Image
Image
Each day, Elodie prepares food to be sold later at the local market. As she works, she tells us of how she survived an attack during the conflict in Côte d'Ivoire.
Image
A scene in the courtyard where Elodie cooks in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire.
Image
Elodie was 17 years old when the city came under attack by armed groups. On her way to her aunt's home in Duékoué, a neighbourhood of Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire, she and a few of her other girlfriends were ambushed by four armed men and raped.
Image
After the ambush, the men threw chemicals on Elodie's eyes and she felt excruciating pain and burning. She spent several days wounded but untreated in the hospital, since all the doctors fled the conflict. Elodie's vision deteriorated and over time she turned blind.
Image
Since Elodie learned to cook in early childhood, she is still comfortable in the kitchen in spite of her blindness. Here, local children gather to watch Elodie cook.
Image
Elodie now helps her mother and sister with their small catering business, preparing the food.
Photo: Rena Effendi for the ICC #LifeAfterConflict - Stories as told to ICC Outreach @renaeffendiphoto