DOSH-journal

Tamara
AKHTAEVA

We live, although not all of our fellow citizens realize it, in wartime, that is, we are experiencing an era of disasters and losses. But even against their, alas, almost familiar background, there are the most bitter phenomena, those that even the hardest heart could not get used to. Innocent, defenseless people, including many children and teenagers, are killed and injured by mine explosions, terrorist attacks and other murderous acts of various forces.

There is no excuse for a child who was born into this world completely full-fledged and healthy, so that, as a result of strife between adults, in an instant, once and for all, lose his arms, legs, eyes and remain disabled for the rest of his life. No matter whose fault this happens: whether it is terrorists, atheists, incompetent politicians or military men who remember the need to protect civilians at the last moment, when they can no longer change anything, and even if they can, they don’t always want to.

And so the children become crippled. No matter what they are promised later, no matter where they are taken, their hands, feet, and eyes will never be returned to them by any means. What was taken from them is irreplaceable. It will be years before they are even provided with psychological rehabilitation. And there is no such guarantee...

Can a mother who raised a child and lost him forever be consoled? A child is a priceless gift from God, how dare people take it away?

For a mother, all her children are equal. She loves and cares about them equally, which cannot be said about our powers that be: after the next terrorist attack, they make pompous speeches in the media about protection, care, rehabilitation, promise compensation to the victims, but when it comes to action, they immediately make themselves felt selective approach.

Why are the injured children of one federal state, but different subjects of this federation, treated differently? How can we explain that this difference so clearly depends on the nationality of the victims or, if you like, on the territory in which they live? No matter how much you struggle with this riddle, not only your conscience, but also your cold mind refuses to understand the attitude of the Russian government towards Chechen disabled children. The media prefer to keep silent about them, but over the past 10 years there have been more small cripples in Chechnya than in other regions of the Russian Federation combined.

There is no justification for the authorities denying orphaned and disabled children benefits for travel, education, treatment, etc. only because they became disabled as a result of military operations, which are not recognized as such, but are called an anti-terrorist operation. Due to this terminological incident, benefits are not provided for them.

How can we not say a big thank you to international organizations that provide support to children and adolescents affected by mines, land mines, and unexploded ordnance (unexploded ordnance)? In particular, the UN Children's Fund UNICEF did a lot for them. From the very beginning, despite logistical difficulties, bureaucratic obstacles and security problems, he has alleviated the suffering of Chechen children and women by ensuring that their most basic needs are met, such as food, shelter, water, sanitation, health care and education . Considering that, as statistics show, Chechnya ranks first in the number of unexploded mines, the comprehensive program also includes activities related to mine protection.

Thus, on August 21, 2001, in order to provide assistance to children and adolescents who suffered during military operations in the Chechen Republic, as well as to support their families, the Regional Public Charitable Organization “Save the Generation” was created and registered.

The rehabilitation center "Save the Generation" is an executive partner of the United Nations Children's Fund "UNICEF" on the mine action program and the World Health Organization ("WHO") on psycho-social and physical rehabilitation.

The organization was created literally from scratch - in the Bella tent camp in the city of Nazran - through the efforts of coordinators Zarema Sadulayeva, Roza Iznaurova, Murat Muradov and Beslan Gaitiev - they, despite the difficulties, managed to organize work and provide all possible assistance to the disabled. At first, there were about forty children attending the center. In September 2002, the center moved to the city of Grozny, and the number of children undergoing rehabilitation here today is already approaching two hundred.

Children and teenagers of different ages come to the center, but almost all of them have a very difficult fate.

At first, they are very closed, complex, even aggressive towards each other - this is understandable, because they have had to go through so much... Girls working in a rehabilitation center talk about this, those who completely devoted themselves to little disabled people who are in such dire need of attention and attention. care. Among these children there are those who wanted to commit suicide.

Psychologist Aina Vakhaeva, massage therapist Luiza Ibragimova, and organizer-musician Sovbika Bataeva deserve not only respect, but also genuine admiration for their selfless fidelity to duty, professionalism and spiritual generosity. They manage to soften the suffering of children, diversify their difficult life, and even bring joy into it.

