Andres says ‘Children are not criminals – they need care’
All names and identifying details have been changed.
Participants have given us permission to share their experiences.
Andres was raped when he was 11 years old.
After this ordeal, he began stealing and was sentenced to youth custody, where he suffered further abuse.
The man who raped Andres worked in a local business. Andres did not tell anyone what had happened; he believes it was this abuse that caused him to start committing crimes.
At the age of 12, he was sent to a youth custody centre and over the next few years, he says, he was ‘in and out of custody’. It was the era of the ‘short sharp shock’ – a tough regime favoured for young criminals – but he says this didn’t work. He looks back and sees that he was a ‘vulnerable young boy in a violent environment’ with older youths.
On one occasion, he was held down by some of the boys and they tried to penetrate him with a stick. He describes this as ‘torture’. He says the staff saw the state he was in, and several times he begged them to help him, but they did nothing to protect him.
Andres is still seriously affected by his early experiences. He says he often feels angry, and finds it hard to trust or believe anyone.
‘I don’t feel I’ve lived a normal life … sometimes things just trigger the awful memories’, he says.
Andres feels strongly that children who commit crimes should not be treated like adults. He says children in detention need to be supervised and supported.
He has now reported the sexual abuse he suffered to the police, and he says that being believed has helped him move forward. He is also having support for his mental health.
Andres says his mum blames herself for what happened to him, but he thinks ‘she has been fantastic’. He adds ‘There are people who care and that’s why I keep going’.