The day also affirms the commitment by the UN and the international community to protect the rights of children. This work is guided by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the most rapidly and widely ratified international human rights treaty in history.

The International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression celebrates the millions of individuals and organizations working to protect and preserve the rights of children. Through education and social development programming, Salesian missionaries in more than 130 countries around the globe work to ensure that all youth know their rights, are able to fully participate in their communities, and receive the support they need in the aftermath of trauma and abuse.

Whether it’s providing social support, combating child labor or assisting the homeless, Salesian missionaries are on the front lines educating youth on their rights and ensuring access to programs and services they need. Working in more than 5,500 Salesian educational institutions and youth centers around the world, missionaries educate children in some of the poorest places on the planet.

“Education is always our primary focus, but we know youth are dealing with much more than just needing access to education,” says Father Gus Baek, director of Salesian Missions. “Salesian missionaries help rehabilitate child soldiers and street children and provide education on child rights to ensure that youth have a sense of personal dignity and self-worth.”

In honor of International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression, Salesian Missions highlights its unique educational programs that are helping poor youth receive an education, understand their rights and find a path out of poverty, bringing them hope for the future.

ANGOLA

As Angola faces the coronavirus pandemic, the most vulnerable in society are street children who have nowhere to turn and no one to care for them. Among the street children most at risk and most exposed are those in Luanda, the capital and largest city in Angola. These youth are supported by the Salesian International Volunteering for Development (VIS) and Salesian missionaries in the region.

To address some of the challenges, the Salesian “Let’s go together” project, supported by the European Union and other benefactors, has opened a new emergency center where street children are offered a place live far from the dangers of street life. Street children are increasingly exposed to the risks of the street including diseases and violence from adults including law enforcement, and they lack means to support themselves.

In the center, boys and girls receive protection, nutrition, hygiene products and the attention of many social educators and volunteers who dedicate themselves to helping youth organize their daily lives, learn and respect the rules, and take responsibility for their futures.

COLOMBIA

More than 50 years of armed conflict between Colombia’s* many guerrilla movements, paramilitary groups and the Colombian government has left behind some 8 million victims. Thousands of children have been part of these armed groups, forced to fight and kill at a very young age. These children are also victims, having been robbed of their childhoods, exploited and faced with unimaginable violence.

Don Bosco City is one of the oldest and largest programs for street children in Latin America. It is estimated that close to 6,000 minors are still utilized as child soldiers with thousands more having reached their 18th birthday after years of combat. Don Bosco City’s long rehabilitation process focuses on three key elements—how to trust, to have hope for the future and to build relationships with others. Psychologists and teachers work together with participating youth giving them tools for a brighter future including basic education and more advanced skills training that will lead to stable employment.

Since its start in 1965, Don Bosco City has rescued more than 83,000 boys and girls. Through the program, Salesian missionaries offer a multi-pronged approach designed to address the broad social issues that contribute to the poverty and exploitation these youth face while training them in the skills necessary to break the cycle of violence and poverty. Currently, there are 900 youth between the ages of 8 and 12 living and receiving education at the program.

INDIA

Don Bosco Ashalayam provides support and rehabilitation for street children in India. More than 500 children currently reside in the 23 shelters in Ashalayam and benefit from educational and recreational opportunities. Through its presence on the streets and with courses and programs offered in slums and railway stations, Don Bosco Ashalayam provides assistance to thousands of street children every year. More than 80,000 children have benefited in three decades.

Don Bosco Ashalayam also provides the Childline hotline, a free telephone line that works 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Street children can call anonymously to seek support and ask for assistance. Bosco Delhi, through the Don Bosco Ashalayam Center, operates Childline.

Salesian staff members work tirelessly every day of the year to ensure the rights of the children in need and give them special care and protection. They work collaboratively with law enforcement, health care, juvenile justice, transportation and legal providers, along with the media, to create awareness on child rights and provide child protection services.

MEXICO

Salesian missionaries working in Ciudad Juárez, Mexico, operate three oratories that sit on several hectares of land, each in different parts of the city. More than 5,000 people visit the oratories every week to access the programs tailored for people of all ages.

Ten years ago, Ciudad Juárez was the world’s most violent city with more than 300 murders a month. Drug cartels, killings and migration had become a deadly mix for thousands of young people. Salesian oratories are a refuge. The oratories in Ciudad Juárez open their doors at 8:30 a.m. and close late at night, offering a series of uninterrupted activities, seven days a week, 365 days a year. In the morning, activities and workshops are held for mothers while children are at school. In the afternoon, parents get a break while children are entertained and given a chance to learn.

