Nelson Mandela was regarded as one of the greatest leaders in the world．He died at the age of 95．He became his country's first black president after 27years in prison．Do you want to know why he spent so many years in prison？Read more and find more facts．

When Nelson Mandela was a young man，white and black people in South Africa lived separate lives．White people，who were a small part of the population，were in charge of the country．At that time，it was illegal for black people to use the same schools，hospitals，and even beaches as white people．Mandela was lucky．He was one of the few black people in the 1950s of South Africa to receive education and become a successful lawyer．

Nelson Mandela believed that everybody should be treated equally．He joined some different demonstrations to fight against a system called apartheid．

Sometimes the demonstrations turned violent and in 1962Mandela was sent to a prison which was on Robben Island．But many people around the world campaigned for his release．Songs were written and big concerts were held in protest．Finally in 1990the South African President FW de Klerk--a white man--allowed him to go free．Mandela had spent 27years in prison and was greeted as a hero on his release．

41．After reading the passage，we can know apartheid is___．

A．a party

B．a demonstration

C．a song

D．a system

42．FW de Klerk is the person___．

A．who was in prison with Nelson Mandela．

B．who allowed Nelson Mandela to go free．

C．who helped to Nelson Mandela organize the demonstrations．

D．who wrote some songs about apartheid．

43．Which of the following is TRUE according to the passage？___

A．Nelson Mandela died when he was 90years old．

B．Nelson Mandela received education and became a lawyer．

C．Nelson Mandela was sent to a prison on Robben Island in 1946．

D．Nobody was willing to help Nelson Mandela out of pr