The stoicism of the Chilean miners, the bravery of our soldiers – Olga Craig names those who have inspired us with their deeds
Aung San Suu Kyi addresses thousands of her supporters at her National League for Democracy (NLD) headquarters on November 14, 2010 in Yangon, Burma
Aung San Suu Kyi addresses thousands of her supporters at her National League for Democracy headquarters following her release from house arrest. Photo: GETTY IMAGES
They come from all walks of life. From those who choose to devote their lives to the service of their country; to those unassuming citizens who courageously stood up and were counted at a moment of moral conflict; to those who have long waged a tireless battle against injustice and intolerance. Some have been household names for a while; others were plucked from obscurity. Whatever their story, they all share several outstanding traits: courage, stoicism and a firmly held belief that morality and right must triumph. Each, in his or her own way, whether in private or in public, found the fortitude to overcome adversity or put the needs of others before themselves. Some have saved lives. Others have greatly enriched the lives of those around them.
The past year will be remembered for both its joys and its triumphs. It has been punctuated by the birth of the Coalition government, the thrill of the Winter Olympics, the biting reality of severe public spending cuts, the heartache of natural disasters and the shocking deaths of two British women in the hazardous deserts of Afghanistan. But it is, perhaps, in just such testing times that people prove their indomitability. It is during times of crisis or distress or when our mettle is tested – albeit on the battlefield of a foreign land or in the quiet backwaters of our towns and villages – that we achieve greatness.
Here, prominent figures applaud the men and women who have been inspirational or brave, those who have reaffirmed our convictions during troubled times, those who risked their lives for their faith or beliefs and those who have reminded us just what our capabilities can be. The heroes of 2010.
Aung San Suu Kyi
Suu Kyi is the most famous political prisoner since Nelson Mandela and won a Nobel Peace Prize for standing up to a "regime characterised by brutality" in her native Burma. She endured 15 years under house arrest before her release this year, because the Burmese general feared her extraordinary popularity and her ability to rouse crowds with her oratory. In Suu Kyi the Burmese people saw their greatest hope of throwing off the yoke of tyranny and the rule of the generals.Suu Kyi, 65, had been a middle-class housewife living in Oxford with her husband, the academic Michael Aris, with whom she had two children. But she left it behind in 1988 to enter the brutal and devious world of politics in Burma.
Though her husband died while she was a prisoner, Suu Kyi never deviated from her determination to demonstrate how she could create a more just society.
She was released after fraudulent elections that kept the generals in power and immediately announced that she would continue her fight for democracy, saying her aim was to lead her people to a better future.
Maureen Lipman, patron of Burma Campaign UK, writes:
Aung San Suu Kyi is an inspirational heroine to me for personal, as well as political, reasons. She has every reason to be fearful yet she remains focused, hopeful and without neurosis. She is feminine yet steely, of strong opinion but not opinionated, pragmatic but not dogmatic, spiritual but not pious, forgiving, altruistic and truly brave.
Chilean miners
Who will forget the triumphant return to terra firma of the 33 Chilean miners trapped half a mile below the Atacama desert for 69 days? Their survival, testimony to their strength of spirit, sense of camaraderie and faith that they would be rescued, brought a renewed feeling of hope and inspiration throughout the world.
For the first 17 days of their ordeal the men were stranded in the dark and sweltering heat, with no way of knowing if a rescue bid was under way. Surviving on just one spoonful of tuna a day and water filtered from the radiator of a wrecked truck, they could do little but sit and wait. "We were waiting for death, our bodies were simply consuming themselves," said Richard Villaroel, the 28th miner to be hauled to safety in the specially designed capsule that brought the men to the surface.
When the miners were eventually located, a four-inch wide tube was used to send down essentials: food, dental medicines… even pornographic magazines. To raise spirits, a fibre-optic cable was lowered so the miners could watch a national football match.
For many of the men the experience reaffirmed their faith in God. At least two underwent a religious conversion while incarcerated. When all 33 were finally rescued, the men took time to bow their heads in prayer and thank God for their survival.