Of course, all this is not achieved immediately; only after long communication, treatment, and hard work, war-scarred children overcome the psychological barrier that separates them from normal life. Over time, they begin to strive for the center, with pleasure participate in festive (and other) events, in sports competitions, overcoming pain, go to the circle of incendiary dance on stumps or prostheses, sing, write, read poetry, stage skits. Here everyone finds themselves in something, adapting to get by with one leg or arm, like Khavazhi, for example. He refuses to wear prosthetics, says that he is used to it, and in fact, he walks so well and so quickly on his one leg that people on two legs can barely keep up with him. He loves music very much. When Sovbika turned on the Karaoke center, Khavazhi sang a song, and then, blushing, admitted that he sings poorly, but it is the songs that help him forget, just as prayer helps him survive. Favorite activity is sports. In the local football team, Khavazhi is a striker and successfully scores goals with one foot.

“It’s hard to imagine, but when he plays, even we watch him with bated breath,” says Aina.

Khavazhi is shy, taciturn, and at first glance it may seem that everyone here is like that. However, if you stay among these guys for an hour or two, you manage to get some people talking. They are only reluctant to talk about themselves. Especially girls. They don’t like to remember what happened to them. Each of them has its own tragic story... You can’t tell them all, but here are some of them.

Aslan Saltykhanov was born and raised in a large family in the village of Shalazhi.

On June 8, 2000, as usual, he was returning home in the morning, having driven a flock of sheep to the outskirts of the village. But on the way back, he decided to walk through a forest clearing, which was about twenty meters from the road. I wanted to taste the forest mulberry... An explosion thundered, briefly stunning the boy - then it turned out that he had stepped on an anti-personnel mine. When I woke up, I saw that one leg was missing and the other was mutilated. Aslan quickly gathered his courage, took off his T-shirt and bandaged both his legs. He crawled for a long time, trying to get to the road, but in vain. Then he started screaming, calling for help. Local residents heard him and took him to the hospital. But alas: the doctors could not save the second leg, it had to be amputated.

Aslan attends a rehabilitation center, studies at Vladikavkaz College, and actively plays sports. Recently I took first place in arm wrestling. And among friends, forgetting about the pain, she dances her favorite lezginka on prosthetics.

It was the same UNICEF that helped Aslan purchase prosthetics for both legs. They were made for him at the Vladikavkaz Prosthetic and Orthopedic Center.

At his young age, Aslan is a real man, he is very strong in spirit, as befits a Chechen: even when tears well up in his eyes from pain, he finds the strength to smile.

Islam Zarmaev is 16 years old. On that ill-fated day, he was returning home from school. The day before, there was a clean-up operation in the 6th microdistrict, where his family lives. The young man went down to the basement, and as soon as he opened the door, a mine tied to it exploded. Islam's foot and left arm were torn off up to the elbow, he lost 50% of his vision and received many shrapnel wounds. The fate of Islam is also burdened by the fact that during the war he lost his mother, and a few months ago his father died from shrapnel wounds. The boy was left alone with his sick, bedridden grandmother, who requires constant medical supervision. According to the coordinators, Islam is in dire need of both social and simply material assistance.

Very smart, capable, but almost always sad, taciturn Islam loves to play and win backgammon, chess and checkers. And oddly enough, with a prosthetic arm, he is preparing for the barbell championship. With his remarkable abilities and perseverance, Islam could go to competitions and win, but he has no money for the trip, few of his relatives are alive, and he is proud and does not like to ask strangers.

Islam endures any pain - both physical and mental - silently, gritting its teeth. He hides his sadness deeply. And yet only a blind person would not notice how much sadness is in his eyes.

And here is the story of young Zulikhan. Persuading her mother to take her to the central market to buy a new dress, the girl could not imagine how this trip would turn out for her.

When he and his mother reached the market, planes suddenly appeared in the sky and the roar of exploding bombs was heard. Zulya was terribly scared, fear completely paralyzed her for a while, and she hid under the counters. The bombing did not subside, and the girl sat in her shelter, afraid to move. Suddenly another explosion was heard, but this time it thundered very close. The world seemed to go dark, she lost consciousness. And when she woke up, she looked at herself in shock and saw with horror that her right hand was hanging as if lifeless. And she's covered in blood. ... When Zulikhan was brought to the hospital, she was tormented by acute pain in her wounded arm, her head also ached, and around her she could hear piercing moans and screams of people who were also wounded in the market.

