(ANS – San Salvador) – In El Salvador, which statistics suggest is one of the most violent countries in the world, youth gangs are a great threat to the human development of the youngsters. Fr José “Pepe” Moratalla SDB is involved in trying to change the situation through education.

A report by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime released in October found El Salvador to have the second-highest homicide rate in the world, and attributed the violence to competition among gangs and the illicit drug trade. Since 1999, three different governments have attempted to combat gang violence by implementing so-called "iron fist" legislation, which included heavy sentences for violent crime. To date the approach has had little effect, according to observers.

Father Moratalla a 64 year Salesian priest said a wiser approach should include crime prevention and rehabilitation. Spanish by birth, Father Moratalla came to El Salvador in 1983, and for 24 years, has directed the Don Bosco Business Worker Technical Institute in one the most crime-ridden barrios. It offers free education and job training to children and young adults from marginalized communities who are at risk of falling into the world of crime.

"Many of these kids would already be dead if they were not here," said Father Moratalla, adding: "What inspires me is the church's social doctrine.”

Among the 400 students on the institute's campus, 150 are considered to be at risk of joining the gangs because they have little hope of avoiding the cycle of violence. They live inside the walls of the institute. Moreover, young men serving prison terms have been sent by judges, because of good behaviour, to the institute to finish their sentences and learn a trade.

The institute offers: electricity, mechanics, carpentry, welding and tailoring. Father Moratalla is also seeking to create a symphony orchestra, whose musicians would come from the institute and from 40 other schools located in violent areas

The school survives with help from an annual contribution of $300,000 from the Salvadoran Government. The funding covers less than one-third of the overall budget. The rest of the money comes from donations and "Providence," Father Moratalla said.

For the future, Fr Moratalla hopes that the students trained in the centre will be able to respond positively to the needs of the country. “"I do not want to produce only labour, or business managers who manage others' companies," Father Moratalla said. "We want to produce entrepreneurs."

With this is mind, he has secured an agreement with three universities to start a university-level course and create a kind of incubator of companies developed by students and managed by them after graduation.

Published 28/03/2012