Wildan Nur Sudirman, Yuni Rahmayanti and Novita Sari, who were the first guests of the Aceh İstanbul Orphanage established by the IHH for children who lost their families in the 2004 tsunami, and Zakaria Ahmad Ferhati, the son of a Gazan martyr, preferred to have their university education in Turkey.
The Aceh orphans began to take Turkish courses in October from Turkish and Foreign Languages Research and Application Center (TÖMER) and International Students’ Foundation Sefir-i Alem, which carries out social and cultural activities for the female students coming from abroad. While two of the Aceh orphans, Yuni and Novita want to study medicine, Vildan Nur wants to study economy.
In the 2004 tsunami 232,000 people were killed in Aceh. The number of orphans in the Indonesian province rose drastically with those who lost their parents to the tsunami. The IHH opened an orphanage in the province to care for homeless orphans in the wake of the disaster. There are currently 85 Ace children staying at this orphanage.
As the orphan girls came from Aceh, they brought the letters of the other orphans at the orphanage which they wrote for their sponsor families in Turkey. In the letters, the orphans express their gratitude to the Turkish families who care for them, whom they address as their mother and father, and say their biggest dream is to visit Turkey.
Zakaria, who lost his father, uncle and cousin in an Israeli missile attack, came to İstanbul last week. Being a successful student, he wants to study medicine. Zakaria who was included in the IHH’s Family Sponsor System was living in Gaza with his nine sisters and brothers. A total of 10,568 orphans in Palestine, which has been living under Israeli occupation for years, are supported periodically though the IHH’s Sponsor Family System.
The IHH will meet the costs of education, accommodation and other living expenses of these orphans throughout their education life in Turkey. After completing their education, these orphans will work for the future of their countries.
