Think Creative - Issue 4

24 | Think Creative | Fall 2018 freedom to move forward can include probation, community service, or working with a program like Casa Alianza. “We know that detention centers are not the most suitable for the reintegration, re-educa- tion and rehabilitation of youth,” says Belkin Díaz, a judge in the juvenile court system. “At that age, sometimes the youth have already gone through very difficult experiences, and you have to put yourself in their shoes to understand the situation in their communities.” Díaz is amember of the ProponteMás Juve- nile Justice Technical Committee, a group of judges, prosecutors, juvenile defense attorneys, nonprofit organizations and civil society groups working to reduce the number of youth in de- tention and strengthen alternativemeasures. The committee is already seeing success in encouraging the juvenile justice system to take a closer look at alternativemeasures. This year is the first time in several years that the juvenile detention population inHonduras decreased, fromabout 550 in 2017 to 475 in 2018. At the same time, the number of juvenile cases culminating in alternativemeasures has risen – from371 in 2015 to 625 in 2018, accord- ing to the Institute for the Care of Child Offend- ers (INAMI in Spanish), a government agency created in 2016 that oversees juvenile justice. ProponteMás is contributing to a referral sys- tem through INAMI to direct youth to services and resources like Casa Alianza. The pilot refer- ral systemhas allowed Casa Alianza to assist 81 youth through INAMI referrals. And the Juvenile Justice Technical Committee is set to take on amore formal role in policy- making as it transforms into the Advisory Board for INAMI. “I know that without this committee, we wouldn’t be where we are today,” says Clau- dia Pereira, a committeemember and public defender working in the juvenile court system. “Before the committee, we all worked sepa- rately – defense on one side, prosecution on the other. But with the committee, we found each other and we all started to thinkmore about the youth.” Spurring system-wide change As Pereira and Díaz talk about the committee’s work in themain juvenile court building in Tegucigalpa, families anxiously wait for their appointments with clerks, lawyers and judges several floors below. Even though they sit on opposite sides of the bench, Pereira and Díaz both say the hardest part of their job is seeing children and youth who are often victims of crime and violence be- come perpetrators themselves and have to face a justice system they often don’t understand. “We have to raise awareness among others in the justice system that we can’t just look at the infraction that brought the kid here, we also have to look at the situation that led himor her to become an offender,” says Pereira. “To give youth an opportunity to keep their freedomand not just look at the crime with which they’re charged, but also the personal circumstances. That’s the challenge we face every day.” As the Juvenile Justice Technical Committee spearheads the use of alternative justicemea- sures, some of its members and others working in the juvenile justice sector are expanding their expertise and knowledge through amaster’s degree programdeveloped by ProponteMás with the University of Málaga. ProponteMás has awarded 25 scholarships to justice operators, government officials and staff fromCasa Alianza to pursue amaster’s in Child Protection and Juvenile Justice. Both Díaz and Pereira are enrolled in the pro- gramand say it’s given thema better under- standing of children’s social and psychological development and how their actions are affected by the context in which they live. “That’s been important for me, to understand howmuch youth are influenced by the situation in which they’ve grown up,” says Pereira. “I’ve learned in themaster’s programhow that child arrived here, learned to see that maybe that child didn’t have the same opportunities that others have had.” A family moving forward Back at Casa Alianza, Axel and Jordan grab a seat at a lunch table with other kids as their grandmother Rosa talks warmly with their instructor. Despite their three-year age gap, the brothers soundmore like twins. They both aim to graduate fromhigh school, dedicate them- selves tomissionary work for a few years and then study engineering at a university. And both say that their family has become stronger through their work with Casa Alianza. “My family has seen a big change. We always communicated, but not as much as we should have. But now, with everything the instructors have taught us, we’ve becomemore united and we talk about everything,” says Axel. “They’ve helped us enjoy spending time as a family and to take care of the things we have.” Casa Alianza Family Integration Instructor Nol- via Aguilar, who has been the family’s primary instructor since their first day at Casa Alianza, says when Axel and Jordan arrived, they were timid, reserved and not very engaged in the workshops and classes. But over the past several months, she has seen the family flourish. “What keeps us going is the growth of the family, to be able to help themout of that hole they find themselves in,” she says. “They have changed a lot, and for me it’s rewarding to see as their instructor …These are the stories that stay with us. Now they’re a family that’s sharp, active, excited, enthusiastic.” Díaz says that with the coordinated support of ProponteMás, justice operators, government of- ficials and nonprofit organizations, manymore youth can find the same success as Axel and Jordan and avoid time in detention – which has the potential to reinforce gang engagement and a cycle of violence. “We hope that INAMI’s work and increased alternativemeasures will benefit the boys and girls of our country,” she says. “We hope that we can help, even if it’s just this one grain of sand, because between all of us, we canmake a change for children.” n Rosa Romero (far left) joins her grandsons Axel and Jordan for a meeting with their Casa Alianza instructor Nolvia Aguilar (center). Photo by José Granados