Its time for a long overdue update.......
I took a very welcome break to the US over the new years, and since getting back to Nicaragua, its been great being back at work.
One of the biggest successes since coming back, is that many of the kids, the ones I spoke about in my last entry, who stayed at Casa Alianza over Christmas, really seem to be improving.
Maria, for example, is a 14 year old girl, and was a formerly coerced into the sex industry working at Managua's Mercado Oriental, one of the most dangerous places in the city.
When she first came to Casa Alianza her body was scarred and bruised. She would often shiver as she was trying to get off the drugs in which she had previously taken refuge. I would often find her sitting sullenly somewhere around the buildings, with a hood covering her face. She was a very timid girl, and found it difficult to speak to people for long periods of time.
Despite the hard times, Maria stayed at Casa Alianza during the christmas period. I had a long chat with her before I left as I knew she was finding it exceptionally difficult, but at the same time I knew she was desperate to change her life.
Maria has now been at Casa Alianza for 2 and a half months, and although she still has difficult moments, she is now far more what we might call a 'normal' teenage girl. She is lively and happy, and no longer feels the need to hide herself away. The improved self-confidence in her is apparent and wonderful to see. I am convinced that if she stays with us, then the chance of her getting back into society, and being able to live a 'normal' and happy life, are much greater.
There have been difficult and sad times as well, and I will no doubt be sharing those, but for the time being, I wanted to start this first entry of 2011 on a happy note.
And although this is belated, I wish you all a very happy and inspiring 2011!
With love,
Simon
About Me
- Simon Walters
- My name is Simon Walters - I work for Casa Alianza Nicaragua. Casa Alianza Nicaragua is a non-profit NGO, working to protect, support and rehabilitate children living on streets, victims of abuse, violence, abandonment, commercial and sexual exploitation and human trafficking. I work as a specialist member of staff, coordinating healthy and sustainable activities for the kids in our protection, and on the international development side of things - working with all the Casa Alianza sites in Latin America. I hold a MA in International Law and Human Rights from the United Nations University for Peace, and a MA in History from the University of Edinburgh. I am very involved in the Model United Nations, and in 2009 served as the Founding Secretary General of Mostar International Model United Nations, in Bosnia and Herzegovina. I also have experience in English teaching, coaching public speaking and debating, acting and radio presenting.
Saturday, 22 January 2011
Wednesday, 22 December 2010
Christmas Spirit
This time of the year is a particularly dangerous one for street kids and the victims of abuse. It is one when tempations to take drugs are even higher, and there are more opportunities for robbery, or more money to be made through prostitution. This side is far removed from the traditional Christmas image, but at the same time, working directly with kids such as these at this time of year is exactly how I want to be spending my Christmas.
At Casa Alianza a lot of our kids have left for the Christmas period. Those who have families or homes have gone back there. There are, however, about 30 or so kids in our residential center who have no families or homes to go to, or it is not safe them to leave Casa Alianza (Izmael is one of these kids who simply has nowhere to go to that would be safe for him)
So I will be spending Christmas with these kids. If I'm honest, I'm doing it more for me then anything else, as the courage these kids show inspires me. At the same time these kids have spent their Christmases of years gone by on rubbish dumps, gutters or brothels. I hope that this year we can bring them a Christmas that gives them the minimum of what every child deserves: love, respect and understanding.
So I wanted to share this story mainly because these kids lack a lot of things, but through nearly all their lives they have been without these three values of love, respect and understanding. It is not possible for us all to donate physical stuff such as money to make a difference, nor is it possible for us all to give up our time and lives to do voluntary work, but it is always possible for us to provide love, respect and understanding for those who need it, be it in one's own home, community, country or wherever.
I will leave it there, but in case I don't write again before the 25th, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Wonderful New Year, and for those who read this blog and write to me about it, I really do appreciate your support!
With love,
Simon
At Casa Alianza a lot of our kids have left for the Christmas period. Those who have families or homes have gone back there. There are, however, about 30 or so kids in our residential center who have no families or homes to go to, or it is not safe them to leave Casa Alianza (Izmael is one of these kids who simply has nowhere to go to that would be safe for him)
So I will be spending Christmas with these kids. If I'm honest, I'm doing it more for me then anything else, as the courage these kids show inspires me. At the same time these kids have spent their Christmases of years gone by on rubbish dumps, gutters or brothels. I hope that this year we can bring them a Christmas that gives them the minimum of what every child deserves: love, respect and understanding.
