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Ayesha Bilal, a 7-year-old girl in Indian-administered Kashmir, is collecting her books and toys at her home in the village of Heff, located about 16 miles from the town in the southern Shopian district.
Ayesha, a first grader, lives with her grandparents and uncle after losing her mother and father in the conflict that has raged the region for more than three decades.
On the eve of World War Orphans Day, which is celebrated annually on January 6, the Anadolu Agency (AA) reviewed the case of the 7-year-old.
“She often asks about her parents and insists that we take her to them. “But we create other stories to turn her attention to some other things,” said her grandfather, Mohammad Yousuf.
– Tragedy
Ayesha was just one year old when her father, Bilal Ahmad Mohand, in 2016 joined the militants in Kashmir. Prior to joining, he worked for a daily wage in the region’s public health engineering department.
Ahmad’s family said that before he joined the militants, he was initially convicted under public security law of allegedly aiding the militants, which they said he did not do.
“He was very prudent and faithful to God, but the constant harassment led him to join the militants,” said his father.
On May 6, 2018, Ahmad was assassinated along with four accomplices, including Commander-in-Chief Saddam Padder.
However, over the years his wife, Shaheena Akhter, who cared for their two daughters in the absence of the father, had serious health problems.
At the time, Ayesha was only 5 years old, while her older sister was 14 years old.
– The cost of the conflict
Ayesha collects her toys in a box and plays with them in a corner of the room in her house. In conversation she often talks about her father, but still has not realized that he has left.
“She sometimes insists that we explain why her father is not here. “We have no answer,” said her uncle, Adil Ahmad.
A 2014 study conducted by the London-based humanitarian organization Save the Children states that the estimated number of orphans in the Kashmir Mosque due to the conflict and the natural death of parents is about 214 thousand, of which 15 percent live in orphanages across the region.
The report says 37 percent of orphans lost one or both parents due to the conflict, 55 percent were left orphaned due to the natural death of their parents, and 8 percent were left orphaned for other reasons.
According to child experts, the loss of parents to a child is the biggest psychological barrier.
Isha Malik, who deals with children’s cases of conflict, said that there are various problems that children face after the loss of parents.
“From economic hardship to the loss of education and the traumas of various kinds, these children find themselves very powerless,” Malik said.
A study conducted by renowned Kashmir sociologist Bashir Ahmad Dabla, which surveyed 300 orphans, found that 48 percent of these orphaned children faced economic hardship after the death of their fathers.
“More than 13 percent reported denial of love and compassion, while 22 percent of them faced psychological barriers,” the report said.
Ayesha and her older sister are trying to get over the pain of separation from their parents, but the younger sister has not yet realized the reality that her parents are no longer there.
“We are trying to be their support system, but they lack parents,” said their grandfather.
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