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NEW-HUMANITARIAN-INITIATIVE-SYRIA
“Love is Medicine” new humanitarian initiative in Syria’s Sweida
SWEIDA, Syria, June 10,2020 (BSS/XINHUA) – With the increase in the prices of medicine and the unavailability of some kinds in Syria, a new initiative of sharing meds took place in the southern province of Sweida.
In the city of Shahba in the northern countryside of Sweida, Nour Abu Fakher, a pharmacist, launched an initiative for people to share their unused meds with one another.
People would find the medicine they need and exchange it for free with the medicine they don’t use.
This initiative comes at a time the pharmaceutical industry in Syria has been affected by the devaluating Syrian pounds against the U.S. dollar.
Those who run pharmaceutical factories are having a hard time securing U.S. dollars at a suitable price to bring in raw materials from abroad, which caused some problems in securing all the needs of people.
The sanctions and the devaluation of the Syrian pound also affected the imported meds as their prices have skyrocketed and become unaffordable to the majority of people.
Fakher told Xinhua that she started the initiative by creating a group chat on social media with some ladies in Shahba city.
“We launched a humanitarian call for the people who have meds they don’t use to bring it to my pharmacy for other people who might need these meds to find it for free,” she said.
She noted that this humanitarian call has been positively met by people in that city and many people found their needs of meds through this initiative.
Fakher said she feels happy when people find the medicine they need, adding that her small initiative has spread from Shahba to the provincial capital of Sweida.
Many pharmacies have started taking medication from people and give it to others who are in need, she said.
Those pharmacies who have joined this initiative have also established communication between each other so that they can have an idea about the meds available in each one of them.
Fakher hoped that more pharmacies could join this initiative to help as many people as possible amid these tough circumstances in the country.
“In times of crisis, we better focus on what we can do rather than dwell in negative thoughts,” she said.
Um Shadi, a 48-year-old woman with high blood pressure, said that she had been searching for days in Sweida to find her meds but in vain.
“After days of futile search, my granddaughter told me she read about a pharmacy who offers free meds so I went there and got my medication,” she said, feeling lucky and grateful at the same time.
After that, Um Shadi searched in her cupboard for meds she doesn’t need and sent them to the pharmacy.
“It feels so good to give people things they need for free, it reminds us of our humanity,” she said.
For his side, Abu Motasem, a man in his 60s, also benefitted from the initiative, saying these kinds of love and giving is a lifesaver.
The diabetic man said people with chronic illness cannot just miss their meds, noting that the new initiative is a positive one amid the current crisis.
“When people help themselves and others, they can overcome any crisis and I hope we get over all our crisis soon,” he wished.
BSS/XINHUA/IJ/1920 hrs