This year in the Democratic Republic of Congo, the celebrations for the 47th anniversary of Sant'Egidio were accompanied by good news from the central prison in Bukavu, where Sant'Egidio regularly visits the young prisoners. On the occasion of the anniversary of the Community three underage boys were released. The news was received with great joy by Sant'Egidio, which then helped the three young people to return to their families in the villages of Kamituga, Bunyakiri and Kabare.

BChildren and adolescents held in this prison live in very precarious conditions: more than 1200 people live in a space originally intended for 200 inmates. Overcrowding is made even more dramatic by the scarcity of basic necessities. To improve the living conditions, the Community has already delivered mattresses to the boys that previously were forced to sleep on the ground (read the news).

Last week a delegation of Sant'Egidio went back to the juvenile section of the prison, along with a French paediatrician, Marcel Collin, to verify the conditions of children.

Read also: Sant'Egidio and prisons in Africa