Moderator

We were picked up at the hotel shortly after breakfast for a short drive to the INPHRU Centre. INPHRU is a short form for “The Institute for Human Promotion,” a long time mission partner of PWS&D. The vision for INPHRU, which its name connotes, is to work with vulnerable children and young people to help them to determine their own future according to their own hopes and needs. The institute began in August 1966 and was the first NGO ever created in Nicaragua. When we arrived at the centre’s gate (there is a locked gate at the entry to most homes and businesses), the driver honked a couple of times and a man suddenly appeared to open the gate for us. Inside we found an excellent facility, immaculately maintained. We gathered in a boardroom for an orientation session from the staff, who used a PowerPoint presentation to orient us on how INPHRU is organized and the various programs supported by INPHRU. One of the programs is the Casa de las Ninas or “Home for Girls.” It provides counseling, training, and legal advocacy for girls who have been sexually and/or physically abused. When it is necessary for a girl’s safety, Casa de las Ninas also provides safe shelter. The time when the girls actually live at the shelter is usually short (about six to eight weeks), after which the girls return home or are placed in a foster home. Each girl who enters the program must sign a covenant saying that she understands the process she will be going through and freely accepts the terms.

After the orientation session, we took a tour of the Casa de las Ninas facility, which includes dormitory-like sleeping quarters, classrooms, kitchen and dining area, and a courtyard (better homes, hotels, etc., typically include a courtyard – a style of architecture I find very appealing). After the tour we spoke with some women whose daughters had been admitted to the shelter. One said that her daughter had been raped by a neighbor. Another woman said her thirteen year old daughter had entered into a relationship with a twenty-seven year old man who had said he was eighteen. The older man began to manipulate the daughter and turn her against her family and lure her away from school. With tears in her eyes, the mother talked about how her daughter has been restored to her family and is back in school because of her time at the shelter. All of the women were deeply appreciative of the help that their daughters had received.

We then talked with a group of the teenage girls. Each of them introduced themselves and gave their age. They were typical teenage girls – lots of giggles and glances at each other, some talking more freely than others. All of them said they had come to the shelter full of fear and distrust and discovered a safe place to talk about their feelings and a true support network to give them the strength and training to move forward with their lives. Through the help they have received at the shelter, they are beginning to dream about a different kind of future for themselves. We asked them what they wanted to be when they grow up – “A medical doctor,” one said. “A counselor,” “A teacher.” Such dreams may well become reality. One of the counselors on staff with INPHRU was formerly one of the girls who had lived for a time at the Casa de las Ninas and had benefited from their services.

After a delicious lunch prepared on the premises, we headed to the INPHRU centre in Mercado Mayoreo Market. The market, one of several in the city, is a wholesale market, so trucks loaded with cantaloupes or bananas and many other kinds of fruits and vegetables from the countryside were unloading while we were there for distribution in the city. The market was full of activity (and a variety of smells!). It felt like a scene from Oliver Twist, only it was modern day (only not so modern day, since horse drawn carts were as plentiful as cars and trucks). Pickpockets are common in the markets, and we were advised to take all our jewelry off before walking around, and then only with several of the INPHRU staff to guide us. There were small booths or shops filled with people selling all kinds of merchandise, women inviting passersby to come into their bars, buses loading passengers in a terminal attached to the market, and lots of kids. During our walking tour of the market, we met a female vendor who works with INPHRU as a volunteer in a sort of Neighborhood Watch program. She looks out for the vulnerable kids in her area and reports any problems to the INPHRU staff.

INPHRU runs programs in six of the markets in Managua to work with the kids who grow up working in the markets to help support their families. INPHRU offers classes and tutoring programs to ensure that these children, who often can’t attend regular school because of their long working hours, receive the education they need. The INPHRU staff also teach the children their rights (including the right to play), protect children facing abuse and form trusting relationships with the kids. We happened to arrive on elections day, when the kids elected those who would be their leaders. The purpose of the election was not only to find leaders for their group, but to teach the children about democracy. After the results of the election were announced, the kids enjoyed taking turns hitting a piñata made to look like Winnie the Pooh (Winnie the Pooh also seems to be very popular in Nicaragua), each child hoping their blows would be the one to release the candy stuffing. To conclude our time at the centre, we met briefly with all of the INPHRU staff who work at the market. Three of the staff and the director himself had been former street kids working in the market – a testimony of the transforming power of INPHRU’s work.

I really enjoyed the market and its atmosphere. In spite of the poverty and unsanitary conditions, it was a place filled with bustling energy and vitality, and the children were like children everywhere – full of hopes and dreams, eager to play and even more eager to have their picture taken. I noticed one little girl who picked up the microphone used for the election speeches earlier in the day. As soon as she saw me taking her picture, she smiled broadly and immediately struck a pose like a rock star. Who knows, maybe she will be!