Casa Alianza Honduras

Overview

Casa Alianza Honduras (CAH) opened in 1987 and was our second center in Latin America. Located in the capital of Tegucigalpa, CAH has two residential centers and several programs that offer assistance to homeless children and teenagers in need of aid.

José Guadalupe Ruelas García has been the national director of Casa Alianza Honduras since January 2013. Ruelas García has become one of the leading national and international advocates for at-risk, trafficked and migrant youth.

Programs unique to Casa Alianza Honduras

Crisis center

This is the largest residential center of CAH, located in the heart of the capital and taking up an entire city block. The residence has the capacity to provide protection for up to 120 resident boys and girls every night. The center holds the basic core Covenant House programs. As in every Casa Alianza, the youth advance based on their progress with their “Life Plan” and goals for the future.

Querubines Home

Querubines Home was opened in 2008 and is dedicated to victims of sexual exploitation and human trafficking. The staff provides care for an average of 30 to 50 girls per year, who stay for varying amounts of time. Always operating at full capacity, it is able to house up to 25 residential girls at any one time. The majority of the victims arrive at Querubines via a judicial order from a judge or prosecutor, and it often serves as a safe house for those who need to be hidden from their traffickers. It provides aid to specifically restore self-esteem and support a positive reintegration back into society.

The Child Rights Monitoring Program

The Child Rights Monitoring Program carries out the vital service of documenting the different kinds of violence being committed against youth in Honduras. The team investigates and writes monthly reports focusing on the human rights situation and human rights violations of young people in Honduras, as well as cases of extrajudicial executions committed against Honduran children and teenagers. In addition, the team prepares special reports on trafficked youth. These reports are published and circulated widely to national and international governments and organizations.

Their circulation raises awareness about the crimes that are being committed and helps to ensure that necessary domestic and international laws are being enforced. This data has been especially useful during this crisis of unaccompanied minors.

Returning Migrant Reintegration Program

Since January 2010, staff members from CAH have arrived at the Honduran and Guatemalan border every week to meet Mexican buses deporting migrant Honduran children back to Honduras. CAH provides resettlement and family reintegration services for unaccompanied child migrants, and residential services for those who cannot safely return home.

As a result of the advocacy of Casa Alianza Honduras, the Honduran Family Ministry (DINAF) opened an overnight center for deported migrants in San Pedro de Sula in 2013. At this location, children are interviewed and evaluated before releasing them back into Honduran territory, where many of them before would simply head north again.

 

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