There are also sports schools, martial arts sessions for children and adults, dance, circus workshops, painting and writing workshops, skateboarding lessons, parkour, free-climbing and zip line. There’s even a game of their own invention, “three-way soccer,” with three teams of three participants each and the team receiving the least goals winning. Many of the children who had spent considerable time in the oratories growing up are now the educators and volunteers who give life to the activities taking place throughout the city.

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Sources:

ANS Photos (usage permissions and guidelines must be requested from ANS)

ANGOLA: Salesian VIS volunteers launch new center to help support street children

COLOMBIA: Salesian Missions highlights work with former child soldiers on International Day Against the Use of Child Soldiers

INDIA: Don Bosco Ashalayam has provided support and rehabilitation for more than 80,000 street children over the last 30 years

MEXICO: Salesian missionaries operate three oratories in Ciudad Juárez that serve more than 5,000 people

Salesian Missions

UN International Day of Innocent Children Victims of Aggression

*Any goods, services or funds provided by Salesian Missions to programs located in this country were administered in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including sanctions administered by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control.

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The UN indicated, “Emphasizing the critical role of parents in the rearing of children, the Global Day of Parents recognizes also that the family has the primary responsibility for the nurturing and protection of children. For the full and harmonious development of their personality, children should grow up in a family environment and an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding.”

In addition, the UN noted, “Family-oriented policies can contribute to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals 1 to 5 relating to doing away with poverty and hunger; ensuring healthy lives and promoting of well-being for all ages; ensuring educational opportunities throughout the lifespan and achieving gender equality.”

“Supporting parents is essential to helping youth stay in school and focus on their studies,” said Father Gus Baek, director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “While our primary focus is on education, we also aim to provide wrap around services that help youth and their families lead healthy and productive lives.”

In honor of the Global Day of Parents, Salesian Missions is proud to share some of its programs around the globe that provide education and support for parents and their children.

DR CONGO

The Don Bosco Center, located in the city of Bukavu in the eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo*, is supporting women who wish to join women’s groups run by the Association Villageoise d’Epargne et Crédit (AVEC), an association for savings and credit in the villages. Since July 2018, the Don Bosco Center has helped create 20 groups of women, mostly mothers.

Every week, the women deposit 1,000 to 5,000 Congolese Francs (CF), which is roughly 60 cents, into the group’s safe, in addition to depositing another 200 CF in the solidarity fund. After a few weeks, the group members can apply for credit and receive up to 10,000 CF to help in situations of necessity such as the birth of a child, an illness or a death in the family.

The women in the groups often have great ideas and projects, but they need help to start or strengthen their activities. Many of the mothers live in difficult situations and have problems related to their children’s health, food and school. Recently, 100 mothers and a few fathers were selected to receive a small financial contribution from the Don Bosco Center. This will allow them to start an income-generating activity and work on becoming self-sufficient. The candidates selected are all in serious need of additional assistance.

INDIA

As a result of rampant poverty, child abuse and exploitation, and high incidences of child labor, many poor youth in India face psychological and emotional difficulties. Often, parents are unable to deal with these problems at home so turn to school staff and teachers for extra support.

Don Bosco’s Prafulta Psychological Services was started in 1998 and provides psychological evaluation and diagnosis, professional counseling, career guidance, remedial education, psychiatric services and occupational therapy. The organization’s psychologists and other professionals offer these services to individuals, groups and families to help aid independent functioning and improve quality of life.

The Don Bosco Teacher Training Program in Remedial Education, which Prafulta Psychological Services began offering in May 2014, aims to empower teachers, school counselors and parents by giving them the information and the know-how to effectively help children with varying needs and disabilities in mainstream schools. For more advanced training, Prafulta offers a certificate course in educational counseling enabling practitioners to understand children’s difficulties in both educational and emotional areas.

SPAIN

At the beginning of the new academic year, Salesian centers in Spain launched the Enredados campaign, an initiative of the Spain-St. James Major Salesian Province that helps families look at safety while online.

The campaign aims to address questions for parents, including: What are youth doing online all that time? What are they looking for in social networks? Are they making good use of technology? How and why should they be in that digital environment?

The Enredados campaign offers a series of tools for parents to talk about topics at home with their children as well as to provide them with education about the internet. The first educational course of the campaign focused on privacy. The next will focus on healthy habits for using the internet, along with using information and communication technologies while helping youth avoid addiction. The last educational course of the campaign will look at the nexus between personal relationships and virtual relationships.

