I’d seen pictures of the Great Hall of the People, of course. But no picture can measure up to entering the massive building for the first time, walking into that cavernous space and taking in the atmosphere. It’s a powerful thing, to stand where so many vital decisions and votes have taken place. All due respect to my home state of Texas and its pink granite capitol building, but I’m afraid China has it beat.
其實(shí)，我原來(lái)看到過坐落在天安門廣場(chǎng)西側(cè)的人民大會(huì)堂的照片，但只有第一次親眼所見并走進(jìn)這座宏偉建筑時(shí)，我才真正體會(huì)到“百聞不如一見”這句話的含義。這是重要決策誕生的地方，也是進(jìn)行關(guān)鍵性表決的場(chǎng)所，站在這里給我的感覺是強(qiáng)大和強(qiáng)烈。我來(lái)自美國(guó)得克薩斯州，那里也有一座用粉紅色花崗巖修建的議會(huì)大廈，但我必須承認(rèn)，人民大會(huì)堂絕對(duì)更勝一籌。

And this was no ordinary tour. My inaugural trip to the hall came on the opening day of this year’s National People’s Congress, China’s top legislature and the highest organ of state power. I was there to hear Premier Li Keqiang deliver the Report on the Work of the Government over the past year on behalf of the State Council. As I watched NPC deputies take their seats, I was struck by the tenor of the occasion — this was the first national legislative meeting since the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China — an important juncture that will determine the future of the country.
參加兩會(huì)對(duì)于我來(lái)說(shuō)，是一次不平凡的經(jīng)歷。中華人民共和國(guó)全國(guó)人民代表大會(huì)是中國(guó)最高國(guó)家權(quán)力機(jī)關(guān)，全國(guó)人民代表大會(huì)和全國(guó)人民代表大會(huì)常務(wù)委員會(huì)行使國(guó)家立法權(quán)，我的“兩會(huì)之旅”也正是從3月5日十三屆全國(guó)人大一次會(huì)議開幕當(dāng)天開啟。會(huì)上，我聽取了中國(guó)國(guó)務(wù)院總理李克強(qiáng)作的政府工作報(bào)告。當(dāng)幾千名全國(guó)人大代表們?cè)跁?huì)議大廳里就坐時(shí)，我被這一場(chǎng)面深深地震撼——這是“十九大”以來(lái)首次召開的兩會(huì)，是具有關(guān)鍵意義的轉(zhuǎn)折點(diǎn)，將決定整個(gè)國(guó)家的未來(lái)。

The work report reflected this period’s pivotal nature. At the cusp of what President Xi Jinping has called the “new era” for Chinese socialism, Premier Li made firm pronouncements on what the government has done and will do in the coming year. Along with the announced GDP growth target of 6.5 percent, the report included continued commitments to high-quality growth, economic modernization and “three critical battles”: forestalling and curbing risk, ending extreme poverty and reducing pollution.
今年的政府工作報(bào)告反映了這一時(shí)期的關(guān)鍵性。在習(xí)近平主席所說(shuō)的中國(guó)特色社會(huì)主義“新時(shí)代”到來(lái)之際，李克強(qiáng)總理總結(jié)了過去五年的政府工作，并對(duì)未來(lái)的工作作出布置。在公布了國(guó)內(nèi)生產(chǎn)總值（GDP）6.5%增長(zhǎng)目標(biāo)的同時(shí)，政府工作報(bào)告中還提出保持高質(zhì)量增長(zhǎng)，建設(shè)現(xiàn)代化經(jīng)濟(jì)體系，打贏防范和控制風(fēng)險(xiǎn)、消除極端貧困、減輕污染“三大關(guān)鍵戰(zhàn)役”的承諾。

Li backed these statements of intent with more than words; he pointed to real-world results. With 68 million people lifted out of poverty since 2013, income growth constantly outpacing economic growth, an eye-poppingly low unemployment rate and higher levels of infrastructure spending than anywhere else on the planet, there has already been a great deal of success on these fronts. I personally experienced what were by all accounts the clearest winter skies Beijing has seen in years. The information in the report was, in essence, the supremely confident answer to a paramount question facing all governments: “Do you walk the walk, or merely talk the talk?”
報(bào)告中很多真實(shí)事例都說(shuō)明了政府工作取得的成就。自2013年以來(lái)，中國(guó)先后有6800萬(wàn)人口擺脫貧困，居民收入增長(zhǎng)持續(xù)超過經(jīng)濟(jì)增長(zhǎng)，失業(yè)率保持在令人吃驚的低水平，而基礎(chǔ)設(shè)施投入則比世界上任何一個(gè)國(guó)家都要高。中國(guó)在這些方面都取得了巨大成就。我自己就經(jīng)歷了北京多年以來(lái)空氣質(zhì)量最好、天空最藍(lán)的一個(gè)冬天。報(bào)告中傳達(dá)出的信息，給各國(guó)政府所面臨的共同問題提供了一個(gè)信心十足的回答：“你是要付諸行動(dòng)，還是僅僅只動(dòng)動(dòng)嘴而已。”

While listening to the work report, I occasionally ventured from my seat in the gallery and looked over the first floor, where the 2,980 NPC deputies sat. I saw representatives from all walks of life — according to demographic data, they come from diverse backgrounds. Farmers, workers and technical personnel have the same status as government officials at the two sessions; all are deputies, each with one vote. I saw members of ethnic minority groups in traditional costumes and people who’d traveled hundreds of miles to attend. In that one enormous room, I saw all of China.
在聽取工作報(bào)告的同時(shí)，我偶爾會(huì)看一看坐在一層的2970名人大代表。這些來(lái)自不同背景的代表，既包括農(nóng)民、工人，也有技術(shù)領(lǐng)域的從業(yè)者，但在兩會(huì)期間，他們和政府官員是一樣的，都是人民代表，都握有神圣的一票。我還看到了許多身穿特色服飾的少數(shù)民族代表，還有很多不遠(yuǎn)萬(wàn)里趕來(lái)參會(huì)的代表。在這里，我看到了整個(gè)中國(guó)。

