1. The passage summarizes the conflict in Sudan between the government and rebels in the south over control of food aid. The government uses food to reward its allies and undermine its enemies, frustrating relief efforts.
2. It describes how the government has organized some tribes displaced by rebels into pro-government militias and directs food aid to these groups. The rebels want food distributed in areas under their control but the government overrides this.
3. International relief organizations must give food aid through the government despite knowing it will be used for political purposes, otherwise they would not be able to provide assistance at all. The situation means people in rural areas continue to go hungry despite the overall famine ending.
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1. LYCEE MUNICIPAL DE TANDA
BP : 80 I Tel: 35 91 85 60
ANNEE SCOLAIRE : 2009-20]0
PROF : KOFFI Yao Jules
NIVEAU : TIe A
5
DUREE : 3 heures
ICOMMON ENGLISH TEST i
PART ONE: READING (40%)
Read the text and do all the activities that follow on your answer sheet (s).
Food for war
Sudan's fearful drought is over, but war still condemns many of its
people to hunger. Good rains this year in the north of the country have
produced a surplus of grain. But little reaches the war-torn south, and
what does is being used by the government to quell the rebellion.
Western relief agencies sped to Sudan in response to the countrywide
famine of 1984. They are now frustrated.
Road and river transport from north to south is unreliable, and
vulnerable to rebels. The few food merchants make big profits, and do
not want handouts to undermine their business. Greedy government
10 officials want a share of their profits. Both the government and the
southern insurgents try to exploit food aid for their own political
objectives.
For example, Juba, the largest town in southern Sudan, is now
ringed by camps of hungry people. They are Mundari tribesmen, driven
'S off their traditional cattle-ranges by the rebels of the Sudanese People's
Liberation Army, who mainly belong to the Dinka tribe, traditional
enemies of the Mundari. The government has organized the Mundari into
an armed militi~. -Now more than 40,000 of them depend on food from
aid agencies ' in Juba. When it runs short there are riots, which have
recently caused several deaths.The 8<11fe'l1J1mI/Jt'J JJNJJf'Il... ro"", l'U!'t~nJJ ..t.vw~h)t 1w.1~~
The rebels want food distributed in areas they control. But the
government steers the supplies to its friends. Aid has been given to the
Arab Missiriya, who live on the bo~rders of the south, and the Anyanya in
Upper Nile province, as well as the Mundari near Juba; these three
groups have formed pro-government militias. Some relief organizations
know what they are doing: giving food to the government's allies
because otherwise __ would not be able to give it to anybody. Other
less sophisticated agencies seem unaware of the game.
Since October 1986, several foreign aid workers have been
deported, radios confiscated, aircraft licences revoked. Travel permits
are strictly enforced; even the Red Cross has been forced out of
contested or unstable areas. With the general famine over, southern
Sudan is slipping from public view. The people in the countryside still go
hungry.
Adapted From The Economist (April 18, 1987), p. 46
2. COMPREHENSION CHECK
.AA-. Find the words or phrases in the text the meanings of which are
below. The~write down your answers like this: 6 - undermine
1- terrible; causing horror (Paragraph 1)
2- severely damaged by combats (Paragraph 1)
3- to end (especially by force) (Paragraph 1)
4- went quickly; rushed (Paragraph 1)
5- not trustworthy (Paragraph 2)
6- weaken (Paragraph 2)
A2- The words from column A are in the text. Match each of them
with its meaning in column B
N b 11' I 11 Curn er IS an example: -
COLUMNA COLUMN B
7- insurgents a- becomes scarce
8-ringed b- withdrawn or cancelled
9- belong to c- frontiers
10- runs short d- people fighting against government
11- borders forces; rebels.
12- revoked e- are part of; are members of
f- surrounded
B1- Among the options labeled A to D, choose the one that best
completes each statement below.
Example: 1 - A
1- The Sus:lanese people are suffering from hunger mainly because of
A-war
C- the drought
B- relief agencies.
0- Excessive rains.
2- The Sudanese people suffering from hunger are those living in the
A- north
f
C- east
3- The government is more concerned to...
