Yo sí puedo....Yes I can

A large number of the kids we care for at Casa Alianza have zero or very limited reading or writing skills.  As you can imagine, for a kid sent out to sell chewing gum on the streets since six years of age, reading has never been a major priority.

Every kid who comes is Casa Alianza is thus given the opportunity to learn how to read or write, either by specialists working in our residential shelters, or in formal schools and colleges.

There are, however, a number of kids who never quite make it to Casa Alianza.  One such group are the kids who live on the streets of Managua's Oriental Market, the biggest and most dangerous market the city has to offer.  These are the kids that live and sleep on the 'callejones de la muerte,' the death alleyways, where since about seven years of age they have been hooked on drugs (mainly glue) and have slowly deteriorated their physical and mental capacities.  They are kids who wander barefoot, covered in cuts and bruises.  The most determinable characteristic is the little jar of glue permanently stuffed up to their mouths and noses.

For kids such as these, making a change to come and live at Casa Alianza can often be too drastic.  As I have said on this blog before, the street is highly addictive.  On the streets, these kids who have been taking drugs for the best part of their lives can do so as and when they wish, there are no rules, no structure and nobody to tell them off.  In Casa Alianza, however, it is different.  There is a structure and a clear set of rules, especially prohibiting the use of any harmful substance.

As such, many of these kids are unable to readjust to a new way of life.  This, however, does not mean that we can't do anything to help them.   Last month at Casa Alianza we launched 'Yo sí puedo....Yes I can', the initiative to train children how to read and write, for the kids living on the streets in the Oriental Market.

For the last few Friday's we have been heading out the market, armed with a set of notebooks, pencils, coloring pens and textbooks, and of course a set of fruit juices and biscuits.

In the first session, two kids arrived to study.   In the session last week, 14 kids arrived to study and the numbers keep going up.    

Gradually, we are getting somewhere with this initiative.  The kids who come to study are kids who were not even able to write their own names, but our now proudly able to write their names, dates, the abc, and are gaining a feeling of accomplishment from what they are achieving   Additionally, the 60 minutes they are in the class is 60 minutes away from drugs.

We might not be able to achieve everything we would like to with kids such as these, whose lives have been so affected by abuse, drug addiction, violence and poverty, but it does mean we are able to make some form of difference, and keep moving in the right direction.

After a long, long absence........Sara's story

After a long, long time of writer's block, it was more than overdue to get this blog up and running again.

I guess for one reason or another I lost the ability to tell the stories of my life here in Nicaragua and my work with Casa Alianza, but after just having come back to the country from a three week holiday in the UK, inspiration is running high again.  

So, time for a story.....

When I arrived back at Casa Alianza on Monday morning, I headed into our main residential centre, the Hilton Home, which cares for over 100 at-risk youth, and I was very surprised to see somebody there.   This person, lets call her Sara, had come to Casa Alianza back in December 2011.    From a background of extreme poverty, she arrived heavily addicted to drugs, was missing teeth as a result of the substance abuse, had been living on the streets and involved in criminal gangs, and was, in general, facing unimaginable difficulty.

Sara, however, managed to do extraordinary things while she was at Casa Alianza.  She quickly managed to get off the drugs, she became a confident and thoughtful teenager, got into formal education and vocation courses, and became one of the Captains in the residential center.  

After about seven months of going really well, as can often happen, Sara hit a crisis point.   She mentally blocked everything, dropped out of the school we had placed her in, stopped her vocational training courses, and went into heavy depression.    She decided she no longer could face being in Casa Alianza, and we arranged for her to go back to a family member.  

On Monday, however, after three months in which she had been away, I saw Sara back at Casa Alianza.   Seeing as Sara and I had worked a lot together during her first time at Casa Alianza, she immediately came to my office to tell me what was going on.   She told me she hadn't managed to stay long with her family but instead took again to life on the streets, and faced lows she never thought possible.   She became heavily addicted to all forms of class A drugs, and was imprisoned for one month after being caught dealing drugs.    She looked unhealthily skinny, her body was bruised and scarred, and a light and enthusiasm I once saw in her eyes had been turned off.    She is 16 years old, but looked a lot older.  

