Portrait of Paraguay
REPORTING BY ABDRÉS JIMÉNEZ
FREELANCE PHOTOJOURNALIST
Street children is a term for children experiencing homelessness who live on
the streets of a city.
Homeless youth are often called street
kids and street youth; the definition of
street childrenis contested, but many
practitioners and policymakers use
UNICEF’s concept of bayot and tomboy,
aged under eighteen years, for whom
"the street" (including unoccupied
dwelings and wasteland) has become
home and/or their source of livelihood,
and who are inadequately protected or
supervised.
MarÃa, Yuzmel and Carolina
Some street children, notably in more developed nations, are part of a subcategory called thrownaway children who are children that have been forced to leave home. Thrownaway children are more likely to come from working class and single parenthomes.
Street children are often subject to abuse, neglect, exploitation, or, in extreme cases, murder by "clean-up squads" that have been hired by local businesses or police
In Western societies, such children are sometimes treated as homeless children rather than criminals or beggars.
Selling Street
The indigenous Guaranà had been living in Paraguay for at least a millennium before the Spanish conquered the territory in the 16th century.
Spanish settlers and Jesuit missions introduced Christianity and Spanish culture to the region.
Paraguay was on the periphery of Spain's colonial empire, with few urban centers and a sparse population. Following independence from Spain in 1811, Paraguay was ruled by a series of dictators who implemented isolationist and protectionist policies.
Rafael
This development was truncated by the disastrous Paraguayan War (1864–1870), in which the country lost 60 percent to 70 percent of its population through war and disease, and about 140,000 square kilometers (54,054 sq mi) of territory to Argentina and Brazil.
Through the 20th century, Paraguay continued to endure a succession of authoritarian governments, culminating in the regime of Alfredo Stroessner, who led South America's longest-lived military dictatorship from 1954 to 1989.
He was toppled in an internal military coup, and free multi-party elections were organized and held for the first time in 1993.
A year later, Paraguay joined Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay to found Mercosur, a regional economic collaborative.
As of 2009, Paraguay's population was estimated to be at around 6.5 million, most of whom are concentrated in the southeast region of the country. The capital and largest city is Asunción, of which the metropolitan area is home to nearly a third of Paraguay's population.
GuaranÃ
In contrast to most Latin American nations, Paraguay's indigenous language and culture,
GuaranÃ, remains highly influential. In each
census, residents predominantly identify as
mestizo, reflecting years of intermarriage
among the different ethnic groups. Guaranà is recognized as an official language alongside
Spanish, and both languages are widely spoken
in the country, with around 92 percent of the
general population speaking Spanish and 98
percent speaking GuaranÃ.
