00:00Hi, everyone. My name is Woke Brandlin, 14-year-old student and a TV presenter in Uganda. Today,
00:11we are going to off-mute 24-year-old Aisha Nwukera, who was tortured by her stepmother
00:16and was burnt 80% of her body at the age of 10. Aisha has since moved on and found peace.
00:24Hello, Aisha. It's a pleasure hosting you today. What happened on that fateful day that
00:33changed your life forever? On that fateful day, it was on February 6, 2006. It was around
00:437 p.m. in the evening when my stepmother sent me to buy paraffin from the nearby petrol
00:54station, fuel station. When I came back, she gave me a dress and she told me to put it
01:04on so that I can light a candle. At that time, I couldn't differentiate between paraffin
01:13and petrol. I wondered why it was smelling, and she was telling me to put it on to light
01:22a candle. I asked her, and then she backed at me. She was like, I've told you, put it
01:30on and then light a candle. After she told her children to get out of the house, and
01:38she left me inside. She told me to do what she had told me. And as soon as I lit the
01:47matchbox, fire caught my dress, the dress she gave me to put on. I remember I screamed,
01:59and no one was helping. Then I ran out of the house. My intention was to dip myself
02:07in a well because we had a well behind the house. So I ran. As I was running, a gentleman,
02:15the only thing I remember up to now, he was putting on a jersey, an aseno. He's the one
02:22who put off the fire. I didn't get justice. We went into the courts of law, but nothing
02:32was positive. And I left everything to God. When the Good Samaritan came in, my guardian,
02:48I call him Uncle Frank Gashumba. I think he changed my life. He was there. He gave
02:55me the support. He used to talk to me. And then I gained my confidence, my self-esteem.
03:04But it started with me. And I loved school. And I graduated with a bachelor's degree in
03:11social work and social administration.
03:14As we come to the end of this interview, what inspirational message would you like
03:18to give to the people watching us, most especially about children's rights and their protection?
03:25First of all, I call upon the government of Uganda to strengthen laws about children's
03:35rights. Maybe there will be a chance for children of Uganda to live a happy life without injustice.
03:45And then to the guardians, to the parents, it's your duty to protect children. It's
03:57your duty to love them, to care for them. And to the children out there, it's your
04:03time to rise up. Speak up when something happens to you. Go to someone who you think will help.
04:12Don't keep quiet in case of any injustice. Aisha Navakera's story is a clear manifestation
04:20for an urgent need to protect children against social injustices.
04:24She has transformed her life from a sad story into a positive and inspiring story.
04:29It's everyone's responsibility to protect children.
04:32For Girls of N.E.W.T., I am Mouke Brandlin from Kampala, Uganda.
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