FEW EVENTS have been a bigger indictment(控诉；谴责) of King Muhammad VI’s rule than “Throne Day(摩洛哥登基日)” on July 30th. The Moroccan king’s motorcade(车队) sped along an empty motorway from his beach hideaway at Mdiq to a ceremony where members of the elite kissed his hand. Heading in the opposite direction, the poor flocked to Ceuta, the nearby Spanish enclave(飞地), as news spread online that the gates were open to Europe. More than 70,000, mostly Moroccans, risked their lives to flee from Muhammad’s realm(王国；领域). About a hundred died trying.
很少有事件能比7月30日的“登基日”更有力地控诉穆罕默德六世的统治。这位摩洛哥国王的车队沿着空无一人的高速公路疾驰，从他位于姆迪克的海滨行宫驶向一场典礼，精英阶层成员在那里亲吻他的手。而就在相反的方向，穷人涌向附近的西班牙飞地休达，因为网上盛传通往欧洲的大门已经打开。七万多人——其中大多数是摩洛哥人——冒着生命危险逃离穆罕默德的王国。约有一百人在途中丧生。
On paper, Muhammad’s kingdom is a rare Arab model of stability and modernisation. It boast(拥有（引以为豪的东西）)s a thriving(蓬勃发展的) car industry, is expanding its high-speed railway and has built the Mediterranean’s largest port. It attracts foreign investment, cultivate(建立；培养)s close relations with Europe and America, and has a growing arms industry thanks to its ties with Israel. Its monarchy has lasted for four centuries. The succession(继承；继位) is settled.
从纸面上看，穆罕默德的王国是阿拉伯世界罕见的稳定与现代化典范。它拥有蓬勃发展的汽车工业，正在扩建高速铁路，并建成了地中海最大的港口。它吸引外国投资，与欧洲和美国保持密切关系，并凭借与以色列的关系发展起日益壮大的军火工业。它的君主制已延续四个世纪。王位继承也已安排妥当。
But after 27 years, many of Muhammad’s 36m subjects(臣民) have lost faith in(对……失去信心) their future under his rule. The king invests in showpieces(面子工程；展示品) such as stadiums for the 2030 World Cup, but neglects hospitals and schools. Nearly a third of young Moroccans are unemployed. The king’s security chiefs have neutered(使失去效力；阉割) a once-critical press. Critics are prosecuted(被起诉) for alleged(涉嫌的；据称的) sex crimes and jailed. Political parties are so feeble(软弱的；无力的) that few Moroccans could say what a parliamentary election on September 23rd is about. In any case, the real decision-makers do not appear on the ballot. Many Moroccans prefer to vote with their feet(用脚投票（以离开表达不满）).
但27年过去，穆罕默德3600万臣民中的许多人已对在他的统治下的未来失去信心。国王投资于2030年世界杯体育场馆之类的面子工程，却忽视医院和学校。近三分之一的摩洛哥年轻人失业。国王的安全主管们阉割了曾经敢于批评的新闻界。批评者被以莫须有的性犯罪罪名起诉并监禁。政党如此软弱无力，以至于很少有摩洛哥人能说清9月23日的议会选举究竟关乎什么。无论如何，真正的决策者并不出现在选票上。许多摩洛哥人宁愿用脚投票。