And before the report was read, I stood with the rest of the chamber as the national anthem played. I am, of course, not Chinese. But as the music swelled and thousands of voices rose in unison, I couldn’t help but be moved by the gravity of the moment. This spirit of consensus continued through the opening plenary, as deputies made clear their approval for the report through applause and engaged in friendly conversation before and after the meeting. Disagreements no doubt exist within such a large and sundry group, but at its core this is an assembly unified on a mission of sustained national development, able to resolve differences amicably and ready to take on the vital responsibility it has been given by its electoral units.
《政府工作報(bào)告》開始之前，國(guó)歌奏響，我和全體在場(chǎng)人員一起起立。當(dāng)然，我不是中國(guó)人。但隨著國(guó)歌聲越來(lái)越大，上千人齊聲高唱時(shí)，我不禁被這莊重的時(shí)刻感動(dòng)了。這種尋求共識(shí)的精神貫穿大會(huì)全程，代表們用掌聲明確表明了他們對(duì)報(bào)告的贊同，并在會(huì)議前后進(jìn)行友好交談。毫無(wú)疑問，這樣龐大而人數(shù)眾多的集體中必然存在分歧，但大會(huì)的本質(zhì)是追求國(guó)家可持續(xù)發(fā)展團(tuán)結(jié)一致，友好解決分歧，并準(zhǔn)備承擔(dān)選舉單位所授予的重大職責(zé)。

Such a culture of common purpose is altogether alien compared with my time on the sidelines of United States politicking. Where was the factionalism? Where was the partisan rancor? Legislation in my home country is characterized by bickering and obstruction, most recently observed with multiple instances of government funding gaps. Such gaps can lead to total shutdowns, as was the case for a few days in January. With such incidents growing all too common, is there a better word for the state of affairs there than “dysfunction”? I have my doubts.
相比之下，中國(guó)這種同心協(xié)力的文化與我從美國(guó)政治活動(dòng)中觀察到的完全不同。派系斗爭(zhēng)在哪兒？黨派恩怨在哪兒？爭(zhēng)吵和阻撓幾乎成了美國(guó)立法的特色，最近還多次出現(xiàn)了政府資金短缺的情況。這些資金缺口可能導(dǎo)致政府無(wú)法運(yùn)轉(zhuǎn)，正如今年1月聯(lián)邦政府部門關(guān)門那幾天一樣。隨著這些事件越來(lái)越普遍，對(duì)這種事態(tài)有沒有比“功能障礙”更好的解釋呢？我對(duì)此表示懷疑。

Expectations will continue to run high among the Chinese people for an improved standard of living, and the difficulties the CPC and government face in meeting those expectations are the greatest any country has ever known. Ensuring prosperity for nearly a billion and a half people is a governance challenge I could never hope to understand. Yet the mood everywhere I’ve gone is optimistic. It would be foolish to deny there are problems in China — no place is perfect, after all. But people here acknowledge those problems while understanding they take time to fix. And, perhaps most importantly, they believe their government will do so. With the accomplishments over the last five years, and in the nearly 70 since the PRC was founded, that belief is well-placed.
中國(guó)人民的生活水平已經(jīng)提高了，他們的期待也會(huì)越來(lái)越高，中國(guó)共產(chǎn)黨和中國(guó)政府要滿足人民期望的難度是任何國(guó)家都體會(huì)不到的。要確保近14億人民過上富足的生活，這樣的治理挑戰(zhàn)是我永遠(yuǎn)無(wú)法理解的。然而，我去過的每個(gè)地方的人們對(duì)此都很樂觀。否認(rèn)中國(guó)存在問題是愚蠢的，畢竟沒有任何國(guó)家是完美的。但是，這里的人們正視這些問題，并理解要解決問題需要時(shí)間。而也許最重要的是，他們相信中國(guó)政府會(huì)解決問題。過去五年以及中華人民共和國(guó)自成立近70年來(lái)，中國(guó)所取得的成就讓這一信念生根。

It’s hard not to contrast that with life in the US — where everyone knows what the problems are, has been dealing with them for decades and has no faith their government can or will do anything to help. Back home, my heart broke every time I spoke to people unable to afford basic necessities like housing or health care, and it only got worse when I asked officials what their solutions were. Across the board, the answers were the same: variations on “nothing we can do”.
我很難不拿美國(guó)的生活與中國(guó)對(duì)比，所有美國(guó)人都知道這個(gè)國(guó)家的問題所在，幾十年來(lái)一直與這些問題打交道，而他們不相信政府可以或愿意有所作為。每當(dāng)我回國(guó)后和那些負(fù)擔(dān)不起住房、醫(yī)療等基本生活需求的人們聊天時(shí)，我都十分痛心，而當(dāng)我問過政府官員們他們有什么對(duì)策后，只會(huì)更加難受。總而言之，答案就是“我們無(wú)能為力”。

With the Party and government’s unwavering determination to uplift the people and provide Chinese citizens with a better life, I’d be surprised to learn anyone here has “nothing we can do” in their vocabulary.
由于中國(guó)共產(chǎn)黨和中國(guó)政府堅(jiān)定不移地致力于提高人民的生活水平，讓人民過上更好的日子，我驚訝地發(fā)現(xiàn)，在中國(guó)人的字典里沒有“無(wú)能為力”這個(gè)詞。

作者系中國(guó)日?qǐng)?bào)美籍記者伊谷然
編譯：高琳琳 董靜
編輯：黃碩 程爾凡