True Stories

Moneh and Nhihan are brothers who have been working on carpet looms since they were four and five years old. They work to help their family meet their basic needs.'The health hazards caused to us are that our fingers are trimmed and we have to work all day long. Often for a couple of days in a week, we have to work for the whole day and night.Mohen often gets miserable and fatigued with the long hours of work and he tries to escape.Then the master weaver keeps a strict watch on him and never lest him move for three or four days...'
                                                                                                                              Nihanl, aged 13,
                                                                                                                              Pakistan,1999

True Stories

When they brought me here , it was in a taxi. I kept looking around , wondering what kind of work was going on in this area of this big city. Everywhere i looked, i saw curtained doorways and rooms. Men would go and come through these curtained entrances. People on the street would be calling out ,"Two rupees, two rupees."i asked the other Nepali  women if these were offices; it seemed the logical explanation. In two days i knew everything. I cried .
              Tara N ., a Nepali woman who was trafficked into India at sixteen .
                                                                                                                   By Daiana Tuica

NODIRA'S STORY

                                                 Name: NODIRA

                                                                 Age: 18

                                                                 Country: Uzbekistan

 

Nodira, which means 'unique' in Uzbek, is one of five children in a poor family. Every morning, after reciting her prayers, Nodira feeds the hens and goats from her wheelchair. The rest of her day is spent knitting for other people and helping her mother with the household chores.

 

Nodira has never been to school because it is too far from her home and inaccessible for her wheelchair. A local teacher used to come and tutor her at home and, as a result, she was able to finish third grade. After that, her parents moved to another town and the tutor's visits became more sporadic.

                        poverty Uzbekistan

Despite the many difficulties and frustrations that plague Nodira's life she is fortunate to be living with her family. The stigma attached to children living with disabilities, combined with the lack of wheelchair access in schools and the economic difficulties faced by many Uzbek families following the collapse of the Soviet Union, have led many parents to place children with disabilities in special institutions. In fact, of the 23,000 children in institutional care in Uzbekistan, 19,626 have disabilities.       poverty in Uzbekistan

 

These days, Nodira does homework exercises at home and reads as much as she can. Still, it is unlikely that she will be able to finish her primary education, much less attend university. While missing out on an education is a great disappointment to Nodira, her greatest wish - a true friend - can still come true. Poverty Uzbekistan

 

 

"What I want more than anything is a friend who also has a disability," she says. "Somebody to talk to that will not feel sorry for me or make fun of me, somebody who will understand what my life is like."  poverty Uzbekistan                

                                                                                                                 By Daiana Tuica