By Ángeles, CCFC former sponsored child, Paraguay

(Translated by Maria Ferreira, program officer, Paraguay)

It’s been a busy few months for Ángeles, a former sponsored child from Paraguay. This past fall, she attended a violence-prevention meetingin Ottawa, hosted on behalf of the World Health Organization and the Government of Canada. And, she’s just returned from a global meeting in Sweden. The 17-year-old attended the End Violence Solutions Summitwith academics, civil-society organizations, private-sector leaders and government officials. (She even met the Queen of Sweden!, See below.)

Here Angie opens up about her impressions of this special trip — one she shared with Leticia, a peer from SOS Children’s Villages.

Our progress for positive change in Paraguay is setting the stage for collaboration with governments and civil-society organizations around the world

If you’ve ever been to Paraguay, you might understand the feeling of community you experience from people in all corners of the country. I experienced this genuine welcome on my recent trip there a few days ago, but my eyes were also opened to one side of the country I couldn’t see.

I couldn’t see what happens behind closed doors. Jorge Méndez Rheineck, our country director in Paraguay, spoke frankly about the situation: “Violence against children in the home is a problem for too many. Worse, children suffer sexual abuse from adults they trust — relatives, family, friends and neighbours,” he said.