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Three brothers in Kabul reunited through Scouting
TUE 15 FEB 2011
PARSA is a non-government organization that started Scouting in an orphanage in Ghor province, which is now expanding and flourishing in different parts of the country.
Out of these five Scout troops in five different orphanages, three troops consist of boys and three troops consist of girls with a total of 160 orphaned children. There are over 13,000 orphans across the country.
Back at the ceremony, two brothers who are among the orphans, Mahboob Shah, 17, and Mahmood Shah, 15, were reunited after being separated for about ten years. The two met when the children were introduced at the ceremony. To triple their excitement, Mahboob and Mahmood found out that another young boy named Miskeen, almost 12 years old, is their youngest brother.
All three boys are now members of Scout troops run by PARSA. The two elder brothers were separated ten years ago and the youngest brother was taken care of by his grandmother who passed away recently. Now he stays in the orphanage. PARSA Executive Director, Ms Marnie Hartung Gustavson related their story. She said “it was a very touching moment to see them back together”.
Another pleasant surprise was to see the range of organizations present at the ceremony to show their support. Among them were Deputy Minister of Social Affairs Mr Wasel Noor Mohamed; Prof. Lutfullah Safi, Senior Advisor of the Ministry of Education; Director of the Department of Orphanages Mr Abdul Rahim Azem; Afghan Red Crescent country representative Mr Shawaly; ISAF Executive Director Major Daniel Williams from the USA, and WOSM Regional Director Abdullah Rasheed.
The PARSA Executive Director explained to them the scope and role of how Scouting can impact the lives of these children.