Ten
year-old Zaur was one of the children taken hostage in Beslan
in September 2004. His younger brother died in the siege. Almost
a year later, he was still withdrawn, avoiding contact with
other children.
From 6 to 26 July 2005, Zaur was one of 60 children attending
a summer Red Cross camp in Tamisk; 11 had been hostages. “When
inviting children to the camp, we did not distinguish between
those who had been held hostage and those who had not,”
explains Irina Tembotovna Kusova, from the Russian Red Cross.
“But we could not ignore the fact that these children
were psychologically scarred. That’s why we asked our
psychologist, Larisa Kudzieva, to come too.”
Another former hostage at the camp was seven year-old Mairbek,
who lost his mother in the siege. He had offered his pocket
money to the hostage-takers to let his mother go.
The first days of the camp were very difficult. Some children
were nervous about being away from home, some couldn’t
sleep at night and one child was frightened by the noise of
fireworks from a nearby camp.
“It was difficult,” remembers Larisa. “But
the camp counsellors and the children got used to each other
very quickly. The children’s psychological condition began
to change and they started making friends.”
Both Zaur and Mairbek became favourites of the other children.
Zaur gradually began to come out of himself, even giving an
interview to local television journalists about what he was
doing at the camp.
The children’s time at the camp was packed with activities.
Sport, competitions and outings will long stay in their memories.
On one day, they wrote their dreams on small pieces of paper,
which they folded and pushed into balloons. All the balloons
floated high into the sky carrying the children’s dreams
far and wide. On another day, they learned about the Red Cross
through games, poems and puzzles.
One of the highlights was a family day, when mothers, fathers,
grandmothers and grandfathers travelled from their homes in
Beslan to join the children. The camp was decorated with small
hearts made by the children and the day was filled with fun
and laughter. The families enjoyed themselves and some could
grieve together with camp counsellors. At the end, the children
gave a concert specially rehearsed for the occasion before drinks
and traditional osetian cakes were served.
“How can I become a member of the Red Cross?” asked
Irina Salamova, grandmother to one of the children. “After
today, I want to join this organization.” These words
reinforced how much the families had valued the day.
After such a wonderful day, it was a huge disappointment to
Larisa and the other children to find that Zaur had sneaked
on to the bus taking his mother home. The children missed him
and grew quiet. So everyone was delighted later on when they
saw him emerge from a Red Cross car with his suitcase. “To
tell you the truth, I missed you all,” he told them.
“By the end of the camp, we did not want to be separated
from the children,” says Larisa. “But we are not
saying goodbye really because we will all be back in Beslan
together.”
According to a study carried out by the Russian Red Cross, a
third of the 578 affected families still need on-going home
care and psychological support to overcome the mental and physical
scars of the tragedy. This summer camp is just one example of
how the Red Cross is working to provide that support.
As well as psychological support from visiting nurses and providing
computers to schoolchildren who are too unwell to go to school,
the Russian Red Cross and the Federation have provided funds
to improve facilities at the central Beslan hospital. The Red
Cross has also opened a community centre where some 400 people
can attend classes, do sport and other social activities, and
receive psychological support.
A year on from the tragedy, the Russian Red Cross has a list
of individuals and families who continue to need help. Staff
will work with them to meet their mental and physical needs.
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| Zaur
Dzarasov with his mother Emilia. Zaur cannot forget the
horrors of those days and cannot put up with the loss
of his younger brother. (p13214)
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| Mairbek
(right) and his younger brother attend the summer camp.
Mairbek's mother was killed in front of him. He had asked
the gun-men to release her and had offered them a five
rouble coin that he found in his pocket. (p13213)
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Larisa
Kudzieva (right), Russian Red Cross psychologist helped
the teachers take care of the distressed children during
the camp term. Teachers Raisa and Zarina stand next to
her. (p13209)
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On
the opening day of the Russian Red Cross camp, the children
wrote their wishes on papers,which they stuffed into balloons
and let fly into the sky. (p13208)
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Children
rooting for their team at a volley ball competition at
the Red Cross summer camp. (p13210)
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