Fluency News #37

Hello, everyone!

Sejam bem-vindos e bem-vindas a mais um episódio da nossa nova série de podcasts, o Fluency News! Aqui, você vai poder treinar a sua escuta e ficar por dentro do que está acontecendo no mundo, sempre com as três principais notícias da semana, tudo em inglês! Ao longo do episódio, nós também adicionamos explicações em português das coisas que achamos que precisam de mais atenção, assim você não perde nenhum detalhe!

Nesta semana, nós falamos sobre a Bielorrússia forçar uma aterrissagem de emergência para prender um jornalista e blogger da oposição. Nós também falamos sobre algumas das decisões tomadas em uma conferência da União Européia e o uso de vacinas em jovens e crianças. Nós também voltamos à Samoa, onde a Primeira Ministra eleita foi trancada do lado de fora do parlamento.

Temos uma página de dicas de inglês no Instagram, vá conferir! @fluencytvingles

Toda semana, temos um novo episódio do Fluency News, não deixe de escutar! See you!

Este episódio foi escrito por Lívia Pond.

Transcrição do episódio

What is up, everyone! Welcome back to Fluency News, the podcast that keeps you informed while training your English skills. I’m Scott Lowe, one of your teachers at Fluency Academy.

Here you’ll put your listening and comprehension skills to the test, while we explore some of this week’s most relevant stories. After the stories, you might hear me come in in Portuguese to explain any structures that need more attention.

You can check all of our sources and read the transcription of this episode by going to fluencytv.com, or clicking the link in the description.

Without further ado, let’s get started. Our first story of the day starts in the sky! Belarus has been accused of hijacking a European jetliner and engaging in an act of state terrorism.

Roman Protasevich, a former editor of the influential Telegram channels Nexta and Nexta Live, was detained by police after his flight was diverted to Minsk national airport. Minsk confirmed that president Alexander Lukashenko ordered his military to scramble a Mig-29 fighter to escort the plane.

Protasevich has been accused by Belarus of terrorism and provoking riots after the Nexta channels became one of the main conduits for organizing last year’s anti-Lukashenko protests over elections fraud. Protasevich had been living in exile and Poland had previously rejected an extradition request sent by Minsk.

Protasevich was flying on an intra-EU flight from Athens to Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, when the plane was diverted to Minsk. According to online flight data, the plane was over Belarusian airspace when it diverted course but was closer to Vilnius than Minsk.

“I’m facing the death penalty here,” a trembling Protasevich reportedly told a fellow passenger from the plane before he was led away by Belarusian police. He pleaded with the crew, saying “Don’t do this. They will kill me. I am a refugee.”

Lawyers looking to help Protasevich told The Times they believe he is being held in a jail in Minsk operated by the Belarusian intelligence service.

On Monday, 24, Belarusian authorities posted a video of Protasevich, in which he said he was cooperating with authorities. His whereabouts are still unknown.

The father of the Belarusian journalist said it was clear his son was acting under duress and had been beaten when he recorded a video “confessing” to organizing mass protests against the regime.

Dmitry Protasevich said Roman was “very nervous” and “spoke in a way that was unusual for him”.

“It’s clear that he was physically harmed because you can see signs of a beating on his face,” he added. He said his son also appeared to be missing some teeth.

It was obvious he was being forced to read out a statement, his father said, in which Roman claimed he was being treated correctly and was not suffering any health problems, following his arrest on Sunday.

Speaking on Tuesday, 25, Belarus’s opposition leader, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, said it was evident Pratasevich was acting “under pressure”. He faced torture from the authorities, she said, adding: “He’s been taken hostage in an act of state terrorism.”

The international response has been swift. On Monday, the European Union moved to isolate Belarus, ordering all EU-based airlines to avoid Belarusian airspace and banning Belarusian airlines from entering EU airspace and landing in its airports.