For me this story shows something very important, the exceptional difficulty these children and teenagers face to be able to get their lives back on track.   Sara had developed extraordinary lengths at Casa Alianza, but due to how she had suffered in the past, she ultimately hit a crisis and found that she couldn't go on.   I have now been working at Casa Alianza for two years, and seeing Sara in this situation has proven to be a steep learning curve for me, showing that we need to make sure the care we provide understands that when children appear to have 'recovered' it is often the case that they still have a long way to go.  I think most of the team are already more than aware of this fact,  but for me, it has given me the opportunity to take stock.  

So for now, I sincerely hope that we can provide the care and support that Sara needs, to go beyond where she was before, to help her get away from risk, and restore the smile and enthusiasm that was once a part of her.    

Thanks for reading, and I hope these updates will now be back online on a regular basis.  

Un abrazo

Another one of those happy endings....at least for the time being

When boys and girls are abused sexually, be it within their family, trafficking, rape, or sexual exploitation for commercial purposes, one of the consequences that we see very often, is the very high sexualisation of that child.

A girl, for example, who since 12 years old has been raped frequently and forced to have sex with multiple men in order to not be beaten up, has learnt, tragically, to hold next to no value to her own body, and to see sex as a way to survive.   This means, that when kids come to Casa Alianza’s residential centers, after having suffered in such horrific ways, we have to find ways to help them learn handle their sexuality and once again value their bodies and themselves, to no longer feel obliged to have sex with someone, in order to survive or just to be recognised.  

Isabel is 14 years old (names changed as always), she has been abused, raped, and forced to work as sex worker.   Severe poverty meant her mother was also working in the same fashion.  She now has very limited contact with her family.  Since Isabel came to Casa Alianza she has faced extraordinary problems.  On many times she has expressed desires to take her own life, she has injured herself, and the over sexualisation is a common feature to her behaviour.

During the Christmas period Isabel was finding things very tough.   She felt restrained and restricted and wanted to get out.  We all did our best to help, and I remember speaking to her on December 30, as we prepared to bring 2011 to a close, hoping she would see the benefits of staying at Casa Alianza. 

But things did not work out as we hoped.  Isabel had made contact with a guy outside, an adult, around 30 years old, and on New Year’s Eve, just after dinner she snuck out.  Witness later told us that the man had been seen lurking around the outside of Casa Alianza, awaiting Isabel’s escape, and no doubt had found a way of contacting her, and making sure that she would leave.  

When we received the news, relevant enquiries were made and the police was informed.  A few days later we found that Isabel was staying with her grandmother.  It was a relief to her she had managed to get away from what would almost be certainly further abuse and exploitation and had made it to a safe place.

Last night, however, as I was preparing to leave work for the day, Isabel arrived back to Casa Alianza.   I did not need to ask questions.  I knew, and I was delighted to see that she had made the decision to come back and make the most of all the care and support we try and offer. 

It is, for the time being at least,  a happy ending.

There are a number of reasons why I wanted to share this story.  One is to stress how very complex the psychological situation is for a child or teen who has been abused.   They are often expected to be shy and withdrawn, and so the over sexualisation can often take people by surprise and lead them to make the wrong decisions.   The other reason is to stress just how very difficult it is for boys and girls who have been abused and have had their confidence and self-worth shattered.   As this article is stressing, it may look like they are fine, but it is vital to look beyond the surface, and to do our best to see what is really going on, and in spite of all the difficulties, keep doing all we can to help, protect and support. 

Two new additions to the Casa Alianza family

In my last entry I wrote about the somewhat bittersweet nature of spending my second Christmas here with the kids at Casa Alianza, the enjoyment of being with them, but at the same time, the difficulties for the kids with no families or safe places to go during this time.

This Christmas, however, something a bit special happened.  Two of the girls living at our protection center for teenage mothers, gave birth.   The first happened on Christmas Eve when Sofia (as always I am changing names) gave birth to  a baby boy.   Three days later, on December 27, Helena also gave birth to a boy.  

Both of these girls are 16 years old, and have been the victims of various abuses including rape, sexual exploitation for commercial purposes and violence and sexual abuse by members of their own family.  They have suffered unimaginably, but at the same time, they have shown remarkable strength and resilience over the last few months. 

