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You're watching UNICEF Television.

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In the shadows of Mount Ararat, a father in eastern Turkey

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tries to recover from the death of his 16-year-old daughter, Fatma.

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The father's name is Mehmet Emin Ozen,

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and one year after Fatma died from the avian flu,

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he is still dazed and refuses to believe the doctors

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who say she died from handling an infected duck.

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He says, her death came all of a sudden,

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and I have no explanation how she became ill.

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It was God's decision.

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I thought, Fatma is my child that I love most,

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but God has taken her away from me.

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The only photos he owns of Fatma are from the newspapers,

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taken a few days before she died.

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His youngest son also contracted avian flu,

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but survived after spending 17 days on a ventilator.

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Because of Turkey's proximity to Asia, Europe and Africa,

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migrating birds regularly travel through the country.

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Infected birds are believed to have passed the virus

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to domesticated flocks of birds,

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mostly raised by poor communities.

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Doctors note that all four children who died here last year

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had been in close contact with home-raised ducks or chickens.

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After the outbreak hit, millions of chickens and other birds

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were slaughtered in affected countries.

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In Turkey, UNICEF has been working closely with the government

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to educate people, especially those who raise birds at home,

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about proper hygiene and protection.

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We took so many precautions, but the most important part

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is developing the communication materials.

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Developing television spots, posters, flyers,

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and disseminating them by using different mediums,

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like schools, like media,

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collaboration with Ministry of Health, Ministry of Agriculture,

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by using any possible channel.

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Other measures have been taken as well.

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The Turkish government is setting up a lab in eastern Turkey

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to quickly diagnose any new cases in the region.

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The government is also trying to limit the exposure

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of domesticated birds to wild birds,

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as seen in this large poultry farm

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that is hermetically sealed to the outside world.

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But serious threats remain.

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New human cases of avian flu in Asia have already appeared in 2007,

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and health experts warn that if the virus mutates into a human strain,

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it could trigger a global pandemic that could kill millions.

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This is Thomas Naiba reporting for UNICEF Television in Ari, Turkey.

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Unite for Children.