News
HRH visits Salt, the former capital of Jordan
26th October 2004
The Prince of Wales got a hug from a disabled youngster during a visit to Jordan, the third and final leg of his annual autumn tour.
Deaf and blind youngster Mohammed Maher hugged The Prince to find out as much as he could about the Royal visitor using his sense of touch.
The Prince met 12-year-old Mohammed in Jordan‘s former capital city, Salt, while visiting the Salt Training and Resource Institute for Disability (STRIDE).
A smiling Prince put his arms around the boy's shoulder, letting him reach up and place his hands on his chest.
Holding The Prince‘s hand, Mohammed gently placed his cheek on the back of his palm to feel the texture of the heir to the throne‘s skin.
A department in the Holy Land Institute for the Deaf (HLID), STRIDE was opened by His Late Majesty King Hussein in 1964.
It aims to train rehabilitation workers and teachers, and to develop educational and rehabilitative resources in the Arabic language for disabled people in Jordan and the Middle East.
The institute, which is being renovated, was formerly Jordan‘s first ever hospital which was built in the 1860s by English missionaries who lived in caves on the hillside.
Young Mohammed Maher has attended the institute for three years and is learning sign language.
Elizabeth Hume, originally from London, who works at the centre, said of Mohammed: “When he first came here he was hyper and nervous.
“He didn't know what was going on. But we gave him a routine and he settled down.
“He can sign sentences of six words now. We use objects of reference to teach him.
“He will pick up a cup, feel it and then we‘ll place his hands into the sign for drink. He understands the concept of language.
“He‘s highly intelligent and has a good sense of humour.‘‘
Mohammed, who wears a hearing aid but has very little hearing, was born deaf and blind.
Matthew Hanning, of the Christian Blind Mission who works with the Holy Land Institute, said: “There's still a lot of awareness problems for children with disabilities in Jordan.
“There‘s a stigma, but gradually things are changing through organisations like this.”
Brother Andrew of the Anglican Church, who runs the charity-funded Holy Institute, showed The Prince around the centre.
The Prince also watched youngsters sing a song using sign language.
Upon arriving in Jordan on Tuesday 26th October, The Prince, who founded the Prince's Trust, attended a reception designed to encourage and reward entrepreneurship amongst young people in Jordan.
Among those attending were Jordanian youth groups and 15 scholars who have benefited from the Chevening Scholarship Scheme which enables postgraduate students from Jordan to study in Britain.