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It was part of the bargain many Egyptians, seeking stability and prosperity, struck in 2013 by backing Abdel Fattah al-Sisi and a return to military rule after tumultuous years of revolution.
这是协议的一部分，许多寻求稳定繁荣的埃及人在2013年达成了这份协议，而达成协议的条件是支持阿卜杜勒·法塔赫·塞西以及支持在动荡多年的革命之后恢复军事统治。
But that deal is seeming one-sided:
但该协议似乎是偏向一边的:
Behind newly beautified buildings’ facades are crumbling, decades-old interiors.
在新美化的建筑立面背后，是摇摇欲坠、已经有几十年历史的内里。
Apartment blocks that are painted on one side facing highways remain stained and sooty on the others.
面向高速公路的一面是粉刷过的公寓楼，另外的一面仍然是污迹斑斑。
New or widened highways that cut through residential areas lack proper drainage and are prone to flooding.
穿过居民区的新建的加宽公路缺乏像样的排水系统，容易发生洪水。
The hundreds of Egyptians displaced by the megaprojects and, amid great media fanfare, given new housing, now face higher rent and bills for maintenance they cannot afford.
成百上千的埃及人因为这些大型工程而流离失所，而在媒体的大肆宣传下，他们得到了新的住房，现在他们面临着无法负担的高昂租金和维护费用。
Much of the new development that is displacing local communities is geared toward wealthy people.
许多正在取代当地社区的新开发项目都是面向富人的。
New Cairo, in the desert, remains largely empty, devoid of residents.
位于沙漠中的新开罗的大部分地区仍然是空的，没有居民。
And anyone who dares to puncture the government’s depiction of a perfect Egypt is challenging the state – and risking jail.
任何胆敢破坏政府对完美埃及的描述的人都是在挑战这个国家——都是在冒着坐牢的风险。
Expressions of unhappiness here are viewed as a political threat.
在这里表达不满被视为一种政治威胁。
There is little for Egyptians to be happy about these days.
这些日子，埃及人没有什么可高兴的。
President Sisi’s megaprojects were largely carried out with borrowed funds, and Egypt’s national debt, now $158 billion, or 88% of gross domestic product, and increased borrowing have led it to devalue the pound.
塞西总统的大型项目主要是用借来的资金进行的，埃及的国债(目前为1580亿美元，占国内生产总值的88%)和增加的借款导致埃及镑贬值。
Most recently, to secure a $3 billion International Monetary Fund aid package, the currency slid 15% Oct. 27 to an all-time low of 23 Egyptian pounds to the dollar.
最近，为了获得国际货币基金组织30亿美元的援助，埃及货币10月27日下跌15%，处于1美元兑23埃及镑的历史低点。
The resulting inflation, made worse by pandemic- and Ukraine-war-related supply chain issues, has led to a jump in food and energy prices and pushed many middle- and upper-middle-class Egyptians into poverty, and those in poverty into even more dire situations.
与疫情和乌克兰战争相关的供应链问题加剧了通货膨胀，导致食品和能源价格飙升，使许多埃及中上阶层陷入贫困，而贫困人口则陷入更糟糕的境地。
But few would dare say it out loud.
但很少有人敢大声说出来。
“Egypt has become a republic of fear in recent years,” says Hossam Bahgat, founder and director of the Egyptian Initiative for Personal Rights, one of the last three licensed independent human rights organizations in the country.
埃及个人权利倡议组织(埃及最后三个获得许可的独立人权组织之一)的创始人兼主任胡萨姆·巴赫贾特说：“近年来，埃及已经成为一个充满恐惧的共和国。”
“There really is no room for work on the ground by civil society groups without the risk of arrest or political prosecution. This has taken away people’s ability to say how policies are affecting them.”
“如果不冒着被逮捕或是被政治起诉的风险，公民社会团体确实在公众中没有实施的空间。这剥夺了人们表达这些政策如何影响他们的权力。”
