‘Of all the medicines you use to heal, the most powerful is love.’ So said a patient at Sambhavna to one of the doctors. In sickness, suffering and grief the Bhopalis struggled to find meaning. Somewhere in that deep darkness, they found love. What can you do to help? Generosity and kindness aren’tmeasured just in money. Your time is a valuable gift and so is your voice in support. For the many ways you can help please contact the Bhopal Medical Appeal office on 01273 603278. To make a donation with a card please call 0800 316 5577. Or visit our website www.bhopal.org/donate/. Or write a cheque to ‘Bhopal Medical Appeal’, and post it to Unit 2, e Foundry, 8/9, St George’s Mews, Brighton BN1 4EU HOPE IN HELL THE APPALLING, INSPIRING STORY OF BHOPAL In 2004 two Bhopali women, Rashida Bee and Champadevi Shukla, were jointly-awarded the prestigious Goldman Environmental Prize and gave their entire $125,000 prize money to help damaged children. e result was the Chingari Children’s Centre. We are proud to support its work. Every day 250 children come to Chingari for physio- and speech- therapy, basic education, social and skills training, and to meet other children, play and make friends. Many children in the poisoned areas of Bhopal are born blind and deaf. To help them encounter the world we have created a special garden of scents and textures. Many children are malnourished, from poor homes where parents are too sick to work. So we serve each child a nutritious lunch. Chingari and Sambhavna are the only places in Bhopal where people suffering from the water poisoning can go for free medical care and family support. 10 SACHIN’S POEM neither friend nor enemy I have, nor fear of dying, nor wish to live. seems that while god gave me life he made me forget how to walk sure, he gave me a body, but forgot to fill it up with life. I myself have now forgotten whether I’m alive or if I have died. when misery is thought to be happiness and happiness sorrow, this we call everyday life. when my pain dissolves in laughter, this I call Chingari. the love shown by Apa and Didi* and all the folk at Chingari has taught me to love my life. 13 Minakshi (right) couldn’t talk or walk. Now she is a happy, noisy, boisterous bundle of mischief. Zaid (centre) and Sachin (left) are passionate about cricket and play all day but neither is able to stand up unaided. We have paid for Zaid to have an operation to correct his spine and he will walk again, but for Sachin there is no simple answer. One day he wrote a sad poem. 12 11 *children’s nicknames for Rashida & Champadevi 14 THE BHOPAL MEDICAL APPEAL 01273 603278 / www.bhopal.org / www.bhopalmarathon.org Registered charity No. 1117526 “Te survivors of the Bhopal gas disaster have turned the tragedy that overwhelmed them into a lesson in courage and love that overcomes all odds, brings healing out of horror, turns despair to joy and suffering to celebration.” e Bhopal Gas Disaster was history’s worst industrial catastrophe. 25,000 people were killed in the event or died later of their injuries. Around 120,000 remain seriously ill with no hope of being cured. It seems hard to believe there could be a good side to this story, but there is, and many friends have asked us for a simple leaflet to tell it. So we have made this leaflet, with gratitude and love, for our friends.
Welcome message from author
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Transcript
‘Of all the medicines you use to heal, the most powerful islove.’ So said a patient at Sambhavna to one of the doctors. Insickness, suffering and grief the Bhopalis struggled to find
meaning. Somewhere in that deep darkness, they found love.
What can you do to help? Generosity and kindness aren’tmeasuredjust in money. your time is a valuable gift and so is your voice insupport. For the many ways you can help please contact the BhopalMedical Appeal office on 01273 603278.
To make a donation with a card please call 0800 316 5577. Or visit our website www.bhopal.org/donate/.
Or write a cheque to ‘Bhopal Medical Appeal’, and post it to Unit 2, The foundry, 8/9, St George’s Mews, Brighton BN1 4EU
HOPE IN HEll
THE APPAllING, INSPIRING STORy Of BHOPAl
In 2004 two Bhopali women, Rashida Bee and Champadevi Shukla,were jointly-awarded the prestigious Goldman Environmental
Prize and gave their entire $125,000 prize money to helpdamaged children. The result was the Chingari Children’s
Centre. We are proud to support its work.
Every day 250 children come toChingari for physio- and speech-therapy, basic education, social
and skills training, and to meet otherchildren, play and make friends.
Many children in the poisoned areas ofBhopal are born blind and deaf. Tohelp them encounter the world
we have created a special garden of scents and textures.
Many children are malnourished, frompoor homes where parents are too sick towork. So we serve each child a nutritious
lunch. Chingari and Sambhavna are the onlyplaces in Bhopal where people suffering from the waterpoisoning can go for free medical care and family support.
