A presentation to the US Congress on Filipino kids brings hope
(republishing, copying, no restrictions)
By: Father Shay Cullen
This past week I have been in Washington D.C. testifying before a US Congressional sub committee on children, this is under the powerful US Congressional committee on International Relations. The recent ITN/CNN report on the condition of Children in Filipino Prisons has alerted and shocked the world. I was invited to testify with Lord David Alton about the plight of these street children and offer suggestions.
Jubilee Campaign helped organize our participation. I explained the lack of concern of the Filipino Politicians in providing homes for these children. For nine years they failed to pass the Juvenile Justice Bill because as critics say a deplorable "Kids don't vote" attitude prevails. The response of the US congress was one of keen interest and many members were appalled at the situation. The media reported widely on the issue too.
Here is an edited version of a small part of that presentation to the US Congressional committee:
"They are typical children of the streets, vagrants and in some other cities like Davao in Mindanao, they become victims of shadowy death squads that act with impunity in executing the teenagers leading us to believe they are government sanctioned. The silence and inaction of the authorities despite the mounting death toll is us, a sign of approval. When we protested the killings some years ago we were sued by the city mayor for defamation, but won our case when we proved we were merely defending the human rights of the children and freedom of speech on their behalf. We have been harassed threatened with death and brought to court to be deported for working to protect the street children and defend their rights not to be abused and l experience childhood.
Street kids are considered pests by some of the business community as vermin to be exterminated. But they have committed no crime, are the victims of the wrongdoing of uncaring and corrupt politicians, and abusive impoverished parents.
According to Unicef, there is an estimated 100 million children living, at least part of their time, on the streets world-wide. In the Philippines, a government report in 1998 put the figure at 1.2 million street children and about 70,000 of them in Metro Manila alone. Another report estimates that there are approximately 1.5 million children on the streets working as beggars, pickpockets, drug abusers and child prostitutes (ECPAT). Today, the number of children and youth living part of their lives on the streets in the Philippines today could reach two million out of a total population of 84 million.
This is the result of human neglect, spiritual paralysis, greed and political irresponsibility that allows and exasperates the entrenchment of poverty in an unjust social system. The Philippines is a fractured democracy, where feudal practices persist and where the greater the national budget is dedicated to servicing foreign debt, paying a bloated bureaucracy or wasted on fake or overpriced development projects. There is very little for social programs.
We believe that foreign aid is wasted when poured into the coffers of the Rich politicians for project that they design to befit their own family business or that of their cronies. Even disaster relief money is squandered and dissipated through corrupt practices.
Homes and shelters for street children are urgently needed. We are trying to establish more. When we requested last month the use of an abandoned government building constructed with relief funds given for the victims of Mt. Pinatubo volcanic eruption (and soon abandoned) we were told it was better used for officials offices and vehicles. (An international appeal to Governor Vic Magsaysay is asking this be reversed and it be given to Preda Foundation for children)
Advocacy and public awareness is achieved by Preda workshops and training seminars given to members of the government and the public, students and teachers on the rights of the children. The Police and prosecutors are special targeted audiences as they inflict the most harm on children. The training and awareness build sessions reach as many as 11,000 people every year.
Street children are always hungry. They leave home hungry and beg on the street where they are vulnerable to sexual exploitation, disease, malnutrition, illiteracy, abuse and trafficking for sexual exploitation. [to be continued]
