PHOTO ESSAY: The show goes on
Getting creative to eradicate polio in Afghanistan
By Celeste Hibbert
KABUL, Afghanistan, 7 November 2017 — “I am the king of this village! Every child belongs to me and I will spread my poison to a new person every day,” screams the snake, bursting onto the stage. In the audience, children gasp and jump backwards, their eyes wide.
Hamid, clutching his precious box of vaccinations, attacks the snake, managing to defeat him. The crowd cheers. “Vaccinating your children will destroy this disease!” cries Hamid. “Make sure your whole village takes these droplets and you will see how strong your children can be.”
This poisonous snake represents the dangerous threat of polio, a disease that Afghanistan is fighting hard to eradicate. Hamid leads a touring youth circus who perform juggling, acrobatics and theatre routines to pass on vital messages about healthcare and social issues to local audiences through public makeshift stages across Afghanistan. The circus was started 14 years ago by the Afghan Mobile Mini Circus for Children, a local organization dedicated to empowering young people which is supported by UNICEF.
The circus enables the children who join, often from internally displaced communities around Kabul, to learn new skills whilst continuing their education. Often absent from public life, many women and girls in Afghanistan are confined to their homes and denied an education, resulting in widespread illiteracy. This circus is also helping to get girls back into school and putting them in the spotlight.
Nadia (pictured below) is 14 years old, and one of the best performers in the country.
Rabia (pictured below) is just 13 years old and together with Nadia won the International Regional (Asian) Juggling Competition held by the International Juggling Association.
“When I perform on stage, I feel good inside. I am happy when people are clapping because of my show. It encourages me to continue and teach other girls the same skills. My father and mother support me, and come to see me perform which is very important to me.” — Rabia
Khadeja (pictured below) is 8 years old and from Hewadwall, a camp of displaced families in Kabul. The camp has no proper shelter, no electricity, and no clean running water. These are the conditions in which diseases such as polio can spread. Khadeja is the first member of her family to go to school, thanks to the circus. She is also the youngest ambassador of the polio programme.
Last month, Khadeja did her first performance with ‘the bigger girls’ at school. “Rabia is my best friend because she teaches me everything she knows. All the other girls support me too,” she says. “In one of the performances, I play a strong man. After the show, a big man came up to me and said I was very good.” After completing her education, Khadeja wants to become a doctor.
“In the polio performance, the snake makes the children handicapped and the vaccinator is trying to give the children a vaccine to prevent sickness and kill the snake. I like the vaccinator because he is giving a vaccine to the children so they don’t get sick.” — Khadeja
Niaz Valy (pictured below) is 15 years old and also lives in a camp. Before the circus, he didn’t go to school. Instead, he washed cars because he was the only boy in his family and was expected to work on the streets. Now he doesn’t have to.
Not only is the circus bringing children back into school, it is spreading life-saving messages about the polio virus. Afghanistan is one of three remaining countries in the world where polio remains endemic, along with Pakistan and Nigeria. The circus is educating Afghans about the importance of the vaccine.
“We pass on these important messages in a fun way which people listen to and they understand. Giving a message without fun means people will not take that message away.” — Hamid
Children flock to the circus the moment they see youngsters their own age pull out their juggling sticks. They are all vaccinated during the performance. Mateen lives in a camp and commented on the performance:
“It made me understand how important the vaccination is. I promise myself that I will bring my children every time the polio vaccinators come to our camp.” — Mateen