Nesta notícia, é possível identificar o uso de tempos verbais distintos. Temos o simple past, o present perfect, present continuous. O Simple Past é usado para falar de ações que começaram no passado e foram finalizadas no passado. Ele é formado usando um sujeito e um verbo na sua forma simples do passado. O Present Perfect é usado quando uma ação iniciada no passado ainda não foi finalizada, ou ainda tem efeito no presente. Como muitas notícias são dadas antes que uma situação acabe, é comum que este tempo verbal seja utilizado. Ele é formado usando o verbo HAS na sua forma simples, e outro verbo no particípio do passado. O Present Continuous é pouco usado em notícias, porque indica uma ação que está acontecendo no momento da fala. É formado pelo verbo BE e o verbo seguinte adicionado de ING.

The European Union has committed to donate at least 100 million doses of coronavirus vaccines to middle- and low-income countries before the end of the year. The bloc will also provide assistance to non-EU countries to help them develop local manufacturing capacity.

The double pledge comes following an EU summit in Brussels where European leaders tackled the ongoing crisis in Belarus, relations with Russia and the United Kingdom, the evolution of the COVID-19 pandemic and the threat of climate change.

“Donations are desperately needed,” said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, referring to the announcement that the Serum Institute of India, the world’s largest vaccine manufacturer, has decided to halt exports for the remainder of 2021.

Standing next to European Council President Charles Michel, von der Leyen said the EU will provide assistance to developing countries, particularly in Africa, to help them build expertise and produce their own vaccines.

Von der Leyen hopes this partnership will bring mRNA vaccines, like the Pfizer-BioNTech jab, to African countries, something that “hasn’t happened so far”.

A palavra BLOC é usada aqui, em um uso pouco comum. Você já deve ter escutado essa palavra, escrita BLOCK, pra se referir ao ato de bloquear, ou significando quadras, quarteirões. Existe um outro significado, com uma escrita um pouco diferente. A palavra BLOC, como temos aqui, escrita sem K, significa um grupo de países. A pronúncia das duas palavras é idêntica.

Now we have a not so wholesome update. Last week we talked about Samoa electing its first female leader. This week, she was locked out of Parliament.

On Monday, the country was plunged into a constitutional crisis when the woman who won an election last month was locked out of Parliament and the previous leader claimed he remained in charge.

On Monday morning, Prime Minister-elect Fiame Naomi Mata’afa and her supporters showed up at parliament to form a new government, but were not allowed inside.

She and her party later took oaths and appointed ministers in a ceremony held under a tent in front of the locked Parliament, actions that opponents said were illegal.

The nation’s Supreme Court had earlier ordered the Parliament to convene. And the constitution requires that lawmakers meet within 45 days of an election, with Monday marking the final day by that count.

But Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi, who was prime minister for 22 years before his unexpected election loss, doesn’t appear ready to give up power. Two powerful allies have been supporting Tuilaepa.

The nation’s head of state, Tuimalealiifano Va’aletoa Sualauvi II, wrote in a proclamation last week that he was suspending Parliament “for reasons that I will make known in due course.” On Sunday, the Parliament’s speaker backed him.

After Fiame was locked out on Monday, Tuilaepa held a news conference proclaiming his government remained in charge.

At his news conference, Tuilaepa said: “There is only one government in Samoa, even if we are just the custodian government. We remain in this role and operate business as usual.”

Meanwhile, Fiame told her supporters: “There will be a time when we will meet again, inside that House. Let us leave it to the law.”

After the party held its tent ceremony, Tuilaepa held a second news conference to say that action would be taken against party members.

“This is treason, and the highest form of illegal conduct,” he said.

Fiame’s election win was seen as a milestone not only for Samoa, which is conservative and Christian, but also for the South Pacific, which has had few female leaders.

A palavra “convene” é um falso cognato, significando que ela parece ser igual à uma palavra em português, mas tem significado diferente. Apesar de se parecer com a palavra “convém”, ela significa “convocar”.

We have some positive news regarding vaccination around the world.

Mass vaccination of children against Covid-19 moved a step closer as Moderna became the second manufacturer to announce successful trial results, showing its vaccine can stop transmission in people aged 12 to 18.

