Women’s
Refugee Commission urges that displaced persons with disabilities be recognized
for their capacities and determination to overcome the odds.
 |
| Dahabo Hassan Maow |
New
York, NY, April 16, 2013 – The Women’s Refugee Commission is honoring refugees
with disabilities from two of the world’s hotspots – Somalia and South Sudan –
at its 2013 Voices of Coverage Awards Luncheon on May 2 in New York City. The
Government of Australia will also be recognized for its leadership supporting
initiatives that develop the capacity of persons with disabilities to lead full
lives and make meaningful contributions to their communities.
At
age 14, Dahabo Hassan Maow, lost her leg in rebel crossfire on the way home
from the market. Escaping her war-torn country of Somalia, she was unable to
get the assistance she needed at two refugee camps in Kenya – standing in line
for food and walking long distances for water was virtually impossible with
only one leg. But Ms. Maow was determined. She was finally referred to Heshima
Kenya, an organization that protects unaccompanied refugee youth in Nairobi.
There, she founded an entrepreneurship-training program to help vulnerable
girls learn a trade – textile design and production – that they can use to make
a living. Now resettled in Minnesota, Ms. Maow serves as an ambassador for
Heshima Kenya.
“My
advice to women and girls with disabilities is to learn a valuable skill so
they can get the respect and credibility they deserve,” said Ms. Maow. “If
women and girls can work, they will never be without a place to sleep, food to
eat or water to drink.”
Atim
Caroline Ogwang, from South Sudan, lost her hearing in a Ugandan refugee camp
when she was five years old because she was hungry. As she was searching for
food in the bush, ammunition left under a tree exploded, leaving her
traumatized and deaf. At age 16, along with a group of deaf South Sudanese
refugees, Ms. Ogwang founded the nongovernmental organization South Sudanese
Deaf Development Concern. At her organization, she currently focuses on improving
access to education and employment for women and girls who are deaf and hard of
hearing. Ms. Ogwang’s goal is to qualify as a lawyer and become the first
female Member of Parliament in Africa with a hearing impairment.
“We
need to establish a foundation for the next generation of women and girls to be
seen first as people and second as people with disabilities,” said Ms. Ogwang.
“I
want to show the women and girls of Africa that having a disability does not
end your life.”
AusAID,
Australia’s overseas aid program, is a recognized leader in championing
disability-inclusive development and humanitarian work. Enhancing the lives of
people with disabilities is one of the priority objectives of Australia’s aid
policy. In addition, AusAID’s humanitarian work is fundamental to supporting
the broader purpose of the country’s aid program – to help people overcome
poverty. AusAID believes that poverty reduction can only be achieved if it
reaches and benefits many of the world’s most vulnerable – including people with
disabilities.
The
Women’s Refugee Commission’s Disability Program seeks to advance the rights and
dignity of refugees with disabilities. Our global research report was the first
to address the critical needs of neglected population. We hold consultations
with refugees with disabilities and include them in training and planning
workshops for humanitarian agencies, NGO partners and disability organizations
around the world. In fact, the Women’s Refugee Commission has just returned
from Lebanon where we met with Syrian refugees with newly acquired physical
injuries from the conflict as well as persons with developmental delays,
hearing and vision impairments. While in the field, we met with humanitarian
agencies and local organizations who work with these populations to ensure
their inclusion in all aid programs and services.
According
to the World Health Organization, an estimated 15 percent of any population is
made up of persons with disabilities, with higher proportions in communities
that have fled war or natural disasters. This means as many as 6.5 million of
the world’s 43.5 million people displaced by conflict live with disabilities.
These
individuals are among the most vulnerable and socially excluded groups inany
refugee community. They are often invisible, confined to their shelters.
Manyare excluded from or unable to access humanitarian aid programs because
ofphysical and social barriers or because of negative attitudes and biases.
Evenworse, women and girls with disabilities are four to 10 times more likely toexperience
a form of sexual violence than their non-disabled peers.
Nancy
Deyo
For more information contact
Nancy Deyo at (415) 505-2200 or
Email: NancyD@wrcommission.org
For more information contact
Nancy Deyo at (415) 505-2200 or
Email: NancyD@wrcommission.org
————————————————-
The Women’s Refugee Commission works to improve the lives and protect the rights of women, children and youth displaced by war, persecution and natural disaster. It is affiliated with and is legally part of the International Rescue Committee (IRC), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization. For more information, visit
www.womensrefugeecommission.org
The Women’s Refugee Commission works to improve the lives and protect the rights of women, children and youth displaced by war, persecution and natural disaster. It is affiliated with and is legally part of the International Rescue Committee (IRC), a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization. For more information, visit
www.womensrefugeecommission.org
An Interview With Our 2013 Voices of Courage Honoree Dahabo Hassan Maow
 |
| Dahabo Hassan Maow |
Orphaned as an infant in
Somalia, Dahabo Hassan Maow lost her leg after she was caught in crossfire at
age 14. Unable to access sufficient assistance at the Dadaab and Kakuma refugee
camps in Kenya, she was eventually referred to Heshima Kenya, an organization
that supports unaccompanied refugee youth in Nairobi. Dahabo helped create the
Maisha Collective, an entrepreneurship-training program designed to help
vulnerable girls—many who have disabilities of their own—earn and save money.
