Ma the bumbler

[翻譯練習 謝謝指教 by鷹番犬]

引用:http://www.economist.com/news/asia/21566657-former-heart-throb-loses-his-shine-ma-bumbler

Taiwan politics 台灣政治

Ma the bumbler 無能馬or馬白癡

A former heart-throb loses his shine 萬人迷失去光芒

WHEN he was first elected in 2008, Taiwan’s president, Ma Ying-jeou, offered Taiwanese high hopes that the island’s economy would open a new chapter. He promised ground-breaking agreements with China to help end Taiwan’s growing economic marginalisation. At the time, Mr Ma’s image was of a clean technocrat able to rise above the cronyism and infighting of his party, the Kuomintang (KMT). He was a welcome contrast to his fiery and pro-independence predecessor, Chen Shui-bian, now in jail for corruption.

當馬第一次選上2008,給台灣高度的希望能開啟經濟的新局面.他保證能和中國有突破性的協議,終結台灣的經濟邊緣化.馬形象是清廉的官員,可以改照任人唯親和內鬥的國民黨.和樂情如火支持台獨目前因罪入獄的前總統,阿扁,是明顯的對比.

Five years on, and despite being handily re-elected ten months ago, much has changed. In particular, popular satisfaction with Mr Ma has plummeted, to a record low of 13%, according to the TVBS Poll Centre. The country appears to agree on one thing: Mr Ma is an ineffectual bumbler.

五年過去了,輕鬆連任,很多事也改變了,但馬的民調滿意度掉到了13%,這表示了一件事,馬是白癡.

Ordinary people do not find their livelihoods improving. Salaries have stagnated for a decade. The most visible impact of more open ties with China, which include a free-trade agreement, has been property speculation in anticipation of a flood of mainland money. Housing in former working-class areas on the edge of Taipei, the capital, now costs up to 40 times the average annual wage of $15,400. The number of families below the poverty line has leapt. Labour activists have taken to pelting the presidential office with eggs.

人民發現生活沒有改善.薪資停滯在十年前.最明顯的衝擊是開放對中關係,包括自由貿易協議,讓人民幣如預期地來炒房地產.勞工階層所居住的台北邊緣地區房價已到達平均年薪15K鎂的40倍.在貧窮線以下的家庭數躍升.勞工朋友都跑去總統府丟雞蛋.

Exports account for 70% of GDP. So some of Taiwan’s problems are down to the dismal state of rich-world economies. Yet Mr Ma’s leadership is also to blame. He has failed to paint a more hopeful future, with sometimes hard measures needed now. Worse, he frequently tweaks policies in response to opposition or media criticism. It suggests indecisiveness.

出口占GDP的70%,富裕國家的經濟慘況導致台灣的現況.然而馬的領導能力也被指責.因畫出不合理的需求,畫大餅的能力也被看破手腳.更糟的是頻繁的更動政策以回應媒體與反對聲浪.表明了他就是猶豫不決.

Public anger first arose in June, when Mr Ma raised the price of government-subsidised electricity. Few Taiwanese understood why, even though Taiwan’s state-owned power company loses billions. In the face of public outrage, Mr Ma postponed a second round of electricity price rises scheduled for December. They will now take place later next year.

群眾的怒火在六月燃起.馬提高電費,沒人明白其中原因.即使國營電廠營收損失數百萬.因為人民的怒吼,馬延後了12月的第二波調漲.

People are also worried that a national pension scheme is on course for bankruptcy in less than two decades. Yet Mr Ma cannot bring himself to raise premiums sharply, because of the temporary unpopularity it risks. When Mr Ma does try to appeal to Taiwanese who make up the island’s broad political centre, it often backfires with his party’s core supporters. Following public grumbles that retired civil servants, teachers and ex-servicemen were a privileged group, the cabinet announced plans to cut more than $300m in year-end bonuses, affecting around 381,000. The trouble was, veterans are among the KMT’s most fervent backers. Now some threaten to take to the streets in protest and deprive the KMT of their votes until the plan is scrapped. Meanwhile, Mr Ma’s clean image has been sullied by the indictment of the cabinet secretary-general for graft.

民眾也擔心勞保退休金在二十年內破產.馬目前自身難保,也不敢提意見.當馬試著向台灣人提出是他建構起台灣的多元的政治環境,但黨內大老沒人挺他.接著人民抱怨退休公務員,老師和退伍軍人都享有特權,內閣決定刪掉381K特權團體的30億的年終獎金.問題是,退伍軍人都是死忠支持者.381K威脅要上街抗議且要拒投國民黨,除非計畫取消.同時,馬的清廉形象,也被貼上總統府祕書長的起訴書.
Cracks are starting to grow in the KMT façade. Recently Sean Lien, a prominent politician, criticised Mr Ma’s economic policies, saying that any politician in office during this time of sluggish growth was at best a “master of a beggar clan”—implying a country of paupers.

國民黨的破洞越來越大.最近連家公子批評馬的政策,府內人士的遲緩行為就像是丐幫幫主帶領著一群貧民.

But the next election is four years away, and presidential hopefuls will not try to oust or even outshine Mr Ma anytime soon. After all, they will not want to take responsibility for the country’s economic problems. Nothing suggests Mr Ma’s main policies will change (or that they should), but his credibility is draining by the day.
下一次選舉還有四年,所以候選人不會想推翻或蓋過馬的光芒.畢竟沒人想幫他擦屁股,承擔經濟責任.也沒有跡象顯示馬的主要政策會改變,但他的信任度將要耗盡.