My husband visited Angola—a country torn apart by a long civil war—to try to bring peace. We traveled to Kuito, a town in which the war had been fought block by block. On our way through this bullet-ridden, half-destroyed town, we saw young and old racing to the center to listen to my husband speak. A huge crowd had gathered around the speaking platform and in the first row were mine survivors in make-shift wheelchairs. Suddenly, the skies opened and rain came pouring down but the crowd stayed on, patiently listening to my husband's words of hope.

After my husband's speech, I visited the International Committee of the Red Cross for Prothesis. When entering the low, bare bungalows, I first saw barres, in the middle of the room, which in another context I would have associated with a ballet class. But here they served as support for those who needed to learn to walk again. First, I met a boy, barely 12, living the rest of his life without a leg. One day, playing outside his home, he had come too close to a mine. Then I met a man who had been blinded when a mine exploded in the field where he was working.

A young Belgian doctor was showing me around. He seemed to know all the patients and told me that nobody would leave the Center before he or she was comfortable with their new prosthesis—a grown-up would need a new prosthesis every two years, a child every two months. He also showed me how various parts could be made from recycled materials.

In the next room, I saw a long line of women in wheelchairs or on crutches, some carrying a child on their lap. I thought of the tremendous problems they were facing . They were silent and dignified, but one of them, Christina, told me she was alone with three children.

This was perhaps the saddest and most difficult visit I have ever made. That is why I am so encouraged by the involvement of schools and young people in this pioneering project. I hope it will be a meaningful experience for all of you and I look forward to seeing your efforts take concrete shape and become part of the worldwide attempts being made to solve the problem of landmines.

—— Nane Annan, 24 October 1997

Click here to view some watercolors created
 by Mrs. Annan specially for this project.