AMERICA/MEXICO - A soup kitchen to accommodate street children and migrants

Tapachula (Agenzia Fides) - Hundreds of Central American young children, mostly Guatemalan children, wander the streets of Tapachula, in Chiapas, work 10 to 12 hours a day for paltry remuneration, selling sweets, some are exploited by family members, others by friends or strangers and almost all by money-lenders. To curb this phenomenon, the civil association Todo por Ellos has just opened a soup kitchen for young migrants and those living on the streets. It is called Pan de Vida and prepares a hot meal and a drink for children and adolescents who need it. At the beginning disposable plates are used, in the absence of cups and spoons: the intent is to collect plastic utensils to reduce waste and re-use materials. It also lacks a cooking pot to put on the stove so that much of the food can be prepared in the headquarters of the organization. However, operators distribute the food with what they have, and when they have finished with the young children, if there is anything left they give it to adults. Todo por Ellos denounced and highlighted problems of human trafficking, as well as the state of abandonment in which street children live, and this is why they have decided to take action and give them shelter and food through the soup kitchen they have just opened. (AP) (Agenzia Fides 04/09/2012)