October (Web-only) 2001

ARTICLE TOOLS

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"I hope I'll be home by the 4th, but it's hard to tell when we will be released," the Shelter Now International relief worker wrote to her father, Tilden Curry, in a message he received October 26. "The lawyer meets with the Supreme Court tomorrow to see what their decision is. There is also a rumor that we are hostages now, but it would be so great to be home by the 4th."

Atif Ali Khan, the Pakistani lawyer for Curry and seven other aid workers, returned to Pakistan the week Curry wrote the letter. He was unable to meet with justices, and the trial came to a halt.

Curry said she and five other female prisoners are healthy again after suffering various illnesses since their arrest on August 3.

"We have been treated well, but it has been heartbreaking to see and hear others being severely beaten around us," she wrote. "The female guards that come each day to look after us have not been paid in two months—they are hungry—we give them any food we have extra or leftover to take to their families."

Curry asked for prayer for continued good health for herself and the five women, including 24-year-old American Heather Mercer.

"We meet in the mornings and evenings every day for one or two hours," she wrote. "We sing a lot! Heather and I even wrote a song. Some of the others have written songs too. … Pray that we can grow in our love for one another. Six ladies in a small place 24/7 can be a challenge—so we are learning to be patient and kind to one another. Most of the time things ...