Argentine-Chilean novelist Ariel Dorfman writes:
Yes, they endured 69 days more than a mile underground. Yes, they came out alive when similar disasters almost always end up in death. Yes, the most modern technology was brought to bear and international help poured in and the cameras were omnipresent. But the world's fascination with the Chilean miners, their elevation to heroic status, responds, I believe, to deeper reasons – and I use that word, deeper, deliberately. When the miners were buried alive in their suffocating tunnels, they were enacting one of the most pervasive legends that suffuses Latin American folklore: the idea that the Andes devours its children, kills those who dare to carve minerals out of its rock. The demons inside the mountains were a way of explaining, through the centuries, the sacrifice of so many workers, part of a ritual dance with the earth. But when the 33 miners were rescued, they suddenly embodied an opposing myth that exists beyond Latin America and that can be found in every culture: the certainty that the earth is a mother that gives birth, rather than an avenger of the wounds inflicted upon her. The wondrous endurance of the miners was just what our species needed. At a time when wars rage and our social fabric is cut to shreds and the planet is headed for an ecological catastrophe that no one seems able to stop, those Chileans reassured us that perhaps we will not, after all, be devoured by the demons that lurk in the dark.
Katharine Birbalsingh
Ms Birbalsingh, vice-principal at the Church of England-sponsored St Michael and All Angels Academy in Camberwell, south London, won a standing ovation at the Tory party conference for her powerful speech in which she highlighted how Britain's education system, once a world benchmark, had been hijacked and "blinded by Leftist ideology".
The system, she said, was "fundamentally broken", and extracts from her blog exposed how knife crime, violence and bad behaviour were endemic at schools in which she had worked. In one excerpt she said that three boys were excluded for allegedly stabbing a boy but were allowed to return to school because the paperwork was incorrect. "Three gruesome, terrifying, influential boys are coming back and there is nothing we can do."
Ms Birbalsingh was suspended from her post after her fearless revelations and later decided to leave the school. Mr Nick Seaton, chairman of the Campaign for Real Education, described her departure as "scandalous," saying: "It sends a shocking warning to others in the teaching profession – that they must not say anything that exposes the truth or they may lose their livelihood."
Dr Anthony Seldon, Master of Wellington College, writes:
Katharine was an unknown when she stepped up to the platform on October 5 at the conference. She gave a blistering eight-minute indictment that brought the initially bored audience first to the edge of their seat and then to their feet, clapping hysterically. Katharine had worked at five state schools but had finally had enough. Her speech received moderate comment in the press the next day. What turned her into a national figure was when her school banned her from going back to teach. Now she cannot find a job.
It was quite dreadful that Katharine was demonised for speaking the truth about state education as she saw it. She clearly feels passionately about inner city education and the lives and prospects for young people, especially the country's most deprived. The education world should reflect on what she has said, rather than make her into a pariah.
Dr Karen Woo
The general surgeon from Stevenage, Hertfordshire left her job to devote her skills to helping civilian victims of the Taliban in Afghanistan. Two weeks before she was due to marry fiancé Paddy Smith, she and nine other volunteers were killed after they delivered medical supplies to the lawless province of Nuristan in the north-east of the country. The former hospital surgeon, six Americans, a German and an Afghan were lined up and shot one after the other by a 10-strong gang armed with AK-47 rifles. A Taliban spokesman later claimed they had been murdered because they were Christian missionaries.
Until a year ago Dr Woo, 36, had earned a six-figure salary with the private health firm Bupa. When she visited a friend in Afghanistan, she fell in love with the country and its beleagured citizens. She moved to Kabul after making a documentary about the country's healthcare system. Dr Woo and her fellow volunteers had made the arduous 120-mile journey to Nuristan, much of it on horseback and by foot, for the Christian charity the International Assistance Mission. They had spent three weeks carrying much-needed medical supplies across some of the most inaccessible terrain in Afghanistan. Dr Woo had also set up a charity, Bridge Afghanistan, to raise funds for medical supplies.
Terry Waite, humanitarian, writes:
With two daughters of my own who frequently work in dangerous parts of the world, my thoughts are frequently with those who choose to serve in some of the most difficult places of the world. Dr Karen Woo was one such individual. It was a tragedy that her quiet and unassuming bravery was brought to our attention by her death, but when negative comments are made about the younger generation we need to remember Karen. Her earthly life was short but she will be remembered and respected for many a year and continue to be an inspiration to many.
Corporal Ricky Furgusson
Cpl Furgusson, who lost both legs and an eye in a bomb blast in Afghanistan last January, was awarded the Military Cross, the third most senior military medal, for rescuing blast-injured colleagues on four occasions. Serving with the 4th Battalion The Rifles, he repeatedly ignored his own safety to help fallen comrades.
His citation says: ''Furgusson's bravery, personally ignoring the ever-present IED [improvised explosive device] threat when dashing to the aid of wounded men, and his outstanding leadership, time and again rallying his soldiers in the disorientating aftermath of IED strikes, saved lives."
