环球英语 — 718：Neema - A Centre of Hope
Voice 1
Welcome to Spotlight. I'm Mike Procter.
Voice 2
And I'm Nick Page. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1
Hezron thinks it is fun to race up the hill to his place of work. He has a big smile on his face as he tries to get there before all the other workers.
Voice 2
Hezron has no legs. He is what people call disabled. 'Disabled' is a word that describes someone whose body does not work as it should – like a person who cannot see or walk properly. But it is a word that does not always tell the whole story - as we shall see in this programme.
Voice 1
A few years ago Hezron lost his legs in a bus crash. Thirty people died in the crash. Only Hezron and a baby survived. Losing the use of his legs changed Hezron from being a happy husband and father to a man with no hope. He even thought of ending his life because he could not get a job. But now he is enjoying life again and is proud of the work he does.
Today's Spotlight is about people like Hezron - people whose bodies do not work as they should and yet they have been given a reason to enjoy life again.
How does Hezron race against other workers when he has no legs? We will tell you later, but first let us tell you about Josphat. He, just like Hezron, lives in Tanzania, in East Africa.
Voice 2
Josphat has been unable to hear since birth. Because of this, his family did not look after him properly because he could not earn money. He became an unhappy and angry child.
As a man he was invited to learn how to make paper at a place called the Neema Craft Centre. The Centre is managed by the church in Tanzania. After a few months he became highly skilled. Learning these new skills made him happy. He was able to earn money and gain respect from his family.
Josphat does not have a straight back. People called him insulting names. But the people at the workshop were different. They soon gave him another name. They called him 'He is able' because he had become the best paper maker in the workshop.
Voice 1
The Neema Craft Centre has changed many lives by teaching people new skills.
In Tanzania, disabled people are often seen as cursed – as if they are hated by God. But the people who run the craft centre say that disabled people are not cursed. They believe that God loves people even if their bodies are not working as they should.
Voice 2
One of the disabled women at the workshop has the same name as the centre. She too is called Neema. She was in her early twenties when her legs became infected. Her family believed they did not have enough money to buy medicines, so they delayed taking Neema to the hospital. When at last she did visit the hospital it was too late. Both her legs had to be cut off below the knees.
Her husband was so ashamed of living with a woman who had no feet that he left Neema to bring up their child alone.
She could not earn money because no one would give her a job.
Then she was given work at the Neema Craft Centre. She learned to make beautiful beaded jewellery. The centre also paid for Neema to receive special plastic legs. She can now walk with the aid of sticks. Also, her husband has returned to her because he is no longer ashamed. The family are back together again.
Voice 1
Another disabled person at the centre is Stephen. He can use only one hand – the other arm does not work. The people who train the workers did not think Stephen would be able to learn the skills needed. The work involves making small and complex things, such as beautiful jewellery that people wear round their necks and wrists. But Stephen did not give up. He tried and tried and began to make good jewellery. Now that he can do this he is able to earn money. And being a skilled worker gives him respect in the community.
Stephen met a young woman and they wanted to marry. This is something her family would not have permitted before he became a skilled worker. But now they are married and they have a young child.
Voice 2
These are just a few of the lives that have been changed at the Neema Craft Centre. A British woman named Susie Hart started the Centre in 2003.
Susie went to live in Tanzania with her husband Andy. He went there to work as a vet - an animal doctor. It made Susie sad to see that disabled people were pushed away by their community and could not get education or jobs. She decided to do something to help.
Susie opened the Centre where many people like Hezron, Josphat, Neema and Stephen can learn to make craft goods with traditional African designs. These are then sold in the Neema Centre's shop in Tanzania and on their website.
The centre now employs more than one hundred people who cannot hear or who have some other part of their body that does not operate as it should.
Voice 1
In October 2010 a special day arrived for Susie Hart. She was invited to attend the Women of the Year event at a famous hotel in London. There she was presented with an award for the work she has done in helping disabled people in Tanzania.
Voice 2
But what about Hezron; how could he race other workers up the hill when he had no legs?
Well, the Neema Craft Centre has provided Hezron with a special vehicle. It has three wheels and is operated by the hands instead of the feet. This vehicle, and the chance to make beautiful African bags, has changed Hezron's life. After the crash that destroyed his legs he felt he was of no use because he could not provide food and clothes for his wife and three children. He had even thought of ending his life. He believed his family would be better off without him.
Now today, like so many other people at the Neema Craft Centre, Hezron has found that, yes, he is disabled, but he is also able.
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