Refugees have not only existed since the media started reporting widely about them. People have always left their homes. And this happens all over the world. The reasons are varied: hunger, consequences of climate change such as drought or flooding, earthquakes, war, oppression and persecution.
Years ago, we asked ourselves as the Miraherba family what we could do to help those in need. And we decided on an individual sponsorship model for Tibetan refugee children. In the following, I would like to tell you a little about the work of a special aid organization.
The Most Important At A Glance
- Since 1950, the Tibetan people have been persecuted and oppressed.
- Many refugees, including children, flee over the Himalayas to India.
- Shelter 108 supports Tibetan children in exile through sponsorships.
- The Tibetan Children's Village provides education and accommodation.
- Sharing can help give others a better future.
Free Tibet - Free Education
Since the military occupation of Tibet by the invasion of the Chinese army in 1950, the Tibetan people have been persecuted, oppressed and prevented from freely practicing their faith. With the popular uprising in 1959, a flight movement began, which started with the flight of the Dalai Lama and has since led more than 100,000 people, especially to neighboring India. The dangerous path to apparent freedom leads not only adults but also children without equipment and necessary supplies over the snow-covered icy and high mountains of the Himalayas.
During my journey through northern India along the border regions with Tibet, I was able to meet many of these people. They are mostly nomads who live in the barren mountains and often have less than the bare essentials to live. As a mother and grandmother, I was particularly moved by the sight of small children who, as refugees in exile, have neither a chance at education nor a future that is not shaped by day labor, poverty and social disadvantage.
Life In Exile
Maria Blumencron describes the lives of refugees in Indian exile:
"Since the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the Chinese have sealed the borders almost hermetically. As a result, hardly any Tibetans dare to flee. The risk of being discovered is too high. Most of the children currently living in the Tibetan children's villages were born already in exile. They too have refugee status and are threatened in their culture by Indian and Western influence. In addition, the generation of Tibetan refugee children born in exile is suffering from the cultural uprooting of their parents and grandparents: an increasing number of Tibetan families are in turmoil and especially among Tibetan men there are problems with alcohol and drugs. The Tibetan children's villages are therefore becoming increasingly important in terms of caring for these socially disadvantaged children."
We Help: Shelter 108
As a family, we have been giving a small portion of our well-being for years and supporting children in northern India through Shelter 108. The aid organization was founded in 2007 by filmmaker and author Maria Blumencron. About ten years ago, we invited Maria to give a lecture to us in Ludwigsburg. In her books, films and lectures "Flight over the Himalayas" and "Good Bye Tibet," she reports on the life-threatening flight of Tibetan children to India. Her organization Shelter 108 supports and builds aid projects for Russian and Tibetan children and young people and offers individual sponsorship models. In addition to building children's homes, schools and hostels, Shelter 108 promotes the survival of Tibetan culture in exile. Since its founding, Shelter 108 has already mediated over 850 sponsorships and offers sponsor trips to Dharamsala and Ladakh, where sponsors can get to know their children and the country.
Individual Support: The Sponsored Child Model
Since then, we have had sponsored children who are now able to attend school at the Tibetan Children's Village (TCV) and graduate from there. And this also applies to otherwise socially disadvantaged refugee children, the Lakhis. The Dalai Lama advocated politically for the Lakhi tribe to be incorporated into the Tibetan cultural sphere. This made it possible for at least a certain percentage of these children to attend the Tibetan Children's Village.
It must certainly be very difficult for parents to send their small children to the mostly remote TCV. But here the children at least have a roof over their heads, enough food daily and the chance of a qualified school education.
Our Sponsored Children - Chanba and Choeyang
One of our sponsored children, Chanba, is only 4 years old. His parents are nomads on the Ladakh high plateau; the Tibetan mother fled her homeland years ago. The family's homeland is at an altitude of over 4700m, where temperatures in winter range between -6 and -36°. With their meager income, the parents can barely support their four children and grandfather. The only option remaining is to place the children in the TCV in Leh. Chanba's two older siblings also attend the children's village. Our second sponsored child, Choeyang, also comes from a nomadic family who, like Chanba's parents, live 300 km away from Leh.
If Everyone Shares, Everyone Has More
Nowadays there are countless reasons, places and opportunities to help others. We are very happy to be able to support these two children and look forward to anyone else who would like to contribute to giving children a better future.
Information about the project and sponsorships: www.shelter108.de