Cpl Furgusson was on his first patrol in the Sangin district in October when an IED ripped through his section. He stabilised one soldier's condition and assisted in his evacuation, saving his life. A month later he went to the aid of two colleagues from a nearby patrol when they too were blown up. Just four days later, Cpl Furgusson saved another trooper's life, and in the fourth incident he again stabilised and evacuated a soldier within 34 minutes of him being blasted by an IED.
A month later he was again caught in an explosion when he stepped upon one hidden in a doorway. As well as losing his legs and left eye, he lost several fingers and suffered significant injuries to his face.
Andy McNab, author and former soldier, writes:
Cpl Furgusson's bravery, personally ignoring the ever-present lED threat when dashing to the aid of wounded men, and his outstanding leadership, shows us what true soldiering is all about. He has demonstrated the core values of the British Army: selfless commitment. Courage. Discipline. Loyalty. Integrity. Respect for others.
PC David Rathband
When gun killer Raoul Moat went on a killing rampage in Northumbria, he shot police constable David Rathband in the face, blinding him. Throughout his ordeal Mr Rathband, in excruciating pain, pretended to be dead as the killer blasted him a second time. And though he lost his sight, the courageous officer has now launched a charity, the Blue Lamp Foundation, to help injured 999 heroes.
Mr Rathband, 42, a married officer with two children, was sitting in his squad car at a roundabout, four miles from Newcastle, when Moat fired at him in the face from point blank range. Though in agony, he slumped on his seat while Moat fired another bullet into his left shoulder. Later Mr Rathband recalled that he looked into the killer’s eyes and ''saw nothing – no emotion”.
Surgeons battled to save him but he lost his sight in both eyes. Afterwards he defiantly declared: ''I will just have to make the change from being a policeman to being a blind policeman. But I will still be a copper.’’
Brian Paddick, former Scotland Yard police chief, writes:
When the “ultimate sacrifice” is made, it is the loved ones left behind when someone dies in the course of duty who bear the enduring pain. To be left devastatingly disabled, as PC David Rathband has been, like many war heroes, is a personal sacrifice that the heroes themselves have to live with, day in, day out, for the rest of their lives. For David to say that he sometimes wakes to see Moat’s face next to him on the pillow brings home the continuing horror that he has to live with. For David to say, despite his blindness, that he wants to “finish his shift”, to continue to serve in the police service, brings home the sort of dedication that David, and the overwhelming majority of his colleagues, demonstrate every day on our streets. Police officers like David put themselves in harm’s way in order to keep us safe, and we should not forget that.
The Pope
Though Pope Benedict XVI does not possess the radiant charisma of his predecessor, his actions in becoming the first prefect within the Vatican (before he was elected Pope) to speak out against the sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests, and the first Pope to sanction the use of condoms by Catholics to prevent the spread of Aids, won him worldwide applause.
Thousands turned out to greet the Pontiff when he made the first ever state visit by a Pope to Britain in September.
Though he faced controversy when elected five years ago – at the age of 78 – for his membership of the Hitler Youth as a teenager (by coercion), the former Cardinal Ratzinger touched many when he honoured RAF pilots who fought in the Battle of Britain. He told crowds of well-wishers: ''We can recall how Britain and her leaders stood against a Nazi tyranny that wished to eradicate God from society and denied our common humanity to many, especially the Jews.’’
Recalling those dark days the Pope, now 83, said: ''For me, as one who lived and suffered through the dark days of the Nazi regime in Germany, it is deeply moving to be here with you on the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain. And to recall how many of your fellow citizens sacrificed their lives, courageously resisting the forces of that evil ideology.’’
Ann Widdecombe writes:
It must have been tempting to cancel the British tour which was widely predicted to be a disaster, but Pope Benedict XVI came, saw and conquered through sheer personality. He did not shirk the question of child abuse, nor point out that it is hardly unique to the Catholic Church. Instead, he faced it head on. Nor was he afraid to tell both houses of Parliament that Christians must be allowed to follow their faith and not be obliged by Act of Parliament to leave their consciences at home when going to work. Through his determination and strength, he left behind a more determined and stronger church.
Tom Daley
Tom Daley delighted the nation when, after a year of stunning success as one of the world’s youngest competitive divers, he took the gold medal in the 10m individual platform competition at the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. Just the day before, the 16-year-old had picked up his first gold, along with teammate, Max Brick, in the synchronised 10m platform competition.
