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Albania and Kosova Diary

Introduction

Diary Introduction

The following is a diary of Children's World International's activities in Albania and in Kosova between 28 September and 21 October 1999.

The following was partly written in diary form and sent back to the office when possible by email from Albania and Kosovo (where communications were appalling) and partly written on my return, so please forgive changes in style, etc.

The Team

Back/middle row, left to right: Arabella Churchill (Director of Children's World International), Daryl Webster (CWI actress and play leader), Booper the Clown (CWI performer and play leader), Ardian of Save the Children (who set up venues for us), Ditti (Albanian by aged 13 whose family were putting us up in Jgakova) Charlie Miller (CWI play leader), Paddy Hill (CWI's Chief Play Leader).

Front row. left to right: The Clown (CWI entertainer and workshop leader), Ooni of Save the Children and Ibrahim our driver.

THE CHILDREN'S WORLD INTERNATIONAL TEAM left Glastonbury at 5.00 a.m. on Tuesday 28 September 1999 to undertake 23 days of work with children in Albania and Kosovo.

This was Children's World International's first sortie. Basically, when the Director of Children's World and the Children's World workers saw the horrors of the conflict in Kosova, we felt very strongly, that, when the fighting was over, and when the country was pulling its life together again, we would like to go and offer fun, performance and creative play work to the children who had suffered. Fun and creative play may sound frivolous, but we believe that they are powerful tools in recreating confidence and in inspiring hope for the future, and we hoped that our work could provide benefits to the children.

Because the Children's World Charity (which has been running drama, dance, music, puppetry and creative play workshops for children with special needs, integration work with special schools and their neighbouring mainstream schools, playschemes and Children's Festivals since its formation in 1981) is limited in its geographical remit to the Southwest of England, we formed a separate organisation called Children's World International (which has now, as of March 2000 received charitable status - our charitable registration number is 1079546.) We hope that Children's World International will in future years be able to visit many different parts of the globe taking fun and play to children in need at appropriate times.

After contacting several large aid agencies we were eventually taken under the wing of War Child, Holland, and they introduced us via the email to a remarkable organisation called Balkan Sunflowers who currently have around 50 volunteers working with children in Albania and Kosova.

It was agreed that a 6-person Children's World International Team would visit the Balkans for 23 days in September and October 1999 to run clown and circus performances, circus skills workshops, badge-making, face-painting, art and craft workshops and large-scale parachute games with as many groups of children as possible. We purchased a great deal of play equipment to leave with different groups and organisations once we had trained them in New Games, etc. Malev Hungarian Airways were most generous in allowing us 60k of excess baggage free of charge and 250k of freight free of charge. Butterfingers donated a lot of juggling equipment, the Consortium gave us discount on purchases, Anne Harris made us several huge parachutes and we fundraised to purchase the other equipment we wished to take with us. A full list of the equipment taken and distributed, the costs of the project, and of the donors will appears further on in this report. After weeks of form-filling, freight arrangement and preparations we were finally ready to set off.........