[UPDATE 15.12.2024]
Rukman ist heute gestorben. Damit ist die Familie nun in noch größerer Not. Bitte helft, so gut Ihr könnt. Wie es nun weitergeht, ist noch nicht klar, denn zunächst muss die Familie die Trauer verarbeiten. Aber ich halte Euch über die weiteren Geschehnisse auf dem Laufenden. Und noch einmal ein herzliches Dankeschön an alle, die bisher gespendet haben!
Today Rukman has passed away. This means that the family is now in even greater need. Please help as best you can. What will happen next is not yet clear, as the family must first come to terms with their grief. But I will keep you updated on further events. And once again, a big thank you to everyone who has donated so far!
-Kümo
Das ist Rukman mit seiner Familie. Sie leben in Sri Lanka. Ruks Frau und seine Tochter stellen Ledertaschen in Handarbeit her, die Rukman auf Märkten verkauft. Damit kommt die Familie allerdings nur mehr schlecht als recht über die Runden, so dass die Söhne unterschiedliche Gelegenheitsarbeiten annehmen, die ihnen aber oft statt Geld nur einige Naturalien wie Kokosnüsse und Reis einbringen. Die Familie lebt in äußerst ärmlichen Verhältnissen, pflegt und versorgt obendrein die gelähmte Großmutter und hat oft nicht genug zu essen, geschweige denn Geld für andere notwendige Dinge des täglichen Lebens. Auch für die Schulbildung fehlt es an allen Ecken und Enden.
Immerhin hatte Rukman ein eigenes Haus. Bis im letzten Jahr bei ihm eine Niereninsuffizienz festgestellt wurde, die eine Nierentransplantation erforderte. Ruks Frau war zwar bereit, eine ihrer Nieren zu spenden aber eine vorbereitende Bypass-Operation, diverse Tests, die eigentliche Transplantation sowie die anschließende medikamentöse Weiterbehandlung erforderten finanzielle Aufwendungen, die die Familie nicht stemmen konnte.
Seit Anfang 2022 herrscht in Sri Lanka aufgrund der anhaltenden Wirtschaftskrise ein erheblicher Mangel an wichtigen Medikamenten. Von Zeit zu Zeit kommt es zu Verzögerungen bei der Einfuhr und zu drastischen Preisänderungen, ebenso wie bei den Behandlungspreisen. Und wenn sich eine Familie keine teure private Krankenversicherung leisten kann, muss sie erhebliche Kosten für all das selbst tragen. Im Klartext: Wenn man eine lebensbedrohliche Krankheit hat, muss man entweder das Geld für die Behandlung aufbringen können, oder eben sterben.
Zwar gab es finanzielle Hilfen von staatlicher Seite, aber die waren recht bescheiden. Rukman musste sein Haus verkaufen und lebt nun mit seiner Familie in einer Mietwohnung. Und trotz allem reichte auch der Verkauf des Hauses nicht aus, die Operationen und vor allem die erforderliche, permanente Nachsorge bezahlen zu können.
Ich habe Rukman vor einigen Jahren durch einen mir sehr nahestehenden Freund kennengelernt. Dieser Freund ist in 2022 verstorben und ich bin nun der Einzige, den Rukman außerhalb seines Landes kennt. So war es nicht verwunderlich, wenn er sich in seiner Verzweiflung an mich wandte und um Hilfe bat. Ich habe aus meinen eigenen Mitteln im letzten Jahr Beiträge zu Operationen, Medikamenten und auch zur Unterstützung der Familie geleistet und werde das auch weiterhin tun, soweit es meine finanziellen Möglichkeiten erlauben. In Gedenken an meinen verstorbenen Freund habe ich sozusagen die „Patenschaft“ für die Familie übernommen.
Aber alleine kann ich nicht so schnell helfen, wie es nötig ist, damit die Familie wieder auf eigenen Füßen stehen kann. Maschinen für die Taschenherstellung müssen repariert und Material muss eingekauft werden. Die Kinder brauchen Schulsachen. Die erwähnte Weiterbehandlung und die nötigen Medikamente verschlingen für sri-lankische Verhältnisse Unsummen. Ein gebrauchtes Auto wäre schön, damit Rukman zum einen die hergestellten Taschen in Colombo verkaufen kann, zum anderen hätte er dann die Möglichkeit, als Fahrer zusätzlich Geld zu verdienen. Und die Krönung wäre natürlich, wenn sich die Familie irgendwann auch ihr Haus zurückkaufen könnte.
Der durchschnittliche Monatsverdienst in Sri Lanka liegt bei ungefähr 300 Euro. Auch kleine Spendenbeträge können hier also Großes bewirken.
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This is Rukman with his family. They live in Sri Lanka. Ruk's wife and daughter make leather bags by hand, which Rukman sells at markets. However, the family barely manages to make ends meet, so the sons take on various odd jobs, which often only bring them a few things in kind, such as coconuts and rice, instead of money. The family lives in extremely poor conditions, cares for and looks after their paralyzed grandmother and often does not have enough to eat, let alone money for other essentials of daily life. There is also a lack of schooling everywhere.
At least Rukman had his own house. Until last year he was diagnosed with kidney failure, which required a kidney transplant. Ruk's wife was willing to donate one of her kidneys, but a preparatory bypass operation, various tests, the actual transplant and the subsequent medical treatment required financial expenditure that the family could not afford.
Since the beginning of 2022, Sri Lanka has been experiencing a significant shortage of essential medicines due to the ongoing economic crisis. From time to time, there are delays in imports and drastic price changes, as well as treatment prices. And if a family cannot afford expensive private health insurance, they have to bear significant costs for all of this themselves. In plain language: If you have a life-threatening illness, you either have to be able to raise the money for treatment or die.
There was financial help from the government, but it was quite modest. Rukman had to sell his house and now lives with his family in a rented apartment. And despite everything, even the sale of the house was not enough to pay for the operations and, above all, the necessary, permanent aftercare.
I met Rukman a few years ago through a friend who was very close to me. This friend died in 2022 and I am now the only person Rukman knows outside of his country. So it was not surprising when, in his desperation, he turned to me and asked for help. I have used my own resources to contribute to operations, medication and support for the family over the last year and will continue to do so as far as my financial means allow. In memory of my deceased friend, I have taken on the role of "sponsor" for the family.
But I alone cannot help as quickly as is necessary for the family to be able to stand on their own two feet again. Machines for making bags need to be repaired and materials need to be bought. The children need school supplies. The follow-up treatment mentioned above and the necessary medication cost a huge amount of money by Sri Lankan standards. A used car would be nice so that Rukman can sell the bags he makes in Colombo and also so that he can earn extra money as a driver. And the icing on the cake would of course be if the family could buy their house back at some point.
The average monthly income in Sri Lanka is around 300 euros. Even small donations can make a big difference here.
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