VOA标准英语2010年-Ukrainians Disillusioned with Presiden

Ukrainians go to the polls Sunday January 17 to elect a new president.  In this report from Washington, we look at the legacy¹ of current president, Viktor Yushchenko.

Public-opinion surveys indicate President Yushchenko is trailing several other candidates as the country prepares to vote in presidential elections Sunday, Jan. 17.  The two front runners are former Yushchenko ally and current Prime Minister Yulia Tymoshenko and Viktor Yanukovich, leader of the "Party of Regions" in the Ukrainian parliament, the Rada.

This is the first presidential election since 2004 when the pro-democracy "Orange Revolution" brought Mr. Yushchenko to power.  At that time there was great euphoria and confidence a new era was dawning.

But those hopes were quickly dashed as Mr. Yushchenko and Ms. Tymoshenko engaged in a bitter rivalry².  The political infighting, which continues to this day, has brought Ukraine's political process to a standstill.

Robert Legvold from Columbia University says Mr. Yushchenko has no chance of being re-elected.

"Yushchenko has rendered himself a political footnote," said Robert Legvold. "In 2004, coming out of the 'Orange Revolution' it looked as though he, with his partners across the various groovings that made up the 'Orange Revolution' coalition³, would be able to exert a strong, new leadership within Ukraine.  He did not do that."

Analysts⁴ say Ukrainians got weary of the petty political infighting and are essentially⁵ blaming Mr. Yushchenko for most of the country's woes⁶.

David Marples, with the University of Alberta (Canada), says the president lacks the common touch.

"If you really put a finger on what went wrong with Yushchenko, it is a lack of communication with the electorate⁷ and the public of Ukraine," said David Marples. "He seems to lack that ability to be a kind of populist politician in the same way that Tymoshenko is, or at least she is compared to him - or some of the more notable populist politicians worldwide, people like [Russian Prime Minister and former President Vladimir] Putin, who despite being fairly autocratic, has this ability to communicate with the public and has become quite popular.  And he [Yushchenko] simply lacks that."

Many experts, including Marples, also say Mr. Yushchenko was unable to stop corruption⁸, as promised by the leaders of the "Orange Revolution."

"You have in Ukraine something of an almost mafia-like control of key industries by a small number of people who are in close league with each other," he said. "The political process is affected⁹ by that because these people are political players as well.  I do not think anyone is really talking about the 'Orange Revolution' anymore, or what sort of promises that were cast around five years ago, because I think there is a lot of disillusionment and many people feel that nothing much has happened for the good in the past five years."

Analysts say Mr. Yushchenko's legacy is not stellar.  They say his presidency¹⁰ was marked by dire¹¹ economic times, rampant¹² corruption, poor relations with Russia and an inability to move Ukraine closer to Europe.  And with regard to membership in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, some analysts say Ukraine is no closer now than it was five years ago, at the beginning of the Yushchenko administration.

Once again, David Marples:

"His legacy as president is really not a very happy one," said Marples. "It is the sort of thing that seems to happen to American presidents in the second term - the first term is always fairly rosy¹³, they get re-elected and in the second term, always something comes up.  Well it happened to Yushchenko immediately and nothing seemed to work.  And I guess he will be remembered, unfortunately, for that - and for a failure to resolve the various problems that seemed to envelop¹⁴ Ukraine at the start of his presidency."

But many analysts, including Robert Legvold, say Mr. Yushchenko will be remembered for the gains achieved by the "Orange Revolution."

"What you say about him is that he presided over Ukraine at a time when for all of this paralysis¹⁵, had nonetheless maintained a kind of underlying¹⁶ integrity, loyalty¹⁷ to the Constitution and to the legal system, with very considerable freedoms of the media and other things that have been achieved in 2004 - all of that has been preserved," he said.

Experts say the new Ukrainian president must build on the achievements of the "Orange Revolution" while tackling many of the problems Yushchenko faced, but was unable to resolve during his five years in office.  

1 legacy   

n.遗产，遗赠；先人(或过去)留下的东西

参考例句：

• They are the most precious cultural legacy our forefathers left.它们是我们祖先留下来的最宝贵的文化遗产。
• He thinks the legacy is a gift from the Gods.他认为这笔遗产是天赐之物。

2 rivalry   

n.竞争，竞赛，对抗

参考例句：

• The quarrel originated in rivalry between the two families.这次争吵是两家不和引起的。
• He had a lot of rivalry with his brothers and sisters.他和兄弟姐妹间经常较劲。

3 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。

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 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 woes   

困境( woe的名词复数 )； 悲伤； 我好苦哇； 某人就要倒霉

参考例句：

• Thanks for listening to my woes. 谢谢您听我诉说不幸的遭遇。
• She has cried the blues about its financial woes. 对于经济的困难她叫苦不迭。

7 electorate   

n.全体选民；选区

参考例句：

• The government was responsible to the electorate.政府对全体选民负责。
• He has the backing of almost a quarter of the electorate.他得到了几乎1/4选民的支持。

8 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。

9 affected   

adj.不自然的，假装的

参考例句：

• She showed an affected interest in our subject.她假装对我们的课题感到兴趣。
• His manners are affected.他的态度不自然。

10 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

11 dire   

adj.可怕的，悲惨的，阴惨的，极端的

参考例句：

• There were dire warnings about the dangers of watching too much TV.曾经有人就看电视太多的危害性提出严重警告。
• We were indeed in dire straits.But we pulled through.那时我们的困难真是大极了，但是我们渡过了困难。

12 rampant   

adj.(植物)蔓生的；狂暴的，无约束的

参考例句：

• Sickness was rampant in the area.该地区疾病蔓延。
• You cannot allow children to rampant through the museum.你不能任由小孩子在博物馆里乱跑。

13 rosy   

adj.美好的，乐观的，玫瑰色的

参考例句：

• She got a new job and her life looks rosy.她找到一份新工作，生活看上去很美好。
• She always takes a rosy view of life.她总是对生活持乐观态度。

14 envelop   

vt.包，封，遮盖；包围

参考例句：

• All combine to form a layer of mist to envelop this region.织成一层烟雾又笼罩着这个地区。
• The dust cloud will envelop the planet within weeks.产生的尘云将会笼罩整个星球长达几周。

15 paralysis   

n.麻痹(症)；瘫痪(症)

参考例句：

• The paralysis affects his right leg and he can only walk with difficulty.他右腿瘫痪步履维艰。
• The paralysis affects his right leg and he can only walk with difficulty.他右腿瘫痪步履维艰。

16 underlying   

adj.在下面的，含蓄的，潜在的

参考例句：

• The underlying theme of the novel is very serious.小说隐含的主题是十分严肃的。
• This word has its underlying meaning.这个单词有它潜在的含义。

17 loyalty   

n.忠诚，忠心

参考例句：

• She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
• His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。