It was three years ago that he first came to public attention: a squeaky-voiced kid from Plymouth who, astonishingly, had just qualified to compete in the 2008 Olympic Games. The following year he became both British champion and the youngest ever European champion. Twelve months later he was champion of the world – although he failed to win a medal at the Beijing Games. Along the way he has earned himself seven GCSEs, all As, and five of them starred, and is now studying for three A levels.
It has taken a punishing schedule for Daley to win worldwide acclaim. He does an hour and a half of homework every day and then trains for four hours in the gym and pool, before returning home to more studying. “It’s hard. But it is everything to me,” Daley says. ''I just want to make my family and the country proud.’’
Mark Foster, former Olympic swimmer, writes:
Tom is an inspiration to everybody, but especially children. Here is someone who, on top of his schoolwork, puts in enough hours to become a world champion diver. Most children spend their time after school on their computers. Tom spends it at the pool.
For someone of his age to compete at his level is incredible. Lots of people say that, at 16, he’s too young to be representing his country while juggling GCSEs. But for me, that’s the reason why he is so special. He has a 40-year-old’s head on a 16-year-old’s shoulders.
To go with his incredible mental attitude, he has a massive talent. A lot of young people have talent; what makes the difference is hard work. Tom is willing to go the extra mile to succeed.
He is a sporting role model, and they’re a dying breed.
The victims of 7/7
Who could fail to have been impressed by the dignity and courage of the 7/7 survivors as they spoke of and listened to the horrendous details of the al‑Qaeda bomb that claimed 52 lives and maimed countless others at the inquest into the incident. In particular Daniel Biddle, 31, who was so severely injured that he lost both legs, his left eye and his spleen, gained the respect of many as he calmly recounted how he watched in horror as bomber Mohammed Sidique Khan detonated his bomb barely six feet from where he was standing. He won praise from the coroner, Lady Justice Hallett, who said: “You have suffered so much and your survival is inspirational.”
Julie Etchingham, presenter of ITV News at Ten, writes:
Davinia Turrell’s image flashed around the world after she was led from the wreckage of the Edgware Road blast wearing a full medical mask to protect her burned face. She became a symbol of what London endured on that horrific day in 2005 when 52 lives were lost – and a vivid metaphor for the truth that terrorism strikes indiscriminately.
At the 7/7 inquest, the pain and the heroism of that day has been unmasked for all to see. Just as Davinia Turrell’s beautiful face has since emerged, others too have come out from beneath the shadows of their suffering and been given the chance to speak of their remarkable survivals.
Not least Martine Wiltshire, who’d been sitting a few feet from Mohammed Sidique Khan when he blew himself up at Aldgate station. She was one of the worst injured survivors, losing both her legs, yet her story of courage in recovery is breathtaking. Martine is now married, has a child, has become a pilot, completed a parachute jump – and plays for the women’s Paralympic volleyball team aiming to take part in the 2012 Olympics. “I had to make my life different,” she said as she was explaining how she came to terms with her sudden disability. “I had to make the most of every opportunity because there are 52 others who can’t.”
And alongside all the heroes of 7/7 has emerged another, perhaps less expected. She is the coroner, Lady Justice Hallett. Her gentle, deft handling of the inquest has allowed it to become a forum for the victims and their families – a shared public space for grief and pain to be acknowledged with the greatest of dignity. She is their protector and their champion.
Eileen Nearne
Eileen Nearne, who died this year at 89, lived a quiet and lonely life in Torquay. Though neighbours mourned her passing, few had any idea that the reclusive lady was, in fact, a Second World War heroine. Ms Nearne had never spoken of her daring wartime exploits as a Special Operations Executive agent. In fact, although she was interviewed for a television programme in 1997, she would only agree to be filmed using her code name Rose, wearing a wig and speaking in French. In her interview she told how she had been captured and tortured by the Gestapo and how she had escaped from a forced march between concentration camps.
Colonel Tim Collins writes:
The nature of the SOE was secretive yet of vital importance. Once selected, the volunteer knew that as they entered the anonymous building on Baker Street they began a journey from which they were very unlikely to return. It was impressed upon them that, if captured, they would face torture then death. In any case, if their location in captivity was known to the allies, every effort would be made to destroy the building so as to ensure their silence.
