【经济学人】为什么朴槿惠应该辞职丨2016.12.03丨总第757期

MANY members of the party of South Korea’s president, Park Geun-hye, want it. So does the opposition, which controls South Korea’s parliament. So do most ordinary Koreans: they have been marching for it by the millions. Even Ms Park says she is ready to do it. So why has she not yet resigned?

朴槿惠所在的新国家党中许多成员都希望她辞职。掌控韩国国会的反对党也支持这个提议。大多数普通民众也举行了游行示威希望朴槿惠下台。甚至于朴槿惠本人也声称做好了辞职的准备。那么，为什么她还未辞职呢？

Ms Park is hopelessly mired in an ever-deepening influence-peddling scandal (see article). She admits that she shared too much information about affairs of state with a close confidante, Choi Soon-sil, including advance drafts of many of her speeches. Ms Choi, prosecutors say, went on to use her clout with the president to extort money and favours from big companies and other organisations. Ms Park, the prosecutors allege, was an active participant in this racket, ordering her aides to help Ms Choi extract her payouts.

朴槿惠绝望地陷入日益严重的以权谋私丑闻（见文章）。她承认自己向密友崔顺实泄露了很多关于国家政事的信息，其中包括未发表的演讲稿。检察官称，崔顺实一直利用她与总统的关系向一些大公司和其他企业勒索财物，享受特别关照。并且检察官还宣称，朴槿惠积极参与了这场非法勾当，命令她的助手帮助崔顺实榨取钱财。

• Confidante [,kɒnfɪ'dænt]：知心女友；密友

• racket ['rækɪt]：（美国俚语）勒索金钱

朴槿惠和她的闺蜜崔顺实

The response of Ms Park to the allegations has been muddled. She says the notion that she took part in influence-peddling is a politically motivated fabrication—even though the prosecutors behind the claim work for her administration. She has said that she will co-operate with the investigation into the scandal, but is refusing to speak to prosecutors. This week she said she had committed a “huge fault” and is willing to leave office, but that parliament should decide how and when.

朴槿惠女士对指控的回应含糊其辞，她认为其参与以权谋私的观点完全就是政治利益驱使而导致的污蔑行为，即使调查此案的检察官是为她的行政机构工作。她已经表示会会极力配合此项丑闻的调查工作，但是她却拒绝与检察官的会谈。本周，她承认自己犯下了“不可弥补的错误”，愿意卸任总统一职，但具体时间和方式将由国会决定。

• allegation [ælɪ'geɪʃ(ə)n]：（有待证实的）指控；（无证据或有待证实的)陈述

朴槿惠向公众道歉

Just what she meant by this is anyone’s guess. Parliament had been about to impeach her, but Ms Park’s offer is prompting second thoughts. Impeachment is a long and cumbersome process in South Korea. Once parliament has approved a set of charges, the constitutional court reviews them. It has six months to decide whether to turf the president out, triggering a new election. While it reflects, and during any ensuing election campaign, the prime minister serves as acting president.

没有人可以揣摩出朴槿惠的内心想法。国会已经开始着手弹劾朴槿惠了，但是关于她的这次事件引起了人们的反思。在韩国，弹劾是一个漫长而繁琐的流程。一旦国会批准一系列的指控，宪法法庭就会开始审查这些指控。有六个月的时间来决定是否让总统下台，和进行新的选举。当这个流程开始后，一直到在选举期间，总理将会担任代理总统。

• acting president：代理总统

• turf someone out:【英 非正式】驱赶，驱逐（某人）

Such protracted flux would do South Korea unnecessary harm. The economy is faltering because of a slowdown in China and feeble export growth in world markets. National security is parlous, with North Korea increasing the tempo of missile launches and nuclear tests just as Donald Trump, America’s president-elect, threatens vaguely that he will withdraw American troops from the South. A distracted leader with an evaporating mandate would struggle to navigate such daunting waters, as would a temporary stand-in. If Ms Park truly wants what is best for the country, she should resign immediately, without any more fuss. Asking parliament to set the terms of her departure looks suspiciously like a delaying tactic that will end up only prolonging the agony.

如此长时间的变动会给韩国带来不必要的危害。由于中国经济增长速度放缓、在世界市场中出口增长缓慢，韩国经济正在衰退。朝鲜加快对导弹发射和核试验的发展速度，新当选的美国总统特朗普威胁他将撤回驻韩美军，所以韩国国家安全岌岌可危。一个不能专心管理国家政务，且手中的权力不断减少的领导人很难在这种困境中治理好韩国。如果朴槿惠真的想要做出对国家有利的事，那她就应该没有任何怨言立即辞职。要求国会确定她的卸任条件，这看起来是像是她的缓兵之计，但这最终只会延长痛苦。

• Protracted [prə'træktɪd]：adj. 拖延的;长时间的；延长的

South Koreans are fed up with Ms Park, guilty or not. Her approval rating is 4%—as bad as François Hollande’s in France. Protests against her have attracted 1m people or more. A provincial governor and a parliamentarian deserted her party this week; ministers are resigning. Even the man who managed her election campaign says she should go.

不管朴女士有罪与否，韩国民众都对她已经忍无可忍了。她的支持率仅为4%，这与法国总统弗朗索瓦·奥朗德的支持率一样糟糕。她引起了100万甚至更多人的抗议。本周，一位省长和一个议员抛弃了她所在的党派，一些部长大臣正在准备辞职。即使是参与她的竞选活动的人也说她应该下台了。

• Be fed up：受够了

Heir today, Geun tomorrow

继承人的现在，朴槿惠的将来

Ms Park, the daughter of a previous president, has always seemed out of touch. She has given only one press conference each year, and none since the allegations surfaced. She seems hapless in the face of the scandal, proposing a series of compromises that parliament has batted away. She has given no fewer than three televised speeches to apologise, each one suggesting new remedies. One of her contrite gestures was to sack most of her closest aides, leaving herself even more isolated.

前总统的女儿朴女士似乎已经脱离了民众的视线。（期待您的翻译，明天会有针对这句话的读者试译详解哟~）面对突如其来的丑闻，她似乎显得很不幸，国会已经拒绝了她提出一系列妥协条件。她已经多次在电视机前发布道歉演讲，每一词都在提出新的补救措施。她忏悔的做法之一就是解雇了许多最亲密的助手，让自己变得更加孤立。

• batted away：拒绝

朴槿惠女儿

There can be no recovery from such a fiasco. But Ms Park could salvage a little dignity by ending the circus now. Her resignation would pave the way for an election within 60 days, drawing a line under the crisis. It would also help by putting paid to the idea that has so enraged her opponents: that the elites of South Korea can get away with anything, whereas ordinary people feel the system is stacked against them.

她不可能从这样的惨败中恢复了。但在刚结束的集会中，朴女士可以挽回一点尊严。她的辞职将为60天内的选举铺平道路，为国家走出危机指明道路。通过让人们不去想这已经激怒了她的反抗者，这将会有所帮助：韩国的精英阶层可以摆脱束缚，而普通人会觉得这个体系是不利于他们的。

• Fiasco [fɪ'æskəʊ]：n. 彻底失败, 惨败

• be stacked against：不利于；靠着 ... 堆放整齐

• put paid to：结束；了结；毁坏

翻译 ▍栏目六第一组

审核 ▍Arias

编辑 ▍璃儿

若你想跟着M社一起练翻译，请点击M社邀请函~