Fighting Stigmatization of Lepers

The role of Nii Lante Campbell, an SVD Missionary in Ghana The Lepers Aid Committee (LAC), chaired by Very Rev. Fr. Andrew Campbell, a Missionary Priest of the Divine Word Missionaries , marked this year’s World Leprosy Day on Saturday, January 30,at Nkanchina No. 2, in the Tamale Archdiocese with the commissioning of a 40-room apartment for the cured lepers. The Day is celebrated every last Sunday of January with the inmates of any of the Leprosaria in the country. The themes for the Day always emphasize the need to bring all stakeholders together and other International Organizations in the country to join forces in the effort to engage in a ‘war against leprosy’ on the fact that leprosy is wholly curable. Stakeholders led by Fr. Campbell have over the years stressed the need for government to formulate policies that will disseminate information about leprosy and prompt the public to be aware of their role to fight indifference towards people with leprosy, and to accord them the dignity and respect that they deserve. During the celebration this year, it came to light that the inmates were fed on 80 pesewas per person per day; a situation authorities say should be adjusted to uphold the dignity of cured lepers as human beings. At Nkanchina, Fr. Campbell appealed to the government to increase the grant since it was unsustainable for the Centre to continue relying on the benevolence of individuals and organisations. He also expressed regret that families had abandoned the patients who required affection instead of neglect. For more than 50 years, on the last Sunday of January, thousands of people across the globe have stopped to remember those who suffer the horrendous effects of leprosy. Why the celebration The World Leprosy Day was chosen in commemoration of the death of Mahatma Gandhi, the leader of India, who understood the importance of leprosy. Leprosy is one of the oldest recorded diseases in the world. It is an infectious chronic disease that targets the nervous system, especially the nerves in the cooler parts of the body - the hands, feet, and face. In 1953, a great humanitarian, M. Raoul Follereau of France, proclaimed the first World Leprosy Day to call attention to the plight of the world’s millions of people affected by this ancient, devastating disease. Over the years, this observance has grown and more than 100 countries now participate in the Day on the last Sunday in January. Many Americans think of leprosy as an ancient disease that was eradicated many years ago. But every year, hundreds of thousands of children, women and men discover they have leprosy. For many centuries, leprosy stigmatized those affected because there was no cure. Those who had the disease had to live with the disabilities that are so common in leprosy – they simply had no choice. World Leprosy Day helps to focus on the needs of some of the poorest and most marginalized people in the world – those affected by leprosy. It helps to tell the story to people who do not know that leprosy still exists and that it can now be cured. It also helps raise funds so that those with leprosy can be cured and cared for. According to reports by the World Health Organization (WHO) received from 115 countries and territories, the global registered prevalence of leprosy at the end of the first quarter of 2013 stood at 189,017 cases, while the number of new cases detected during 2012 was 232,850. Currently, Ghana is classified in – Group Three by the WHO among countries where elimination strategy should be sustained. According to the WHO, about 220,000 people-men, women and children contracted leprosy in 2011 and many of these new cases were diagnosed when the disease was at an advanced stage. As of October 31, 2013, Ghana had total registered cases as 471 giving a prevalence of 0.19per10, 000 nationally, the statement disclosed, and urged family members and friends to feel free to relate with cured lepers who need to be encouraged to do normal activities to earn a living. LAC’s Intervention Thanks to the Lepers Aid Committee (LAC), which is a self- sacrificing, voluntary and humanitarian group of young and altruistic Ghanaians with dedicated hearts for soliciting for funds in supporting the cured and less privileged lepers in the Ghanaian communities, basically inmates of the Weija, Ho, Cape Coast, Kumasi, and Nkanchina leprosaria. LAC has for the past 18 years engaged in several activities aimed at raising funds and bringing to the public the needs and aspiration of our neglected cured lepers. The aims and objectives of LAC are to bring to the notice of the public the need to help one another especially the less privileged in society. Also to continue to fight for the rights and needs of these cured lepers and to bring back life to all cured lepers in Ghana. In addition, LAC is aimed at reducing and finally eliminating the stigmatization and discrimination levied against cured lepers in society. LAC finally aims to achieve a Ghana free and friendly leprosy environment. LAC caters for the wellbeing, food, clothing, medical, and domestic bills and even arranges for burial of some diseased lepers. We call on all to help. Remember, “What so ever you do to the least of my brothers, you do onto me” (Matthew 25) The Disease Archbishop Zygmunt Zimowski, President of the Pontifical Council for Pastoral Assistance to Health Care Workers at the Vatican in a message to mark the 2013 celebration, said “the Hansen's disease is "a malady that is as old as it is grave when we consider the suffering, the social exclusion and the poverty that [it] involves. All of this is fundamental in the case of leprosy, which by now does not lead to death if it is suitably treated, as it is the case, to a greater extent, of the other ‘neglected diseases’ These are pathologies that constitute authentic scourges in some parts of the world but which do not receive sufficient attention from the international community; amongst these pathologies we find dengue fever, sleeping sickness, bilharziosis, onchocerciasis, leishmaniasis, and trachoma," he added. An equally important role should also be played by all those people who are victims of leprosy, who are called to cooperate in the establishment of a more inclusive and just society that will allow