voa标准英语2008-Anti-Government Protests End in Bangkok, but Unc

Anti-government protesters have ended their occupation of the airports in Bangkok after a court ruling removed Thailand's prime minister. But as Ron Corben reports from the Thai capital, the political outlook remains¹ clouded, because of concerns over the choice of a new prime minister.

Thai officials began cleaning up Bangkok's airports.
　

Passengers from a Thai Airways2 flight come out from the plane after arriving at Suvarnabhumi international airport in Bangkok, Thailand, 03 Dec 2008

Earlier in the day, the anti-government People's Alliance for Democracy ended its eight-day siege of the terminals. And the first passenger flights in a week arrived at the international airport.

The blockade left hundreds of thousands of travelers stranded³. Airport officials say it will be several days before operations are back to normal.

Since May, the PAD has campaigned against the government, accusing it of acting⁴ as a proxy⁵ for former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra.

The protests ended after a court ruling dissolved three governing coalition⁶ parties, led by the People's Power Party, for breaking election laws.
　

Somchai Wongsawat, left, talks to reporters after court dissolves ruling party and bans him from politics, in Chiang Mai, 02 Dec 2008

The decision ended the 77-day government of Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat.

But members of the banned groups shifted to new parties, and they continue to dominate parliament.

Sunai Pasuk, with Human Rights Watch here, says next the parties will select a new prime minister. But he says that will not necessarily end the political tensions.

"I would say at this point this is only the end of Act One; we are having a cool-off period until the selection of prime minister, that will start next week on the seventh, eighth and ninth of December. These will be three critical days," said Sunai.

If the PAD sees the new prime minister as being too close to Mr. Thaksin, the protests could resume. The PAD considers Mr. Thaksin, who was ousted⁷ in a coup⁸ two years ago, corrupt⁹ and authoritarian¹⁰. He has fled the country to avoid corruption¹¹ charges.
　

Protesters at main international airport in Bangkok, 26 Nov 2008

However, Sunai says Mr. Thaksin's supporters are increasingly frustrated¹² by what they see as a lack of official impartiality¹³ in dealing¹⁴ with the PAD, which occupied a government office compound and the airports without punishment.

Pro-government groups also accuse the judiciary of bias¹⁵ against Mr. Somchai's government. Sunai says the political situation remains unsettled.

"The situation remains very fluid - with all these factors together - the PAD can come back anytime - Thaksin's side remains defiant¹⁶ and it is very likely to take control of the government again so we are back to square one," said Sunai.

Kraisak Choonhavan, a member of the opposition¹⁷ Democrat¹⁸ Party, says the outlook appears bleak¹⁹, with only a slight chance of the governing coalition breaking up.

But Kraisak does not expect the PAD to begin new protests soon. He says it is now up to parliament to find a way through the political crisis.

"There is a chance in the very near future here we are able to go back to the parliament and do the job we can and maintain democracy - as crippled as it is - to make it work somehow," said Kraisak.

He says the governing coalition is likely to be weaker this time around, and the government will to have to call an election in 2009.

Thailand's current political crisis is the most severe in 16 years. It has pitched Mr. Thaksin's supporters in the rural and urban working class against the middle class and urban elite²⁰ who make up the PAD.

1 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

2 AIRWAYS   

航空公司

参考例句：

• The giant jets that increasingly dominate the world's airways. 越来越称雄于世界航线的巨型喷气机。
• At one point the company bought from Nippon Airways a 727 jet. 有一次公司从日本航空公司买了一架727型喷气机。

3 stranded   

a.搁浅的，进退两难的

参考例句：

• He was stranded in a strange city without money. 他流落在一个陌生的城市里， 身无分文，一筹莫展。
• I was stranded in the strange town without money or friends. 我困在那陌生的城市，既没有钱，又没有朋友。

4 acting   

n.演戏，行为，假装；adj.代理的，临时的，演出用的

参考例句：

• Ignore her,she's just acting.别理她，她只是假装的。
• During the seventies,her acting career was in eclipse.在七十年代，她的表演生涯黯然失色。

5 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。

6 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。

7 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

8 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。

9 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。

10 authoritarian   

n./adj.专制(的)，专制主义者，独裁主义者

参考例句：

• Foreign diplomats suspect him of authoritarian tendencies.各国外交官怀疑他有着独裁主义倾向。
• The authoritarian policy wasn't proved to be a success.独裁主义的政策证明并不成功。

11 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。

12 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

13 impartiality   

n. 公平, 无私, 不偏

参考例句：

• He shows impartiality and detachment. 他表现得不偏不倚，超然事外。
• Impartiality is essential to a judge. 公平是当法官所必需的。

14 dealing   

n.经商方法，待人态度

参考例句：

• This store has an excellent reputation for fair dealing.该商店因买卖公道而享有极高的声誉。
• His fair dealing earned our confidence.他的诚实的行为获得我们的信任。

15 bias   

n.偏见，偏心，偏袒；vt.使有偏见

参考例句：

• They are accusing the teacher of political bias in his marking.他们在指控那名教师打分数有政治偏见。
• He had a bias toward the plan.他对这项计划有偏见。

16 defiant   

adj.无礼的，挑战的

参考例句：

• With a last defiant gesture,they sang a revolutionary song as they were led away to prison.他们被带走投入监狱时，仍以最后的反抗姿态唱起了一支革命歌曲。
• He assumed a defiant attitude toward his employer.他对雇主采取挑衅的态度。

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 democrat   

n.民主主义者，民主人士；民主党党员

参考例句：

• The Democrat and the Public criticized each other.民主党人和共和党人互相攻击。
• About two years later,he was defeated by Democrat Jimmy Carter.大约两年后，他被民主党人杰米卡特击败。

19 bleak   

adj.(天气)阴冷的；凄凉的；暗淡的

参考例句：

• They showed me into a bleak waiting room.他们引我来到一间阴冷的会客室。
• The company's prospects look pretty bleak.这家公司的前景异常暗淡。

20 elite   

n.精英阶层；实力集团；adj.杰出的，卓越的

参考例句：

• The power elite inside the government is controlling foreign policy.政府内部的一群握有实权的精英控制着对外政策。
• We have a political elite in this country.我们国家有一群政治精英。