Anyone visiting the Valley of Siria would be moved by the suffering of children there who have skin diseases. They are ignored victims, abandoned by authorities who must find gold more valuable than their young lives.

Odair

Twenty month old José Odair Aguilar is not happy to see visitors in his home. He sobs when his mother holds him in the room with reporters. But the white, itchy spots covering his little body would alone be enough to make anyone cry.

"The doctors have told me it is a fungus from contaminated water," explained Amalia, his mother. Visits to the health clinics in El Escanito and San Ignacio have produced few answers-the doctors seemed willing to help but no one has found a medicine to help Odair.

The family is left spending a good part of its limited budget on new remedies, hoping to find one that works. "A poor person does not go looking for luxury. We can live with rice and beans," said Amalia.

Josè Aguilar, Odair's father is a farmer, but he has not had a good crop of rice and corn in a year and a half because of the deforestation and lack of water in the area. Without successful crops, he has turned to sewing for extra income. He says, "Sewing does not make a lot of money here, but I have to try to make some extra money."

Like Odair's skin, the land of the Valley of Siria is sick, and there is yet to be a cure found for either.

Hamilton and Michelle

Upon approaching the little house, we can hear the sounds of children playing in front of the white walls.

Four-year-old Hamilton Josuè Ramos and one-year-old Michelle Arteaga watch us curiously as we walk up. We can see that they both have ulcers on their skin.

Hamilton runs barefoot to tell his grandmother Lidia Rivera about the visitors, while Michelle just keeps staring. I reach out and touch Michelle's head; I can feel the little bumps under her hair.

Michelle is Lidia's youngest daughter and Hamilton is her grandson, who has lived with her since he was a baby.

The children have not received any medical treatment for their illness. The times they have gone to the clinic, there were only assistant nurses available to see them. Lidia adds that she has been told that only one child per household could be attended, when she brought both children to the clinic. She then had to split the medicine prescribed for one between the two.

Lidia can only lament her inability to access the resources necessary to get proper medical treatment for the children.

Beiran, Ostin and Gustavo Velásquez

The Velásquez Hernàndez brothers live in the house in front of the community soccer field in El Pedernal. The San Martìn mine, operated by Entre Mares, can be seen from the top of the field.

Beiran, Ostin and Gustavo press themselves against a wall to watch the visitors, while a group of their friends press in from outside to see what is going on.

Beiran is in the sixth grade and Ostin is in the fourth grade at the Josè Trinidad Cabañas School. Little Gustavo says his hobby is taking baths, perhaps because of the constant heat.

The boys like to help their father, Reynaldo Velàsquez, in the family's bean and corn fields.

With their short hair, it is easy to see the bald spots on their heads, which stand out like little moons in their black hair. They say they are not embarrassed by the bald spots because so many of the children at their school have the same problem. "No one makes fun of anyone," they say.

Many of the children in El Pedernal suffer from hair loss, though it is easier for the girls with long hair to hide it. The children crowding into the Velàsquez Hernàndez home begin to spontaneously list their ailments: "He has spots"; "I have a rash"; "Go on, show them your skin," they chime in.

José Odair Aguilar


Odair with his mother Amalia

Odair's father José Aguilar

Michelle Arteaga and Hamilton Josué Ramos

Michelle Arteaga

Lidia

Ostin, Gustavo and Beiran (l-r)

Ostin and Gustavo