Jordan Times
Wednesday, March 22, 2000
NGO commits to living in underprivileged area to
understand needs of residents
By Dalya Dajani
MUWAQQAR — Operation Mercy staff are accustomed to disturbing scenes of poverty and neglect.
But late last year as they battled their way through the filth and stench at the home of Jamal, 23, Shadi, 21, and Ahmad, 20, nothing could have prepared them for the shocking sight that lay inside.
Each with a physical impairment that restricts their mobility, the three handicapped brothers huddled miserably on the bare concrete floor that was rife with dirt and disease.
The one-room house, void of running water, therefore no toilet, was left to the youths by their father who had remarried and abandoned his sons after the death of their mother, according to Wai Leong Ng, a representative from Operation Mercy.
“Suffering from malnourishment and neglect for almost six months, the boys' survival is miraculous. Our staff helped clean their home and a toilet facility was installed to improve their living conditions. The youngest brother, Ahmad, was provided with a wheelchair to help him move about,” said Ng.
But one evening after Operation Mercy's visit, Ahmad set off from his home in Dhuhaiba to Sahab, to purchase some food for his brothers. He was hit by a car and died later in hospital.
Helping the poor and handicapped residents of Muwaqqar, about an hour southeast of Amman, is the heart of all on-site programmes at Operation Mercy, a Swedish non-governmental organisation which is currently leading several community development programmes in the underprivileged district.
In spite of extensive aid and collaboration extended by the Ministry of Social Development and the Muwaqqar Municipality, this district of Amman Governorate still remains a frightening example of continued abject poverty and appalling living conditions in the Kingdom.
With its chief administrative office based in Sweden, Operation Mercy's activities reflect an interest in how social and economic conditions in Muwaqqar can be improved through community generated strategies that gear towards positive change.
Through the development and dissemination of successful model programmes, dedicated volunteers at the organisation aim to improve the quality of life of impoverished rural families in Muwaqqar and its 24 surrounding villages.
Staff endeavour to reduce the worst aspects of poverty on rural families and help them realise their potential to improve their own living conditions through motivation, conviction and hard work.
The NGO is particularly interested in focusing on the handicapped residents of Muwaqqar.
“In many places, handicapped people are treated as rejects in society. These people are entitled to a dignified life just like anybody else, so we should all work together to reach out and lend a hand to make a difference,” he said.
On-site programmes provide families with the opportunity to improve their socio-economic status, by building certain skills essential to acquire eventual self-sufficiency.
According to Musleh Khreisheh, head of the Ministry of Social Development department in Muwaqqar, 491 families in the district rely on financial assistance for their livelihood.
“Approximately JD22,000 is provided from the National Aid Fund every month and allocated to struggling local families,” said Khreisha.
Compounding the agonies of impoverishment is the high incidence of physical and mental disabilities among Muwaqqar residents. Falah Al-Jabbour, head of the local Community Development Centre in Muwaqqar noted that an official survey conducted by Operation Mercy and the Ministry of Social Development during the past year, revealed a high number of handicapped individuals suffering from either mental, visual, or physical impairments.
“There are almost 28,000 persons living in the district. Due to the large number of kinship marriages in this area and other external factors, an unfortunate number of handicapped children and adults are left in serious need of rehabilitative services,” said Jabbour.
With the assistance of Operation Mercy staff, the ministry's local department has provided a small, yet practical and effective physiotherapy clinic where patients are trained to make use of their limbs.
In order to sustain the results gained by the physiotherapy exercises at the clinic, families are also given tips on ways to provide therapy at home using household available items such as powdered milk containers and footballs as aids.
“We keep in mind that these impoverished people do not have the ability to purchase fancy equipment to treat their impairment. Instead, we encourage them to continue self-therapy by using alternative forms of manual treatment,” said Fawwaz Sharayha, OM executive director.
So far, the clinic has successfully treated 22 disabled children — another five have yet to walk without assistance.
Operation Mercy staff, who are mostly volunteers, pay regular visits to the homes in the district, listening to people's needs, advising them on adopting healthier living habits and encouraging them to participate in community development programmes.
Korean born Eun Joo Lee, 32, is one such volunteer.
Lee explained that in order for one to comprehend the problems facing the villagers of Muwaqqar, “One has to live among them and exist as part of their community, in order to relate to them and be able to address their needs accurately.”
For this reason, Lee has adopted the vocation to reside in Muwaqqar where she currently serves to educate women and children about leading healthy and productive lives.
“We are not here to change their culture, but if we see them do something that poses a risk to their health, we try to advise them against it and provide an alternative method.
“For example, I once saw an old village woman place some tobacco in a cut on her arm, which could have easily caused an infection. This is why it is important for them to learn about first aid,” said Lee
Having almost spent one year in Manshia, a small village next to Muwaqqar, Lee has gradually come to learn about the living habits of the people there.
Determined in her desire to understand and assist the less fortunate, Lee's will to persevere and cope extends to suffering her own difficult living conditions, while attempting to learn Arabic, fit in with her neighbours, and do the work she set out to do.
In the past year, more than 30 women from the area attended a series of 24 workshops and lectures held by specialists from the fields of medicine, social science and community care.
“A computer centre with seven computers was established in Muwaqqar last year to equip students and handicapped individuals with computer skills which they can find useful to find work. English courses for government staff are also offered in Amman to increase their chances for employment,” stressed Leong.
Three prominent initiatives that highlight this year's agenda include a water conservation and cooperative farming system, in addition to chicken rearing.
Hardworking teams from Operation Mercy, the Muwaqqar Municipality and the Ministry of Social Development have completed the exhaustive task of cleaning up an enormous water reservoir that was built by USAID in 1954.
Measuring 70m x 70m x 8m, the reservoir has a capacity of 39,200 cubic metres of water and is surrounded by 20 dunums of fertile land. But minimal rainfall this year, has left the well with only enough water for five individuals to use for irrigation.
“This year we are going to allocate 2 dunums of land to five local families who have shown an interest to cultivate and produce crops.
Some crops will be used for consumption and the rest can be sold by the families to generate income,” noted Khreisha.
The municipality is also expected to revitalise the use of a chicken incubator which proved fruitful for several families last year.
The incubator serves to produce a total of 50 chickens for poor families who wish to raise the poultry for consumption or income-generation.
Willing participants are provided with a loan to purchase 50 fertile eggs which are then placed in the incubator to hatch, after a period of 21 days.
A local villager will pose as mediator, to ensure repayment of the loan, 10 months after the eggs have hatched.
In turn, the money will be used to provide a loan to the next family who wishes take part in the scheme.
Operation Mercy will continue to work diligently with the Ministry of Social Development in Muwaqqar to help launch the self-sustaining programmes set for the course of this year and assist more families to improve the quality of their existence.