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Sources:

ANS Photo (usage permissions and guidelines must be requested from ANS) 

DR CONGO: Don Bosco Center provides additional funding for 100 women to help them start their own businesses

INDIA: Don Bosco’s Prafulta Psychological Services holds educational forum to help 350 children learn about emotions

Salesian Missions

SPAIN: Salesian missionaries launch Enredados campaign that helps parents support their children to be healthy and safe online

UN Global Parents Day

*Any goods, services, or funds provided by Salesian Missions to programs located in this country were administered in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including sanctions administered by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control.

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Led by young adults from the St. Vincent de Paul parish, pre-novices from the Salesian community and volunteers, the camp program encouraged a holistic, balanced lifestyle designed to help campers develop a strong foundation of mind, body and spirit. It also provided local youth the opportunity to spend their vacation time in a positive, healthy environment.

The camp opened by registering campers and assigning them to one of four teams. During the course of the 10 days, the teams competed in recreational activities and sports with an emphasis on developing a healthy sense of competition and camaraderie. Each day began with a morning assembly that included positive messages of hope, joy, peace and love followed by morning classes in English and Arabic. After a mid-morning breakfast, campers engaged in sports and recreational activities including games and art, speech, singing and dance competitions.

“Youth living in poverty in South Sudanese communities have difficulty excelling and remaining in school,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Salesian youth programs, like summer camps, provide positive role models, structured activities, a safe place to get off the streets and a nonviolent, supportive environment in which to engage with peers.”

Don Bosco Gumbo includes a church parish, secondary school and youth center and provides education and social development services for poor youth and their families. For some students, the secondary school at Don Bosco Gumbo is their only option for continued studies.

Don Bosco Gumbo is one of the host sites for the Salesian Lay Missionaries program which provides lay volunteers to work alongside Salesian priests and sisters on various projects throughout the world. Since the program started in 1981, more than 350 lay missioners have served in 20 countries on projects that range from youth ministry to agriculture to nursing.

South Sudan is one of the poorest countries in the world with 55 percent of its population living in poverty, according to the World Bank. The country celebrated its third year of independence last July but is facing an ongoing civil war that started in December 2013 and has resulted in a dire humanitarian crisis.

The civil war has left thousands dead and displaced hundreds of thousands more. Close to 80,000 people have sought refuge at several UN compounds across the country. In the capital of Juba, 80 percent of those displaced are women and children. More than 350,000 people have fled to neighboring countries risking their lives and leaving everything behind.

Salesian missionaries assist those internally displaced through programs across South Sudan and in neighboring Kenya at the Kakuma refugee camp. More than 44 percent of refugees at the camp are from South Sudan and arrived after escaping conflict and violence.

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Sources:

ANS – South Sudan – Don Bosco Gumbo Summer Camp 2015

World Bank – South Sudan 

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Celebrated each year on August 12, the day was established by the United Nations to raise awareness of issues affecting young people around the world. The theme of International Youth Day 2015, is “Youth Civic Engagement” and focuses on the engagement and participation of youth for the achievement of sustainable human development. The UN notes that while opportunities for youth to engage politically, economically and socially are low or non-existent, developing the foundation for youth engagement improves their lives and the communities in which they live.

“As the world changes with unprecedented speed, young people are proving to be invaluable partners who can advance meaningful solutions,” said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon in a statement on International Youth Day 2015. “Youth movements and student groups are challenging traditional power structures and advocating a new social contract between States and societies. Young leaders have contributed fresh ideas, taken proactive measures and mobilized through social media as never before. I applaud the millions of young people who are protesting for rights and participation, addressing staggering levels of youth unemployment, raising their voices against injustice and advocating global action for people and the planet.”

Working in more than 130 countries around the globe, Salesian missionaries focus on education, workforce development programs, social development services and human rights education to provide young people with the knowledge and skills needed to lead productive lives and become contributing members of their communities.

“For youth to be actively engaged in their communities they must have access to education and other basic human services that allow them to feel valued and that their voices will be heard,” says Father Mark Hyde, executive director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco. “Salesian missionaries meet the basic needs of disadvantaged youth who often have nowhere else to turn. They also provide education and social and workforce development services to ensure a positive transition into adulthood.”

In honor and celebration of International Youth Day 2015, Salesian Missions is proud to highlight Salesian programs that empower youth.