So I wanted to share this story mainly because these kids lack a lot of things, but through nearly all their lives they have been without these three values of love, respect and understanding. It is not possible for us all to donate physical stuff such as money to make a difference, nor is it possible for us all to give up our time and lives to do voluntary work, but it is always possible for us to provide love, respect and understanding for those who need it, be it in one's own home, community, country or wherever.
I will leave it there, but in case I don't write again before the 25th, I wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Wonderful New Year, and for those who read this blog and write to me about it, I really do appreciate your support!
With love,
Simon
Saturday, 18 December 2010
When it all makes sense
Firstly I am sorry I don't write on this blog as often as I would like to. I spend most of my working days confronted by so many situations and emotions of the kids and of my own, that it can sometimes be really difficult to untangle all of these different feelings and work out how to put them down in writing.
Last week, however, was one of those moments when everything I am doing out here seemed to make sense. We held, within Casa Alianza, the pre-Christmas graduation ceremony. All of the kids who had completed various courses (computing, bakery, jewlery making, mechanics etc) received their diplomas.
The 40 or so kids who received certificates were dressed up and proudly went up to the podium to receive their certificates.
Seeing as I spend time working on the streets of Managua, I know all too well the background of the kids resident at Casa Alianza. Many have lived in rubbish dumps and gutters, where addicted to drugs, they scrounged through thrown away garbage to see what they could find to eat. Failing this, most would then use robbery as the other main means of supporting themselves. There are other people, 12/13/14 years old who are the victims of abuse, commerical sexual exploitation and human trafficiking.
To see these kids who have come from such background receive certificates in new skills they have acheived so that they can leave Casa Alianza and work to build their lives a-new is a phenomenal thing to, and it is moments like this when the work we do really does make sense.
Casa Alianza also runs courses for the families of the children we work with, and these mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters were also presented with their diplomas.
You might remember Gloria from a previous entry. It was Gloria (who is still at Casa Alianza) that gave the vote of thanks. Her words had me fighting back the tears. She thanked everyone at Casa Alianza for helping her have another chance at life, when previously she had given up any aspiration and hope for her future.
here,
It is difficult to express all my emotions about this event on here, but I hope my emotions come through.
There are times when everything we do makes sense, and we can really see that through work, commitment, passion, respect and love we can make a difference, and, for want of a better expression, make this world a better place......This has been one of those moments.
Last week, however, was one of those moments when everything I am doing out here seemed to make sense. We held, within Casa Alianza, the pre-Christmas graduation ceremony. All of the kids who had completed various courses (computing, bakery, jewlery making, mechanics etc) received their diplomas.
The 40 or so kids who received certificates were dressed up and proudly went up to the podium to receive their certificates.
Seeing as I spend time working on the streets of Managua, I know all too well the background of the kids resident at Casa Alianza. Many have lived in rubbish dumps and gutters, where addicted to drugs, they scrounged through thrown away garbage to see what they could find to eat. Failing this, most would then use robbery as the other main means of supporting themselves. There are other people, 12/13/14 years old who are the victims of abuse, commerical sexual exploitation and human trafficiking.
To see these kids who have come from such background receive certificates in new skills they have acheived so that they can leave Casa Alianza and work to build their lives a-new is a phenomenal thing to, and it is moments like this when the work we do really does make sense.
Casa Alianza also runs courses for the families of the children we work with, and these mothers, fathers, brothers and sisters were also presented with their diplomas.
You might remember Gloria from a previous entry. It was Gloria (who is still at Casa Alianza) that gave the vote of thanks. Her words had me fighting back the tears. She thanked everyone at Casa Alianza for helping her have another chance at life, when previously she had given up any aspiration and hope for her future.
here,
It is difficult to express all my emotions about this event on here, but I hope my emotions come through.
There are times when everything we do makes sense, and we can really see that through work, commitment, passion, respect and love we can make a difference, and, for want of a better expression, make this world a better place......This has been one of those moments.
Wednesday, 8 December 2010
He jumped over the wall.......Danilo's story
When kids come to Casa Alianza, they need to follow certain rules. First and foremost, they can't use drugs, smoke cigarettes, drink alcohol or have sexual relations with other members of the residential center.
For teenagers coming from a background where an excess of all of the above things was the norm, this can prove especially tough. It is bad enough to think the sort of life a 14 year old has lived whereby drug addiction and promiscuous sexual behaviour was regular (especially when thinking of the numerous health concerns this arises), but then imagining the pain a young person must go through when trying to get away from these addictions.
