Chad: Mohamed

Mohamed is the elected leader of the Sudanese refugees living in Farchana camp, Chad. He is in his twenties and, until 2003 he was studying at Khartoum University, Sudan. His family lived in West Darfur where he would return during holidays. On his last visit to his family three pick-up trucks full of armed people sped into the village, surrounded the market and began shooting, killing and wounding many.

When he heard the shooting Mohamed ran to the market, as fighter planes swooped down low over the village. Mohamed managed to hide until the planes and soldiers had gone and then returned to his family.

That night, they took what they could carry and began walking to the Chad border. Two days later they crossed to safety, seeking refuge in Farchana camp.

With the help of Mohamed and other influential refugees, Cord is beginning to bring a semblance of normality and structure to the refugee community. Never did Mohamed think that he would be the leader of over 19,000 refugees. His home village is less than a tenth of that.

He has learnt to be a leader the hard way, but with the help of Cord and the support of his people, he feels able to do a good job.