Eileen Nearne knew this. She was captured three times, tortured, yet never broke and managed to escape each time. The damage she was doing to the German war machine in France and against their French allies meant that the Gestapo and the Milice put a large bounty on her head. Yet she never spoke. After the war had ended, she remained faithful to her SOE oath and took her secret to the grave. In the Special Forces Club in London, the stairs are lined with the photographs of the agents who went, never to return, but faithful unto death. Most are women. I hope there is room for one more.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/8224357/Heroes-of-2010.html
Aung San Suu Kyi addresses thousands of her supporters at her National League for Democracy (NLD) headquarters on November 14, 2010 in Yangon, Burma
Aung San Suu Kyi addresses thousands of her supporters at her National League for Democracy headquarters following her release from house arrest. Photo: GETTY IMAGES
They come from all walks of life. From those who choose to devote their lives to the service of their country; to those unassuming citizens who courageously stood up and were counted at a moment of moral conflict; to those who have long waged a tireless battle against injustice and intolerance. Some have been household names for a while; others were plucked from obscurity. Whatever their story, they all share several outstanding traits: courage, stoicism and a firmly held belief that morality and right must triumph. Each, in his or her own way, whether in private or in public, found the fortitude to overcome adversity or put the needs of others before themselves. Some have saved lives. Others have greatly enriched the lives of those around them.
The past year will be remembered for both its joys and its triumphs. It has been punctuated by the birth of the Coalition government, the thrill of the Winter Olympics, the biting reality of severe public spending cuts, the heartache of natural disasters and the shocking deaths of two British women in the hazardous deserts of Afghanistan. But it is, perhaps, in just such testing times that people prove their indomitability. It is during times of crisis or distress or when our mettle is tested – albeit on the battlefield of a foreign land or in the quiet backwaters of our towns and villages – that we achieve greatness.
Here, prominent figures applaud the men and women who have been inspirational or brave, those who have reaffirmed our convictions during troubled times, those who risked their lives for their faith or beliefs and those who have reminded us just what our capabilities can be. The heroes of 2010.
Aung San Suu Kyi
Suu Kyi is the most famous political prisoner since Nelson Mandela and won a Nobel Peace Prize for standing up to a "regime characterised by brutality" in her native Burma. She endured 15 years under house arrest before her release this year, because the Burmese general feared her extraordinary popularity and her ability to rouse crowds with her oratory. In Suu Kyi the Burmese people saw their greatest hope of throwing off the yoke of tyranny and the rule of the generals.Suu Kyi, 65, had been a middle-class housewife living in Oxford with her husband, the academic Michael Aris, with whom she had two children. But she left it behind in 1988 to enter the brutal and devious world of politics in Burma.
Though her husband died while she was a prisoner, Suu Kyi never deviated from her determination to demonstrate how she could create a more just society.
She was released after fraudulent elections that kept the generals in power and immediately announced that she would continue her fight for democracy, saying her aim was to lead her people to a better future.
Maureen Lipman, patron of Burma Campaign UK, writes:
Aung San Suu Kyi is an inspirational heroine to me for personal, as well as political, reasons. She has every reason to be fearful yet she remains focused, hopeful and without neurosis. She is feminine yet steely, of strong opinion but not opinionated, pragmatic but not dogmatic, spiritual but not pious, forgiving, altruistic and truly brave.
Chilean miners
Who will forget the triumphant return to terra firma of the 33 Chilean miners trapped half a mile below the Atacama desert for 69 days? Their survival, testimony to their strength of spirit, sense of camaraderie and faith that they would be rescued, brought a renewed feeling of hope and inspiration throughout the world.
For the first 17 days of their ordeal the men were stranded in the dark and sweltering heat, with no way of knowing if a rescue bid was under way. Surviving on just one spoonful of tuna a day and water filtered from the radiator of a wrecked truck, they could do little but sit and wait. "We were waiting for death, our bodies were simply consuming themselves," said Richard Villaroel, the 28th miner to be hauled to safety in the specially designed capsule that brought the men to the surface.
When the miners were eventually located, a four-inch wide tube was used to send down essentials: food, dental medicines… even pornographic magazines. To raise spirits, a fibre-optic cable was lowered so the miners could watch a national football match.
For many of the men the experience reaffirmed their faith in God. At least two underwent a religious conversion while incarcerated. When all 33 were finally rescued, the men took time to bow their heads in prayer and thank God for their survival.
Argentine-Chilean novelist Ariel Dorfman writes:
Yes, they endured 69 days more than a mile underground. Yes, they came out alive when similar disasters almost always end up in death. Yes, the most modern technology was brought to bear and international help poured in and the cameras were omnipresent. But the world's fascination with the Chilean miners, their elevation to heroic status, responds, I believe, to deeper reasons – and I use that word, deeper, deliberately. When the miners were buried alive in their suffocating tunnels, they were enacting one of the most pervasive legends that suffuses Latin American folklore: the idea that the Andes devours its children, kills those who dare to carve minerals out of its rock. The demons inside the mountains were a way of explaining, through the centuries, the sacrifice of so many workers, part of a ritual dance with the earth. But when the 33 miners were rescued, they suddenly embodied an opposing myth that exists beyond Latin America and that can be found in every culture: the certainty that the earth is a mother that gives birth, rather than an avenger of the wounds inflicted upon her. The wondrous endurance of the miners was just what our species needed. At a time when wars rage and our social fabric is cut to shreds and the planet is headed for an ecological catastrophe that no one seems able to stop, those Chileans reassured us that perhaps we will not, after all, be devoured by the demons that lurk in the dark.
