A、To honor Swiss heroes who died in the war. B、To show Switzerland was neutral. C、To pay tribute to Switzerland. D、To show grati

The worldwide Organization of the Red Cross stems from the ideal of Henri Dunant, a Swiss Banker. In 1838 at the age of ten, Dunant was taken by his father to visit a prison, there he saw prisoners chained together exercising in the yard and breaking stones along the road. This experience left a deep impression on him and made him determined to do something for convicts and slaves and for all those who were oppressed and deprived of their liberty. On 4th June 1859, while on his way from Geneva to France, Dunant witnessed the battle between the French and Austrian armies. It was one of the fiercest battles of the 19th century. Shocked by the lack of medical supplies and attention given to the wounded, Dunant decided that volunteer service had to be organized. He gathered together a number of women who attended the hundreds of wounded soldiers of all nationalities and helped the surgeons as best they could. From that battle Dunant determined to form a body of people who would rally together in times of war and attend to the needs of wounded and dying. Dunant held that a suffering human being should be helped for his own sake only and without regard to race, religion, or political beliefs. Many Europeans states supported him and 22nd August 1864 the first Geneva Convention was signed. This lays down that once a soldier is wounded he and everyone else who comes to his help ceases to be an enemy. A symbol by which the relief workers could be recognized was devised. As a tribute to Switzerland, the symbol was the Swiss flag which was reversed. That is a red cross on a white ground. So the Red Cross was born.
Questions 16 to 19 are based on the passage you have just heard.
16. What first led Henri Dunant to think of helping the oppressed?
17. What did Henri Dunant do during the battle between the French and Austrian armies?
18. What was Henri Dunant’s belief when he founded the Red Cross?
19. Why was the symbol of the Red Cross designed with a red cross on a white ground?