Window To A Different World

by Luba Salam

Under RESPECT International's Global Letter Exchange Program, refugee and non-refugee students correspond to know each other better. It helps to build bridges between children and youth facing varied reality.

Mariette Petit-Genet, a primary school teacher in France, introduced to the Benin refugees in 2006-2007, takes part in the Letter Exchange Program with her students aged six to eight.

According to RESPECT's French coordinator, Sandrine Cortet, Mariette is a very motivated teacher, open-minded and committed to the program.

Lumbu Sembeya, a refugee who is also the country coordinator for RESPECT Benin and president of the Group of Refugee Student Parents (GPER), is coordinating the letter exchange on the refugee side.

Ms. Maite and Ms. Angeles, who are based in Spain, contacted RESPECT to make a documentary about the program, their focus being on how the children from both sides see their own world as well as that of their pen pals.

Sandrine is coordinating the communication among the three groups involved. Maite and M Angeles are currently in Benin for a month to meet the refugees and to learn first-hand the daily work of the GPER and the reality of Benin. The technical team for this documentary comprises three young women — M Angeles, Maite and Mar.

On sharing her thoughts with us about the program, Mariette says she feels it allows the children to learn about other children who have very different lives from their own. Thus, they can learn to respect others and to be open-minded.

She hopes that through this documentary the children will give their personal and genuine impressions about the letter exchanges. She thinks the children will be delighted to see their pen pals in a video and for them it will be almost like a face-to-face experience.

Mariette expects the documentary will help the children in her school to understand a lot of things about countries they know very little of.

Lumbu also shares similar thoughts to Mariette. He feels this program helps to develop friendship between children from Africa and from France and Canada. He believes it is extremely helpful in building their personality and knowledge of themselves. Different World