VOA常速英语2007-Argentina's First Lady Now President-Elect

By Michael Bowman
Buenos Aires
29 October 2007

Argentina has, for the first time, elected a woman president. Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, the current first lady and a senator, will take the reins¹ of power from her husband, outgoing President Nestor Kirchner, in December. VOA's Michael Bowman takes a closer look at a woman some compare to former U.S. first lady Hillary Clinton.

More than 50 years ago, Argentina produced perhaps Latin America's most famous - or infamous² - female political figure: Eva Peron, wife of two-time President Juan Peron. Today, 54-year-old Cristina Fernandez has achieved something that Eva Peron, or Evita as she was known, could hardly have imagined.

"A female president! Get used to it all of you! A female. I know that you are used to men [as leaders], but now you will have to get used to women, too," she said.

Many Argentines, particularly women, are clearly pleased with the election outcome.

"This is a great opportunity for Argentina, since the men who have governed us so far have not done a good job," said Buenos Aires waitress Gabriela Villa³.

Others are taking a wait-and-see approach. Many note that, during the campaign, Fernandez never spelled out what she intends to do as president, speaking only in general terms of boosting prosperity and working for social justice.

School teacher Karina Pugliese shrugs⁴ when asked about the president-elect.

"It all depends on what she does when she assumes power," she said.

Accountant Marcelo Mora says he has no problem with a woman president as long as she does a good job in office.

He says, "If she is capable, it is not a question of sex [gender]. If she is capable, then she is welcome to lead."

In a country where men have traditionally dominated every facet⁵ of politics and commerce, Fernandez's election is, for better or worse, historic. Some say her ascension to power was aided by Argentina's financial crisis of 2001. Buenos Aires tour guide Claudia Solana notes the crisis set the stage for Nestor Kirchner's rise to power and sparked social changes as Argentine families struggled to survive the economic meltdown.

Solana says, "And so men had to accept that their wives left the house to go to work, and women began to occupy positions in companies and now in the government, in politics. As a result, women are now more accepted by men [in positions of power]."

Cristina Fernandez hails from Argentina's Peronist Party. Like Eva Peron, she has a taste for designer clothes and maintains a carefully polished public image. Unlike Peron, she comes from a middle-class family, seems to prefer pragmatic discourse⁶ over charismatic hyperbole, and is not seen as a radical⁷ champion of the poor.

Some say Fernandez's greatest political asset - President Kirchner - is also her biggest liability.

"She comes to power thanks to her husband's time in office, which saw a return to economic growth, higher employment, and a recovery of presidential authority," said Argentine political consultant⁸ Sergio Berensztein. "At the same time, her main problems are the things her husband did - or rather failed to do, such as controlling inflation, combating corruption⁹, expanding energy sources, and fighting crime."

Fernandez joins Chile's Michelle Bachelet as Latin America's sole female leaders. But yet another woman could conceivably come to power next year in the Americas: Hillary Clinton. Like Argentina's president-elect, Clinton has been first lady and is currently a senator, representing the U.S. state of New York. But while Cristina Fernandez was tapped to run by her husband, Hillary Clinton is currently competing for the presidential nomination¹⁰ of the opposition¹¹ Democratic Party.

Some observers speak of a possible grand alliance between the two women, should Hillary Clinton be elected. But Argentine political analyst¹² Rosendo Fraga is not sure.

He says, "I do not know if there will be a great friendship [between them]. But I do think Cristina believes that a [U.S.] government led by Hillary would present an opportunity to establish a more friendly bilateral¹³ relationship with the United States."

Whereas President Kirchner kept a relatively¹⁴ low-profile on the world stage, Fernandez has already shown a desire to travel and engage with foreign leaders. She says one of the main goals of her foreign policy will be to attract greater international investment in Argentina.

1 reins   

感情，激情； 缰( rein的名词复数 )； 控制手段； 掌管； （成人带着幼儿走路以防其走失时用的）保护带

参考例句：

• She pulled gently on the reins. 她轻轻地拉着缰绳。
• The government has imposed strict reins on the import of luxury goods. 政府对奢侈品的进口有严格的控制手段。

2 infamous   

adj.声名狼藉的，臭名昭著的，邪恶的

参考例句：

• He was infamous for his anti-feminist attitudes.他因反对女性主义而声名狼藉。
• I was shocked by her infamous behaviour.她的无耻行径令我震惊。

3 villa   

n.别墅，城郊小屋

参考例句：

• We rented a villa in France for the summer holidays.我们在法国租了一幢别墅消夏。
• We are quartered in a beautiful villa.我们住在一栋漂亮的别墅里。

4 shrugs   

n.耸肩（以表示冷淡，怀疑等）( shrug的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyurcsany shrugs off this criticism. 匈牙利总理久尔恰尼对这个批评不以为然。 来自互联网
• She shrugs expressively and takes a sip of her latte. 她表达地耸肩而且拿她的拿铁的啜饮。 来自互联网

5 facet   

n.(问题等的)一个方面；(多面体的)面

参考例句：

• He has perfected himself in every facet of his job.他已使自己对工作的各个方面都得心应手。
• Every facet of college life is fascinating.大学生活的每个方面都令人兴奋。

6 discourse   

n.论文，演说；谈话；话语；vi.讲述，著述

参考例句：

• We'll discourse on the subject tonight.我们今晚要谈论这个问题。
• He fell into discourse with the customers who were drinking at the counter.他和站在柜台旁的酒客谈了起来。

7 radical   

n.激进份子，原子团，根号；adj.根本的，激进的，彻底的

参考例句：

• The patient got a radical cure in the hospital.病人在医院得到了根治。
• She is radical in her demands.她的要求十分偏激。

8 consultant   

n.顾问；会诊医师，专科医生

参考例句：

• He is a consultant on law affairs to the mayor.他是市长的一个法律顾问。
• Originally,Gar had agreed to come up as a consultant.原来，加尔只答应来充当我们的顾问。

9 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。

10 nomination   

n.提名，任命，提名权

参考例句：

• John is favourite to get the nomination for club president.约翰最有希望被提名为俱乐部主席。
• Few people pronounced for his nomination.很少人表示赞成他的提名。

11 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。

12 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。

13 bilateral   

adj.双方的，两边的，两侧的

参考例句：

• They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
• There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题，两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。

14 relatively   

adv.比较...地，相对地

参考例句：

• The rabbit is a relatively recent introduction in Australia.兔子是相对较新引入澳大利亚的物种。
• The operation was relatively painless.手术相对来说不痛。