In Chile, a crisis over the care of at-risk children

Nov 3, 2016

In Chile, a crisis over the care of at-risk children

Matt Bracken 0 Comment Americas, The Baltimore Sun

A crisis over the care of at-risk children has outraged Chileans. After initially reporting just 185 deaths, the government recently acknowledged that 865 children have died under the care of the National Service for Minors over 11 years.

: In this Oct. 10, 2016 photo, a girl smokes inside the ruined building she calls her home in Santiago, Chile. Many if not all of the youths living in the ruin were once wards of the state, living in shelters of National Service for Minors. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

: In this Oct. 22, 2016 photo, Juana Poblete cries as she talks about her daughter, Lissette, who died under the care of the Chilean state, in Til Til, Chile. The former head of the National Service for Minors later said that Lisette died because she was “conflictive.” But a police investigation has shown that the child’s caretakers were partly responsible for her death and failed to administer the CPR that could have saved her life. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo).

: This Oct. 22, 2016 photo, a painted flower is seen on the wall of the Galvarino child care center where a young girl named Lissette died while in the custody of the state, in Santiago, Chile. Lissette’s case exploded in a crisis over the care of at-risk children that has outraged Chileans. After initially reporting just 185 deaths, the government recently acknowledged that 865 children have died under the care of the National Service for Minors over 11 years. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

: In this Oct. 22, 2016 photo, Juana Poblete, poses with photos of her daughter, Lissette who died under the care of the Chilean state, in Til Til, Chile. Lissette’s case exploded in a crisis over the care of at-risk children that has outraged Chileans. After initially reporting just 185 deaths, the government recently acknowledged that 865 children have died under the care of the National Service for Minors over 11 years. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo).

: In this Oct. 10, 2016 photo, trash, dirty blankets and a toy lay in a ruined building inhabited by street children in Santiago, Chile. Many if not all of the youths living in the ruin were once wards of the state, living in shelters of National Service for Minors. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

: In this Oct. 10, 2016 photo, the toilet used by street children sits in a ruined building, in Santiago, Chile. Many if not all of the youths living in the ruin were once wards of the state, living in shelters of National Service for Minors. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

: This Oct. 22, 2016 photo, shows the outside walls of the Galvarino child care center where a young girl named Lissette died, in Santiago, Chile. Lissette’s case exploded in a crisis over the care of at-risk children that has outraged Chileans. After initially reporting just 185 deaths, the government recently acknowledged that 865 children have died under the care of the National Service for Minors over 11 years. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo).

: In this Oct. 22, 2016 photo, the photo of Lissette decorates her tomb in Til Til, Chile. Lissette died under the care of the Chilean state, suffocating in her own vomit while a caretaker allegedly sat on her back while trying to contain the 11-year-old during what was described as “a crisis of aggressiveness.” (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

: In this Oct. 19, 2016 photo, Juana Poblete, center, poses with her sons Juan Diaz Poblete, left, and Javier Diaz Poblete in Til Til, Chile. When Juana’s daughter Lissette died, the goverment said that the girl had suffered from stress caused by being sexually abused. She also said the child suffered a breakdown because her family was not visiting her at the shelter. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

: In this Oct. 22, 2016 photo, Juana Poblete, the mother Lissette, a young girl that died while under the care of the state, cleans her daughter’s tomb in Til Til, Chile. Poblete had sent her daughter to a government shelter hoping authorities could protect her as she became increasingly violent and difficult to handle. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo).

: In this Oct. 10, 2016 photo, a dove flies in and abandoned and ruined building inhabited by street children and youths in Santiago, Chile. The youths survive by begging and committing petty crimes. Many if not all of the youths living in the ruin were once wards of the state, living in shelters of National Service for Minors. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

: In this Oct. 10, 2016 photo, Dani, 19, poses for a picture outside his sleeping space, inside an abandoned ruined building in Santiago, Chile. Dani is part of a group of teens that lives in the streets of Santiago, surviving by begging and petty crime. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

: In this Oct. 10, 2016 photo, 21-year-old Julio, 21, poses for a photo in his sleeping space inside a ruined and abandoned building were he lives with other youths, in Santiago, Chile. Julio was once a ward of Chile’s National Service for Minors but he walked out and now lives in the the streets. President Michelle Bachelet has committed $ 3.7 million for an overhaul of the agency charged with looking after more than 100,000 children in the government’s care each year in Chile, some in their own homes and some in shelters. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

: In this Oct. 10, 2016 photo, a discarded shoe lays on top a tarp used by street children for shelter in a ruined building in Santiago, Chile. Many if not all of the youths living in the ruin were once wards of the state, living in shelters of National Service for Minors. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

: In this Oct. 10, 2016 photo, the ten commandments are displayed on a piece of plywood, with the extra “No More Drugs,” added at the bottom, in a ruined abandoned building used by street children for shelter, in Santiago, Chile. Many if not all of the youths living in the ruin were once wards of the state, living in shelters of National Service for Minors. (AP Photo/Luis Hidalgo)

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