 |
 |
|||||
|
||||||
|
CHILDREN IN PRISON
Ashalayam
Calcutta, India Ashalayam has finally been authorised to visit children in the Barasat Detention Center for Minors. "The vast majority of these children have been rounded up for the simple reason that they are vagrants and have no family. The children of Ashalayam gave a musical and theatrical performance within the prison walls (...) which is their way of showing their support to their less fortunate companions who will spend Christmas behind bars. Our hope is to set up regular educational and recreational activities. The authorities have written to inform us that they have decided to free five children who had spent a long period in our centre and wished to return." Relation with the authorities are good. A few examples: the regional Government has provided passes for ease of circulation, a 50% reduction in electricity cost has been negociated, the association has a jeep and a tax levy from the Government. These few examples demonstrate the Government's readiness to cooperate with the association. Likewise the police, who are about to agree to work with children, technical training for those leaving prison, and schooling projects adapted to needy children arriving in Calcutta.
Virlanie
Manila Philippines Virlanie undertook substantial work. Several judges understood the importance of not letting children's affairs drag on for months or years. One judge chose to devote one afternoon per week to imprisoned children... It's a start, other judges will follow. The Minister for Social Affairs offered her help to set up a home for children awaiting judgement, something inexistant at present in the Philippines. Virlanie has been invited to take part in the Zone Interdite ("Prohibited Area") series on the French television channel "M6" in a programme devoted to children and prison. Dominique LEMAY was interviewed and was able to put forward his point of view on the problem forcefully.
Interview of Dominique LEMAY,
creator of the Virlanie Foundation in 1987 "Children in prison was a huge problem. All children were held together, wether street children or those who had commited felonies, wether they were 3 or 18 years old. Up to 50 children were squeezed into a cell of 15 meters square without water and with merely a hole in a corner for a toilet. The children could not lie down and there was no medical aid. If any of them became too ill, they were taken to hospital. After 4 or 5 years in Manila, Dominique was able to suggest to the head of the children's prison that he use a neighbouring building so that children picked up off the streets during police rounds-up could be separated from those convicted. The latter share two rooms, girls upstairs, boys downstairs. Street children are now housed in a building opposite, whatever their age. Together, with "The Friends of Sister Emmanuelle", Virlanie has undertaken the necessary annual renovation and maintenance work on the buildings (roofing, painting, etc.) at a cost of about 6.000 euros per annum. They have been able to instal a water conduit and a pump, a WC, and obtained permission for the children to have an hour's exercise daily in the inner courtyard. The children attend school every morning in the cells on the upper floor. From the legal angle, action has been taken to safeguard the rights of children in prison. Two of Virlanie's social workers visit the children to ascertain, together with the prison social workers, the children's situation so as to discover those who are not being given legal aid. In those cases, Virlanie pays for the services of a lawyer. To reduce as far as possible the time children spend on remand, Virlanie suggested that the magistrates increase the number of sessions reserved for children. In addition, Virlanie provided them with red files, so that those of the children could be seen clearly in the piles of files. Following police beatings of children during "cleaning up" operations, the police and their chiefs were contacted to convince them that street children are entitled to as much respect as are other children. As regards health, the Government sent a dentist to stay in the prison, but with neither instruments nor medicine! Virlanie managed to send second-hand dentistry equipment, a gift from a French dentist, and the Swiss branch of "Médecins sans frontières" (Doctors without borders) undertook to put it in working order. Together with "Médecins sans frontières", Virlanie's health team is authorized to treat hildren in prison and in the building RAC housing the street children. This means that certain epidemic have been eradicated, such as scabies. In the RAC building, Virlanie has introduced various entertainments, such as circuses, games, lectures, etc.. Every Christmas, Virlanie organizes a huge party in prison, with clowns, dances, etc.. Finally, with a view to the children's leaving prison, Virlanie's social workers try to find their families and prepare them to take back their children. At the same time, they endeavour to persuade the children to go back to their families. The task remains onerous, for in spite of the Philippine Government's having ratified the Rights of the Child. Three children under 10 years old are still under sentence of death."
