Others, CHILDREN OF THE STREET, have occasional contact with their families but have either left following abuse or neglect or when the family has disintegrated through the death or imprisonment of parents. Some of the stories told by children of what they have experienced are harrowing in the extreme.
Whichever group the children belong to, they are all in danger. The result of their life on the streets is frequently a decline into crime, drugs and prostitution – all at the hands of adults ready to exploit their vulnerability. Drugs in particular are a serious problem as they are seen as a major source of income. Many children are used as carriers because if they are caught they cannot be prosecuted. Many kids sniff glue to try to gain some temporary relief from the pain of hunger or the cold. Girls as young as 6 years of age are forced into prostitution. Whether it is to obtain money for life’s necessities or to feed the drug habit, mugging robbery and other violence can make the streets of Brazil’s cities places of danger.
In some places the only answer of the authorities to criminal activities is the use of the gun but this means that all too often young people are victims, many of them innocent victims. Brazil’s homicide rate in 2004 was 36,000 – the biggest in the world. 56% of victims were in the 15-24 age bracket. Against this background the Brazilian authorities have to overcome enormous problems if they are to carry out any effective programme of reform or aid. Whilst Brazil has in place some of the most comprehensive laws to protect the rights of children, implementing them is not often a high priority. However there are Brazilians who see the need to take action themselves and have set up projects to care for and protect kids at risk.
Street Children
Poverty is the main reason why there are so many children on city streets. Their number runs into millions! UNICEF has identified at least three categories of street children.
The majority, CHILDREN ON THE STREET, are there working to supplement the family income; because of the distances some have to travel it may not be possible to return home at night so they sleep on the street.
Then there is a third group, CHILDREN IN THE STREET, who are truly orphaned or abandoned with no knowledge of who their parents are.
