Paintings by women from the Yazidi minority speak clearly about grief, pain and suffering, says an art therapist with experience from the aftermath of the war in Bosnia-Herzegovina.
At Mission East's Civic Center in the Iraqi city of Sinjar, a group of girls and women sit and paint the assaults they cannot express in words. Pain over death, grief over missing friends and their own trauma after violence and sexual abuse.
We are known for providing quality assistance to people in crisis due to war and disaster. In future, we must have even more focus on sustainable and climate-adapted initiatives in collaboration with local organizations and populations, writes Managing Director Betina Gollander-Jensen in this article.
On November 18, 2021, it will be exactly 30 years since René Hartzner founded Mission East. Here he thinks back - and forward - to an organization that has the simple purpose: to help people. "We are moving in the right direction, the organization is becoming more and more well-founded, and the employees are becoming more skilled," he says.
"We just wanted to help."
Most people in the remote Palata Municipality have learned what to do if their houses and fields are flooded by meltwater from the Himalayas. And they know what crops can survive through the changing climate. All as a result of disaster prevention knowledge gained through Mission East.
A mayor of a Yazidi village was deeply moved during Mission East's visit: “We are persecuted, but the water from your project helps us to live and survive. Our greatest desire is to feel safe in our own home.”
