Heart of fire - Senait Mehari

A 'child from a suitcase' - that's how Senait Mehari's story begins. An unwanted baby, her mother packs her inside a suitcase, puts the case in the wardrobe and goes away. Born in 1974 to an Ethiopian mother and an Eritrean father, Senait was abandoned by her parents as a baby and spent her early years in a state orphanage before being returned to her father. As the onset of the War of Liberation threatened the family, Senait's father made the shocking decision to 'give' Senait and two of her stepsisters to the guerrilla troops of the ELF (Eritrean Liberation Front). Senait endured years of hunger, sickness and countless beatings until 1983, when her uncle arranged an adventurous escape to Sudan. The girls lived in Khartoum for four years, but were then summoned to Germany by their father where he was living as an asylum seeker. Adjusting to life in Germany was difficult - western society was alien and their father greeted his children with violence and abuse. At 14 Senait left home for a life on the streets. She bought herself a cheap keyboard and began composing music. Now, at the age of thirty, Senait feels compelled to speak. Despite all the tortures and cruelties Heart of Fire is the moving testimony of a woman who is determined to succeed in life.