At Casa Alianza the door is always open, and the kids that come can leave at anytime. But if they leave through the front door, then they have to receive the signed support of their Support Officer, and they have to follow a monitoring procedure and come back to particiapte in various activities every so often.
For some kids however, it is just to much, and, under the pain of trying to rid themselves of all their various addictions, they choose the quickest and simplest way out, and climb over the wall.
Danilo (once again not his real name) had been at Casa Alianza for about 2 weeks. He is 14 years old, although his aged face told a different story. I had been monitoring him closely, as he was clearly finding it extremely difficult to try and live a normal life away from the drugs. He was usually either extremely restless, or collapsed in a heap somewhere around the building. He was often withdrawn and shy, although equally often agressive and moody.
On Monday I was outside playing baseball with some of the kids (for my friends from the UK, I still think baseball is a terrible sport), and I saw the withered figure of Danilo carrying nothing more than a small and broken rucksack clamber down from the Casa Alianza wall and make his way on the street.
The streets of Managua are some of the unsafest in the world. Seeing this troubled kid give up on his recovery process and decide to take up life again on these same streets was really very very tough.
He walked off down the road heading to one of Managua's most dangerous neigbourhoods, (well one of many), I try not to think what will be facing him, and hope that maybe he will make the decision to come back.
I wanted to share this story, because in this story there is not, as yet, a happy ending, and sadly it is very much a reality. So by sharing it, I wanted to share the sad momets with this type of work, just as much as the good moments.
In the interests of fairness, I will try and have a happier story for my next update.
For teenagers coming from a background where an excess of all of the above things was the norm, this can prove especially tough. It is bad enough to think the sort of life a 14 year old has lived whereby drug addiction and promiscuous sexual behaviour was regular (especially when thinking of the numerous health concerns this arises), but then imagining the pain a young person must go through when trying to get away from these addictions.
At Casa Alianza the door is always open, and the kids that come can leave at anytime. But if they leave through the front door, then they have to receive the signed support of their Support Officer, and they have to follow a monitoring procedure and come back to particiapte in various activities every so often.
For some kids however, it is just to much, and, under the pain of trying to rid themselves of all their various addictions, they choose the quickest and simplest way out, and climb over the wall.
Danilo (once again not his real name) had been at Casa Alianza for about 2 weeks. He is 14 years old, although his aged face told a different story. I had been monitoring him closely, as he was clearly finding it extremely difficult to try and live a normal life away from the drugs. He was usually either extremely restless, or collapsed in a heap somewhere around the building. He was often withdrawn and shy, although equally often agressive and moody.
On Monday I was outside playing baseball with some of the kids (for my friends from the UK, I still think baseball is a terrible sport), and I saw the withered figure of Danilo carrying nothing more than a small and broken rucksack clamber down from the Casa Alianza wall and make his way on the street.
The streets of Managua are some of the unsafest in the world. Seeing this troubled kid give up on his recovery process and decide to take up life again on these same streets was really very very tough.
He walked off down the road heading to one of Managua's most dangerous neigbourhoods, (well one of many), I try not to think what will be facing him, and hope that maybe he will make the decision to come back.
I wanted to share this story, because in this story there is not, as yet, a happy ending, and sadly it is very much a reality. So by sharing it, I wanted to share the sad momets with this type of work, just as much as the good moments.
In the interests of fairness, I will try and have a happier story for my next update.
Monday, 29 November 2010
A rare happy ending (for the time being)
So as I was told this morning, at about 9pm on Friday, Izmael came back to Casa Alianza.
He told me today, that when he arrived back to his market of old, he quickly decided that the street was no longer where he wanted to be. I was delighted to hear the news.
He told me how on Saturday they had gone on an excursion to the cinema. He had never been to the cinema before. He also told me how over the weekend the abuse from the other boys had considerably lessoned. I think that he had showed that he is here to stay to get better and to get over his problems, and by doing this he showed to the others that their insults didn't mean anything to him.
I don't think happy endings like this are regular. I am also aware that I will have to pay attention in case the same situation should arise with Izmael.
For the time being, I am very happy with the results.
The trouble is of course, Izmael's story is one of many. Today a girl of 15 at Casa Alianza, lets call her Gloria, confided in me she has had enough of the bad attitude of many of the other kids, and wants to leave. Gloria is a victim of human trafficking. She has a two year old kid.
I had a long chat with her, and once again I hope my words might have had some effect.
