Refugee Camps
Hey all,
When I'm not back-blogging I am visiting Afghan refugee camps in the North West Frontier Province. (Four provinces of Pakistan--NWFP, Punjab, Baluchistan and Sindh.)
Yesterday I went to Khachi Ghari which is has been open since 1979. Its right in the center of the city, strangely enough, and its like a city unto itself. Its got 54K people in it, and it used to have 71K. The government of Pak is trying to close it (it was supposed to close April 2006, but no one has left.) And, if you look back to the Jalalabad pictures of the returnee camp of Sheik Mesry which has been chosen for them (the one that made me want to cry) you can understand why people aren't leaving the lives they've established here. So, again, the photos are out of the car, so as not to cause a scene, but are thus kind of blurry, sorry. There were so many children running around, and all so cute. But I sort of hate taking pictures when people are looking, since I know how it makes me feel, but I got one of these guys doing something with this wooden cart.
The group shot is in the clinic we run--a health education session. This clinic is where I literally had to take a seat. It was so hot in there. Its just a big warehouse with no ventilation. I had rivers of sweat running from all places, my head swaddled and hot, and not a real breakfast--just tea. So, my ears started ringing, and my stomach felt strange and my head felt floaty. I sat. I recovered. But now its a joke between me and the doctors--Kacha Ghari got me. I was saying I've spend August in Iraq in 130F weather and no AC, and played frisbee for hours in horrible hot humid weather, and never had any heat tolerance problems. But that Khachi Ghari, man, it got me.
We went to two other sites that day. A maternal and child health center in an urban camp, and an emergency obstetric care clinic. See? Work.
Today we drove 2.5 hours outside of Peshawar to some far flung refugee camps. They were all mud houses like this. Saw two basic health units, and one new maternal and child health and feeding center. At each clinic I'd tour of every room of it, and speak with all the providers and staff, look at all their registration materials, data collection systems, treatment protocols, etc., etc. Then, just when I would want to jump in the airconditioned car before I need to take another seat, we have a mini-party. They bust out the pepsi or mountain dew, and either mangoes, bananas, apricots, and crackers. They are so insanely hospitable and kind. It was great.
When I'm not back-blogging I am visiting Afghan refugee camps in the North West Frontier Province. (Four provinces of Pakistan--NWFP, Punjab, Baluchistan and Sindh.)
Yesterday I went to Khachi Ghari which is has been open since 1979. Its right in the center of the city, strangely enough, and its like a city unto itself. Its got 54K people in it, and it used to have 71K. The government of Pak is trying to close it (it was supposed to close April 2006, but no one has left.) And, if you look back to the Jalalabad pictures of the returnee camp of Sheik Mesry which has been chosen for them (the one that made me want to cry) you can understand why people aren't leaving the lives they've established here. So, again, the photos are out of the car, so as not to cause a scene, but are thus kind of blurry, sorry. There were so many children running around, and all so cute. But I sort of hate taking pictures when people are looking, since I know how it makes me feel, but I got one of these guys doing something with this wooden cart.
The group shot is in the clinic we run--a health education session. This clinic is where I literally had to take a seat. It was so hot in there. Its just a big warehouse with no ventilation. I had rivers of sweat running from all places, my head swaddled and hot, and not a real breakfast--just tea. So, my ears started ringing, and my stomach felt strange and my head felt floaty. I sat. I recovered. But now its a joke between me and the doctors--Kacha Ghari got me. I was saying I've spend August in Iraq in 130F weather and no AC, and played frisbee for hours in horrible hot humid weather, and never had any heat tolerance problems. But that Khachi Ghari, man, it got me.We went to two other sites that day. A maternal and child health center in an urban camp, and an emergency obstetric care clinic. See? Work.
Today we drove 2.5 hours outside of Peshawar to some far flung refugee camps. They were all mud houses like this. Saw two basic health units, and one new maternal and child health and feeding center. At each clinic I'd tour of every room of it, and speak with all the providers and staff, look at all their registration materials, data collection systems, treatment protocols, etc., etc. Then, just when I would want to jump in the airconditioned car before I need to take another seat, we have a mini-party. They bust out the pepsi or mountain dew, and either mangoes, bananas, apricots, and crackers. They are so insanely hospitable and kind. It was great. 
posted by Carey McCarthy at 6:58 PM
1 Comments:
it is breath taking how much that child looks like the land on which he stands. wonderful symbolism in that photo!! miss you. tauscher kids will be signing onto the blog now too. so 'listen' up for their voices....
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