the integration of those people who have been cured of leprosy; in spreading and promoting its forms of diagnosis and treatment; in stressing the need to receive therapies so as to be cured, thereby contributing to a weakening of the disease; and in distributing those medico-hygienic criteria that are indispensable to hindering its further propagation in the contexts to which they belong. A person who has been afflicted by leprosy also has the possibility of living his or her condition in a perspective of faith, ‘finding meaning through union with Christ, who suffered with infinite love’, praying and offering up his or her suffering for the good of the Church and humanity. The Holy Father, Pope Francis in a message said “this disease, although in regression, unfortunately still affects many people causing grave suffering. It is important to maintain solidarity with these brothers and sisters”, and asked those present to assure their prayers for all those who are afflicted. Role of Fr. Campbell Fr. Campbell, who has been championing the plight of lepers in Ghana has always reiterated his call to the country in general and families in particular to accept and integrate cured lepers into their midst. He was of the opinion that such integration would complement and add value to work going on at the leprosaria in the country. “If society continues to reject the healed lepers, it has far reaching consequences on what is going on at the leprosarium. Let us remove the stigmatization the lepers go through,” Fr. Campbell emphasized. Current government policy aims to reintegrate these cured lepers back into society and challenge people to recognize that these are Ghanaians with the same rights as anyone else. Fr. Campbell continuously lament that most people neglect lepers because they see them as outcast and urged all to show love and compassion to them since they are human beings and deserve to be treated as such. He bemoaned the stigmatization and discrimination against cured lepers in Ghana and called on the citizenry to respect the rights of lepers. He assured the lepers that the District Assembly Common Fund had promised to pay GH¢15 per week for each leper for six months and build a concrete house for them as part of their contribution to support the lepers. The main focus of Fr. Campbell’s social work apart from Priesthood has been Weija Cured Lepers Rehabilitation Centre, about five miles from the capital, Accra. Although cured of the disease, the men and women who live there bear the signs of its mutilations and as a result have over the years been shunned by society. But bit by bit, fear seems to be giving way to a more charitable and enlightened attitude. Over the years, Fr. Campbell had been working tirelessly to support lepers in the country. In 2012, he bemoaned the poor infrastructural state of the Weija leprosarium in Accra, which is making life difficult for the inmates. “It’s pathetic to note that the walls of the toilets have cracks in them coupled with broken pipes in the bath houses. No light for security purposes and in the evening the rooms are overcrowded” He said the Lepers Aid Committee had also constructed a multi-skill training Centre for the Ho Leprosarium at the cost of GH¢67,011.90, which was commissioned in December 2011. Fr. Campbell assured organisations supporting the cured lepers’ project that their monies and contributions would be used to improve on the living standards of the inmates. He said the Committee took full responsibility for the Weija Leprosarium, adding it had in the past supported the Ho, Nkanchina, Kokofu, Anindado and Ahontokrom Leprosaria in Ghana. He appealed to the Government to increase the 26 pesewas per day given to each inmate of the Weija and Ho Leprosaria which by the Grace of God is now 80 pesewas. He had on many occasions called on corporate entities to support the construction projects with cement, blocks, roofing sheets, mosquito nets, nails, ply-woods, roofing sheets, sand, stones, iron rods and pipes. For lepers in Ghana, especially in Accra, the Irish born Catholic Priest, Fr. Campbell, is their hero, friend and saviour."Father Campbell is a very good man. He treats us with dignity," said, an inmate of the Weija Leprosarium. Not only lepers appreciate Fr. Campbell, but health workers and members of society do so as well. He preaches the integration of lepers into society and their treatment with dignity. He is horrified that lepers are treated like third class citizens, and describes the act "a terrible thing". "These people have rights and have to be taken care of," he told the Pan African News Agency (PANA) in an article by Mawusi Afele. "These people have to be treated with dignity. The notion that once a leper always a leper is not true," he said. According to the article, Fr. Campbell said the old Biblical notion that lepers should be kept well of town and bells put around them to announce their arrival so that the rest of society avoids them must not hold true today. Fr. Campbell’s profile Born in Dublin, Ireland, on 27th March, 1946, he attended Kindergarten at Sisters of Charity School and de la Salle Primary School, both in Dublin. "My parents could not afford to send me to secondary school, so at the age of 13 years, I worked as a van delivery boy," he said. Father Campbell said he subsequently saved enough money and entered secondary school. He studied Philosophy and Theology and through hard work and dedication, obtained his Bachelor of Divinity Degree from St. Patrick's College in Ireland in October 1970. In December 1970, he was ordained into the Catholic Priesthood. Fr. Campbell arrived in Ghana in October 1971 as a Missionary Priest in the Society of the Divine Word and has worked in several Parishes - Osu, Holy Spirit Cathedral, Sacred Heart, all in Accra, Good Shepherd in Tema Community 2 and currently the Parish Priest of Christ the King Church in Accra. His activities are not only limited to the area of rehabilitating lepers. In 1978, he opened the Sacred Heart Parish Middle School in Accra and two years later, founded and opened the Sacred Heart Vocational Institute for poor and needy students in Accra Central. He did all through the help of benefactors and friends. He has sponsored many needy and poor students each year through