Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Tegucigalpa (Agenzia Fides) - Honduras is the poorest of the 7 nations of Central America, and complains of a very serious situation especially for the violence against children. Out of a population of over 8 million inhabitants, a murder rate of 82.1 per 100 000 is recorded. About 80% of the population is poor or very poor, about 20% belong to the lower middle class and few are rich and are those who manage the business and affairs of the country. 51%, ie more than half of the Honduran population are children and every day at least one is murdered. In few years, all over the country there were violent deaths, 7,300 youth murdered, shot in the head with guns, killed by police, soldiers, security guards, drug traffickers, in clashes between criminal gangs or by hitmen or by organized crime. According to data released by Casa Alianza, an international non-governmental organization that assists children and children in difficulty, 3 people are murdered every day and are under 22 years of age. Some children under 14 who are involved in Maras (organized gangs) are so terrified that when they try to escape they commit suicide. There is great poverty, lack of education, half a million children do not go to school, some work every day since they were 6 or 7 years old, although the law says that no one can work until they reach14 years of age and not more than 6 hours in jobs not at risk. In the village 20 000 girls between 8 and 18, are employed as domestic maids and suffer physical and moral violence, 300 000 children work in mines, coffee, sugar cane plantations and fishing. 150 000, between 6 and 14, work in high risk activities with roles as adults. Every year 100 thousand Hondurans migrate to the U.S., among these 8 000 children are raped, sold, forced into prostitution, kept away from their families.
Honduras is becoming a narco state, where every day two planes loaded with cocaine land and where millions of weapons circulate freely that none of the 60 000 private security guards control. Taxes are not paid, there is drug trafficking, organized crime, lack of education, health care, social services. Each year, between 80 thousand and 100 thousand Hondurans, including children, travel illegally to the United States, many die during the journey. Violence against children is enormous, the oldest start raping their sisters who in turn are systematically raped by parents, grandfathers and other men.
Among the many organized realities, Casa Alianza, an international non-governmental organization which has been working in Honduras since 1978 to assist boys and girls in trouble are actually trying to cope with this emergency. The institute is open 24 hours a day to help the children who are homeless, without any food or opportunity to study. There are times when up to 180 children stop to sleep in the institute, some come with weapons in their hand. Thanks to the assistance program called "Querubines", 25 girls rescued from sexual slavery live and sleep. Some come to Casa Alianza to give birth because they have no one to take care of them. 30-40% of all births in the country are girls aged 12 to 14. 3 abortions per day in girls between 12 and 16 years of age are recorded a day. Among the initiatives of the center there is also a family reintegration program through which 120-150 children are taken home each year, many unfortunately cannot go back because of the abuses. The center gives them food, clothes, tools to go to school, as well as providing a therapy unit to free them from drug addiction. (AP (Agenzia Fides 22/2/2012)
