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资料：Even as rich countries seek to rid workplaces of subtle gender bias, in many developing ones discrimination remains overt. According to the World Bank, women are barred from certain jobs in 104 countries.（1）

“Gender equality in labour law is associated with more women working and earning more relative to men,” says Sarah Iqbal of the Bank. Yet some countries publish lists of jobs deemed too dangerous for women （Russia’s 456 include driving a train or steering a ship）. Others stop women from working in entire sectors, at night or in “morally inappropriate” jobs （in Kazakhstan women cannot bleed or stun cattle, pigs or small ruminants）. In four countries women cannot register a business. In 18 a husband can stop his wife working. A（2）

The aim is often to protect the “weaker sex”. Some laws put women in the same category as children; they concern jobs seen as physically tough, such as mining, construction and manufacturing. Others relate to broader safety fears. In Mumbai, for example, female shopkeepers cannot work as late as male ones. Other laws are intended to protect capacity to bear children. “Such policies often have demographic motivations, especially in countries with low birth rates,” says Ms Iqbal. （3）

Restrictions on night work originated in England during the Industrial Revolution. B In 1948 the International Labour Organisation （ILO） still sought to keep women away from mines and industrial nightwork. Spain did not lift restrictions on female workers in mining, electricity and some construction jobs until 1995. Some bans on women’s work still in place in former colonies are remnants of the 1960 Spanish Civil Code, the Napoleonic Code or Commonwealth laws. （4）

Some laws are of surprisingly recent origin: Vietnam’s ban on women driving tractors of 50 horsepower or more came into force in 2013. But on balance, the trend is towards liberalisation. In recent years Bulgaria, Kiribati and Poland have removed all restrictions; Colombia and Congo have got rid of some. Other countries have changed laws in light of technological advances that have made many jobs safer and less reliant on brute force, or have seen courts overturn bans as discriminatory. C（5）

Labour shortages are also leading to change. When many male miners left Marmato, in Colombia, to find better pay elsewhere, female replacements were tolerated, even though hiring them broke the law. Similarly, when male truckers in eastern European countries that joined the European Union left for western ones, pressure to let women replace them increased. And the end of a ban on women working nights in the Philippines in 2011 was cheered on by call-centres, which need staff during daytime in America and Europe. （6）

Some sex-specific restrictions are called for, says the ILO, particularly in the case of pregnant and breast-feeding women, for example when working with chemicals.（Such temporary and specific precautions are not counted in the World Bank’s study.） But, concludes the ILO, blanket protective prohibitions are “increasingly obsolete”. D（7）

“But on balance, the trend is towards liberalization” （Paragraph 5） indicates that ____________.

A.Vietnam’s ban is a reflection of reform responding to the gender bias in job markets
B.making laws about restrictions on women’s work has led to liberalisation
C.more countries have taken measures to abrogate work restrictions on women
D.the ILO has led a movement to eliminate work restrictions on women

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答案： C

本题解析：

本题考查的是推理判断。

【关键词】“But on balance, the trend is towards liberalization” （Paragraph 5）; indicates

【主题句】第5自然段Some laws are of surprisingly recent origin: Vietnam’s ban on women driving tractors of 50 horsepower or more came into force in 2013. But on balance, the trend is towards liberalisation. In recent years Bulgaria, Kiribati and Poland have removed all restrictions; Colombia and Congo have got rid of some. Other countries have changed laws in light of technological advances that have made many jobs safer and less reliant on brute force, or have seen courts overturn bans as discriminatory. 有些法律竟然起源于近期：越南禁止女性驾驶50马力或更高的拖拉机于2013年生效。但总的来说，趋势是走向自由化。近年来，保加利亚、基里巴斯和波兰取消了所有限制；哥伦比亚和刚果已经摆脱了一些禁令。其他国家基于技术进步使得许多工作更安全，更少依赖蛮力已经改变了法律，或者法院推翻有歧视性的禁令。

【解析】本题的问题是““但总的来说，趋势是走向自由化”（第5段）表明_______ ”。 A选项“越南的禁令是应对就业市场中的性别偏见的改革体现”；B选项“制定关于限制妇女工作的法律导致了自由化”；C选项“更多国家已采取措施废除对妇女的工作限制”；D选项“国际劳工组织领导了一项消除对妇女工作限制的运动”。根据主题句，自由化的表现主要是保加利亚、基里巴斯、波兰等国家纷纷取消妇女工作限制或禁令，故C选项正确。