The work continues.......
He told me today, that when he arrived back to his market of old, he quickly decided that the street was no longer where he wanted to be. I was delighted to hear the news.
He told me how on Saturday they had gone on an excursion to the cinema. He had never been to the cinema before. He also told me how over the weekend the abuse from the other boys had considerably lessoned. I think that he had showed that he is here to stay to get better and to get over his problems, and by doing this he showed to the others that their insults didn't mean anything to him.
I don't think happy endings like this are regular. I am also aware that I will have to pay attention in case the same situation should arise with Izmael.
For the time being, I am very happy with the results.
The trouble is of course, Izmael's story is one of many. Today a girl of 15 at Casa Alianza, lets call her Gloria, confided in me she has had enough of the bad attitude of many of the other kids, and wants to leave. Gloria is a victim of human trafficking. She has a two year old kid.
I had a long chat with her, and once again I hope my words might have had some effect.
The work continues.......
Sunday, 28 November 2010
Izmael's story
Last week I met Izmael (I have changed his name, just out of respect)
It was his first day of living at the Casa Alianza residential center. We were all outside playing football and I noticed him straight away, he seemed very uneasy, so I went to speak to him.
He told me how he had left home 2 and half years ago (he is now 15) and hasn't seen his family since. He took up life of the streets after years of abuse at home. On the streets he took up glue sniffing and smoking crack. He also told me how he used to walk around one of Managua's main markets (where he also slept) with a knife tucked into trousers, which he used to rob various people in order to feed his drug habbitt.
When I spoke to Izmael last Monday, he seemed genuinely delighted he had found Casa Alianza, where he could finally get away from the past of such pain. I took to Izmael immediately and knew I would have to be there help him through what would be a very difficult process.
The trouble is, as a result of years of living on the street and all that it entails, along with drug abuse, Izmael has been left with a scarred and unattractive face. The other kids at the residential center spotted this immediately and took to calling him 'grinch'. In violence borne out of living on the streets, the other kids at the residential center bullied Izmael, beat him up and stole from him.
On Thursday Izmael confided in me, he said he couldn't take it anymore. He wanted to leave the center. He had had enough of it all. I spoke with him, and told him all I could to convince him to stay. I told him that if he stayed at Casa Alianza he could always count on my support and that of the other teachers, but on the streets, if he turns back to the drugs and walking around with a knife, for our own safety, there is very little we can do.
I then left him, as I was working outside of the center on that day. When I came back I was delighted to see he was still there eating dinner with the rest of the kids. It made me so happy to think somehow my words might have had on impact on him.
On Friday I was also working outside the center. When I came back in the afternoon, Izmael had gone. To be honest, I was left broken. I have already seen enough of the streets of Managua to know the little hope it offers for a 15 year old, especially one in such a situation of high risk. I have no idea where he has gone.
I always knew a moment like this was going to happen to me during my time here, but it is still an enormously diffiicult thing to deal with.
I really hope that wherever he has spent this weekend, that Izmael might come back. Sadly, I not sure I think he will.
It was his first day of living at the Casa Alianza residential center. We were all outside playing football and I noticed him straight away, he seemed very uneasy, so I went to speak to him.
He told me how he had left home 2 and half years ago (he is now 15) and hasn't seen his family since. He took up life of the streets after years of abuse at home. On the streets he took up glue sniffing and smoking crack. He also told me how he used to walk around one of Managua's main markets (where he also slept) with a knife tucked into trousers, which he used to rob various people in order to feed his drug habbitt.
When I spoke to Izmael last Monday, he seemed genuinely delighted he had found Casa Alianza, where he could finally get away from the past of such pain. I took to Izmael immediately and knew I would have to be there help him through what would be a very difficult process.
The trouble is, as a result of years of living on the street and all that it entails, along with drug abuse, Izmael has been left with a scarred and unattractive face. The other kids at the residential center spotted this immediately and took to calling him 'grinch'. In violence borne out of living on the streets, the other kids at the residential center bullied Izmael, beat him up and stole from him.
On Thursday Izmael confided in me, he said he couldn't take it anymore. He wanted to leave the center. He had had enough of it all. I spoke with him, and told him all I could to convince him to stay. I told him that if he stayed at Casa Alianza he could always count on my support and that of the other teachers, but on the streets, if he turns back to the drugs and walking around with a knife, for our own safety, there is very little we can do.
