In Somalia – a land torn by violence, starvation, Islamic extremism, and now its worst drought in 60 years – Dr. Hawa Abdi stands strong, providing free land, healthcare, and food and shelter to 100,000 people in need with her Dr. Hawa Abdi Foundation (DHAF). But in her ravaged country it takes more than a Mother Teresa to carve out this island of peace; it also takes a Rambo, and Abdi’s been called both.
She delivered a message of hope and peace at the Chautauqua Institution on July 28 as part of its “21st Century Women” speaker series. Her daughter Deqa Mohamed, also a medical doctor, joined her. Award-winning former NPR and ABC News correspondent and Human Rights Watch board member, Kati Marton, interviewed them.
In 1983, gynecologist Abdi opened a tiny one-room clinic in Somalia aimed at providing medical aid to women. Today she’s responsible for tens of thousands of refugees, acting not only as doctor, but also as a protector and educator. In 2010, when armed Islamist extremists arrived at her door to take over the camp, she fended them off: “I said no… this is my property and people come to me, not to you.” The gunmen backed down, and even submitted to Abdi’s demand for a written apology.
How has Dr. Abdi kept her island of civilization alive? Asked host Kati Marton.
“Necessity is the mother of invention,” she said. After decades in Somalia with no viable government, with religious fundamentalists and clan factions running the country, she’s seen the most capable members of her society flee the country, leaving only the weak – mostly women and children – behind. To her, she had no choice but to stay and create a society within a society, an island of peace.
“Most people fled for their lives and the lives of their children. When I saw those poor people who are very vulnerable, I decided to stay with them and to die with them.” Abdi believes that there will one day be peace in Somalia, whether she’s around to see it or not.
And it’s difficult not to believe her, especially when looking at the fruits of her labor: hundreds given medical treatment every day, thousands receiving free education, tens of thousands given land to farm for themselves.
This was done, for the most part, without the aid of the international community. To Abdi, it’s important that Somalia does not become dependent on the handouts of others. There needs to be investment in the resource-rich country’s infrastructure, creating jobs that will give the people the means to achieve peace, said Abdi.
Mohamed agreed: Aid should be “short and essential,” lest Somalia foster a generation of professional beggars. “Somalis can help themselves if we empower them.”
So then, could Abdi’s success be replicated in other places, like Afghanistan? wondered Marton. If so, why isn’t this sort of thing already happening there?
“I think you need a person like my mother,” Mohamed quickly chimed in.
Marton agreed that they were in the presence of a unique personality, but Abdi balked at this: “Each of us has the ability to change and to do something.”
Watch Hawa Abdi: 21st Century Women on-demand at FORA.tv.
Images: dhaf.org