CAMBODIA

In a country where less than half of children finish primary school, more than 50,000 children have received the encouragement and support needed to complete an elementary education through the Don Bosco Children Fund since its inception in 1992. The Don Bosco Children Fund assists poor youth between the ages of 6 and 15 who are either unable to go to school or have had to drop out due to poverty. Through the fund’s program, youth not only receive support to continue their education, they also receive a monthly assistance package consisting of goods and cash. Social workers ensure that participants make progress and remain in school and those with special aptitude are further supported and encouraged to pursue college coursework. During the 2013-2014 school year, the Don Bosco Children Fund supported 4,426 students in Cambodia’s government-run schools and another 637 students in schools managed by Don Bosco Schools Battambang.

INDIA

The Child Rights Education and Action Movement Project operated out of the city of Bangalore reached out to poor youth in both urban and rural areas of the State of Karnataka in southwestern India to create a culture that will support and uphold the protection of children’s rights. The goal was to encourage and enhance youth participation in the development process of promoting children’s rights and ensuring their care and protection. The project included the formation of more than 450 child rights clubs and the training of 900 teachers and 22,500 children in human rights education. The clubs aim to impart children’s rights awareness to about 75,000 children within a three-year period.

SIERRA LEONE

Salesians at Don Bosco Fambul in Freetown, Sierra Leone, have been running a Girls Shelter for the past three years. Here, professional social workers and pastoral workers provide crisis intervention and follow-up care for girls and young women who have been the victims of sexual assault. Those that access services at the shelter are also able to enroll in educational programs that are a part of the broader Don Bosco Fambul network and which train them in the skills necessary to find and retain employment. The training helps to empower them to overcome the discrimination they have faced and gain a greater awareness of their rights. It also helps to build character while allowing the girls and young women the freedom to make decisions that affect their lives, improve their health and boost their work prospects.

SOUTH AFRICA

Through the Salesian Institute Youth Projects, an organization in Cape Town, South Africa, Salesian missionaries provide shelter, education and workforce development services in an effort to meet the basic needs of the youth they serve while helping them break the cycle of poverty. For the last four years, one of the Salesian Institute’s projects, Waves of Change, has been assisting unemployed youth in finding work in the fishing industry. Requiring minimal levels of education, jobs in the fishing industry can provide a significant income, a stable career path and extensive travel opportunities for poor youth. Some youth employed through the project have had the opportunity to travel as far as Antarctica. The Waves of Change project offers a compulsory five-day life skills course after which students who successfully complete the course are awarded financial assistance towards obtaining the required certification for work in the fishing industry through the South African Maritime Safety Authority (SAMSA). During the 2013-2014 school year, more than 300 youth received education and life skills training through this program. Nearly 75 percent have already been placed into jobs within the fishing industry.

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Sources:

UN – International Youth Day 2015

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Don Bosco Gumbo is one of the host sites for the Salesian Lay Missionaries program which provides lay volunteers to work alongside Salesian priests and sisters on various projects throughout the world. Since the program started in 1981, more than 350 lay missioners have served in 20 countries on projects that range from youth ministry to agriculture to nursing.

In August 2013, Salesian lay missioners Michael Gotta and Patrick Sabol began work at the Salesian secondary school, parish and youth center in Gumbo. The two men had a range of responsibilities while in Gumbo including administrative duties at the school and interviewing prospective students.

“The most rewarding part of my work at the Salesian center was learning about the people,” says Gotta. “They came from many different places and brought a great cultural diversity which we got to experience. We also shared some of our own culture with them.”

During their time in South Sudan, Gotta and Sabol taught in the secondary school which serves youth and young adults between the ages of 14 and 30. Classes are offered to students beyond typical secondary school age because of the unavailability of schooling in much of South Sudan and the years of interruption by war. Students who were forced to leave school due to war are able to return and continue their education even into adulthood.

When Gotta and Sabol started teaching at the school there were 65 students. After fighting broke out in the country in December 2013, those internally displaced by war flowed into the city increasing school enrollment to 180 students. When fighting escalated, Salesian lay missionaries, including Gotta and Sabol, were moved to Kenya temporarily for their safety.

“Seeing the suffering, particularly when the fighting began, was one of the most challenging things we faced while we were there,” explains Sabol. “We had many of those who were internally displaced at the Salesian compound. When we arrived in August, the South Sudanese were still experiencing the joy of their newly won independence and then in December it all began to fall apart.”

South Sudan is one of the poorest countries in the world with 55 percent of its population living in poverty, according to the World Bank. The country celebrated its third year of independence last July but is facing an ongoing civil war that started in December 2013 and has resulted in a dire humanitarian crisis.

The civil war has left thousands dead and displaced hundreds of thousands more. Close to 80,000 people have sought refuge at several UN compounds across the country. In the capital of Juba, 80 percent of those displaced are women and children. More than 350,000 people have fled to neighboring countries risking their lives and leaving everything behind.

