By Matt Jackson

13th   June   2007

A MAN carrying an AK47 rifle accompanied Pat Prendergast wherever he went, but he came back with only good memories of his trip to Somalia.

The builder from Blunsdon went to Somaliland, a territory to the north of the African country, on behalf of the charity Shelterbox.

Hassan Nur, who represents the 300 members of the Somali community in Swindon, joined Pat on the eight-day trip.

They went last week to work out how best to deliver aid to the thousands of displaced people who live in tents near the bombed city of Hargeisa.

It was razed to the ground in 1988, and the legacy of conflict between ethnic groups means that families struggle for water and food on a daily basis.

Pat, 55, said: "It was a really successful trip because we worked out all the logistics for delivering the boxes to the people that need them."

The charity Pat represents is alone with the UN in helping the refugees who have returned from the neighboring countries of Ethiopia and Djibouti.

The shelter boxes contain a tent that can house a family, as well as cooking equipment and vital medical supplies.

Pat said: "There are more than 10,000 families living in the most basic conditions you can imagine.

"The temperature is nearly 40 degrees and there are people arriving all the time from across the borders and from Mogadishu and the south.

"When someone arrives at the camp they are welcomed into a tent, which quickly fills up and puts a huge strain on the people.

"The Somalis are the most hospitable group I have ever met, but the circumstances they live in are so hard."

Hassan, 43, fled the area of Somaliland in 1988 when the city was bombed, and it was his first trip back.

He said: "It was great to go back and I am grateful that I had the opportunity.

"When there is peace in the south too it would be good to go back."

But the ongoing fighting around the capital Mogadishu means 900 shelter boxes have been trapped there for more than a year.

Pat said: "We are determined to get the aid out to the people, which is why this trip was necessary.

"We have checked the port near Hargeisa and in the next three months we will send a 40-foot container carrying 230 boxes.

"That will be a good start and enough to give 2,300 people a place to stay.

For details about the charity visit www.shelterbox.org.

Source: Swindon Advertiser

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