She resettled in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 2010, which is home to over 50
percent of the U.S. Somali population. Dahabo is a role model for
the potential of persons with disabilities to lead full lives.
Where were you born? Tell us
about your family.
I was born in Mogadishu, the capital city of Somalia. I
never knew my parents or if I have sisters and brothers. I was an orphan from
the time I was a small baby. My mother’s friend raised me.
What was it like living in
Somalia as a child?
I lived in Mogadishu when I was a young girl. The war was
going on, but I didn't know anything else. There was always fighting between
tribes. Sometimes people got killed and there were always guns shooting. I
remember being scared a lot, but to me the fear seemed normal.
How did you lose your leg?
Why did you leave Somalia?
One day when I was 14 years old, I was with my mother's
friend coming home from the market. There was crossfire between two rival
tribes and we were caught in the middle of it. I was shot in my leg and the
doctors had to cut it off above the knee. My mother's friend was killed. I was
left alone in the house to care for two children. When their aunt came to get
them, I was left behind. I was alone. After that, I decided to leave Somalia.
Tell us about your refugee
camp experiences. What are some of the challenges women and girls with
disabilities like yours face in these situations?
I made my way to Hagadera camp in Dadaab, Kenya. I tried
to get the UN to help me, but no one welcomed me. It is very difficult to get
around a refugee camp with one leg on unpaved roads. That is the problem
for anyone with my disability. Next, I moved to Nairobi where I lived with a
girl who had a small business selling tea. She took me to UNHCR [the UN refugee
agency] for help, but they sent me to Kakuma camp. To have a place to sleep or
food to eat you have to go to the camps. There is no help for refugees in the
city, and it is worse for refugees with disabilities. At Kakuma, I got my
registration card. But standing in line for food and walking to get water was
almost impossible. The challenges are the same for anyone with only one leg. I
did get a prosthetic leg in Kenya, but it did not work and it hurt a lot to walk.
What is Heshima Kenya? Tell
us about your experience living there.
I went back to Nairobi and the UNHCR sent me to Heshima
Kenya [a nongovernmental organization]. I was the first person to live there.
They help support young unaccompanied refugees. The woman who ran Heshima Kenya
became like my mother. With food, a bed, water, health care and therapy my life
began again. As Heshima Kenya grew, kids came from all over Africa – I felt
like I had a family for the first time in my life. Heshima Kenya sent me to
learn tailoring and tie-dying, which is my specialty. They paid for me to learn
these skills and at the end of my schooling I got a certificate in tailoring.
What is the Maisha
Collective? Why is it important for women and girls with disabilities?
The Maisha Collective is a project of Heshima Kenya that
I helped found. It is a leadership and business management program for teaching
girls to learn tailoring and tie-dying skills. Many of the girls who are there
also have disabilities. During the time I was there, I trained three or four
girls. Today, there are 20-25 young women and girls who have learned this
skill. The Maisha Collective is very important for women and girls with
disabilities so they can earn and save money on their own. If they have a trade,
they will always be able to survive. Nobody will be able to turn them away.
When did you resettle in the
United States and why did you pick Minneapolis as your new home?
I came to the United States in 2010. First I lived in
North Dakota, but there were not many Somalis so I was not happy there. Soon
after, I moved to Minneapolis where many Somalis live. I believe that
Minneapolis is the home of most of the Somalis in the United States. Here you
can learn English, you can get a job and there are good schools for your
children. In Minneapolis, I am surrounded by my own people.
What advice would you give to
other women and girls with disabilities?
I would tell them to get an education and learn a trade
so they can earn money on their own. If you have gone to school or you have
learned a trade, you will have respect. This respect will give you more
confidence. You can become a leader and you will have credibility. If you can
work, you will never be without a place to sleep, food to eat or water to
drink.
What hopes do you have for
Somalia now that there is a democratically elected Somali president for the
first time in a generation?
Somalia is still at war after more than 20 years. The
country has been at war my whole life. But when our new president was elected
in 2012 we were all very happy and excited. We hope now there can finally be
peace. Many Somalis are waiting for peace so that they can finally return home.
What are your goals for the
future?
Right now I have everything I could ever want. A large
community that shares my culture and my religion surrounds me. I am working
hard to learn English. I have a husband, my first child on the way, a home and
a skill I can use to earn money. In the future, I hope to finally get a leg
that works. I hope to become better known in the United States and around the
world for my designs.
We will be
honoring Dahabo at this year's Voices of Courage Awards Luncheon in New
York City on May 2. Our annual luncheon helps us raise funds to improve the
lives and protect the rights of refugee women and children around the world.
An Interview With
Our 2013 Voices of Courage Honoree Atim Caroline Ogwang
 |
| Atim Caroline Ogwang |
Born in what is now South
Sudan, Atim Caroline Ogwang lost her hearing when she was five when
explosives left by the Lord’s Resistance Army rebels detonated when she was
picking fruit. She is currently human rights, sign language and gender officer
of a nonprofit organization called the Southern Sudan Deaf Development Concern
(SSDDC). At SSDDC, Atim Caroline promotes and advocates for deaf girls’
education, organizes deaf women to work towards self-reliance and
capacity-building and calls for the full inclusion and participation of women
with disabilities in international development programs. Among Atim Caroline’s
many talents, she advocates through a performance art called deaf story telling
with music.
