” “France: ways of rehabilitation” “

We continue the reflection on youth in Europe that we began in recent numbers of SirEurope (cf. nos.11,13 & 14 of 2002) in preparation for the tenth Symposium of European Bishops, scheduled to be held in Rome from 24 to 28 April on the theme “Youth of Europe in a period of change. Laboratories of faith”. In this number of SirEurope we will examine some of the problems linked to youth disaffection and the violence this produces among adolescents. Juvenile crime in Europe is in fact a real emergency: the number of crimes committed by young people is growing, and the progressive lowering of the average age at which children enter into the world of crime is giving rise to deep concern. In Italy, where the rate of juvenile crime is the lowest in Europe, a story that has recently grabbed public attention is that of the group of youngsters who, instead of going to school, went to rob holiday homes in the province of Catania; they included a nine-year-old boy. At Cremona two adolescents were recently arrested for running an extortion racket, extorting money and designer clothes from members of their own age group. On the Amalfi Coast a gang of motorbike thieves composed of teenagers aged 15 to 17 was also arrested; many of them come from well-to-do families. In France, where the number of juveniles involved in criminal activities has been growing by 13% each year over the last decade, and now involves one adolescent out of every five, many Catholic associations are active in this field. Below we report on the “Valdocco Project” launched by the Salesians in the region of Paris. Criminality and juveniles. “In 1998, of the 789,000 persons detained or questioned by the police forces and gendarmeries, 171,800 were juveniles aged between 13 and 17”, says the report of the interregional Group of study and reflection in France, with the title “Criminality and apparent delinquency: a territorial approach”, published in July 2000. Although this age group represents only 8.1% of the French population, 21.8% of those arrested are juveniles, i.e. more than one person in five. “The number of juveniles involved in crime has increased more than 80% in the last five years and the average age of youngsters who commit offences continues to drop: “At least 20% are below the age of 16”, says the report. The “Valdocco Project”. Following the publication of these alarming statistics, Salesian Father Jean-Marie Petitclerc launched the “Valdocco Project” at Argenteuil, in the outskirts of Paris. The essence of this educational apostolate promoted by Father Petitclerc can be summed up in a slogan taken from the teachings of St. John Bosco: “without cordiality, no trust; without trust, no education”. Many initiatives have been taken by the Valdocco association to try to curb youth crime: a street educational mission, school support and mediation between families and schools, a helpline for parents and a counselling service for youngsters in difficulty. Practical objectives. The “Valdocco Project” is aimed at achieving various results. First, explains Father Petitclerc, that of “developing street animation by trying to reach children and teenagers in city streets and squares to draw up action programmes together with them. Second, that of fostering a civic sense in them”. That means “making the young person a ‘protagonist’ in his own quarter; it means regarding him as a ‘subject’ in his own right and permitting him to express his own opinions and develop his own projects”. Members of the association also help young people to achieve “success at school: and help the youngster and his family to invest in education and benefit from school catching-up activities”. At the same time the association, explains Father Petitclerc, tries to “heighten the responsibility of parents and citizens in the education of the new generations; raise the awareness of the inhabitants of a quarter about what’s at stake; promote meetings on educational themes; and emphasize the important role elder children can play in setting an example to younger members of the family”. Lastly, the association tries to “promote new way of vocational training to help youngsters get into employment”.