新奇事件簿 委内瑞拉公务员一周工作两天

（单词翻译）

The government in Venezuela has taken a drastic step to try and deal with the country's growing energy problems. It has initiated¹ a two-day working week for all state employees. Public workers had already been working four days a week after officials made Fridays a no-work day two months ago. The country's 2.8 million public workers will now have five days off a week. President Nicolas Maduro addressed the nation in a televised statement, saying: "From tomorrow, for at least two weeks, we are going to have Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays as non-working days for the public sector²." Employees were told they would still be paid in full, despite the greatly reduced working week.

因能源问题不断恶化，委内瑞拉政府采取极端措施。公共部门员工每周上班两天。两个月前，政府宣布公务员周五休假，每周工作四天。如今，全国2800万公务员每周休息五天。总统马杜罗发表电视演讲，称：“从明天起，公共部门每周三，四，五休息，持续时间至少为两周。”尽管工作日减少，但员工工资照发。

The government is blaming the current energy crisis on droughts and El Nino weather patterns. Water levels in hydroelectric dams are dangerously low. Mr Maduro likened the Guri region, home to the nation's biggest dam, to a desert. Critics of the president say ineffective management, inadequate³ investment and corruption⁴ are behind the current mess. The country's 30 million people are facing daily disruptions to their lives. Women have been asked to use hair dryers⁵ less and shopping malls have to rely on their own electricity generators⁶. Electricity is being rationed⁷ in most of the country. The president even turned the clocks back thirty minutes to provide half-an-hour of extra evening sunlight.

政府将此次能源危机归罪于干旱和厄尔尼诺现象。水电站水位到达警戒低水位。马杜罗将全国最大水电站所在地古力地区比喻成荒漠。批评人士指出，造成此状况要归结于政府管理效率低，投资不到位以及贪污腐败。全国3000万民众日常生活受影响。政府要求女性少用吹风机，各大商店依靠发电机供电。全国多地用电为定量供应。为充分利用半小时夜晚自然光，政府甚至将时钟拨快半小时。