One way Lee Kuan Yew cleaned up Singapore was by shaming corrupt officials. In fact, one of his cabinet ministers took his own life due to “l(fā)oss of face” from corruption charges. “We have established a climate of opinion which looked upon corruption in pubic office as a threat to society.” Lee laments that in much of Asia, corruption has become a way of life for government officials. He said, “The higher they are, the bigger their homes and more numerous their wives or mistresses, all bedecked in jewelry appropriate to the power and position of their men.” Another method Lee used to stamp out corruption was that, in 1960, his government allowed the courts to treat proof that an accused was living beyond his means or had property his income could not explain as corroborating evidence that the accused had accepted or obtained a bribe,” Lee explains.
公開(kāi)揭發(fā)貪污官員是李光耀保持新加坡廉潔的方法之一。一位部長(zhǎng)因?yàn)樨澪壑缚馗械健皝G臉”而自殺。他說(shuō)：“我們已經(jīng)建立起這樣的輿論氛圍：人們把公職人員貪污受賄看成社會(huì)公敵?！睂?duì)于在亞洲大部分地區(qū)，政府官員貪污已經(jīng)成為一種生活方式，他感到可悲?！八麄兊牡匚辉礁?，妻妾情婦便越多，房子也越大。女人們佩戴的首飾都跟男人的權(quán)力和地位相配。”另外，李光耀的政府在1960年修訂法律條文，規(guī)定控方一旦證明被告生活奢華，超過(guò)他的收入所能允許的程度，或是擁有同收入不相稱的財(cái)產(chǎn)，法庭就可以以此作為被告已經(jīng)受賄的佐證。
On a recent visit to Singapore, I called at the office of Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew who was then in America. I had requested the statesman to autograph my copy of his latest 778-page memoir entitled From Third World to First, The Singapore Story: 1965-2000. His secretary explained that Lee’s autograph is worth 10,000 Singapore dollars for each signed book, and that the proceeds would be donated to charities. Even in such a seemingly minor detail as the cost of an autographed book, Lee had a specific plan which reflected his pragmatic business-like ways, his efficiency and his public service.
最近一次到新加坡的時(shí)候，我打電話到李光耀的辦公室，請(qǐng)求這位當(dāng)時(shí)身在美國(guó)的政治家為我的一本李光耀回憶錄簽名。他的秘書(shū)向我解釋，每本由李光耀親筆簽名的回憶錄，價(jià)值是一萬(wàn)新元，售書(shū)的所有收入將捐給慈善機(jī)構(gòu)。即使是在這樣的細(xì)節(jié)上，李光耀也作了具體的計(jì)劃，充分反映了他務(wù)實(shí)和有條不紊的作風(fēng)、效率和為公共服務(wù)的精神。
The memoir is an eloquent chronicle of Lee Kuan Yew’s extensive experiences in statecraft, politics and international diplomacy. In 1965, when the Muslim majority Malaysia expelled Singapore and forced it to exist as a city-State with no natural resources or army, few people gave it much chance of survival. The world has many tiny States, which have languished in obscurity, with even resource-rich small states like Nauru mired in problems. In 1965, the Sydney Morning Herald said, “An independent Singapore was not regarded as viable three years ago. Nothing in the current situation suggests that it is more viable today.” The Sunday Times of Britain in 1965 also predicted the eventual collapse of Singapore without British aid. Today, after decades of good governance and struggle, Singapore is a thriving nation with the world’s fourth highest per capita income.
