PURGING THE NIGHTMARES

A committed organisation is braving the odds to erase trauma from the lives of terrorised children

By S S Jeevan in Madurai

Malaisamy was 15 when his father died in police custody in Usilampatti, a small town in Tamil Nadu’s Madurai district. His mother was sexually abused and, with relatives and friends deserting him, Malaisamy had nowhere to go. In 1998, a fact-finding team from a human rights organisation, People’s Watch, came to his house to enquire about his father’s death. It changed Malaisamy’s life forever. Today he is studying law in Mysore. Thanks to People’s Watch, he completed his school education from St Mary’s, Dindigul, and then graduated from the Arul Anandar College, Madurai.

Established in 1995 to provide legal recourse to victims of sexual abuse, police excesses and caste violence, People’s Watch has been helping children like Malaisamy find their feet. During its fact-finding missions, the NGO found that children of tortured parents require psychological help for having been witness to scenes of violence at a tender age. “These children are scarred for life. Left to themselves, they would turn vindictive and violent when they grow up,” says co-ordinator C.J. Rajan. It was to address such needs that People’s Watch set up its Rehabilitation Centre for Torture Victims in 2001. Today, over 1,000 children have benefitted from summer camps organised by the NGO, where they get medical help and training apart from a chance to participate in fun and games, art and craft. Psychiatrist Dheep, who has used various therapies to help the children, says such camps act as “ventilators” as children share their experiences and thus unburden themselves. As one of them says, “We are not alone here as we make friends easily and feel strengthened by others.” Many like Prabhakaran, 22, who was booked for murder when he was 17, also receive financial assistance to complete their education. Some 25-odd children are today studying in colleges, thanks to the efforts of People’s Watch.

The going hasn’t been all that easy for the NGO, which is facing a financial crunch and allegations of sheltering fugitives. But battling against all odds, it has two relief camps today—one in Madurai and the other in Mettur—providing shelter and education to these troubled children. And, more important, returning to them their childhood.

(India Today, June 12, 2006)