I truly hope that the new life bought into our community will have the chance to grow and develop in a healthy and sustainable way, and never have to face the same difficulties that their mothers have gone through.   This, therefore, is a short but happy entry.  Sadly some less happy things have happened here during the Christmas period as well, which will feature on here shortly.

But for now, I will leave it at that.   Through all of the opportunities Casa Alianza hopes to provide to these two girls and their children, providing education, support, activities, unconditional love and absolute respect, family reintegration etc, will be able to ensure that these two newly born youngsters are able to get the healthy and happy childhood that every child deserves.

A very happy new year to you all.  

A very overdue update from Casa Alianza

It has been far too long since I wrote, and I wanted firstly to wish everybody a Very Merry Christmas and a Very Happy New Year.

I am not too sure why I have found it hard to write this past month, but it is now time to make up for it, with an update of some of the things going on here at Casa Alianza Nicaragua.

Two weeks ago we went up with a group of 15 kids to the northern highlands, to participate in a three day camping event, as part of the National Scouts movement.  Sounds like a mix for disaster, right?  Me, 15 at-risk teenagers, and two tents.   But the truth is, it was fantastic.    Often in Managua we are really restricted in what we are able to do.  The contamination and insecurity of the ciry creates an enviroment where it is a lot harder for kids to really be able to develop in a positive way.  But once out in the open, with big green spaces and fresh air, the difference was amazing.  A number of the discipline problems we face on a daily basis vanished, as all the kids participated very actively in the various different Scout type activity.  

It is without doubt a huge honour to spend time like this with a group of kids, all of which have faced the most extraordianry trauma, through life on the streets or awful violence, but are now finally able to behave just like kids, and for a period of time no longer burdened by the difficulities they have faced.

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On  the 24th December I celebrated my second Christmas here at Casa Alianza.   Once again, the day was filled with joy but tinged with sadness.

It is lovely to share Christmas with the kids, join in the singing and the activities, and then sit down to lunch together.  Kids who have left our residential programs during the year come back, and many bring their family members to share in the day.  

But for a number of the kids we care for, Christmas is not quite so happy.  Many have no family or no place to go, and they will be staying withous throughout the period, whilst we have managed to send a number of their friends back to their family homes for a few weeks.   

For these kids, Christmas is very tough.  We have prepared a full schedule of activities so that they can feel part of a family here at Casa Alianza, but we all know that doesn't quite take away the sadness.  The most important things we can do for these kids is show to them that no  matter what, we will be there for them, and we will do our very best to provide them the love and support they need.

Children like this, with no family or no place to go is far to common throughout the world.   And as I have writtten above, and as I have said many times on this blog, providing these kids wity love and showing them that there people who will care for them and respect them, is something we are all capabale of doing.

Merry Christmas and a Very Happy New Year. 

Time to talk 'revolutionary' politics

By a landslide victory, Daniel Ortega and Nicaragua’s Sandinista Party (the FSLN) has just claimed victory for the third time, and the second time in a row (despite a law prohibiting Presidential re-election).

The FSLN is Nicaragua’s so-called revolutionary party, the party which brought justice to Nicaragua, defeating the dictatorship of Somoza.  Sounds great. What a shame it is such a farce, especially in terms of protection offered to children, teenagers and women, something which should be vital to the concept of a revolution. 

When Ortega returned to power in 2006, the first thing he did was introduce a complete ban on abortion.   In a country where girls as young as 11 years old are being raped and exploited sexually for commercial purposes, to not allow the option of an abortion, at least in emergency situations, remains a diabolical violation of the human rights of women and girls.

In his previous administration, Daniel also tried to tackle the problem of children living on the streets.  He introduced the project of Programa Amor.  What Programa Amor did was simply find all the children living on the streets and take them back to their families.  Great, job done, right?  Wrong!  In fact, it could not be further from the truth.  No child ever chose the streets.  Every child living on the streets are victims of violence, abuse or many other complicated factors in which they need holistic support and assistance, to recover physically and mentally.  Simply finding the kids and taking them back to their families solves nothing, and in fact puts the child at much greater risk.  But, according to our newly re-elected revolutionary government, they are helping children in need. 

