Canadian Aid for Southern Sudan is a human rights and development organization.

Sudan, Africa

London, Ontario, Canada | casscanada.net | cass.can@sympatico.ca

Revenue Canada charitable registration BN: 86394 8212 RR0001

Passion for Sudan Team

The "Passion for Sudan" team travelled to Sudan in January of 2007. Following are the personal reflections of Nicole Spriet.

It was difficult to try to narrow down one powerful moment from our trip to Sudan - there were so many. One of my main focuses was on interviewing women who had received goats from Abuk's Herd. This is a project that provides a goat or goats to families returning to their villages with no means of support.

While many of the stories we heard in our interviews were horrific, there is one particular story that stood out. We approached a woman sitting on a branch waiting for us to arrive - She was missing half her arm and she had plastic tied over the end. Her name was Alogok. She was a victim of slavery during the civil war. Her husband had been killed in the war in 1988 and she was left to look after their five children. She and her children had been captured and taken as slaves to the north.

Her time in the north was very difficult. She described it as uncomfortable. She worked as a servant and her children worked as shepherds or in the northern family's house. When asked about their life in the north, she told us they would go seven days without food. When they thought she and her children would die, they would be given food to pull them through. She worked 12 hours every day, and they would beat her if they didn't think she was working hard enough or she wasn't feeling well.

In 2004, she had had enough and tried to escape. Unfortunately, they caught her trying to get away and shot off her lower arm. She was beaten and tied to a tree in the bush, left to bleed to death. She spent two days tied to the tree in terrible pain. After two days, someone found her and helped her. During the night, she went back and stole her children. She traveled back to the south to the place of her birth. Can you imagine the courage?

She spends her days in the south trying to feed her family and take care of her children. For extra income, she carries water to sell in the market about 30 minutes away, walking back and forth 5 to 6 times a day. Someone has to help her put the water on her head as she only has one arm. She also collects and sells fire wood.

She was given one female goat in 2004. This particular goat has had four babies - two of which have died, but she now has three goats. These goats are instrumental in giving her some means of support. They provide milk for her children and she hopes that eventually she will have a herd and it will provide her some extra income. She told us that the goat has made a significant change in her life. One of the last things that she said to us was I hope you will be one of our supporters. All we could say was that we would try to tell her story.

This is just one of the stories we heard—many were equally heart wrenching.

Despite all of their hardships these people have so much spirit and hope. I cannot forget their smiling faces, their unbelievable hospitality and their personal strength. I went to Sudan thinking they would be the ones who would receive the benefits of our visit to Sudan. I came away thinking that we were the ones who did.

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