Out Run EBOLA: awareness/protection for children

On June 27, 2016, Mrs. Michelle Obama, her mother and two daughters visited Liberia and had a Round Table discussion with 20 adolescent girls, 3 of whom were from THINK. The rest of the 17 girls came from USAID and Peace Corps projects as well as girls from two boarding schools.

The girls talked about challenges they face in being able to go to school and growing up in a developing country in sub-Sahara Africa. They are challenged with harmful traditional practices such as early marriage, teenage pregnancy and Female Genital Cutting (FGC). Some of them engage in transactional sex in order to raise money to support themselves in school.

The girls shared their dreams are and hopes of having more girls getting the opportunity to attend school under the “Let Girls Learn Project” that Mrs. Obama initiated. The girls also thanked the Peace Corps for coming to Liberia to help them with lessons especially in Math that they find difficult to understand.

The Peace Corps in Liberia have been very instrumental in helping girls with tutorial classes at various rural schools and Advancing Youth Program sites implemented by United States Agency For International Development (USAID). CNN journalists are developing a documentary of the stories of 5 of the girls. The documentary will come out in the near future.    

• 15 children affected by Ebola that participated in the retreat sessions offered by THINK, benefitted from the $150.00 per child, Cash Transfer Program at the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection this quarter. This will help parents and caregivers of the kids to get them into school. There are still 22 others that remain to get their assistance package. The one child that was brought back to THINK has been placed with foster parents 
• THINK Safe Home provided services to 13 survivors, 3 new cases of sexual violence and 10 girls who are victims of human trafficking.  The THINK Juvenile Transit Center provided shelter and services to 6 children that came in contact or conflict with the law. The two shelters served 52 children, 9 reunified, the safe home had 16 and the Juvenile transit Center had 27 children during the quarter. There are presently 43 survivors in the two shelters.
• All of the children received initial medical assessment and had follow up medical visits and follow up visits to the police at the offices of the Women and Children’s Protection Section (WACPS), Central Police Station.
• THINK is taking on the operations of 3 additional safe homes in rural Liberia (Nimba, Margibi and Grand Bassa) with funding from UNFPA
• Clinical management and treatment provided for 121 children (3 males and 118 females) at two One Stop Centers for Sexual Violence supervised by THINK during this quarter.

THINK is providing Diversion Rehabilitation for one girl in Cycle 12 this year. This is her story as told by her.

“I am 18 years old. Both of my parents are from Bong County. My family and I lived in a village called Weala. In 2014, one of my aunt’s friends came to visit from Monrovia. When it was time for her to return to Monrovia, she asked my parents to allow her to bring me to live with her so that she could to send me to school. My parents agreed immediately. One year after that, I ran away from the woman’s home and went back to the village. She later followed me in the village and turned me over to my family because she did not want me to put her in trouble. They immediately registered me in school. I started school and everything went well for me for some time.

During the Ebola outbreak, my aunt died. We were told that her death was the result of the Ebola Virus Disease. My little brother also died a few days later from Ebola. The entire village stigmatized my family. They called us Ebola patients. I decided to run away from the village and come back to Monrovia to live with my aunt’s friend that I previously ran away from. Unfortunately, she refused for me to stay at her place. I started sleeping with some friends that I met the first time I had lived with her.

After a few months with them, I came in touch my boyfriend. He took me to his place on the Duport Road. I noticed a girl was going out with my boyfriend. Whenever I asked him, he denied it, but they were always together. One afternoon, I came from out I met them together but he continued to tell me that there was nothing going on between them. I really got angry and the girl and I got into a fight. My boyfriend came between us but instead of being neutral he started to beat on me. I was so furious that I hit him on the side and he fell down. I then realized that it was the kitchen knife that I had stabbed him with. People from the community came to our aid and took him to the clinic for treatment. Two weeks later, he got seriously sick and died. I was arrested by the police and taken prison where I stayed for 6 months in pre-trial detention. I fell very sick in prison and early August I was taken from prison to a place called THINK Safe Home. I was taken there to receive psychosocial support, medical care and protection. Presently, I am at the THINK Rehabilitation and Empowerment Home also receiving psychosocial support/counseling. I am in the ABE Level 2 and learning how to sew. Before coming to the THINK Home I was always sad and felling guilty and was always grieving.  I was never focused. Now, I am happy, felling free and relaxed in my mind not grieving like before. I have not seen my parents since I ran from my village during the Ebola crisis. I really miss them. I want to see them and explain everything to them. I pray to improve in skills and education so that after graduation from THINK, I will be able make use of the skills I acquired.”

THINK Liberia is very grateful to all our donors around the world that partner with us to serve children in Liberia. THANK YOU!

Links:

• http://www.thinkliberia.com/