Giant statue comes under fire

Many people honor Guan Yu (or Guan Gong), a hero during the Three Kingdoms period. But recently, a statue of the ancient general has drawn criticism from authorities and the public.
很多人都崇敬三国时代的英雄关羽（又被称为关公）。但最近，这位古代将军的一座雕像却遭到了相关部门和民众的批评。

In October, the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development (MOHURD) said on its website that the construction of the Guan Yu statue in Jingzhou, Hubei province, violated local regulations.
今年10月，住房和城乡建设部在其官网表示，湖北省荆州市的关羽雕像违反当地相关规定。

The monumental statue, built in a Guan Yu-themed park, covers an area of 152,000 square meters and weighs more than 5,000 tons. At about 58 meters tall, the statue surpassed the 24-meter limit on structures in local areas, according to CCTV News.
这座巨型雕像位于一个关羽主题公园, 占地面积15.2万平方米，重达5000多吨。据央视新闻报道，这座约58米高的雕像超过了当地建筑高度的24米上限标准。

Even the cost of building the statue, about 170 million yuan, far exceeds the approved budget. Worse, the park promoted the structure as the world’s tallest bronze statue to attract tourists, but has only brought in a revenue of less than 13 million yuan in the past four years, China Daily reported.
甚至约1.7亿元的建筑造价也远超审批预算。更糟糕的是，据《中国日报》报道，该公园宣称该建筑是世界上最高的青铜雕塑, 以此来吸引游客。然而，在过去的四年间，这座雕塑带来的收益还不足1300万元。

Due to recent media reports, the issue caught the public’s attention and aroused criticism for its waste of resources. Also, there are concerns over its safety risks and legality.
近期的媒体报道，令这一问题引发公众关注以及对其资源浪费的批评。此外，该雕塑的安全风险与是否合规也令人担忧。

On Nov 17, the local authorities responded that experts have been organized to make a plan to relocate the statue. This announcement once again stirred discussion online.
11月17日，当地相关部门回应称，已组织专家规划雕塑搬迁选址。这一消息再次在网上引发热议。

Many asked to keep the statue, considering the cost and effort that had gone into the project. One internet user commented that “relocation would cost a lot of money. Why not just keep it and explore further development using existing resources?” Still others questioned why there was no supervision from local authorities since the beginning of construction to ensure that rules were being followed.
很多人考虑到该项目已经投入了人力物力，要求保留雕像。一名网友评论称，“搬迁会花很多钱。为什么不留着，利用现有资源寻求进一步发展呢？”还有一些人质疑，当地政府为何自开工建设以来一直没有进行监管，确保依法依规。

According to Hui Ming, from the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, this should be a lesson for local decision-makers. Before going about building statues, there should be adequate research and work. Also, public money and resources should not be wasted in this fashion.
来自中国社会科学院的回明（音）认为，当地决策者应从中汲取教训。在动工建造雕像前，应做充分的调查和准备工作。同时，也不应以这种方式浪费公款和公共资源。

This is not the only case of such an extravagant landmark. The Shuisi Tower project in Dushan county, Guizhou province, was also criticized by the MOHURD as a “cultural landmark” that was built indiscriminately and divorced from reality, and could damage the natural landscape.
此类夸张的地标无独有偶。贵州省独山县的水司楼也被住房和城乡建设部通报批评，称这一所谓的“文化地标”存在盲目建造、脱离实际、破坏自然景观风貌等问题。

以上文章内容选自《21世纪学生英文报高中版》，详情请见《21世纪学生英文报高中版》高二814期