‘God chose me’: Congo Ebola survivor finds new purpose
DJAFFAR AL KATANTY FOR Esperance Nyabintu, catching Ebola was a curse and a gift from God. A year ago the virus killed her husband. Most of her neighbours, friends and family abandoned her, such is the social stigma of surviving the disease. Undaunted by the challenge of bringing up 10 children alone, she has become a social worker, supporting other ostracised survivors like herself in the east of Democratic Republic of Congo. The epidemic, the second-largest Ebola outbreak since the virus was identified in 1976, has given her an enduring sense of purpose. "It makes me useful. I tell myself…