VOA标准英语2013--埃及筹备新宪法

 

Egypt Prepares New Constitution 埃及筹备新宪法

CAIRO — Egypt’s constitution is being rewritten by a small group appointed by the military-backed government, overhauling¹ the previous, Islamist-driven charter.

This will be the country’s fourth constitution in less than three years.

A 50-member committee is overseeing what's meant to be the first step of a “roadmap” to reshape Egypt's government following the July ousting² of the country's first freely-elected president, Islamist Mohamed Morsi.

Morsi pushed through last year's charter, written mainly by Islamists, using extraordinary powers. The move sparked a wave of popular unrest and marked the beginning of his political decline.

For Morsi’s opponents, the potential for improving on the previous charter is vast.

“The constitution of the Muslim Brotherhood³ was, in my opinion, violating social and civil rights of the Egyptians. They tried to educate and re-educate Egyptians how to behave,” said Mustafa Labbad, the director of the Al Sharq Center for Regional and Strategic Studies.

Foremost among critics’ objections was what was perceived as an attempt to Islamize Egypt. The new draft, being drawn⁴ up by a group with noticeably few Islamists, promises to lift longstanding restrictions⁵ on Christian⁶ churches, but seems likely to retain overall limits on religious beliefs.

Political sociologist⁷ Said Sadek of the American University in Cairo said he wishes the country could move beyond recognizing only the Abrahamic faiths.

“It would have given the signal that Egypt is modern, into the 21st century, [that] it does not discriminate⁸ against 51 percent of the world's population who don't believe in Christianity, Islam and Judaism,” said Sadek.

Committee members are also tackling the other major issue in Egyptian politics today - the role of the military and the balance of power among branches of government. Few of the members have raised questions about the military's attempt to put protections for itself into the new constitution. Labbad is not surprised.

“Military institutions will be the dominant⁹ force in the upcoming political system and we have to confess, since at least 200 years [ago], Egyptian military institutions [have been] controlling the country,” said Labbad,There are hints, however, that some dynamics¹⁰ may shift.  The group has already decided¹¹ to abolish the upper house of parliament; additionally, it appears to favor a greater division of responsibilities between the president and the prime minister.

For a country that has undergone profound changes in recent years, some feel an imperfect document, even if again drafted quickly by a small and not fully¹² representative group, may be enough for now.

“We hope that this constitution becomes interim¹³, [that] it is not going to be permanent, [that] it is going to stay some time until things improve, until there is lower illiteracy¹⁴ rate, lower poverty rate,” explained Sadek.

The final draft is expected to be put to a public referendum next month, clearing the way for parliamentary and presidential elections next year. 

1 overhauling   

n.大修；拆修；卸修；翻修v.彻底检查( overhaul的现在分词 )；大修；赶上；超越

参考例句：

• I had no chance of overhauling him. 我没有赶上他的可能。 来自辞典例句
• Some sites need little alterations but some need total overhauling. 有些网站需要做出细微修改，而有些网站就需要整体改版。 来自互联网

2 ousting   

驱逐( oust的现在分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• The resulting financial chaos led to the ousting of Bristol-Myers' s boss. 随后引发的财政混乱导致了百时美施贵宝的总裁下台。
• The ousting of the president has drawn widespread criticism across Latin America and the wider world. 洪都拉斯总统被驱逐时间引起拉丁美洲甚至全世界的广泛批评。

3 brotherhood   

n.兄弟般的关系，手中情谊

参考例句：

• They broke up the brotherhood.他们断绝了兄弟关系。
• They live and work together in complete equality and brotherhood.他们完全平等和兄弟般地在一起生活和工作。

4 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

5 restrictions   

约束( restriction的名词复数 )； 管制； 制约因素； 带限制性的条件（或规则）

参考例句：

• I found the restrictions irksome. 我对那些限制感到很烦。
• a snaggle of restrictions 杂乱无章的种种限制

6 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。

7 sociologist   

n.研究社会学的人，社会学家

参考例句：

• His mother was a sociologist,researching socialism.他的母亲是个社会学家，研究社会主义。
• Max Weber is a great and outstanding sociologist.马克斯·韦伯是一位伟大的、杰出的社会学家。

8 discriminate   

v.区别，辨别，区分；有区别地对待

参考例句：

• You must learn to discriminate between facts and opinions.你必须学会把事实和看法区分出来。
• They can discriminate hundreds of colours.他们能分辨上百种颜色。

9 dominant   

adj.支配的，统治的；占优势的；显性的；n.主因，要素，主要的人(或物)；显性基因

参考例句：

• The British were formerly dominant in India.英国人从前统治印度。
• She was a dominant figure in the French film industry.她在法国电影界是个举足轻重的人物。

10 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。

11 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

12 fully   

adv.完全地，全部地，彻底地；充分地

参考例句：

• The doctor asked me to breathe in,then to breathe out fully.医生让我先吸气，然后全部呼出。
• They soon became fully integrated into the local community.他们很快就完全融入了当地人的圈子。

13 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

14 illiteracy   

n.文盲

参考例句：

• It is encouraging to read that illiteracy is declining.从读报中了解文盲情况正在好转，这是令人鼓舞的。
• We must do away with illiteracy.我们必须扫除文盲。