U Mong Wing in Thailand

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U Mong Wing has suffered from cerebral palsy since she was a baby. With the help of physiotherapists from Handicap International and the support of her parents, this little Burmese girl is finally able to walk.

More than 14,000 refugees live in the Umpien Mai camp in the Phob Phra region (Tak Province), among them, U Mong Wing and her parents. This little Burmese girl was only a few months old when she became the victim of a violent fever which caused her brain damage. Up to the age of three, U Mong Wing was unable to move. Her parents were distraught.

In September 2000, Handicap International started a community based rehabilitation programme in the camp. A physiotherapist was put in charge of U Mong Wing and the lengthy task of bringing the child out of her inertia began. Every day she was made to do rehabilitation exercises under the attentive gaze of her mother who, at the same time, was learning these important movements.

After six months of exercises and games, U Mong Wing was finally able to move, to turn herself onto her side and to crawl, to the utter joy of her parents who saw their little daughter come to life again and blossom.

Handicap International has also provided her with a walking frame with a leather seat. With advice from our physiotherapists and the devotion of her parents, the young girl is gradually learning to stand.

Today, even if U Mong Wing can only express herself through cries and laughter, the time when she laid in bed, unable to move, is long gone! Her parents are now more determined than ever to see her walk without the frame, at first with the help of an adult, but eventually by herself.

Read more about our work in Thailand.