are still down. Continue with direct connections? 所有的代理仍然有故障。继续直接连接吗？ 来自互联网

8 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。

9 assassination   

n.暗杀；暗杀事件

参考例句：

• The assassination of the president brought matters to a head.总统遭暗杀使事态到了严重关头。
• Lincoln's assassination in 1865 shocked the whole nation.1865年，林肯遇刺事件震惊全美国。

10 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

11 assassinations   

n.暗杀( assassination的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Most anarchist assassinations were bungled because of haste or spontaneity, in his view. 在他看来，无政府主义者搞的许多刺杀都没成功就是因为匆忙和自发行动。 来自辞典例句
• Assassinations by Israelis of alleged terrorists habitually kill nearby women and children. 在以色列，自称恐怖分子的炸弹自杀者杀害靠近自己的以色列妇女和儿童。 来自互联网

12 prosecute   

vt.告发；进行；vi.告发，起诉，作检察官

参考例句：

• I am trying my best to prosecute my duties.我正在尽力履行我的职责。
• Is there enough evidence to prosecute?有没有起诉的足够证据？

13 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

14 killers   

凶手( killer的名词复数 )； 消灭…者； 致命物； 极难的事

参考例句：

• He remained steadfast in his determination to bring the killers to justice. 他要将杀人凶手绳之以法的决心一直没有动摇。
• They were professional killers who did in John. 杀死约翰的这些人是职业杀手。

15 harping   

n.反复述说

参考例句：

• Don't keep harping on like that. 别那样唠叨个没完。
• You're always harping on the samestring. 你总是老调重弹。

16 defenders   

n.防御者( defender的名词复数 )；守卫者；保护者；辩护者

参考例句：

• The defenders were outnumbered and had to give in. 抵抗者寡不敌众，只能投降。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• After hard fighting,the defenders were still masters of the city. 守军经过奋战仍然控制着城市。 来自《简明英汉词典》

17 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

18 touchy   

adj.易怒的；棘手的

参考例句：

• Be careful what you say because he's touchy.你说话小心，因为他容易生气。
• He's a little touchy about his weight.他对自己的体重感到有点儿苦恼。

19 immediate   

adj.立即的；直接的，最接近的；紧靠的

参考例句：

• His immediate neighbours felt it their duty to call.他的近邻认为他们有责任去拜访。
• We declared ourselves for the immediate convocation of the meeting.我们主张立即召开这个会议。

20 tinge   

vt.(较淡)着色于，染色；使带有…气息；n.淡淡色彩，些微的气息

参考例句：

• The maple leaves are tinge with autumn red.枫叶染上了秋天的红色。
• There was a tinge of sadness in her voice.她声音中流露出一丝忧伤。

21 autonomous   

adj.自治的；独立的

参考例句：

• They proudly declared themselves part of a new autonomous province.他们自豪地宣布成为新自治省的一部分。
• This is a matter that comes within the jurisdiction of the autonomous region.这件事是属于自治区权限以内的事务。

22 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。

23 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。

24 exacerbated   

v.使恶化，使加重( exacerbate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The symptoms may be exacerbated by certain drugs. 这些症状可能会因为某些药物而加重。
• The drugs they gave her only exacerbated the pain. 他们给她吃的药只是加重了她的痛楚。 来自《简明英汉词典》

25 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

26 conspiring   

密谋( conspire的现在分词 )； 搞阴谋； （事件等）巧合； 共同导致

参考例句：

• They were accused of conspiring against the king. 他们被指控阴谋反对国王。
• John Brown and his associates were tried for conspiring to overthrow the slave states. 约翰·布朗和他的合伙者们由于密谋推翻实行奴隶制度的美国各州而被审讯。

27 demonstrations   

证明( demonstration的名词复数 )； 表明； 表达； 游行示威

参考例句：

• Lectures will be interspersed with practical demonstrations. 讲课中将不时插入实际示范。
• The new military government has banned strikes and demonstrations. 新的军人政府禁止罢工和示威活动。

28 proxy   

n.代理权，代表权；（对代理人的）委托书；代理人

参考例句：

• You may appoint a proxy to vote for you.你可以委托他人代你投票。
• We enclose a form of proxy for use at the Annual General Meeting.我们附上委任年度大会代表的表格。

29 factions   

组织中的小派别，派系( faction的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The gens also lives on in the "factions." 氏族此外还继续存在于“factions〔“帮”〕中。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• rival factions within the administration 政府中的对立派别