For the eight-year-old Louisa Smith, a day trip to the beach with her father became an experience which shaped her life. The family car was stopped by an armed man, who makes it clear he is prepared to kill them unless he is driven to where he wants to go. But Louisa’s father is a Vietnam veteran, with a unique insight into how to unsettle their abductor. 

Shobande Shina recalls a mistake with money which stayed with him forever, and Nelson Bohorquez from Colombia, offers a unique glimpse of his mother’s sense of humour. And, from Syria, Layal Mahfoud remembers her mother’s lesson in standing up for her future.

Plus, contributions from Debbie Camara, Masiliso Akayombokwa, Dana Silcox, Paola Ribadeneira and Jake Crawford.

The Response is open to all and for the next topic we want you to tell us a story about an inspirational woman. As part of the World Service 100 Women series we are asking for your tales about women who changed your life or your community – or you may be a woman who changed things. How did you do it? Email us a voice memo or message recorded on your phone to  worldservice.letters@bbc.co.uk. We look forward to hearing from you!

Picture: A child holding an adult's hand, Credit: Thinkstock Published on December 7, 2016.

What My Parents Taught Me

Protecting cows has now become the focus of armed Hindu vigilante groups intent on asserting Hindu radicalism under India's Hindu nationalist government. Published on December 15, 2016.

India's Silent Terror

The Kafkaesque story of the brutal killing of a woman who was found dead by the side of a lake in Sweden. Agneta Westerlund had moved some years before to a small village from Stockholm along with her husband Ingemar. The couple had first met as teenagers and had been together for 40 years. Her body had suffered a series of bizarre and horrific injuries: one wound on the side of her back was the size of a wheel. Police arrested Ingemar and accused him of murdering his wife by running over her with a lawnmower and then dumping her body by the lake. So did he really kill Agneta? 



Open Ear features documentaries from producers across the world being rebroadcast by the BBC World Service. This episode first aired on Sveriges Radio in Swedish. 



(Photo: Lake shore in Sweden. Credit: Olivier Morin/AFP/Getty Images) Published on December 16, 2016.

Woman Found Dead by the Lake Shore

Between 1949 and 1989 the Soviet Union tested 456 nuclear bombs in Semipalatinsk in Kazakhstan. The area the size of Belgium became known as the Polygon and when Kazakhstan became independent – 25 years ago this week - it inherited the world’s fourth biggest nuclear arsenal. The BBC’s Rustam Qobil visits the Polygon to piece together its remarkable story. Published on December 18, 2016.

The Polygon People

Will Grant takes a ride in Cuba to discover how people get around and whether the thaw in relations with the United States will make any difference to their lives. Published on August 13, 2015.

Cuba on the Move

An indepth look at stories and issues from around the world. This podcast offers you the chance to access landmark series from our archive.

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