EDUCATIONAL CENTRE FOR JUVENILE DELINQUENTS OPENED

A centre for the rehabilitation of juvenile delinquents was opened on Monday in the neighbourhood of Hulene, in Maputo city.The Community Education Centre “Pfuka Dzixile” is part of the project “Strengthening Juvenile Justice in Mozambique: Consolidation Phase”, run by the United Nations Interregional Crime and Justice Research Institute (UNICRI) in partnership with the Mozambican Ministry of Justice, and with support from the Belgian and Danish governments.The initiative began in 2005 with the aim of improving the living conditions of Mozambican juveniles at risk or in conflict with the law.The Centre will provide educational and recreational activities for children who have been identified by psychologists and social workers as being at risk of offending.The Deputy Minister of Justice, Alberto Nkutumula, who chaired the opening ceremony, praised the support given by the initiative’s partners. However, he appealed for this initiative to be spread to other parts of the country.The UNICRI project coordinator, Andrea Fiore, explained that Hulene was chosen because of the large number of children in conflict with the law or at risk of offending.She stressed that UNICRI has worked in partnership with local non-governmental organisations, the Tsembeka Social Cooperative, and with the support of the local authority. “Due to this collaboration it has been possible to create a network of community services for children in conflict with the law, that has as its point of reference the Hulene Information Desk”, said Fiore.According to Fiore, over the years the Information Desk has developed an important role in preventing crime and rehabilitating children. It offers psychosocial treatment and pathways to reinsertion into the community through education and professional training.It also raises awareness in the community about juvenile delinquency and the rights that the Mozambican law guarantees to young offenders.Speaking at the ceremony, the representatives of the Danish embassy, Anders Karlsen, and the Belgian embassy, Mark Deneer, expressed their confidence that over the long term the project will bring large benefits to the local community and society in general.After the ceremony, Nkutumula told the newspaper “O Pais” that out of a prison population of 15,000 inmates, there are 2,000 prisoners under the age of 18. He said that these minors have had a troubled childhood and have had a history of conflict with the law.He pointed out that to stop the growth of the number of children in jail, the government and its cooperation partners are building the infrastructure to rehabilitate children when they come into conflict with the law.