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Argentina
Almost two years after Argentina’s economic collapse, the effects on the family of the misery into which the country has been plunged continue to be felt. The worst is not over yet. Increasing numbers of children are becoming victims of physical and emotional abuse or abandonment as parents find themselves unable to cope. More children are ending up on the streets. Countless others have a home, but are left largely to fend for themselves.
Sometimes parents give their children food or money, but more often they must try to scrape a few coins together themselves by begging, stealing or doing odd jobs. They receive few expressions of love, there is inadequate nutrition, clothing and health care, and little support to get them through school. Such children become vulnerable to physical and sexual abuse. Aware of the dangers of the streets, some parents resort to locking their children inside their precarious dwellings, or even tie small ones up whilst they are away at work. Accidents, sometimes fatal, occur frequently. In the sweltering summer months, such houses resemble ovens.
One response of the Anglican Church in Northern Argentina to the needs of such children is a day-care centre in a marginalised neighbourhood in Salta. Due to open its doors soon, staff will care for 30 children between the ages of two and five whose parents have no-one to leave them with whilst at work. One such child will be two-year-old Camila. Her parents go out to work all afternoon and her eight siblings are at school. Sometimes, the older ones take turns missing school to look after her, at other times she is left in the care of one of two neighbouring families – often she is simply to be found wandering around on her own.
Over the last year, ten new soup kitchens have been opened throughout the Diocese in an attempt to fight the crippling effects of child malnutrition. Children not only receive a hot meal, but are also shown how they can know and serve God through Bible teaching. Parents are also taught how to grow vegetables and conserve food.
Six out of the 11 soup kitchens offer help with homework, giving children the opportunity to continue their schooling and so break out of the cycle of deprivation. It is hoped that eventually all soup kitchens will be able to offer this support as more funding becomes available.
Since March this year, the Church has employed a doctor and offers medical assistance together with prayer ministry to reach out to whole communities. Parents, who themselves feel abandoned by society, are experiencing a God who cares and are finding fresh hope for the future. It is our prayer that in all these projects, parents and children who have been suffering various forms of abandonment will experience the lifechanging love of God and the warm embrace of His family.
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