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KEVIN’S STORY
CASUALTIES OF HUMANS
AND WAR
All our lives we have wished for no more than someone to care for
and love us. This we thought was surely not too great a wish, but it seems
that it was and we wonder and ask the World "what have we done for you to wish such a fate on
us, that in our short lives we have to endure such suffering?
My name is Kevin and my wife is Linda. We were put into our tiny cage as babies
and have now been in this prison for six long years, unable to take a stroll
of more than two steps in the confines of our prison. Our prison door is so small
that we cannot even see how we could ever possibly get out, even if someone cared to come to help us
escape to a better life. Unfortunately I have always treated Linda badly,
constantly attacking her to take her food and only allowing her the small scraps that I don't
want. I am so stressed and frustrated however that I cannot, on my own, change our situation.
We once had hope. We were Rescued from our previous purgatory during the Israel/Lebanon War,
after enduring weeks of intense bombing in an area called DAHYE. We
actually had shrapnel inside our cage and when our owners ran and left us at the mercy of the
bombs, with no food or water, we were at the point of giving up and
preparing to die. Then BETA, Beirut Ethical Treatment of Animals, found us
and helped. They not only helped us, but five more of our friends to safety,
giving us much welcomed food and water. They also gave us love when everyone else
had turned their backs.
We were told by our new carers "We love you so much and are going to send you to a Sanctuary to play with other Baboons in
Wales". We were overjoyed with excitement, especially when we were told
"Graham from the Sanctuary is coming to get you and soon you will be
safe". Graham visited us and said "We have a plane and Jan is waiting in Wales to greet
you". He played with us and looked at how he could get us out of our
prison. Then the news came that the flight which was going to save us was not able to take us after
all. We were so sad, but more sad for everyone who tried to help us. We could see the devastation in their eyes
when the promises they had made to us might have to be broken because of a
lack of money for flights and other essentials. We believed then that we
might never leave Beirut.
My only remaining hope was that even if I lost my hope of freedom and stayed in Beirut
at least someone might contribute enough to enable my wife and friends to go to a better life, but
who? We have been in this prison, outside a pet shop, hoping a
better owner might come and buy us for 6 years. I FEEL WORTHLESS, unable to even help my wife, let alone my friends.
We know that Graham will be working day and night on his return to Wales
and will continue pleading with the Airlines to help us. We hear and
look up at the aeroplanes of many different nations and companies flying above us into Beirut
and wonder if Graham is on one of them, coming to get us. So many planes
and so many days pass, but we don’t see him and my heart aches so much.
I wonder if it is our fate that no one will ever help us and I can't bear
to think about it. We have been told by all the airlines "You and your friends can go on
one of our flights but you must pay what we ask". I am in Prison and
I'm only a poor baboon, so how can I do this? Will we ever leave our
personal hell on Earth alive? – Will Graham ever come back
for us? Hope is all we have left.
Yours truly,
Kevin The Beirut Baboon
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