Katharine Birbalsingh
Ms Birbalsingh, vice-principal at the Church of England-sponsored St Michael and All Angels Academy in Camberwell, south London, won a standing ovation at the Tory party conference for her powerful speech in which she highlighted how Britain's education system, once a world benchmark, had been hijacked and "blinded by Leftist ideology".
The system, she said, was "fundamentally broken", and extracts from her blog exposed how knife crime, violence and bad behaviour were endemic at schools in which she had worked. In one excerpt she said that three boys were excluded for allegedly stabbing a boy but were allowed to return to school because the paperwork was incorrect. "Three gruesome, terrifying, influential boys are coming back and there is nothing we can do."
Ms Birbalsingh was suspended from her post after her fearless revelations and later decided to leave the school. Mr Nick Seaton, chairman of the Campaign for Real Education, described her departure as "scandalous," saying: "It sends a shocking warning to others in the teaching profession – that they must not say anything that exposes the truth or they may lose their livelihood."
Dr Anthony Seldon, Master of Wellington College, writes:
Katharine was an unknown when she stepped up to the platform on October 5 at the conference. She gave a blistering eight-minute indictment that brought the initially bored audience first to the edge of their seat and then to their feet, clapping hysterically. Katharine had worked at five state schools but had finally had enough. Her speech received moderate comment in the press the next day. What turned her into a national figure was when her school banned her from going back to teach. Now she cannot find a job.
It was quite dreadful that Katharine was demonised for speaking the truth about state education as she saw it. She clearly feels passionately about inner city education and the lives and prospects for young people, especially the country's most deprived. The education world should reflect on what she has said, rather than make her into a pariah.
Dr Karen Woo
The general surgeon from Stevenage, Hertfordshire left her job to devote her skills to helping civilian victims of the Taliban in Afghanistan. Two weeks before she was due to marry fiancé Paddy Smith, she and nine other volunteers were killed after they delivered medical supplies to the lawless province of Nuristan in the north-east of the country. The former hospital surgeon, six Americans, a German and an Afghan were lined up and shot one after the other by a 10-strong gang armed with AK-47 rifles. A Taliban spokesman later claimed they had been murdered because they were Christian missionaries.
Until a year ago Dr Woo, 36, had earned a six-figure salary with the private health firm Bupa. When she visited a friend in Afghanistan, she fell in love with the country and its beleagured citizens. She moved to Kabul after making a documentary about the country's healthcare system. Dr Woo and her fellow volunteers had made the arduous 120-mile journey to Nuristan, much of it on horseback and by foot, for the Christian charity the International Assistance Mission. They had spent three weeks carrying much-needed medical supplies across some of the most inaccessible terrain in Afghanistan. Dr Woo had also set up a charity, Bridge Afghanistan, to raise funds for medical supplies.
Terry Waite, humanitarian, writes:
With two daughters of my own who frequently work in dangerous parts of the world, my thoughts are frequently with those who choose to serve in some of the most difficult places of the world. Dr Karen Woo was one such individual. It was a tragedy that her quiet and unassuming bravery was brought to our attention by her death, but when negative comments are made about the younger generation we need to remember Karen. Her earthly life was short but she will be remembered and respected for many a year and continue to be an inspiration to many.
Corporal Ricky Furgusson
Cpl Furgusson, who lost both legs and an eye in a bomb blast in Afghanistan last January, was awarded the Military Cross, the third most senior military medal, for rescuing blast-injured colleagues on four occasions. Serving with the 4th Battalion The Rifles, he repeatedly ignored his own safety to help fallen comrades.
His citation says: ''Furgusson's bravery, personally ignoring the ever-present IED [improvised explosive device] threat when dashing to the aid of wounded men, and his outstanding leadership, time and again rallying his soldiers in the disorientating aftermath of IED strikes, saved lives."