A- fight hunger.
C- receive aid workers
4- Relief workers are...
A- happy with their working conditions.
8- always welcome in Sudan.
C - not always welcome in Sudan.
0- the government's best friends.
5- Food merchants see relief agencies as...
B- south.
0- west.
B- build roads
0- fight rebels.
3. A- their business partners.
8- a threat to their business.
C- good friends.
D- God's messengers.
6- The writer of this text. ..
A- denounces the Sudanese government's policy.
8- approves of the Sudanese government's policy.
C- praises the Sudanese government.
D- dislikes relief agencies.
82) Answer the following questions briefly.
7- Where are the rebels based? L.21'
8- Who or what does the pronoun "they" (b20rrefer to?
9- How does the government handle the foOd aid?
10- What do you think about the way the government handles the
food aid?
11- At the time of publishing this article (April 18, 1987), was the
whole country suffering from hunger? Justify your answer.
PART TWO: WRITNG (40%)
Choose only one of the two tasks and write between twenty (20)
and twenty-five (25) lines.
TASK A: Write an argument essay about the following topic:
"Should the UN prevent poor countries from buying more
arms?"
-
TASK B: 'These days, there's war going on on almost every continent.
Having /1
'Inoticed this situation you have decided to write to TIME,
which is an English magazine. You want to inform the world
about the consequences of this phenomenon and make
some suggestions to stop it. Write your letter in a clear and
. j correct English to increase the chances of having it edited.
I The magazine's address is in the box below.
TIME MAGAZINE, PO BOX 36819, London, WC2E 7YQ, England.
PART THREE: LANGUAGE IN USE (20%)
A- Write down the correct form for each verb in brackets. Write your
answers like this: 6-
Come.
4. On the morning of October 2nd
Vincent OUi, the deputy Leader of the
Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), was (1- lead) out into a clearing in the
Garamba rainforest in northern Congo and (2- shoot) dead, together with
his supporters. The bodies (3- leave) to rot for three days, to "(4-
strengthen) the sprit" of Joseph Kony, the leader of the LRA, who
ordered the executions. Mr Otti's wives were (5- distribute) among Mr.
Kony's loyal lieutenants. At least, this is what the Ugandan government
claims. The LRA, on the other hand, insists that Mr. Otti is alive.
The claims and counter-claims have (6-come) as northern Uganda is (7-
begin) to return to something approaching normality after the end, it is
hoped, of the LRA's 20-year insurgency against the government. Peace
talks between the two sides have (8-encourage) some of the 1m-odd
people (9-displace) by the conflict to live their refugee camps and (10-
return) to rebuild their villages. Curfews have been (11-abolished).
-8- Fill in each gap with the appropriate word from the box below.
Follow the example to write your answers.
Example: 7-g
a-from; boat; c-supported; d-teacher;
e-think;
f-with; g-of; h-fertile; i-failed; j-aid; k-
of.
The LRA hideouts in Congo are a long way away (... 1... ) Ober Abic, but
still the sense of exposure here is palpable. The village is (.. .2... ) the
end of a dirt track and the bush unfurls beyond in a pale sea of thorn and
scrub, fading unbroken into Sudan and Congo. The school is closed; no
(.. .3... ) is brave enough to take the post. The World Food Programme
(WFP) provides.the village (... 4... ) 40% of its food, in monthly handouts.
The rest is scfaped out in cassava and banana from what should be a
(... 5... ) land but is unforgiving; this year's harvest has (...6... ). Still, the
WFP reckons it can pull back in a couple (.. .7.. .) years if the LRA is
disbanded.
That is a big if. Defections make the LRA less stable. Mr. Kony may be
selling the food (... 8.. .) he receives to rearm. Uganda's president,
Yoweri Musveni, may also be dragging out negotiations in the hope
(... 9... ) smashing Mr Kony militarily. Some (... 10... ) the Sudanese
president, Omar al-Bashir, who has (... 11 ... ) the LRA, wants to keep the
fighters in play to destabilize south Sudan, if needed.