UAE, Sharjah, July 2013: With the Syrian crisis degenerating on an hourly basis and 8,000 new refugees flooding across neighboring borders every 24 hours, members of Sharjah’s Al Thiqah Club for the Handicapped have taken matters into their own hands – and feet – by holding a ‘loyalty parade’ to express solidarity with the ‘Big Heart for Syrian Refugee Children’ campaign.
The walk was bolstered by a strong turnout, which got even stronger as curious members of the public stopped to learn more about the noble cause. The participants kicked off at Souq al Markazi, culminating at the finish point at Al Majaz Waterfront.
While tapping into the Ramadan spirit of generosity, the walk also thrusts the spotlight on the plight of almost 2 million Syrian refugees – at least 50% of whom are children. According to aid workers who grapple with the horrors of the conflict daily, many children have either lost their parents or become separated from them in the chaos of their hasty evacuation under heavy bombardment. The uphill task of reuniting them with their families is made even more daunting by the fact that thousands of refugees are still unregistered, while others have effectively lost not only their homeland and their families, but also their identities.
Mariam AlHammadi, Salam YaSeghar Assistant Manager, expressed heartfelt gratitude to the club’s participants, adding: “This is without doubt one of the most touching and inspiring acts of perseverance and courage in support of the ‘Big Heart for Syrian Refugee Children’ campaign. Syrian refugees walk hundreds of miles across unforgiving terrain and cross borders to seek refuge, and our handicapped supporters have put themselves in the refugees’ shoes by taking a similarly courageous walk. The message they are sending to the world is that with everyone’s support, Syrian refugees will never walk alone.”
Underlining the ever-growing support for the campaign, Sharjah Public Transport Corporationmade a highly generous donation of AED1 million , and SharjahChamberofCommerceandIndustry made a donation of AED500.000, which will go a long way in providing Syrian Refugee Children with basic necessities of shelters, education, health care..ect. With contributions of this magnitude, donors are putting the UAE at the forefront of humanitarian efforts to alleviate the suffering of Syrian refugees, setting an inspiring example for the Arab world and the international community.
Those who wish to make a difference to the lives of Syrian refugees can assist by texting the word “donate” via these SMS Codes
Etisalat: 2000 (AED10), 2002 (AED50), 2003 (AED100)
du: 9965 (AED10), 9967 (AED50), 9968 (AED100)
or through Salam YaSeghar “For Syrian Refugee Children”
Bank Details:
Account Number: 00344 3043 0012 (Kindly write the bank account number behind your cheque)
IBAN: AE5804 100000 3443043 0012
Contact: +971-6-594-1111/15/03