Students arriving to the Basic Educational Center Herman Herrera Molina, a school located in a gang controlled and dangerous community of Los Pinos in Tegucigalpa, each Saturday kids take part of the various activities the program Guardianes de la Patria (Guardians of the Nation) offers and each one has to wear the shirt with the program's logo.
BuzzFeed News
FOR MANY KIDS IN HONDURAS, THE OPTIONS ARE: FLEE, JOIN THE GANG, OR TRAIN WITH THE MILITARY
Text by Karla Zabludovsky
TEGUCIGALPA, Honduras — Dozens of young recruits stood in line, timing their punches and kicks as their trainer called out commands. A few feet away, two of them dropped to the floor to do push-ups. A soldier in full camouflage stood off to the side observing the scene, his hand resting casually on the magazine of his M16 rifle.
But this was no military exercise.
Watching on from the bleachers, a group of young mothers took pictures as their children sweated their way through the karate class. After being put through their paces, the 9- and 10-year-old girls and boys stood in line on the school’s main patio to pick up pancakes and hot chocolate. Nearby, several colonels and church leaders chatted among themselves.
The children are among almost 30,000 taking part in a controversial program in Honduras known as the Guardianes de la Patria — Guardians of the Homeland — sponsored and run by the country’s armed forces, with support from the Catholic and evangelical churches.
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(left to right) Danny 16 yrs old, Robin 15 yrs old, Roberto 14 yrs old, Franklin 27 yrs old and Douglas 14 yrs old, residents of the 3 de Mayo community talk about the current repression from the government ant the abuse the the police and military toward them only because they come from a low income community know be dangerous and gang controlle
Students being supervised by a soldier during a workshop promoting values as part of the program Guardianes de la Patria (Guardians of the Nation) inside the Basic Educational Center Herman Herrera Molina, a school located in a gang controlled and dangerous community of Los Pinos in Tegucigalpa.
Gang violence is rife in some of the poorer neighborhoods, which many residents say have been neglected by the current government.