(Bangladesh 2010)

Father Riccardo Tobanelli is a Xaverian Missionary Priest. He lives in Bangladesh since 1982 and he founded a nonprofit organization called Tokai Songho to take care of street children. Only in Dhaka there are more than 60 thousands street children. The plight of street children is one of the most dreadful manifestations of the injustice of poverty and exclusion. The street children survive on the margins of society relaying only on their own efforts. Children's rights are at best ignored and at worst trampled upon through indifference, economic exploitation, and sexual and physical abuse.

"Tokai kora", in Bengali language, means to pick up discarded things and "Tokai" is the name given to those street children who do that. It is a very appropriate name for street children in Dhaka, since they survive on the streets recycling rubbish. Most of them contract debts with shop owners in order to survive. These kids live in a situation of bonded labor and slavery.

The association is focused on giving an answer to the Tokai needs of shelter, food, health and legal aid against abuse. A lot of the work Father Riccardo does is actually done by some ex Tokai-children that grew up with him since the 90’s. They are now working with him to deal with the Tokai still on the streets. The final aim of the association is to wiping out the children from their debts and slavery condition, to bring out them from the street and giving them a better future.

Father Riccardo: “I have had the fortune to meet and know the Tokai-street children and walk along with them. I have learned from them to love life. Their courage, humanity and joy in spite of exploitation, abuse and deprivation continue to surprise me. It pains a bit to see their enormous potential wasted. The tokai seem to challenge our development theories, our ideologies end even a few theologies. They cry out their own rights to be not just children but human beings. We keep dreaming of a world free from the oppression, exploitation and abuse perpetrated on children”.

Tokai Songho association