The pain was unbearable, and the girl began to beg the doctors to do something to free her from endless suffering. It ended with her right arm being amputated. After discharge, Zulya began to adapt to a new lifestyle. It was difficult, she went through severe mental anguish. But then, having strengthened her spirit and received a prosthesis, Zulya began to work hard on herself. And she achieved great success. Now she is a well-known athlete in the republic, she jumps three meters in length and has also achieved a lot in the hundred-meter run. At the rehabilitation center, the girl made good friends.

Now Zulihan studies and lives in Switzerland. Despite the kindness and attention of those who took in her family, she misses her native land, her friends and dreams of returning home to peaceful Chechnya as soon as possible.

The fate of the Gakaevs was different, but not easier. After the war, the family returned to their homeland, to the village of Andreevskaya Dolina. Eliza and her brother Idris went to fetch water. Idris approached the pump first. Suddenly I felt something solid under my foot. A neighbor who came outside at that moment shouted: “You stepped on a mine! Stop, don’t move!” But Idris did not understand, and as soon as he raised his leg, an explosion occurred. His right leg was blown off. Frightened Eliza rushed to help her brother, but the explosion occurred again, now her sister stepped on a mine, and the girl’s left leg was torn off. They spent a long time in the hospital together. Together we came to the center. Here Idris found his betrothed, they got married, and they have a son. Eliza is the leader of the center; she helps its staff in working with children. Now Eliza is preparing for a serious operation. God grant that everything ends well for her.

Everyone described here, like many others, completed a rehabilitation course at the “Save the Generation” center. The center is mainly visited by children with injuries caused by mine explosions.

Forty percent of these children are amputees, ten of them without both legs, two boys without both hands, one teenager lost his arms and one leg, and seven-year-old Asya became blind and lost both arms. Twenty percent are children with traumatic brain injuries - these are the most severe patients requiring the longest treatment. The rest of the children have shrapnel wounds, some in severe and some in milder forms.

Psychologist Aina says that the most severe complexes are in children who have experienced amputation. You have to work with them very long and hard, looking for an individual approach to each.

“It’s difficult to lure these guys into the gym or for a massage,” complains massage therapist Louise. “In each case, you need to carefully understand what is useful and what can be harmful; you must first consult with a traumatologist.” Louise knows who to give what loads. And he knows how to convince. Children begin to believe that exercise and massage are actually beneficial. Thanks to this, her gym is almost always full.

Children, without much persuasion, and moreover, happily go to the music and dance classroom. There Sovbika learns songs and poems with them, and teaches them to play the guitar. The guys even composed their own anthem. They also prepare for festivals and holidays. “Music classes help reduce aggression, mutual understanding and friendship,” Sovbika said at the end of our conversation.

By the end of the rehabilitation period, which is three months, the guys get used to each other, become attached to the teachers, and some even remain as volunteers at the center. Children with severe injuries are enrolled in a repeat course. Another good thing is that this is where some people find each other and get married. The center currently boasts three married couples.

“Three months is certainly not enough for children,” complain the center’s organizers and teachers, but in order to increase the course to at least five months, we need financial support, logistics, modern equipment and, finally, premises, since the house the center rents will have to be vacated in December.

However, we cannot remain silent about those organizations that have done and are doing a lot for the center. In addition to the UN Children's Fund, these are the English "HANDIKAP", the French "CPCD". Also, many thanks to the President of Bashkortostan for the ten wheelchairs allocated to the “Save the Generation” rehabilitation center from among the twenty he offered as a gift for the disabled in Chechnya.

But from the side of the Russian authorities, as already mentioned, we cannot yet achieve anything for the crippled children - no benefits, no compensation. But we still don’t give up, we hope that they will hear us and help us, especially after the visit of Advisor to the President of the Russian Federation A. Aslakhanov, who visited us with the children in Tiberda. He promised that he would help, that he would do everything in his power.

“As for the problem of the premises, the then presidential candidate Alu Alkhanov promised to resolve it, we are very much counting on him,” the center’s coordinator, Roza Iznaurova, shared her hope.

A low bow to them, to all those who work in the center, doing a truly good deed in emergency conditions. I really want to believe that what Aslakhanov said is more than words, and the promise of the now President of Chechnya, Alu Alkhanov, is more than election promises.