10 SACHIN’S POEMneither friend nor enemy I have,
nor fear of dying, nor wish to live.seems that while god gave me life he made me forget how to walk
sure, he gave me a body, but forgot to fill it up with life.
I myself have now forgottenwhether I’m alive or if I have died.
when misery is thought to behappiness and happiness sorrow,
this we call everyday life.when my pain dissolves in laughter,
this I call Chingari.the love shown by Apa and Didi*
and all the folk at Chingarihas taught me to love my life.
13
Minakshi (right) couldn’t talk or walk. Nowshe is a happy, noisy, boisterous bundle ofmischief. Zaid (centre) and Sachin (left) are
passionate about cricket andplay all day but neither isable to stand up unaided.
We have paid forZaid to have an
operation to correct his spine andhe will walk again, but for Sachinthere is no simple answer. One dayhe wrote a sad poem.
12
11
*children’s nicknames forRashida & Champadevi
14
THE BHOPAL MEDICAL APPEAL01273 603278 / www.bhopal.org / www.bhopalmarathon.org
Registered charity No. 1117526
“The survivors of the Bhopal gas disaster have turned thetragedy that overwhelmed them into a lesson in courage
and love that overcomes all odds, brings healing out of horror,turns despair to joy and suffering to celebration.”
The Bhopal Gas Disaster was history’s worst industrial catastrophe.25,000 people were killed in the event or died later of their injuries.Around 120,000 remain seriously ill with no hope of being cured.
It seems hard to believe there could be a good side to this story, butthere is, and many friends have asked us for a simple leaflet to tell it.So we have made this leaflet, with gratitude and love, for our friends.
On the freezing night of December 3, 1984, a pesticide factory ownedby Union Carbide leaked a huge cloud of deadly gas over the sleepingcity of Bhopal, central India. Thousands died in themost atrocious ways.Municipal workers claimthey loaded at least 15,000bodies onto trucks in the firstthree days. Then the army took over.
Half of all pregnant women exposedto the gas spontaneously aborted. Thosewho came to term often bore babies sodisfigured they couldn’t be recognisedas human. As rumours flew around thecity, women became afraid to give birth.
There was little help for the victims.
Union Carbide refused to share dataabout the gas, claiming these were a
trade secret. The only antidote shown towork was stopped at Carbide’s insistence.
fearful mothers-to-be, pleadingfor help at a government hospitalwere beaten up and driven awayby police with long batons.
In New york the lawyers argued. Carbide said it was not to blame.The Indian government replied that it could not provide reparations.
Ill people were abandoned to their fate.
“Days pass, we have pain, fever, fits, nausea,breathlessness, our eyes burn, our limbs ache.Don’t know if we’ll live or die. I used to carrysacks on my back, now I can barely carrymyself. But so what? I have no family to feed.When the gas came everything fell, andeverything fell through our fingers. Before, Iwas poor. Now I am a beggar.” [Nanko, 75]
After five years with no help, a groupof eighty women and children walked500 miles to Delhi to lay their troublesbefore the Prime Minister, but whenthey got there, having braved desertsand jungles full of snakes and centipedes,and after passing through bandit territories,
the Prime Minister wouldn’t meet them.
Carbide abandoned its factory full ofdangerously toxic chemicals. Soon thewater of nearby communities began to
smell and taste bad. The very families hithardest by the gas were being poisoned asecond time. In contaminated areas manychildren were being born damaged.
THE BHOPAL MEDICAL APPEALbegan in 1994 when a man fromBhopal came to the UK to tellwhoever would listen about thesituation of the survivors.
They had decided that insteadof waiting for help that was never going to arrive, they would starttheir own medical clinic and give free care to whoever needed it.
Since even aspirin can violently upset peoplewhose bodies already carry a toxic overload,the survivors’ clinic would combine modern
non-drug medicine with Ayurvedic herbal therapy,meditation and yoga. There would be a medicinalgarden for growing herbs and for people to enjoy.The clinic would be at the heart of the community.
The Sambhavna Clinic opened in 1996, has pioneered successfulnon-drug treatments for diabetes, asthma, psoriasis and menstrualdisorders, and done important research.The clinic has to date provided freemedical care to almost 35,000 peopleand won major international awardsand honours for the quality of its work.
Above: View from where the gasleaked. The city lies dead ahead,its nearest houses 400 yards away. Scolopendra hardwickei can
grow 10” long with a bite that can kill a child.
The Sambhavnaclinic seen from
the medicinal herbgarden. Above:
a herbal harvest.
Above:Pathology lab
Left:Dr Qaiser
1 4
3
5
62
7
8
9
Related Documents
