Scars, Caresses and Souvenirs
He was on the outskirts of Tifariti, in Western Sahara, going to the well to get water. The well was about 20 km from where he lived. He was driving a car and ran over an anti-truck mine. These are placed specifically around water wells to target Saharawi people coming to get water. People often die of thirst because they cannot get to the wells.
The explosion, destroying his car and his leg, was heard by people driving nearby. They took him to a hospital where he was treated for 3 years, eventually having his leg amputated. He took an artificial leg and tried to live a normal life. He couldn’t stand the thought of being a problem for others and wanted to be independent. However his home life was difficult: his mother dead, his father a martyr, so he asked for help from his friends. Some of them collected money for him and he collaborated with others to buy sheep and goats and become a shepherd. He went with these others to a market 800km away. Once they got there, it was discovered they were a lot more expensive than they thought and the others backed off of the deal. Saalek decided to buy some anyway and buy a donkey too. He began the long journey driving the goats and sheep ahead of him. When he got tired he would ride the donkey. He did not know the road but followed the sun from sunrise to sunset. One of the days, he got very tired, he put the leg on the donkey with rope. Then he could ride the donkey like this. He arrived at an area he did not know and the donkey got angry and shook him off and the donkey ran off with his artificial leg attached! He spent two days without seeing anyone but the sheep were filling up on the grass so they were fine. Then by chance a car passed by. They stopped and made tea for him and gave him water and they drove to find the donkey which they found and from there he managed to get home. This is his story. He now lives in Smara and after 5 years of being a shepherd he came here and is involved with the Saharawi Association of the Victims of Mines.