Princess: Stepping Out of the Shadows, стр. 33
‘That’s when we knew we must move the entire family out of the country and as quickly as possible. This happened only recently, and I am pleased that no one was harmed in the process. The family is now living in Jordan. Souzan is receiving medical treatment. The children are all in school, and we provide a stipend to Souzan’s mother for family living expenses.
‘I cannot say that Souzan will fully recover, for she is now withdrawn and only cares about her studies and being with her family. But she is now seeing a psychiatrist and he believes that she will regain much of the confidence she has lost, although her recovery will take much time.’
Lala and Shabane were clearly moved by Souzan’s story. When they gathered themselves, they spoke as one, saying, ‘Yes, yes. We will join your group, Maha. And we will do all we can to help.’
‘I knew your answer would be positive,’ Maha said quietly. ‘I know you both as compassionate women.’
Lala stood, and Shabane did the same.
Lala said, ‘Maha, I am very sad and sorry, but I can hear no more today. I am deeply upset by all I have heard. If your two other rescues suffered such abuse, I must postpone hearing these miserable tales until tomorrow, or another day of your choice.’
‘But these stories are not so miserable, Lala,’ Maha protested. ‘They would be much more miserable if we had not met with success.’
‘I do not deny that a rescue adds relief to these stories, but still, it is very painful to imagine any young girl undergoing such violent sexual attacks.’
‘I, too, have had too much pain today,’ Shabane added. ‘I must postpone added pain, my cousin.’
Maha reluctantly relented because she had been successful in convincing both to join the cause. ‘Yes, OK then. I will call each of you tomorrow.’
After the usual drawn-out goodbyes, Maha escorted her cousins to the door. She quickly returned to me, eager to get the pain out of her system. ‘I will tell you about the other two rescues, Mother,’ she announced.
I quickly stood. ‘Darling daughter, I love you with all of my heart, but I too prefer to postpone further pain. Your mother will find it impossible to get these stories out of her mind to make room for peaceful sleep! Truly, Maha, sleep will not come if I am subjected to additional stories involving violence against young women.’
Maha grudgingly agreed. ‘It is fine, Mother. Thank you for helping me with this important mission. And I do hope that you find it possible to remove these tragic scenes from your mind and sleep well tonight. I must go out now, but I will see you in the morning.’
While hugging my daughter, I gave sincere thanks to God that we were living in Saudi Arabia, a country that has not been visited by war and violence since the days my grandfather fought battles to bring Arabia’s tribes together as one. I did not wish to even think about the possibility of my daughters or granddaughters experiencing the nightmarish circumstances currently endured by equally precious Syrian girls. It is just too terrible to contemplate.
Despite my efforts, sleep failed to come. As I had known, my mind would remain centred around Syria and the despot Bashir al-Assad. I recalled Kareem once saying to me that the son would follow the father and possibly equal him in violence and that true peace would not come to Syrians so long as the Assad family ruled.
My mind then drifted to Souzan, and other Syrian girls and women. I became angry and disturbed by the events that were happening so near to my beloved country. All in this region know that the women of Syria can be dazzling, with their lovely skin, bright eyes, full lips and slim figures. But whether they are great beauties or not, no woman should be subjected to the kind of trauma Souzan suffered – men in power, who in this instance behaved no better than the most brutal beasts, should pay the price for such barbarism.
And so I spent the remainder of the day contemplating the incredible effect of war and violence upon the lives of innocent women.
Indeed, nothing a writer could share would appear exaggerated when it comes to the violence that some men enthusiastically commit upon women.
Although all humans must allow hope in their hearts, my experience with humanity and the systematic exploitation of women had narrowed my hopefulness into a sliver so small I could not feel the slightest hope.
Chapter Five
Kareem: A Kitten’s Kiss
ALTHOUGH I FELT the greatest yearning to drape a cloak over what I had heard of Souzan’s meandering path from loving childhood to her torturous time in Syria’s prisons, the dear girl’s ghastly experiences were impossible to erase from my memory. The morning after our meeting I awakened weary from a restless night. Yawning, I stretched my aching limbs and kept my eyes shut. I naively wished that when I opened them the world around me would be shining with startling splendour and the sorrows of the Syrian people would have settled in the recesses of my mind.
This was not to be.
During my lifetime of humanitarian work, I have heard countless tragic tales. I have spent many sleepless nights dwelling on the misery of those who have suffered intentional cruelty at the hands of other humans. Over time I have come to understand that I must not dwell too deeply on the agony of what I have discovered, otherwise I would sink into despair, limiting any ability to resume my work. And no matter what might be occurring in my life, I have always been determined that my work must continue.
When I finally opened my eyes, there was no splendour to see. The tales of the previous evening had displaced the glory of an early