Cpl Furgusson was on his first patrol in the Sangin district in October when an IED ripped through his section. He stabilised one soldier's condition and assisted in his evacuation, saving his life. A month later he went to the aid of two colleagues from a nearby patrol when they too were blown up. Just four days later, Cpl Furgusson saved another trooper's life, and in the fourth incident he again stabilised and evacuated a soldier within 34 minutes of him being blasted by an IED.
A month later he was again caught in an explosion when he stepped upon one hidden in a doorway. As well as losing his legs and left eye, he lost several fingers and suffered significant injuries to his face.
Andy McNab, author and former soldier, writes:
Cpl Furgusson's bravery, personally ignoring the ever-present lED threat when dashing to the aid of wounded men, and his outstanding leadership, shows us what true soldiering is all about. He has demonstrated the core values of the British Army: selfless commitment. Courage. Discipline. Loyalty. Integrity. Respect for others.
PC David Rathband
When gun killer Raoul Moat went on a killing rampage in Northumbria, he shot police constable David Rathband in the face, blinding him. Throughout his ordeal Mr Rathband, in excruciating pain, pretended to be dead as the killer blasted him a second time. And though he lost his sight, the courageous officer has now launched a charity, the Blue Lamp Foundation, to help injured 999 heroes.
Mr Rathband, 42, a married officer with two children, was sitting in his squad car at a roundabout, four miles from Newcastle, when Moat fired at him in the face from point blank range. Though in agony, he slumped on his seat while Moat fired another bullet into his left shoulder. Later Mr Rathband recalled that he looked into the killer’s eyes and ''saw nothing – no emotion”.
Surgeons battled to save him but he lost his sight in both eyes. Afterwards he defiantly declared: ''I will just have to make the change from being a policeman to being a blind policeman. But I will still be a copper.’’
Brian Paddick, former Scotland Yard police chief, writes:
When the “ultimate sacrifice” is made, it is the loved ones left behind when someone dies in the course of duty who bear the enduring pain. To be left devastatingly disabled, as PC David Rathband has been, like many war heroes, is a personal sacrifice that the heroes themselves have to live with, day in, day out, for the rest of their lives. For David to say that he sometimes wakes to see Moat’s face next to him on the pillow brings home the continuing horror that he has to live with. For David to say, despite his blindness, that he wants to “finish his shift”, to continue to serve in the police service, brings home the sort of dedication that David, and the overwhelming majority of his colleagues, demonstrate every day on our streets. Police officers like David put themselves in harm’s way in order to keep us safe, and we should not forget that.
The Pope
Though Pope Benedict XVI does not possess the radiant charisma of his predecessor, his actions in becoming the first prefect within the Vatican (before he was elected Pope) to speak out against the sexual abuse of children by Catholic priests, and the first Pope to sanction the use of condoms by Catholics to prevent the spread of Aids, won him worldwide applause.
Thousands turned out to greet the Pontiff when he made the first ever state visit by a Pope to Britain in September.
Though he faced controversy when elected five years ago – at the age of 78 – for his membership of the Hitler Youth as a teenager (by coercion), the former Cardinal Ratzinger touched many when he honoured RAF pilots who fought in the Battle of Britain. He told crowds of well-wishers: ''We can recall how Britain and her leaders stood against a Nazi tyranny that wished to eradicate God from society and denied our common humanity to many, especially the Jews.’’
Recalling those dark days the Pope, now 83, said: ''For me, as one who lived and suffered through the dark days of the Nazi regime in Germany, it is deeply moving to be here with you on the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain. And to recall how many of your fellow citizens sacrificed their lives, courageously resisting the forces of that evil ideology.’’
Ann Widdecombe writes:
It must have been tempting to cancel the British tour which was widely predicted to be a disaster, but Pope Benedict XVI came, saw and conquered through sheer personality. He did not shirk the question of child abuse, nor point out that it is hardly unique to the Catholic Church. Instead, he faced it head on. Nor was he afraid to tell both houses of Parliament that Christians must be allowed to follow their faith and not be obliged by Act of Parliament to leave their consciences at home when going to work. Through his determination and strength, he left behind a more determined and stronger church.
Tom Daley
Tom Daley delighted the nation when, after a year of stunning success as one of the world’s youngest competitive divers, he took the gold medal in the 10m individual platform competition at the Commonwealth Games in New Delhi. Just the day before, the 16-year-old had picked up his first gold, along with teammate, Max Brick, in the synchronised 10m platform competition.
It was three years ago that he first came to public attention: a squeaky-voiced kid from Plymouth who, astonishingly, had just qualified to compete in the 2008 Olympic Games. The following year he became both British champion and the youngest ever European champion. Twelve months later he was champion of the world – although he failed to win a medal at the Beijing Games. Along the way he has earned himself seven GCSEs, all As, and five of them starred, and is now studying for three A levels.
