The Hindu Business Line : Truly inspiring

The very worst situations bring out the very best in some of us: that is what the Gujarat carnage of 2002 did to Latifabano Mohammad Yusuf Getali, born in 1962. The largely uneventful life that Latifabano had expected to lead was severely challenged during the Gujarat carnage following the riots in 2002.

And she was at the riot epicentre: Godhra. Thousands lost loved ones, were displaced, and rebuilt their lives from scratch. The conditions at the refugee camps were abysmal. The atmosphere in the crowded relief camps was of incessant terror and apprehension. Several women, including Latifabano, became relief camp volunteers, looking after riot victims, performing linking and managerial roles.

Her performance as a camp volunteer was highly appreciated; her skill in assisting and supporting women was given due recognition. Activists from women's groups and human rights organisations that visited the camps encouraged her to continue the good work even after the camps were closed. Latifabano's work also involved disseminating information about various legal and human rights organisations and individuals to the local families who had survived the riots.

When the relief camps eventually shut down, Latifabano started her own organisation: the Al-Fazal Educational and Charitable Trust. As Latifabano's organisation was the first Muslim women's organisation in Godhra, she faced the wrath of her conservative Muslim community. But she continued undeterred, and the community gradually turned supportive.

Besides helping the affected families gain access to relief and legal assistance, her work has also enabled the starting of a dialogue between Hindu and Muslim women in Godhra, where seeking peace, under the circumstances, seemed like asking for a miracle.

The success of this middle-class Muslim housewife can be gauged from the bean counter: 82 women who Latifabano helped avail of government schemes are now independent income generators; 80 women have been taught basic skills such as knitting, stitching and embroidery, and are economically self-sufficient; 100 women were educated under her adult education scheme and are now able to read and write; and 93 girls and boys are studying in the first grade in English-medium schools.

Women's Feature Service

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