And he took the children in his arms, placed his hands on them and blessed them (Mark 10:16).
All over the world, slang terms for street children are
often extremely negative, having meanings such as ‘the plague, ‘vermin’, or
‘mosquitoes’. In this country the word for street children is sewas after the small insects that
destroy grain and crops. Urbanization, economic pressures, death and sickness
all contribute to children being abandoned or forced onto the streets to beg or
worse by their families or guardians. Some have run away from abusive homes.
Outcasts
These children are not seen as deserving of the most basic
rights of citizenship: the authorities deny them identification papers... and
then arrest and punish them for not possessing identification papers. Stories are endless how these children are
abused, exploited and scapegoated by all areas of society, including the
police. There is no safety or protection for these children. Locked out of
society these vulnerable youngsters cope with fear and try to forget their
problems by sniffing glue and engaging in other substance abuse, giving further
fuel to society’s despite of them. But what they need is the right of every
child: love, respect and hope.
Creating Hope
We are a group of volunteers from different countries and
backgrounds partnering with local schools, reaching out to a good number of
children. We visit them on the streets, invite them to different activities and
build trust and friendship. On a practical level we administer on-the-spot
first aid and assist in getting help in the more serious medical cases (without
identification papers these children cannot access medical care). We distribute
food and clothing and help them to overcome traumatic experiences. We train
them in practical skills and help them to discover personal gifts. We provide
literacy classes, and yes, with soccer we can reach them all! Without education
there is no chance of the children getting out of their dire circumstances,
even if they could break the stigma placed upon them and become accepted by
society. And for the time they are with us, they are safe from the dangers of
the streets and are not engaged in harmful activities. Lately some girls have
started to join the project but there are still far more boys.
Looking forward
Until recently all activities took place in open, public
areas, but now that we hope to have a permanent facility, enabling volunteers
to have more time with the children. We could then run improved vocational
skills training, and begin to re-focus these young minds to a life away from
the streets. It will take time and persistence to build these children up into
young adults willing to take responsibility for themselves, and find their
place in society.
What we do is something very small in the face of the
immense issue of street children in this city – but to each individual who
chooses to engage with us, we can make a massive difference in their life.
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