It has taken a punishing schedule for Daley to win worldwide acclaim. He does an hour and a half of homework every day and then trains for four hours in the gym and pool, before returning home to more studying. “It’s hard. But it is everything to me,” Daley says. ''I just want to make my family and the country proud.’’
Mark Foster, former Olympic swimmer, writes:
Tom is an inspiration to everybody, but especially children. Here is someone who, on top of his schoolwork, puts in enough hours to become a world champion diver. Most children spend their time after school on their computers. Tom spends it at the pool.
For someone of his age to compete at his level is incredible. Lots of people say that, at 16, he’s too young to be representing his country while juggling GCSEs. But for me, that’s the reason why he is so special. He has a 40-year-old’s head on a 16-year-old’s shoulders.
To go with his incredible mental attitude, he has a massive talent. A lot of young people have talent; what makes the difference is hard work. Tom is willing to go the extra mile to succeed.
He is a sporting role model, and they’re a dying breed.
The victims of 7/7
Who could fail to have been impressed by the dignity and courage of the 7/7 survivors as they spoke of and listened to the horrendous details of the al‑Qaeda bomb that claimed 52 lives and maimed countless others at the inquest into the incident. In particular Daniel Biddle, 31, who was so severely injured that he lost both legs, his left eye and his spleen, gained the respect of many as he calmly recounted how he watched in horror as bomber Mohammed Sidique Khan detonated his bomb barely six feet from where he was standing. He won praise from the coroner, Lady Justice Hallett, who said: “You have suffered so much and your survival is inspirational.”
Julie Etchingham, presenter of ITV News at Ten, writes:
Davinia Turrell’s image flashed around the world after she was led from the wreckage of the Edgware Road blast wearing a full medical mask to protect her burned face. She became a symbol of what London endured on that horrific day in 2005 when 52 lives were lost – and a vivid metaphor for the truth that terrorism strikes indiscriminately.
At the 7/7 inquest, the pain and the heroism of that day has been unmasked for all to see. Just as Davinia Turrell’s beautiful face has since emerged, others too have come out from beneath the shadows of their suffering and been given the chance to speak of their remarkable survivals.
Not least Martine Wiltshire, who’d been sitting a few feet from Mohammed Sidique Khan when he blew himself up at Aldgate station. She was one of the worst injured survivors, losing both her legs, yet her story of courage in recovery is breathtaking. Martine is now married, has a child, has become a pilot, completed a parachute jump – and plays for the women’s Paralympic volleyball team aiming to take part in the 2012 Olympics. “I had to make my life different,” she said as she was explaining how she came to terms with her sudden disability. “I had to make the most of every opportunity because there are 52 others who can’t.”
And alongside all the heroes of 7/7 has emerged another, perhaps less expected. She is the coroner, Lady Justice Hallett. Her gentle, deft handling of the inquest has allowed it to become a forum for the victims and their families – a shared public space for grief and pain to be acknowledged with the greatest of dignity. She is their protector and their champion.
Eileen Nearne
Eileen Nearne, who died this year at 89, lived a quiet and lonely life in Torquay. Though neighbours mourned her passing, few had any idea that the reclusive lady was, in fact, a Second World War heroine. Ms Nearne had never spoken of her daring wartime exploits as a Special Operations Executive agent. In fact, although she was interviewed for a television programme in 1997, she would only agree to be filmed using her code name Rose, wearing a wig and speaking in French. In her interview she told how she had been captured and tortured by the Gestapo and how she had escaped from a forced march between concentration camps.
Colonel Tim Collins writes:
The nature of the SOE was secretive yet of vital importance. Once selected, the volunteer knew that as they entered the anonymous building on Baker Street they began a journey from which they were very unlikely to return. It was impressed upon them that, if captured, they would face torture then death. In any case, if their location in captivity was known to the allies, every effort would be made to destroy the building so as to ensure their silence.
Eileen Nearne knew this. She was captured three times, tortured, yet never broke and managed to escape each time. The damage she was doing to the German war machine in France and against their French allies meant that the Gestapo and the Milice put a large bounty on her head. Yet she never spoke. After the war had ended, she remained faithful to her SOE oath and took her secret to the grave. In the Special Forces Club in London, the stairs are lined with the photographs of the agents who went, never to return, but faithful unto death. Most are women. I hope there is room for one more.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/8224357/Heroes-of-2010.html
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