Reference :
V-P-AZ-E-00732
Date :
25/02/2019
Caption :
Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. This man lost a limb but not stopped from aspiring to live an active life. To earn a livelihood and provide for his four kids, he had to start from scratch.
Confidentiality level :
public
Publication restrictions :
publication without restrictions
Description :
Growing vegetables, caring for a big garden, travelling across cities for trading, these are a few activities that kept his persistence alive. While still 22 years old, his individual potential as a young man was hindered from developing by the conflict in the 1990s. He decided that this was not going to be the case with his four children. Together with his wife, they devoted most of their lives to ensuring quality education for their children. Now it is time for him to pay attention to himself and get a more advanced prosthesis. Getting a new artificial limb for him means having a chance to go outside, meet people and regain confidence. "I often move my wheelchair to the main road and spend hours staring at cars passing by. It's nerve-wrecking not to be able to do anything. I can't talk to the villagers, work in our garden or help my wife. It's not easy", he says.
ICRC web site, article of 31.05.2019: Nagorno-Karabakh conflict: Landmines, a disturbing reminder of war
It has been 25 years since the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict first disrupted the lives of the people living in the region. The years may have sped by, but the people continue to be haunted by the ghosts of the time gone past. The most traumatic of those reminders are the landmines which continue to lay buried and undiscovered beneath the rural arable lands in the area.
Landmines are indiscriminate. They do not choose if the victim is from the military or a civilian. The ICRC mission in Nagorno-Karabakh has registered 747 cases of landmine victims, of which 59% are civilians. With a population of about 140,000, this number is striking given that most of the landmine survivors now live with some form of a permanent physical disability. The bitter reality is that these unfortunate people need life-long physical rehabilitation and care is hard to come by. Despite all odds, many people still manage to find courage to get back on their feet and aspire for a better future. [...] Out of the total number of landmine victims registered by the ICRC mission in Nagorno-Karabakh, 523 are still the main breadwinners of their families, while 316 became pensioners after the incidents. [...]
Landmine blasts affect everyone - men and women, young and old, civilians and military personnel. [...]
Incidents like these are among the top reasons for civilian casualties, along with the negligent behavior displayed during farming and travelling. The sad reality is that that more people have suffered from landmine explosions in the aftermath of the conflict than during it.
Resolution :
4587x3058
Orientation :
landscape
Colour/B&W :
colour
