Rare festive joy for Bolivia's prison children as Catholics mark Epiphany

Record ID: 1451689

  • Title: Rare festive joy for Bolivia's prison children as Catholics mark Epiphany
  • Date: 7th January 2020
  • Summary: MASS IN PROGRESS VARIOUS OF FAITHFUL WITH STATUES OF BABY JESUS VARIOUS OF FAITHFUL DURING SERVICE STATUES OF BABY JESUS FAITHFUL OUTSIDE BASILICA FAITHFUL WITH STATUE OF BABY JESUS (SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) CATHOLIC, MARTHA MOLINA, SAYING: "My child is a dancer. I've had him for 38 years and after 38 years he still wants to go to mass at San Francisco. When we would go to oth
  • Embargoed: 21st January 2020 02:51
  • Keywords: Bolivia Catholics Church Epiphany La Paz Three Wise Men baby Jesus children faithful jail presents prison
  • Location: LA PAZ, BOLIVIA
  • City: LA PAZ, BOLIVIA
  • Country: Bolivia
  • Topics: Religion/Belief,Society/Social Issues
  • Reuters ID: LVA002BV6ANNR
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: There was a rare spark of festive cheer on Monday (January 6) for a group of Bolivian children growing up behind bars inside a La Paz prison.
    To mark the Epiphany, the Catholic festival that celebrates the revelation of the birth of Jesus, prison officers organised entertainment for the children who share jail cells with their inmate parents.
    The San Pedro prison is one of the country's most notorious, but there, inmate families keep children inside cells with them for stretches of time. And during the festival season, the number of kids inside increases.
    Inmates say the presence of children helps in their rehabilitation and creates a sense of community.
    Outside the San Pedro prison, the faithful flocked to La Paz' San Francisco Basilica on the Epiphany and took statues of the baby Jesus to a church service for blessings. Many of these faithful take their baby Jesus seriously, bestowing him with personal traits.
    According to Bolivian law, children must leave prison when they turn six but that standard is rarely enforced.
    (Production: Santiago Limachi, Sergio Limachi, Paul Vieira)
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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