[ti:Iranians Tire of Tensions, Restrictions as Elections Near] [by:www.51voa.com] [00:00.00]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM [00:00.04]As elections near, Iranian leaders appear to be worried about several crises that have left people with little hope for the future. [00:13.48]Tensions with the United States, economic weakness and the shooting down of a Ukrainian passenger airplane have tired Iranian voters. [00:26.04]Elections are to be held on February 21. [00:33.16]This is not good news for leaders who hope that a lot of people will vote. [00:39.76]If many people vote, it sends a message to the U.S. that Iran has not been hurt by sanctions. [00:50.00]Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on state television this week that voting is a "religious duty." [00:59.84]Many see this election as a test of his popularity. [01:05.92]Both he and his allies have made sure most of the candidates are hardliners -- people considered to have severe or extreme ideas. [01:18.12]Most of those elected will likely make the parliament even more hostile to the U.S. [01:26.72]But a low number of voters would help critics inside and outside the country. [01:33.24]Many critics say the Islamic Republic needs to change its policies because the country is suffering economically. [01:44.00]"I'm a person who has voted before. My hope was that things would get a little better when I voted in the past. [01:53.28]Now, all the red lines have been crossed," said a doctor in Tehran. [01:59.56]Her office cannot get the medicine or equipment she needs. [02:05.68]"This time, I have no hope and I will definitely not vote," she said by phone. [02:12.84]She asked not be identified. [02:17.92]Four years ago, things were very different. [02:21.44]Iran's president, Hassan Rouhani, and his allies had won many seats in parliamentary elections. [02:30.16]They were seen as moderates. [02:32.56]Many had hoped that a nuclear deal with world powers in 2015 would lead to the end of sanctions. [02:42.36]Those hopes died after President Donald Trump withdrew the United States from an international nuclear agreement in 2018. [02:54.08]He placed more sanctions on Iran in an effort to limit its nuclear program. [03:01.36]The sanctions also seek to limit Iran's ballistic missile program and end its involvement in several proxy wars in the Middle East. [03:13.56]"The main root of everything is the economy," said Ali, who sells mobile phones in Isfahan. [03:22.36]He talked to the Reuters news agency by telephone and asked that he not be identified. [03:30.32]"If (a person) doesn't have the money to take home bread to his wife and family, [03:36.24]then he'll stop praying and even lose his beliefs," said Ali. [03:41.36]He said he does not plan to vote next week. [03:45.68]"I voted for several years and it didn't make any difference," he said. [03:52.16]Government officials have been under pressure since last year, when protests turned deadly. [03:59.56]Demonstrators were angry over increases in the price of fuel. [04:05.24]Security officials answered with force. [04:08.68]Hundreds of protesters are believed to have been killed. [04:13.28]The effort to suppress the protests was among the most violent events in Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution. [04:26.00]Then, a U.S. drone strike killed Qassem Soleimani, a commander of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard's Quds Force, in January in Iraq. [04:39.40]Iranians supported their government's anger. [04:43.32]But support quickly disappeared when it became clear the Iranian government had lied about the shooting down of a Ukrainian airliner. [04:53.68]All 176 people on the plane were killed. [04:59.92]The Revolutionary Guards apologized for shooting down the passenger jet. [05:05.32]But thousands of people still protested in several cities. [05:11.16]Even before the latest troubles, sanctions cut Iran's oil exports by more than 80 percent. [05:19.08]People are continuing to suffer from economic hardship. [05:24.04]The International Monetary Fund notes that Iran is expected to have 31 percent inflation this year. [05:34.16]I'm Susan Shand. [05:36.24]更多听力请访问51VOA.COM