From Latin America Herald Tribune

Rosario Islands, Colombia – A scuba diving center in this Caribbean paradise is using an experimental therapy for people with disabilities, most of them victims of Colombia’s armed conflict, who can forget about their physical limitations amid the coral.

Diving Planet director Andres Obregon created this recreational scuba diving experience for the handicapped with support from ProColombia, a government agency that promotes investment, exports and tourism.

Swimming underwater at the 20 diving spots around Rosario Islands Natural Park, about 220 men and women with disabilities resulting, in most cases, from the violence that has plagued Colombia for more than 50 years, have enjoyed this rehabilitation therapy that may change the way they deal with life.

“By involving themselves in an activity like this, that lets them ‘fly’ free, they get great enjoyment, reconnect with nature and realize they can achieve anything they set their minds to,” Obregon said.

One of the most moving cases for the instructors was that of Camila (not her real name), a girl who dreamed of becoming a model and lost a leg when her father stepped on landmine.

The underwater experience changed Camila’s attitude about life and helped her deal with the trauma and start on a new path.

Diving Planet also worked with 10 children born with spina bifida and their mothers.

The fathers had abandoned the families after learning their children had been born with the spinal condition.

“Despite difficulties, more with the mothers than with the children, we succeeded in getting them all underwater,” Obregon said. “The idea was to have them meet there and have the mothers see their children ‘fly.'”

Thanks to a cooperation program between ProColombia and a Dutch institution, Diving Planet’s owners and workers have been trained to sell the package to the European Union.

“We have an international certificate for coral reef environmental conservation that makes travelers feel they are in good hands, as they also contribute to an environmental and social process in Colombia,” Obregon said. “All our work with social awareness is appreciated by clients in the United States and Europe.”

The scuba diving center also gets help from the island’s residents, who see new job opportunities beyond the traditional fishing and illegal extraction of sand, and can become ecotourism guides.

Since he was a child, 36-year-old Delio Londoño had dreamed of working among the coral.

“It’s almost indescribable, it’s like being in another world,” Londoño said. “You go down and start swimming, and you forget all your problems. You’re flying, you are in a different dimension. It’s tops.”

Londoño has been working as divemaster at Diving Planet for six years, and the job allowed him to build his own house on the island and live free of worries with his wife and their two young children.

The magic realism of the Rosario Islands’ coral reefs changes troubles into challenges through the scuba diving center’s social work, which can also provide locals with stable jobs and a sustainability program.

“There are people who come here with somber looks and leave with bright eyes, with hope,” Obregon said. “It is almost incredible.”

For more on this story go to: http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2394658&CategoryId=12393

IMAGE: www.swimming.org