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Friday 12 March 2010

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Hear our Voices

A forum for people whose voices are often not heard, whose lives have been affected by catastrophe, be it natural or manmade. Many have been abused and denied their universal human rights; others have seen their livelihoods washed away by floods or lost to drought. Their personal accounts are a testimony to their struggle and their hope for a better future. Stories from aid workers offer a glimpse into the relationships between victims of humanitarian crises and the people who help them.

IRIN welcomes editorial and photographic submissions for inclusion on this page, reserving the right to select and edit as appropriate.

Africa

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more testimonies »]

Abdullahi Aden Ali, "From IDP to city trader"
		Abdullahi Aden Ali, 32, arrived in Bosasso, commercial capital of the autonomous region of Puntland, 10 years ago from southern Somalia. His aim, like that of thousands of young Somalis, was to go to Yemen and on to Saudi Arabia. He first fled his home town of Baidao for the capital, Mogadishu, but was again forced out when fighting between warlords intensified. full testimony
Josephine, "I won't leave until I point out the rapists to the police"
		Josephine*, 17, was living alone on the streets of Port-au-Prince when the earthquake hit. She lost the few belongings she had - mostly clothes. She now stays at the Jean-Marie Vincent camp for displaced families. full testimony
Mariama Adao, "We help each other... but it is hard"
		Mariama Adao, aged 40 and a mother of eight, makes the 400km journey from Matameye in the south of Niger to Agadez in the north almost every year to make ends meet between growing seasons. However, this year’s poor harvest forced her to leave earlier - and bring six of her children with her. full testimony

Asia	[ more testimonies »]

Josephine, "I won't leave until I point out the rapists to the police"
		Josephine*, 17, was living alone on the streets of Port-au-Prince when the earthquake hit. She lost the few belongings she had - mostly clothes. She now stays at the Jean-Marie Vincent camp for displaced families. full testimony
Arulamma Thambiraja, "I have seen things I never thought I would, so much death"
		This time last year, Arulamma Thambiraja, 99, was among tens of thousands of civilians trapped in Sri Lanka's north by fighting between government forces and the since-defeated Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). full testimony
Rohingya waiter Solim Ullah, "I live in fear every day"
		Born and raised in Bangladesh, 17-year-old Solim Ullah* is a documented Rohingya refugee. He has a job as a waiter at a restaurant in Cox’s Bazar, southern Bangladesh’s most popular beach resort, but following a recent crackdown fears arrest. full testimony

Middle East

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more testimonies »]

Josephine, "I won't leave until I point out the rapists to the police"
		Josephine*, 17, was living alone on the streets of Port-au-Prince when the earthquake hit. She lost the few belongings she had - mostly clothes. She now stays at the Jean-Marie Vincent camp for displaced families. full testimony
Karrad, "If I stop working, how can we survive?"
		Karrad, 16, and his family fled the sectarian violence in Iraq following the US-led invasion in 2003 and came to Syria in 2005. Although the Syrian government provides Iraqi children with free education in its public schools, Karrad and his brother Ali, 12, cannot go to school because they are the breadwinners. Karrad told his story to IRIN: full testimony
Ali Saleh Ahmad, "It was a hard trip with Zaraa on my back"
		Ali Saleh Ahmad, 45, and his family arrived in the Al Mazraq camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the northwestern Yemeni province of Hajjah after fighting between the Saudi army and Houthi-led Shia rebels in the northern Saada governorate forced them to flee their home in Ghafri village, Dhahiri district. full testimony

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