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Beijing kids with autism get help from horses
What HOPE aims to do is to help children with autism build confidence and strengthen their coordination skills.
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This picture taken on March 29, 2023 shows Victor Liu, a 14-year-old Beijinger with visual impairment and autism, caressing his horse during a riding lesson at a horse club in Beijing. A charity in China is using horses to help young people with autism, building their confidence and coordination skills in a country where public understanding of the condition is limited.
(AFP /Wang Zhao)
O
n a crisp spring day at a Beijing equestrian club, 14-year-old Victor Liu climbs into the saddle of a dark-haired horse, starting the latest session of a sport that has changed his life.
Like other young people with autism in China, Victor has long faced stigma in a country where his condition is often misunderstood.
But a charity named Horses Offering People Enrichment (HOPE) is trying to help, touting the mental health benefits of equestrian activities.
Just north of Beijing, tall trees and the neighing of horses and ponies offer respite from the stress of China's chaotic capital.
In China, autism is often referred to as "loneliness disease" and youngsters with the condition are known as "children of the stars".
What HOPE aims to do is to help children with autism build confidence and strengthen their coordination skills.
Victor, who also suffers from visual impairment, has been riding horses at HOPE's centre for over eight years.