回憶錄對(duì)李光耀的治國(guó)才能、政治和國(guó)際外交的豐富經(jīng)驗(yàn)有生動(dòng)流暢的記載。1965年，當(dāng)新加坡被穆斯林占大多數(shù)的馬來(lái)西亞逐出，成為一個(gè)沒(méi)有資源和軍隊(duì)的城市國(guó)家時(shí)，沒(méi)有幾個(gè)人認(rèn)為它能生存下去。全球有許多默默無(wú)聞的小國(guó)家，就算資源豐富的西太平洋島國(guó)瑙魯，也面臨重重困難。那年，《悉尼先驅(qū)晨報(bào)》寫(xiě)道：“三年前，新加坡獨(dú)立是行不通的概念。從目前的情況看來(lái)，它依然是行不通的?！庇?guó)的《星期日泰晤士報(bào)》預(yù)測(cè)，沒(méi)有英國(guó)的援助，新加坡最終將垮掉。今天，經(jīng)過(guò)三四十年的良好管理和奮斗，新加坡已經(jīng)成為一個(gè)繁榮的國(guó)家。新加坡公民的人均收入在世界上排名第四。
In this latest book, Lee fearlessly expresses his ideas, seeking “to be correct, not politically correct.” He is unapologetic for his aggressive responses to his political opponents, his often-unorthodox views on Western-style democratic systems, the Western concepts of human rights. Lee also recounts his impressions of nations, leaders an historic events as diverse as Indonesia from Suharto to President Wahid, Thailand, to Sultan of Brunei, Vietnam Myanmar, Cambodia, British leaders, Japan, America to Taiwan, Hong Kong and others. He advised Wahid, “ I said if he expected his ministers to be honest, they had to be paid so that they could live up to their status without corruption.” In acerbic Lee Kuan Yew style, he describes Margaret Thatcher, Ronald Reagan, China’s poetry-quoting Jiang Zemin, the late Mao Zedong, the incorruptible Zhu Rongji to the bold reformer Deng Xiaoping (whom he remembers as “a five-footer but a giant among men”).
在回憶錄中，李光耀無(wú)畏的表達(dá)了他的想法，爭(zhēng)取“做到凡事正確，但卻不是政治上正確”。他對(duì)自己對(duì)政敵的強(qiáng)烈回應(yīng)，對(duì)西方民主制度和人權(quán)觀念的獨(dú)特見(jiàn)解，從來(lái)沒(méi)有感到過(guò)不妥。李光耀也在書(shū)中談到他對(duì)一些國(guó)家、領(lǐng)袖和歷史事件的看法，其中涉及從蘇哈托到瓦希德之間的印尼、以及泰國(guó)、文萊蘇丹國(guó)、越南、緬甸、柬埔寨、英國(guó)、日本、美國(guó)、臺(tái)灣和香港等等。他向瓦希德提出忠告：“我說(shuō)，他要部長(zhǎng)們當(dāng)清官，就得確保他們獲得足夠的報(bào)酬，不必貪污也能過(guò)得合乎身分地位?！彼元?dú)特的方式，他描述了撒切爾夫人、里根、喜歡引用詩(shī)句的中國(guó)國(guó)家主席江澤民、已故中共領(lǐng)袖毛澤東、正直廉潔的朱镕基和中國(guó)改革開(kāi)放的總設(shè)計(jì)師鄧小平（在李光耀的記憶中，盡管鄧只有五英尺高，卻是人中之杰）。
相關(guān)詞語(yǔ) Related Words and Expressions
personify 是…的化身；是…的體現(xiàn)
integrity 誠(chéng)實(shí)而正直
equalizer 平衡物
decrepit 貧困衰弱的
incisive 聰明敏銳
tycoon 巨頭
outspoken 直言的；坦率的
institutionalize 建立
commensurate with… 與…相稱的，相當(dāng)?shù)?/p>
debunk 駁斥
unfettered 無(wú)束縛的
freewheeling 為所欲為的
pervasive 無(wú)處不在的；普遍存在的
bedeck 裝飾；打扮
corroborating 確證，證實(shí)
autograph 簽名
memoir 回憶錄
chronicle 記載；記敘
statecraft 治國(guó)才能
languish 失去活力；變得衰弱
in obscurity 默默無(wú)聞的
mire 陷入困境
viable 可行的
governance 管理；治理
acerbic 尖刻的
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