I then left him, as I was working outside of the center on that day. When I came back I was delighted to see he was still there eating dinner with the rest of the kids. It made me so happy to think somehow my words might have had on impact on him.
On Friday I was also working outside the center. When I came back in the afternoon, Izmael had gone. To be honest, I was left broken. I have already seen enough of the streets of Managua to know the little hope it offers for a 15 year old, especially one in such a situation of high risk. I have no idea where he has gone.
I always knew a moment like this was going to happen to me during my time here, but it is still an enormously diffiicult thing to deal with.
I really hope that wherever he has spent this weekend, that Izmael might come back. Sadly, I not sure I think he will.
Thursday, 25 November 2010
Back to it!
My apologies for being out of contact for so long!
While I was recovering from dengue fever I wasn't feeling much up to writing, and I guess I got out the habit.
So its been great to be back at work and doing what I'm meant to be doing.
When I went back to the work for the first couple of days, after being away for two weeks, I felt some tension from the kids. I think some of them felt that I had left and gone back to the UK. I can understand this. I guess a lot of them are used to people coming and going in their lives. Now most of them are aware I was sick and that I am going to be around for a while, I think I have managed to acheive their trust again.
There are however lots of tough moments. Last week, while playing footbal, one of the little kids in the residential center got into a fight with one of the older ones owing to a penalty dispute. The older kid, with violence ingrained in his system began kicking the little one on the ground until I managed to intervene. It is tough, these kids come from backgrounds of such violence that violence is how they deal with every problem and confrontation. The same day I had to deal with a kid who had gone into the gardens to find rocks to throw at some of the other kids who were winding him up. Dealing with that level of violence and agression is never easy, and can be tough to stay calm with the kids when you yourself are scared as to what they might be capable of.
Bearing in mind many of these kids used to walk around market places or other areas with knives and other weapons in order to steal and rob people to pay for their drug addiction, the violence that remains in their systems is a sad but clear reminder of their pasts.
There have been good things as well. I went with a group of Casa Alianza street kids to an annual national sports event in Managua, where the kids took the third place in the football competition. It is great to see when kids who used to live on the street, be addicted to drugs or are the vicitms of abuse, are able to stand up with the rest of the country, play sports with them and receive medals for their efforts.
So its been great to be back. Living in Managua remains a very rough place to be, but that all's part of the experience. The work is intense but great and also very challenging. My current project involves working to establish a programme of non-violent conflict resolution for street kids, drawing on the principles of peace education. From what I have seen so far, it is almost certainly a necessity.
I will try and get the updates back to my former more regular efforts.
All the very best, and thank you to those who read my blog,
Simon
While I was recovering from dengue fever I wasn't feeling much up to writing, and I guess I got out the habit.
So its been great to be back at work and doing what I'm meant to be doing.
When I went back to the work for the first couple of days, after being away for two weeks, I felt some tension from the kids. I think some of them felt that I had left and gone back to the UK. I can understand this. I guess a lot of them are used to people coming and going in their lives. Now most of them are aware I was sick and that I am going to be around for a while, I think I have managed to acheive their trust again.
There are however lots of tough moments. Last week, while playing footbal, one of the little kids in the residential center got into a fight with one of the older ones owing to a penalty dispute. The older kid, with violence ingrained in his system began kicking the little one on the ground until I managed to intervene. It is tough, these kids come from backgrounds of such violence that violence is how they deal with every problem and confrontation. The same day I had to deal with a kid who had gone into the gardens to find rocks to throw at some of the other kids who were winding him up. Dealing with that level of violence and agression is never easy, and can be tough to stay calm with the kids when you yourself are scared as to what they might be capable of.
Bearing in mind many of these kids used to walk around market places or other areas with knives and other weapons in order to steal and rob people to pay for their drug addiction, the violence that remains in their systems is a sad but clear reminder of their pasts.
There have been good things as well. I went with a group of Casa Alianza street kids to an annual national sports event in Managua, where the kids took the third place in the football competition. It is great to see when kids who used to live on the street, be addicted to drugs or are the vicitms of abuse, are able to stand up with the rest of the country, play sports with them and receive medals for their efforts.
So its been great to be back. Living in Managua remains a very rough place to be, but that all's part of the experience. The work is intense but great and also very challenging. My current project involves working to establish a programme of non-violent conflict resolution for street kids, drawing on the principles of peace education. From what I have seen so far, it is almost certainly a necessity.
I will try and get the updates back to my former more regular efforts.
All the very best, and thank you to those who read my blog,
Simon
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