Where were you born? Tell us
about your family.
Soon after I was born in South Sudan, my family became
refugees in Uganda. There are eight children in our family – three girls and
five boys. I am number seven. I lost both of my parents in the war by the time
I turned 10 years old. I was left in the care of my teenage sisters and
brothers, all trying to survive in a very harsh environment.
What was your childhood like?
Everything about my childhood seemed normal, just as
others normalize poverty, human rights abuses, neglect and oppression.
Abductions in the refugee camp were normal. Losing family members was normal.
Sleeping on the floor was normal. Waking up hungry and seeing if your neighbors
could give you something to eat was normal. I did not even realize I was from
South Sudan until I was in primary school and we were divided into Sudanese
refugees and Ugandan IDPs [internally displaced people].
How did you become deaf? Were
you treated differently growing up because you were deaf? If so, how?
When I was 5 years old, I had gone with some other
children to look for fruit in the wild – hunger and idle time led children to
do anything to find something to eat. I survived an explosion of ammunition
that had been abandoned by the Lord’s Resistance Army under a mango tree. I was
not physically injured, but the trauma stayed with me for weeks. I could not
speak or hear. I had pain and bleeding in my ears, but no medication was
provided to save my ears. Becoming deaf brought a halt to my education for two
years until a church supported me to join a deaf school. Unfortunately,
everyone thought educating the deaf was a waste of time and resources.
What are some of the
challenges women and girls who are deaf or have other disabilities face in
South Sudan?
Women and girls with disabilities face many challenges,
including lack of information and education, no sign language interpretation services,
and even parental neglect. Many girls with disabilities get pregnant outside of
marriage and live with their parents. Most deaf girls and women have not
completed secondary school education. More than 80 percent have jobs such as
cleaning offices and doing washing or domestic chores. Girls who are blind
suffer stress walking to school because of the traffic on the roads. In
addition, there is a lack of services such as computer technology for the
blind.
Why did you found the
Southern Sudan Death Development Concern (SSDDC)? Tell us about your NGO.
We founded the SSDDC NGO because we were not happy with
the National Sudanese Deaf Association – they never developed sign language for
the deaf in Southern Sudan. Our NGO provides sign language training, adult
literacy in the deaf community, vocational training, deaf rights advocacy in
education, representation in government and access to information. We also try
to help deaf refugees in other countries to find their parents. We coordinate
these activities with War Disabled, Widows, and Orphans Commission and the
Ministry of Gender, Child and Social Welfare.
Tell us about your job at
SSDDC.
Before my current job, I was an advocate for deaf
education in Pariliament. I worked to get sign language, human rights for deaf
children and deaf literacy education issue included in the South Sudan
Constitution. Now, I am the Human Rights, Sign Language and Gender Officer. I
advocate for deaf girls' education, organize deaf women to work towards
self-reliance and share ideas about the right of inclusion and participation of
women with disabilities in international development programs. Today there are
many women's organizations that include women with disabilities in their
agenda. It is challenging, but they respect me because I believe in myself and
advocate without fear.
Your work is rights-based and
focused on inclusion. Why is this important for women and girls with
disabilities?
It is important to include women and girls with
disabilities because even with affirmative action there is a tendency to forget
the needs of women with disabilities. They cannot compete in the normal job
market, and this causes discrimination. The poorest of the poor are women with
disabilities. The least educated are women with disabilities. When girls get
scholarships, those with disabilities are not considered. Support for women to
become self-reliant exists but programs do not consider women with
disabilities. This is what needs correction.
What advice would you give
women and girls who are deaf or have other disabilities?
My advice for women and girls with hearing impairments is
to stand up for your rights. If it doesn't happen for us now, we need to fight
for the generation that comes after us. We need to establish the foundation so
that women and girls will be seen as people first and second as a person with a
disability. Get an education if you have the chance. Help our leaders see that
we are interested in studying and encourage young girls to go to school. No one
wants to be discriminated against.
What is life like in South
Sudan now that it is an independent nation?
Most important, we are now free. What is missing is the
belief in the capacity of persons with disabilities and women with
disabilities. Because war is possible again, there is a lack of services. NGOs
have programs and activities for regular people, but not for those with
disabilities to become self-reliant or start businesses of their own. There is
a high illiteracy level among persons with disabilities because of the war.
What role do you believe
women and girls should have in South Sudan's future?
Women and girls are central to the development of South
Sudan. They should be able to compete for jobs, set up their own businesses and
have families. Women and girls with disabilities should even teach normal
people and become caretakers of the people who now take care of them.
What are your goals for the
future?
My goal is to become a lawyer and to use my education to
advocate for the rights of persons with disabilities across the African
continent. I want to lead by example to show others that having a disability
does not end your life. I believe I will be the first female Member of
Parliament in Africa with a hearing impairment
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