Pfizer/BioNTech’s vaccine has already been given emergency approval for adolescents aged 12 to 15 in the US by the regulator, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), after its trials were said to show better efficacy even than in participants aged 16 to 25. It has begun a trial in young children, from six months to 11 years old.

The results from both companies suggest that mass immunization of schoolchildren could be on the cards this year, beginning in the US, which could in theory end the anxieties of parents, pupils and teachers and allow schools to function more normally. Pfizer applied for emergency use authorization for 12 to 15-year-olds in Europe at the end of April.

AstraZeneca began the first trial to use a Covid vaccine in children from the age of six in February, aiming to enrol 300 volunteers aged six to 18 across four sites in London, Oxford, Bristol and Southampton.

Like Pfizer, Moderna says its vaccine, formally called mRNA-1273, was 100% effective in trials in young people. In a trial of 3,700 young people aged 12 to 18, there were no symptomatic cases of Covid-19 among those who received two doses of the vaccine.

Você já deve ter visto a palavra AMONG muitas vezes, principalmente depois que o jogo Among Us se tornou bem popular, não é? Você sabe qual é a diferença entre among e between? As duas significam “entre”, mas o uso é um pouco diferente. Between significa “entre” num sentido literal, físico, entre duas ou mais coisas que são claramente separadas. Among significa “entre”, mas se referindo a coisas que não são claramente separadas (porque são parte de um grupo de pessoas ou objetos), ou num sentido não literal.

Alright, and to end this episode, let’s see some good news, shall we? A shepherd has been hailed as a hero in China after it emerged that he saved six stricken runners during an ultramarathon in which 21 other competitors died.

Zhu Keming was trending on Weibo on Tuesday, three days after a 100km cross-country mountain race in the north-western province of Gansu turned deadly in freezing rain, high winds and hail.

The incident triggered outrage and mourning in China, as questions swirled over why organizers apparently ignored warnings about the incoming extreme weather.

Zhu was grazing his sheep on Saturday around lunchtime when the wind picked up, the rain came down and temperatures plunged, he told state media.

He sought refuge in a cave where he had stored clothes and food for emergencies but while inside spotted one of the race’s 172 competitors and checked to see what was wrong because he was standing still, apparently suffering cramps.

Zhu escorted the man back to the cave, massaged his freezing hands and feet, lit a fire and dried his clothes.

Four more distressed runners made it into the cave and told the shepherd others were marooned outside, some unconscious.

Zhu headed outside once more and, braving hail and freezing temperatures, reached a runner lying on the ground. He carried him towards the shelter and wrapped him in blankets, almost certainly saving his life.

“I want to say how grateful I am to the man who saved me,” the runner, Zhang Xiaotao, wrote on Weibo. “Without him, I would have been left out there.”

Zhu has been feted in China for his selfless actions, but the shepherd told state media that he was “just an ordinary person who did a very ordinary thing”.

Zhu rescued three men and three women, but regrets that he was unable to do more to help others.

It’s always good to see people doing good, isn’t it?

A palavra ordinary não é bem um falso cognato, mas é próximo disso. Apesar de a palavra poder ser traduzida como ordinária, ou ordinário, o significado não é o que muitas vezes se vê atribuído à essa palavra em português. Quando Zhu disse que ele era “an ordinary person who did a very ordinary thing”, ele estava usando a palavra no sentido de comum, dizendo que ele é uma pessoa comum que fez uma coisa bem comum. Aí é questão de opinião, não é?

And that’s where we’re going to end today’s episode. As always, you can find our sources and the transcription of this episode by going to fluencytv.com.

E se você tem interesse em estudar na Fluency Academy, com os melhores experts em fluência de idiomas do mundo, você pode se inscrever na nossa lista de espera! Desse jeito, você vai ficar sabendo assim que abrirem novas turmas de inglês, espanhol, francês, italiano, alemão, japonês e mandarim. Pra não ficar de fora, aperte o link na descrição desse episódio! A inscrição é 100% gratuita e leva uns 15 segundinhos.

There’s a new episode of Fluency News every week, and we’ll be waiting for you. Peace out.