Primary, Junior Secondary, Senior Secondary Schools and the University. His work is also serving the ageing, as he is a founding member of Help Age Ghana, an NGO that cares for old people. Fr. Campbell has worked tirelessly through the Leper's Aid Committee to bring happiness to lepers. Fr. Campbell always underscores the need to integrate lepers into society. That may be a long time away, but his target would be achieved quicker once the disease is eradicated in Ghana. Fr. Campbell is an Irish who has been in Ghana for over 45 years acquiring the name Nii Lantey in the process. His role model is Mother Theresa and has adapted her renowned motto ‘Do Something Beautiful for God’, a motto that has served as a booster to his generosity. His key goal in life is to help lepers, children and the less privileged in society – gaining nationwide acknowledgment for his support for people living with or cured of Hansen's disease in Ghana. Fr. Campbell sees the offers from benevolent people as goodwill gestures towards one of the most marginalized sections of Ghanaian society. According to him, such public displays of solidarity are about rehabilitating Ghana’s lepers and breaking down the prejudice that makes outcasts of them. “I first encountered a leper when a man came to the Holy Spirit Cathedral some years ago to sell mangoes. I was frightened and didn’t know how to react.” In the years that followed, Fr. Campbell began to take an active interest in the plight of these people, and he noticed how they were treated, even by medical staff at the hospitals. “I have heard horrendous stories about the way they have been treated by nurses.” If medical staff react in this way, it is not surprising that the general public should display even greater ignorance. “I saw one case sometime back and I have never seen the likes of it before. This woman had been kept in her village and her family had not brought her for medical attention because of the stigma attached to the disease. She was in a most awful condition. This is such a pity because if the leprosy is caught in the early stages, it might only be affecting a small patch of skin.” However, he believes Ghana, through Church initiatives and government led policies, is now beginning to handle the plight of lepers in a more compassionate manner. He actively champions the rights of lepers within his own Parish, often inviting them to services where they are given the place of honour. “At Christmas time we have a Christmas tree on the altar and we put small pieces of paper on string with all the names of the lepers as well as the names of the old people from the Missionaries of Charity’s home nearby and the names of the AIDS patients and the AIDS orphans. We call it a love tree and everybody in the church is asked to take a slip of paper with one of those names on it and buy a Christmas present for that person. We then deliver the present on Christmas Eve.” As a result of his lobbying, a number of government Ministers have lent their public support to his work. Fr. Campbell himself has in the past been decorated by former President Jerry Rawlings for his work with the lepers with the Order of the Volta (OV), as well as other long-term projects, such as the Princess Marie Louise Hospital for malnourished children and the Vocational School he founded in 1980 to teach disadvantaged children skills like carpentry and more recently computers. Another project he was involved in was the development of the land in the shadow of a dam built close to one of the out-stations of his former Good Shepherd Parish, called Kordiabe. He also started a Tilapia Fish Farm. It is hoped that villagers will be able to make a living from cultivating the plots of land allotted them. Despite the difficulty in getting more people to support activities of Lepers, Fr. Campbell believes that some improvement can be made in the state subsidy to them and that charitable donations and fundraising have to play a part too. “I am called ‘the leper Priest’ and have been told I am a perpetual beggar!” With the money he has raised, Fr. Campbell has got a number of initiatives underway aimed at giving lepers a skill in order to help them make some money for themselves. One of such is the 40- room apartment that was commissioned on January 30, 2016 for the Nkanchina leprosarium. In all his work, Fr. Campbell is assisted by members of the Lepers Aid Committee, which has a high quota of young students. “My emphasis has always been that if you want to work with young people and talk about religion – then you have to practice it.” When asked why the lepers are so close to his heart, he answers without hesitation, “If you are ever feeling down and out and you go to see the lepers, you will come back a different person. They have so much hope and they are grateful for the little they have materially. I see them as a sign of hope and encouragement – a blessing for our society. They are our treasure because they bring out the good in other people.” Coming from a home that faced financial hardship, he has constructed a theatre and an intensive care unit for the Princess Marie Louise Children's Hospital in Accra. Awards to Organisations and philanthropists Every year, he holds an Awards night where individuals and organisations that have helped the Committee are honoured. In 2013, twenty individuals and Organisations including The Catholic Standard were honoured by the Lepers Aid Committee, during which Nana Oye Lithur, the Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, assured the Committee of Government’s support, saying that as Christians, our wealth must be the poor. When you see them at the centre they are happy. They have to be treated with dignity. “As a country even though there are many civil societies and advocacy groups springing up, the stigmatization of people with disabilities is becoming worse every day,” the Minister added. In what one may say was a risky move, Fr. Campbell volunteered to come to Ghana as a Missionary Priest at the age of twenty five spending 13 days on the high seas to get to Ghana. This noble man also set a record by being the highest winner on the TV show, Who Wants To Be Rich, by winning a record GH¢25,000, just an answer short of the ultimate. Interestingly, he donated the money to the leprosarium.