Over the past few months, the FSLN election campaign could not be missed.  Throughout Managua, bright pink and yellow posters showing Daniel’s smiling face were everywhere to be seen.  At nearly every roundabout in the city, children from about 14 years old and above, would stand at the roundabouts every single day, singing, dancing, and flying the flag of the FSLN.   It didn’t seem to be of concern that these children shouldn’t be spending their entire days on the roundabouts, but that they should be at school.  On the contrary,  if you want to fly the flag and wear the party t-shirt, well then, education is a secondary concern.   What’s more, whilst on the roundabout, many of these children were drinking and engaging in sexual relations.....once again, it doesn’t matter, if you are flying the Party flag, all over concerns are out the window.    To be on these roundabouts many of these children were offered money.   I don’t think I really need to write about the massive risks of creating values such as these in children and teenagers in the name of revolution.  

As part of the campaign, I recently saw a demonstration of the Female Youth Wing of the FSLN at a park in Managua.  After the speeches took place, there was a dance competition.  The girls had to dance as sexily as possible, rubbing against the male organizers.  I was shocked that this was the perception of ‘female equality’ being promoted at an FSLN rally.  

This newly re-elected government is guilty of completely failing to provide long term healthy and sustainable alternatives to those most vulnerable.  Earning $5 in a day to stand at a roundabout does not provide any form of long term solutions.   I really hope changes are made, that the government begins to see, that if it wants to claim to be the revolutionary party of the Nicaraguan people, it must seek to find long-term solutions to the problems Nicaragua is facing.....if not, my job will be a lot harder than it needs to be.  
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And while on the topic of politics, on this same day, Guatemala has elected a former military general to be their new President.  There is considerable evidence that the President elect (Otto Perez) is guilty of war crimes and crimes against humanity during Guatemala’s 36 year civil war.      

He promises a military solution to the problems of violence and insecurity in Guatemala.  Great, so we are tackling violence with violence.  I thought 36 years showed that that tactic doesn’t really work.


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We will keep doing all we can at Casa Alianza, but it is about time the government started playing its part too,  especially the one's which claim to be acting in the name of 'revolution'. 

It was about time......Working with the kids to protect our environment

In Nicaragua as a whole, there is worryingly little concern about protection for our planet.  Rubbish is happily chucked onto the streets, and it is equally common to see people burning their plastics and garbage.   There is not one single recycling plant in the country. 

For the kids we care for, environmental care is also a fairly abstract concept, and on the whole one of little concern.

It is bearing this in mind that at Casa Alianza Nicaragua we have decided it is time to turn the tables around, and we are now doing what we can to make sure all the kids we care for and support are fully aware of the dangers of global warming, and aware of what they can do to protect the environment.    

In light of this, I thought I would share a few things happening at Casa Alianza to carry this out:  


We are currently working with the British Embassy in San Jose, and the British Ambassador to Nicaragua, who have prepared a quite brilliant animated film called Odyssey 2050.  The film is set in the future, and concerns the destruction being done to the planet.  After the film, the kids contribute to the development of the film by putting forward their own ideas through group discussions, art work, poetry and other forms of expression.  It is proving to be a great way to get kids involved in environmental protection.

We are also working with environmental students at the University of Central America to train members of staff and kids on what we all need to be doing to protect the environment. 

We are trying to get as many kids involved as possible in recycling projects, including making floral decorations out of old bottles, or earrings out of used drinks can.

We are also planting our own crops in the green space avaliable at our main residential center. 

It is a work in progress, and one that in reality we are only just starting, but I am delighted we are doing it.

As I said at the beginning, for the kids we work with, caring for our environment is largely a foreign concept.  We now hope to show to kids that by caring for our planet they are not only engaging in very important and necessary work, they are also gaining new skills and abilities, which is essential in their recovery process.   As such, we have a double aim, one to make sure we are doing what we can to be environmentally sustainably, and secondly, in doing so, our kids learn that through doing this, they themselves are stronger and more sustainable individuals.

As the program moves forward, I will try and update the topic from time to time.