Dear Michal,

please thank all at the village who made it possible for us to visit Malak & her family, especially Adnan.  I want to tell you something of our experience since it stays with me so strongly. I had expected to feel some level of threat entering the West Bank. I had imagined that I would be affected by the level of poverty and hopelessness that I found there, but I didn't expect to be so deeply moved by one family and their tragic circumstance. 

We got to Malak's house at about midday, to be met at the door by her father a slightly built man with the concerns of his family etched deeply in the lines on his face.  Malak's mother was stooped over a large drum containing stones, making bread for us. Five of the seven children sat on the stairs watching us with curiosity. They were sweet, playing and trying to get our attention, especially with the camera there.

It was dark in the house & when our eyes adjusted we became aware of a very sad little girl amongst the children. Malak unlike her siblings sat very still with big beautiful eyes that spoke of her ordeal. She watched us closely, but rarely smiled. I'm not sure if she was in physical discomfort but her emotional pain was clear. When we went upstairs the extent of her disability became very apparent. Unlike the other children who bounced up the stairs, Malak dragged her crippled body awkwardly. Her mother was keen to show us the extent of her burns and we could see this was difficult for Malak. How compromising for a five year old to be displayed this way to total strangers, and yet how else could we know and thereby empathize with her plight.

Her eyes were ever watchful and there was something vacant in amongst the fear. This for me was more terrible than her extensive scarring. To be witness to that level of hopelessness and resignation in one so young. The scars however were horrendous. They extended from her beautiful little face down to her delicate feet. Because of inadequate treatment the scarring had contracture which meant that the skin on the thigh was joined to the calf and had deformed her leg, leaving it in a permanently bent position. This meant she could barely walk and hardly stand. To see this in a five year old was awful. To imagine that this can be resolved with adequate surgery is for us all a human responsibility. Malak's physical condition can be corrected, if we offer her the appropriate medical treatment. Her emotional state requires that we act quickly. Apart from the trauma of the event itself, and the long year endured in pain and further damage, this five year old cannot attend school or interact with her peer group. What a lonely and painful start to life. She already lives with conflict, insecurity and the poverty that is typical of the West Bank.

Some may say with all the suffering around why support one child. I say here is a child who desperately needs support how can we not. When I looked into her mother's eyes I saw my own and the eyes of all parents who love their children. No difference between us. My heart broke many times in Israel and in the West Bank but I refuse to be defeated by this and what inspires me about you and your village is that you do too. Bless your good work and you can be sure I'll do my best too.

Much love Jutka Freiman

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The peace chains

Our visit to Malak
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