BBC - You can't afford not to take sides
I can't get the documentary I saw last Thursday on BBC4 out of my mind. the blurb on the BBCs web page reads as follows;
"It was entitled BULGARIA'S ABANDONED CHILDREN. in the programme, Director Kate Blewett visits a children's care home in Bulgaria and investigates the conditions in which the children live.
The Social Care Home - where 75 unwanted children are growing up - is the main employer in the small village of Mogilino. Few of the children can talk, not necessarily because they are unable but rather because no one has ever taught them how.
Kate meets the children in this tragic, silent world, such as Milan, the gentle giant who spends his days doing chores and watching over the others, and mildly autistic 18-year-old Didi, who is able to talk, and has plenty to say, but no one to speak to. The children that surround them suffer a variety of problems, many are blind or deaf and some are unable to leave their beds, many are literally wasting away."
I found this whole documentary disturbing at a whole lot of levels. I didn't want to watch it all because by watching it somehow I feel responsible. There is a part of me that says I'd rather not know. The other thing was, the pictures and images where so shamefully distressing that one wonders how any human being could set up their film crew and go round the home without literally getting involved. I was hearted to see that Kate Blewett and her production team had written to the Bulgarian Embassy to try and get some response. You can read the reply on the BBC web page. The other thing that gave me great confidence to believe that their is a great wave of compassion seeking to break over the UK was the number of comments left on the Beebs web page. So many people looking for direction where they might help. The other thing I found quite frustrating was the official stance of the BBC to the programme. they pointed out that the BBC in order to maintain its neutrality could not enter into any lobbying role. Got me thinking how can you take your camera's to a place like Mogilino, make a film about injustice and then sit on the fence. Well I suppose the fact is that we all do our fair share of sitting on that fence. You'd think by now it would have collapsed.
Posted By: Jeff On: 30 May 2008 At: 6:52pm
Thanks for getting the word out more about the Bulgarian orphanages. They really need our help so badly, it’s amazing. A short visit to any of the orphanages in Bulgaria really is appalling—these children deserve better, but all too often don’t.
I work with the organization One Heart Bulgaria, which is a US-based charity focused on improving the lives of these children. Here’s the website:
http://www.oneheart-bg.org/index.php
Please feel free to spread the word—we are currently accepting applications for interns, and we are always looking for any kind of help, be it monetary, moral support, or even just getting the word out.
Also, we’ve put together a short YouTube video using some clips from the BBC programme:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fTZ8NdQVLt0
Thanks,
Jeff Swift
Internship Director
One Heart Bulgaria
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