Salesian missionaries assist those internally displaced through programs across South Sudan and in neighboring Kenya at the Kakuma refugee camp. More than 44 percent of refugees at the camp are from South Sudan and arrived after escaping conflict and violence.

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Sources:

ANS – United States – Returned SLMs Reflect on their experience in South Sudan

Salesian Lay Missioners

World Bank – South Sudan 

*Any goods, services or funds provided by Salesian Missions to programs located in this country were administered in compliance with applicable laws and regulations, including sanctions administered by the U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Asset Control.

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This year’s theme Getting to Zero focuses on the Millennium Development Goal to halt and begin to reverse the HIV/AIDS epidemic by 2015. A new Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) report shows that unprecedented acceleration in the AIDS response is producing results for people. The report notes that there has been more than a 50 percent decrease in new HIV infections across 25 countries.

Women and children are the primary focus of this year’s Worlds AIDS Day. According to UNICEF, AIDS remains a leading cause of death among women of reproductive age globally and the main cause of child mortality in countries with high HIV prevalence. The good news is, according to the UNAIDS report, the area where the most progress is being made is in reducing new HIV infections in children. Half of the global reductions in new HIV infections in the last two years have been among newborn children.

The UNAIDS report also shows that antiretroviral therapy has emerged as a powerful force for saving lives. In the last 24 months, the number of people accessing treatment has increased by 63 percent globally. The report further noted that ending the pandemic was now “entirely feasible” and achieving an AIDS-free generation is possible.

Further noted in the UNAIDS report, worldwide some 34 million people were living with HIV at the end of 2011. Deaths from AIDS fell to 1.7 million in 2011, down from a peak of 2.3 million in 2005 and from 1.8 million in 2010.

“We must make information, testing and treatment available to all, so every man, woman and child can enjoy their fundamental right to the medical care and essential services that will end this devastating epidemic,” said Ban Ki-moon, United Nations Secretary-General in a statement observing World AIDS Day.

The U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) program, launched by former President George W. Bush in 2003, has been a catalyst for advancing HIV treatment, particularly in Africa.

The Salesian Missions “Life Choices” program targets youth ages 10 to 19 with core messages of abstinence and be faithful to prevent HIV infection. The program also benefits youth by employing a multipronged approach to HIV/AIDS prevention. This approach not only offers youth health education on HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases, but also offers life skills training, parental/teacher/community support, recreational activities, sports, youth camps, counseling, and job placement.

To mark World AIDS Day, the Salesian Missions Office of International Programs is highlighting some of the successful PEPFAR programs:

Ethiopia

Ethiopia is home to more than four million orphans, or 12 percent of all children.  More than half a million of these were orphaned as a result of AIDS, according to UNICEF. The Salesian Missions “CARING Orphans and Vulnerable Children” project helps to reduce the impact of HIV/AIDS in Ethiopia. The program increases access to youth orphaned or made vulnerable by HIV/AIDS, and provides holistic care, community reintegration, and support for 60,000 orphans, street youth and children who have been made vulnerable due to HIV/AIDS. To date, more than 13,000 orphans and vulnerable children have received services ranging from shelter and care, formal education, non-formal education and economic empowerment activities.

Kenya

In Kenya, peer education is an effective tool for reaching youth with key disease prevention messages. The Salesian Missions “Life Choices” program in Kenya focuses on abstinence and faithfulness. Gender is also an important component, and programs include a focus on sexual violence. The program extends to youth centers, schools, orphans and vulnerable children centers and in community/social outreach programs. More than 40,000 youth have learned about HIV/AIDS prevention through the program.

South Africa

South Africa is the country hardest hit by HIV/AIDS worldwide, according to UNICEF. The “Life Choices” program here is based in schools from grades 4-12. An important component is voluntary counseling and testing as an effective method of preventing new infections. In addition, the program offers one-on-one mentoring, career and guidance counseling, parental skills workshops and teacher sensitivity.

Tanzania

In Tanzania, the HIV/AIDS prevalence rate is nearly nine percent. The virus has orphaned nearly a million children and forced others to assume household responsibilities beyond their years, according to UNICEF. To help prevent the spread of HIV/AIDS, students in 79 schools across Tanzania take part in the “Life Choices” program, as part of the U.S. PEPFAR program through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). Of the 79 schools, 47 are primary, 23 are secondary and 9 are vocational training centers.

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Sources:

UN – World AIDS Day

UNICEF – In Zimbabwe, village health workers play an essential role in the primary healthcare system and the fight against HIV/AIDS

Salesian Missions – Our work

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