He had travelled thousands of miles in the hope of earning some money,but 18-year-old Lin Kongming never knew danger was waiting for him.

He and six other migrant workers from Fujian Province spent 36 hours in Iraq as international hostages(人质). But luckily,they were set free last Tuesday morning,unharmed by the people who had taken them hostage.

After hard work by Chinese diplomats(外交官)in the region the Iraqi kidnappers(绑架者)agreed to hand them over to a local religious group.“The friendly relations between the Chinese and Iraqi peoples have played a key role in the release of the hostages,”said Foreign Ministry spokesman Kong Quan. China refused to join the US-led coalition(联军)in the Iraq war.

Since April 4,over 60 hostages from 12 countries,including America,Italy and Japan,have been taken in Iraq. Some have been released, others were killed.

The Iraqi resistance groups have started taking foreigners hostage in an attempt to force the US-led troops out of their country. As a result,many foreigners have left,fearing the situation will get worse. Some nations are also considering removing their troops from Iraq. Thailand has ordered its forces not to leave their camp and may bring them home before September as originally planned. New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark is considering similar action.

But Dan Senor,spokesman for the US-led coalition in Baghdad,said that it would not negotiate(谈判)with “terrorists or kidnappers” to get hostages released.

The seven workers from Fujian were set free mainly because ______.

A. they were too poor to pay anything

B. kidnappers didn’t know they were Chinese

C. China didn’t take sides with the US-led coalition

D. kidnappers were friendly to the Chinese

Why did the Iraqi resistance groups start to take foreigners hostage?

A. To show their anger towards the occupation of foreign troops.

B. To tell the world they would fear nothing.

C. To make foreign armies leave their country.

D. To resist the American troops.

The author mentioned Dan Senor to show the US ______.

A. wouldn’t give in to Iraqi terrorists or kidnappers

B. had enough power to station in Iraq

C. wouldn’t give up unless it could get something

D. had no plan to bring its troops home

The passage mainly tells us ______.

A. the hostage crises in Iraq

B. foreigners were not welcome in Iraq

C. the Chinese hostages were set free

D. keeping away from Iraq is a wise choice


D
Wives, children and parents left behind in the countryside by migrant workers need special assistance, a member of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference said yesterday.
Adult males moving to work in cities, is causing a challenge to the traditional function of bringing up children and supporting the elderly, said Shen Shuji, who is also an official with the All-China Women’s Federation.
Shen recommended certain measures, including a special policy to guarantee educational opportunities for such children, accelerating (加速) the establishment of pension (养老金) and medical care systems in rural areas, and encouraging enterprises and non-governmental organizations to help such families.
The rights and welfare of migrant workers themselves have called much attention in recent years. The government has made policies to protect their rights.
The number of children aged between 6 and 16 in this situation is more than 20 million nationwide, accounting for more than half of the country’s total. Some of the children have both their parents in cities and have to be taken care of by grandparents or other family relatives.
Without enough care from parents, many of them become problem children, Shen said. Wives left at home by their husband have to face hard work, loneliness and a lack of a sense of security. In many cases long-term separation ends up with divorce.
There is still no pension system in China’s countryside. Traditionally, the elderly in rural areas are supported by their children with low incomes.
But the exodus of their children has left many old people in a difficult situation. They have to continue to work in farms while taking care of their grandchildren, Shen said.
The country should gradually scrap (消除) the decades-old bi-polar system separating rural and urban areas, which prevent farmers from enjoying the equal rights.  
53.What is the key to solving the problem that wives, children and parents are left behind in the
countryside?
A.Migrant workers should have a higher pay.
B.More profitable policies for migrant workers should be carried out.
C.The government should try to make the countryside catch up with the city.
D.Everyone should give his hand to help migrant workers.
54.We can infer from the passage that ______.
A.enough efforts have been made to improve the situation in the countryside.
B.families in the countryside are often very large.
C.all the children can go to school before long.
D.there is a long way to go before solving the problem
55.Which of the following is NOT the problem of adult males moving to work in cities according to the passage?
A.The broken marriage.                           B.More problem children.
C.Lack of labour force.                           D.More deserted land.
56.The underlined word “exodus” probably means ______.
A.poverty               B.missing               C.absence               D.illness

Chinese reports say the country’s vast pool of cheap labor is getting smaller, which could hurt an economy that heavily depends on labor-intensive manufacturing.
The academy’s research shows that China’s rural labor surplus, the source of migrant workers for the country’s factories, is about 50 million people—far less than the previously estimated 150 to 200 million.
Jonathan Unger, director of the Contemporary China Center at the Australian National University, says fewer rural residents are willing to leave their farms today. This is partly because there are more employment opportunities in rural areas, and because agricultural prices have gone up.
“And at the same time taxes in the countryside, fees in the countryside have gone down because of new sets of government policies,” he explained. “So people are not eagerly forced in the way they were five, six years ago to leave the farm in order to earn enough money for their families.”
The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences says another reason for the reduced labor pool is the country’s population policy, which allows city residents to have just one child, and farmers up to two if the first one is a girl.
A UN study predicts that China’s workforce will reach its top in 2015 and then gradually drop. Some of China’s major manufacturing areas, such as Guangdong Province, already face labor shortages.
Some economists think these shortages are, at least for now, a regional rather than a national problem. Sun Mingchun, an economist with investment bank Lehman Brothers in Hong Kong, points out that there are still millions of people in China who can not find work.
57. According to the academy’s research, China’ rural labor surplus today is about _______.
A. 150 million      B. 50 million      C. 200 million      D. 175 million
58. The reason why many rural residents don’t leave their farms today is ________.
A. the farmers are older than before.
B. the farmers are lazier than before
C. the farmers have much more money
D. there are more employment opportunities and agricultural prices have gone up
59. Which of the following is TURE according to the passage?
A. A study of UN estimates China’s workforce will come to the top in 2015.
B. No a study shows millions of people can’t find work in China.
C. The country’s population policy isn’t a reason for the reduced labor.
D. Five years ago, few farmers left their homes to earn money for supporting their families.
60. According to some economists, the shortage of Chinese workforce __________.
A. is a national problem                     B. is a regional problem
C. is not a problem                         D. can be solved easily

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