Lithsouda: wounded by a cluster bomb at the age of 6

Lithsouda is 19 years old and lives in Soplap in Houaphan province, Laos.

His accident

In 2009, Lithsouda was 6 years old. One day, he was playing outside his grandmother's house. He started a fire, which caused a cluster munition buried in the ground to explode.

To save him, his family borrowed money from their neighbours, sold their belongings and hired a car to take him to the hospital three hours away. Lithsouda lost his right eye, the fingers of his right hand and was left with scars all over his body.

HI helps him rebuild his life

Lithsouda’s injuries make him feel different in the eyes of others and he feels excluded.

With support from HI, he has now joined a group of community volunteers and been trained to promote the inclusion and participation of landmine and explosive remnants of war survivors and people with disabilities in community activities.

"All this training has opened my mind and encouraged me to spend more time with my friends."

Lithsouda's new life

Because of his disability, Lithsouda used to be unable to help with the daily needs and activities of his family, such as working in the fields or fishing. But today, he enjoys playing sports, fetching food, looking after livestock and spending time with friends. He works as a farmer.