貝盧斯科尼傷愈"復出"

Premier Silvio Berlusconi returned to a busy political schedule Monday after a monthlong recovery from an attack that broke his nose and two teeth.

Berlusconi said he was feeling well as he arrived at his Rome residence, cheered by a group of supporters holding up a "Welcome Back" banner. He met with his coalition allies to set the agenda for the new year, including fiscal and justice reforms.

The image-conscious Berlusconi touched his left cheek and pointed out to reporters that there was hardly any scar visible on his face. Berlusconi was hit in Milan on Dec 13, when a man threw the statuette of Milan's cathedral at his face during a rally. The 73-year-old leader was hospitalized for a few days and has largely remained away from the public.

Berlusconi's popularity has increased after the attack in Milan, polls have shown. The images of his bloody and frightened face raised sympathy, as did photos of the premier leaving the hospital with bandages on his face. Berlusconi says he has forgiven attacker Massimo Tartaglia, who has been described as mentally ill and remains in custody.

The attack also pushed to the back burner a sex scandal that had engulfed the premier over his purported fondness for young women.

"I believe that modernizing the country is indispensable. It's worth working on this for all of us," Berlusconi told reporters upon his arrival from Milan.

The justice reform has been in the works for months, since legislation granting immunity from prosecution to the premier and other top officials while in office was thrown out in October. As a result, Berlusconi faces two trials in Milan, one on tax fraud and the other on corruption.

The premier has always denied wrongdoing and accused Milan's magistrates of orchestrating a politically motivated persecution against him. Berlusconi's allies have been looking for ways to shield the premier from the trials, leading to accusations that any such measure would be tailor-made for him.

Berlusconi did not discuss details of any possible measures on Monday, but said the notion that a reform of the justice system would be done to his advantage outraged him. He said any new law would be "for the freedom" of all.

本週一，意大利總理西爾維奧·貝盧斯科尼在受傷休養一個月後重返忙碌的政治日程。老貝在之前的一次遇襲事件中鼻子骨折，掉落兩顆牙齒。

貝盧斯科尼稱自己回到位於羅馬的總理官邸時感覺不錯，一羣支持者高舉“歡迎回來”的標語向他表示問候。當天貝盧斯科尼會見了他的政治盟友，並制定了新的一年的議事日程，其中包括財政和司法改革。

十分在意個人形象的貝盧斯科尼摸了摸自己的左臉頰，並指給記者看說他臉上的傷疤已經基本看不見了。貝盧斯科尼於去年12月13日在米蘭的一次集會中遇襲，當時一名男子將一個米蘭大教堂小雕像砸向他的臉部，導致73歲的總理先生受傷住院多日，暫離公衆視線。

民調顯示，貝盧斯科尼的支持率在米蘭遇襲事件後上升。他遇襲後臉部流血直流、神色驚恐以及臉纏繃帶出院的照片贏得了公衆的同情。貝盧斯科尼稱，他已經原諒了襲擊者馬西莫•塔爾塔格里亞。據說此人患有精神病，目前仍在拘留中。

遇襲事件也讓人們暫時淡忘了老貝的性醜聞事件，之前有傳聞稱他對年輕女性青睞有加。

貝盧斯科尼從米蘭抵達羅馬時告訴記者說：“我認國家的現代化改革十分必要，這值得我們所有人爲之努力。”

意大利的司法改革已醞釀數月之久。去年十月，一項賦予總理和在任高級官員司法豁免權的法律被廢止，使貝盧斯科尼獲罪成爲可能，目前他在米蘭面臨逃稅和貪污腐敗兩項指控。

貝盧斯科尼一直否認自己有什麼不當行爲，並稱這是米蘭地方執法官員企圖對他進行政治迫害。老貝的政治盟友一直在想辦法幫他脫身，致使一些人稱任何此類的舉措都是爲貝盧斯科尼量身定做的。

當天，貝盧斯科尼並未討論改革舉措的細節內容，但表示有關司法改革是爲他個人謀利的說法讓他很氣憤。他稱任何一項新的法律的制定都是爲了所有人的“自由”。

Vocabulary:

back burner：a condition of low priority or temporary deferment（次要地位）

in the works：in preparation or being planned（在計劃中，在醞釀中）

magistrate：a civil officer charged with the administration of the law（地方執法官員）

orchestrate: to arrange or manipulate, esp. by means of clever or thorough planning or maneuvering（密謀，策劃）

tailor-made：custom-made; made-to-order; made-to-measure（特製的）

to one'sadvantage：to good effect; advantageously（對某人有利）