[時事新聞] 總統國際記者會: BBC記者的提問
關於此議題的專頁公告: http://bit.ly/383sBfd
剛剛在聽總統國際記者會時，對於一位BBC記者的問題感到驚訝:
Thank you very much, and congratulations first, President Tsai, on tonight’s result. A few months ago, you were struggling in the polls. Many people suggest that the turnaround in your fortunes is because of the actions of China. Its threats that you mentioned tonight. Its putting of the aircraft carriers through the Taiwan Strait, the situation in Hong Kong. So my question to you is this: Do you think you have the Chinese president Xi Jinping to thank for this victory.*
非常感謝您，蔡總統，首先祝賀今晚的結果。幾個月前，您在民意調查中苦苦掙扎。許多人認為，您的命運的轉變是由於中國的行動。您今晚提到的威脅—航空母艦開向台灣海峽和香港的局勢。所以我對您的問題是：您認為您應該向中國國家主席習近平為這次勝利表示感謝嗎?*
*您認為您的勝利歸因於中國國家主席習近平嗎？
have sb to thank (for sth)
1. to say that you are grateful to someone who is responsible for something good happening. This expression is sometimes used HUMOROUSLY to mean that you are not grateful for what someone has done.
對（某人）感謝
I have Phil to thank for getting me my first job.
https://www.ldoceonline.com/dictionary/have-somebody-to-thank-for-doing-something
2. If you have someone to thank for something, that person is responsible or to blame for it.
由（某人）對…負責；應責怪（某人）
You have John to thank for this problem.
https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/have-sb-to-thank-for-sth
EDIT: 我個人認為，此一題問似乎高估了中國對蔡總統勝選──臺灣人民以自由意志所選出的總統──的影響。不可否認，中國對臺灣的行動已與日俱增，但問題的設定似乎過分強調中國這一因素，而輕忽了臺灣人民的努力。大約40秒的問句只要加一句 "The people of Taiwan have won a great democratic victory tonight" 我就認為完全妥當。這是我的個人觀點。
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…I am not qualified to answer this question for the President, but I would like to express my opinion.
…我沒有資格代表總統回答這個問題，但我想表達對這個問題的看法。
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The people of Taiwan do not have General Secretary Xi Jinping to "thank" for this democratic victory. They have the sacrifices of thousands of democratic reformers and activists around the world to thank for their right to vote and the right to have their voices heard. It is unfortunate that the threats you mentioned are perceived by some as being responsible for tonight's victory.
臺灣的總統並不需要針對此次的民主選舉「感謝」習總書記。總統和全臺灣的人民需要感謝的是全球成千上萬的為了民主而犧牲的改革者，感謝由於他們奮鬥而獲得的投票權與發表自己意見的權利。不幸的是，一些人似乎認為今晚的勝利應歸功於您所提到的這些威脅。
毫無疑問，有些人並不同意我的回應。但是，若您稍加觀察，便可發現我是圍繞著「have…to thank、 對（某人）感謝」來進行回應，並提出個人觀點。在「thank、感謝」周圍加上引號，唸起來就會有特別的語氣，或許能更加凸顯充分理解幽默的部分。 別人用幽默的語氣問我，並不代表我不能以字面上的意涵去作正式的回應，畢竟這是正式的場合。
在長年旅居美國的生活經驗中，隨處都可聽見以雙關作為諷刺性質的幽默（my sarcasm detector is functional）。事實上，從我的回應也不難看出，我認為不恰當的地方乃在於，提問的內容及其所強調者──中國因素。
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完整影片: https://youtu.be/yKVW475EnA4?t=6421
完整報導: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-51077553
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補充說明 1:
在當場大家都認識這位記者，因為直接稱呼他的名字，總統也對他的評語微笑。但是明顯這種發問的方式造成困擾，不然今天不會那麼多人有共鳴討論此事件。在同時也可以看到旁邊的外媒微笑搖頭，翻譯也高EQ地直接跳過這一句，因此這樣的幽默在這樣正式的場合並不是那麼恰當。
From the video, it's clear that the President and her staff know Mr. Sudworth on a first name basis. The interpreter most likely skipped the question to avoid controversy, and you can see an adjacent reporter shaking his head while smiling. Whether "humor" was appropriate for such a context is for you to decide.
在國際場合英文的使用不限制於一個區域的觀眾，並且這個「英式幽默的」問題並非只是一個無傷大雅朋友之間的玩笑，而是在測探回答者的智慧。個人覺得翻譯和總統的回應都非常專業，只是覺得發問者的問題格外犀利但或許這就是他的本意吧。
This discussion here extends beyond just language interpretation/translation and understanding word denotation and connotation. To dismiss criticisms as "not understanding humor" is simply ignoring the social, political, and cultural contexts in which language is used. The question was specifically framed to highlight China's influence and prod President Tsai for more insight. I personally find it to be caustic and not entirely suited for the topic: the democratic victory of the Taiwanese people. I regret not including this and more background information in the original post.
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補充說明2:
英國《BBC》的記者提問蔡英文，拿下歷史最高票「會不會和習近平說聲謝謝」，蔡英文瞬間笑了，但女翻譯愣2秒的反應卻成為焦點。
https://www.setn.com/news.aspx?NewsID=670861
《BBC》記者表示，蔡英文的勝選帶有政治諷刺意味。如果中國共產黨沒有對台灣施壓、對香港危機的態度難以捉摸，台灣候選人的勝利之路可能就不會那麼確定。「結果宣布後，我問蔡英文，她是否有為她的勝利感謝中國國家主席習近平。她笑了。」
https://news.ltn.com.tw/news/world/breakingnews/3037675
After the result was announced I asked Tsai Ing-wen whether she had the Chinese President Xi Jinping to thank for her victory.
She smiled.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-51077553
英國廣播公司BBC特派記者約翰薩沃斯，在11日的記者會第一個獲得發問機會，特別問到蔡英文會不會感謝習近平，蔡英文沒有正面回答，只以微笑來回應。德國之聲DW台北特派記者江穎怡也報導，「很多台灣人認為（中國鎮壓）香港證明了一國兩制的失敗。」
https://news.pts.org.tw/article/462512
不過，現場卻發生一段小插曲。一直關心中國民主人權問題的BBC記者沙磊（John Sudworth），是記者會上首名提問的記者。他先是恭喜蔡英文當選，之後提到，幾個月前蔡的民調仍然不穩，但中共對台的威脅加上香港反送中運動，是外界認為本次大選獲勝原因，他詢問蔡英文：「你會不會為了這次勝利，向習近平道謝？」
https://hk.news.appledaily.com/china/realtime/article/20200112/60476407
Some claim that the literal translation of 「道謝」by the press was improper. I am not a professional translator by any means, but a literal translation might be provided because it is immensely difficult to get across the full intent of the speaker with a few lines of text. Just the phrase "thank you" could be interpreted in diverse ways in discourse analysis. Interpretation and translation of speech require consideration of stress, body language, and social contexts. If the reporters above provided a connotative translation, the language used would be subjective as it would directly reflect what the translator believes to be the speaker's intentional meaning. Thus, a full video of the press conference was included in nearly every one of the reports to provide readers with additional context. Journalists also have pragmatic concerns (reach, readership), so the language used has to be specific, emphatic, and concise. These reasons might offer some insight on why「道謝」was used instead of a connotative translation.
