Story of Hope: Mozambique Man Reunited With Kyrgyz Mother After 25 Years

© Photo : International Red Cross and Red Crescent MovementSalvador Ayres, a Mozambique civilian, has finally found his missing biological mother Zarina Abdykayeva
Salvador Ayres, a Mozambique civilian, has finally found his missing biological mother Zarina Abdykayeva - Sputnik International
Subscribe
Salvador Ayres, a Mozambique citizen, has finally found his missing biological mother Zarina Abdykayeva after a 25-year separation. The mother and son told Sputnik their moving story.

MOSCOW, January 24 (Sputnik), Ekaterina Blinova — Salvador Ayres, a Mozambique civilian, has finally found his missing biological mother Zarina Abdykayeva after he appealed to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRS) for help.

The story began when Salvador's father, an Angolan citizen travelled to Bishkek, formerly known as Frunze, the capital of the former Soviet Republic of Kygyzia, in order to get an education in the end of 1980s. There he met and fell in love with Zarina Abdykayeva. Although Zarina was deaf, the young Angolan man decided to marry her and even paid "kalym" (a dowry) for the bride in accordance with old Kyrgyz traditions. Their marriage bore fruit in form of Tilek Salvador, who took a traditional Kyrgyz name and the name of his father, who was born in 1988.

A three-year-old boy accidentally shot his mother as she changed her daughter's nappy. - Sputnik International
Three-Year-Old Boy Accidentally Kills His Mother in Tulsa, Oklahoma
Fearing for the fate of the son, Zarina sent the boy with his father to Angola. Her husband promised to return to Frunze soon, and to bring Zarina back to his homeland. Unfortunately, their dreams were shattered by the collapse of the Soviet Union that resulted in mass geopolitical changes across the world. It seemed that the young family had been torn apart forever and the Kyrgyz woman had lost hope that she would ever see her son Tilek Salvador again. Zarina's problems were compounded by the fact she was deaf and unable to conduct the search on her own.

However, her son Salvador never gave up hope, and appealed to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRS) for help. Remarkably, in June 2014 he received some incredible news from Bishkek – his missing mother had been found. Red Cross volunteers helped the relatives to fulfil their dream of seeing each other again and set up a Skype meeting. Salvador made a promise to his mother that he would arrive in Bishkek as soon as possible.

Six months later, in January 2015, a plane carrying the young Salvador Ayres touched down on the runway of Bishkek Airport. When the mother and the son met each other after a 25-year separation and Zarina embraced Salvador, both burst into tears.

Speaking through a sign language interpreter, Zarina told Sputnik that that she feared her son had died in Africa in the ongoing unrest in the Central and Eastern African republics. She revealed that her son was married and noted proudly that she had a granddaughter. Looking over the past years, the Kyrgyz woman said that she had always thought of her son and constantly dreamt of a family reunion while looking at the childhood photos of Salvador.

Newsfeed
0
To participate in the discussion
log in or register
loader
Chats
Заголовок открываемого материала