Albert Schweitzer Association Philippines
(ASAP)
Albert Schweitzer Association Philippines (ASAP) consists of a team of social workers, lawyers and jurists. It intervenes for the release of children from their prison cells and organises campaigns to promote children's rights. It insists on the necessity of assisting children to reintegrate society by especially adapted methods based on the child’s readiness to participate. ASAP believes that education in citizenship is a strong means towards the eradication of the abuse of children's rights. That children should be informed and inform each other of their rights is an important step towards the propagation of children's rights. ASAP has undertaken action with the Ministry of Education so that civil education is integrated in teaching programmes.
Extract from a communiqué
by Les Enfants d'Abidjan The Abidjan remand home and prison (MACA) was built for 2.000 inmates but contains at present almost 5.000, both children and adults. The observation centre for minors (COM) houses young people awaiting for trial, or who have been given a light sentence. Sometimes, they have simply been picked up in a police round-up and await the COM staff's evaluation of their capacity to be returned to society without sinking back into deliquency. This waiting period is random and unscheduled. The COM detains between 100 and 150 young people in 12 cells, 15 square metres large, with neither water nor electricity and with only one Turkish-style toilet. The COM staff are too few to deal efficiently with the reinsertion of these young people. A workshop can deal with 4 or 5 at a time, while a hundred others are left to their own devices most of the day. The work carried out is strictly utilitarian and for the warder's benefit. The young people get no financial reward, and there is no training for professional diplomas, although these are obviously paramount for their reinsertion into society. Since the buildings were so designed as to allow the young people to pass with ease from the COM to the MACA, thus exposing many young people to violence, a separating wall was built. The effects of that separation however, have proved to be not always beneficial! Previously, when the young people could not find what they needed in COM, which was often, they went to the adults to obtain it (additional food, cigarettes, soap, clothes, etc.). That no longer being possible, the weakest, those who cannot climb over the wall, became more vulnerable and their health in general suffered. The young people from Saint-Etienne, during their few weeks in Abidjan, set up a paint shop in which the COM youth participated eagerly. This mutual work facilitated relations with them and demonstrated that many of them were willing to do other work. Their living conditions would thus be improved and they would find something to occupy them during their long hours of idleness. The French students created, therefore, a kitchen garden of vegetables that can be eaten raw (tomatoes, carrots) thus easely consumed. After the helpers returned to France, the seeds and fertilisers were taken by the warders and the land is again lying fallow.
Some information received
from Project St Joseph (Kaolac, Senegal) "Here, in Kaolack, a State service is in charge of children in prison which is why we do not deal with this question. The problem is that when most of the children leave prison, they find themselves on the streets because they are frightened to return to their families. We intervene at this stage by receiving and listening to them at our centre, as we do with the other street children so as to facilitate their reinsertion into society through their family or through professional training. For example, after some months in the centre, two children have been reconciled with their parents and have gone back home permanently. Three others are still with us as they are not yet ready to return to their families. Their stay in prison has worsened their situation, they take drugs and steal more than before going to prison. It is true that sending a child to prison is no solution. On the contrary, the child comes out more dishonest than before."
SOS
Mineurs en prison
Conakry, Guinea "It is as if we are working on quicksand and are extremely prudent so as to safeguard what we have achieved so far as well as maintaining the confidence of the prison, legal and police authorities. We bring files up-to-date, complete and correct them when necessary. In 47 visits to police stations, we were able to see 18 minors of which 9 were handed over to us. The telephone plays an important role for contacts. Different sensitive negotiations with the Ministry of Justice resulted in the release of 51 minors (...). After listening to them we were able to contact some of the families and thus renew family ties. Parents went to see their children in prison or at the centre which facilitated the child's reintegration into the family."
Prisonniers Sans Frontières
Prisonniers Sans Frontières is trying to find an alternative to imprisonment for young offenders in Togo, Benin and Niger. In Togo a programme for youngsters in trouble is being elaborated with the authorities.
 Created
on 29 april, 2006 - Updated on 17 november, 2007 |
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
+ 91 33 2643
5037
+ 91 33 2643
9296
 |