The new structure dedicated to the Spazio Giallo within the Foggia Penitentiary will be inaugurated on February 20th.
Present at the event will be the Institute Director Giulia Magliulo, Institute Commander Claudio Ronci, Martina Gallon, the Coordinator of the National Network of Bambinisenzasbarre, and Antonietta Clemente, founder of Lavori In Corso Aps and territorial representative of Bambinisenzasbarre.
The creation of the new module for the Spazio Giallo will allow for the reception of children entering the Institute in a larger and more suitable environment, during the delicate phase preceding their meeting with the incarcerated parent. The project, supported by Enel Cuore, the non-profit organization of the Enel Group active alongside entities that intervene to protect the needs of those living in conditions of fragility and social distress, will be available to minors who enter the Foggia prison daily to meet their parent, fulfilling the needs of 100,000 children with a detained parent in Italy and 2.2 million in Europe.
This is an architecturally designed and purpose-built project that expands the Spazio Giallo, a Bambinisenzasbarre model—an equipped environment for children visiting prisons to maintain a bond with the incarcerated parent—configuring an extensive reception area for minors, signaling a strong attention from the penitentiary system towards children encountering prison.
Starting from February 20th, operators from Lavori In Corso Aps, the territorial representative of Bambinisenzasbarre and network partner operating in Puglia, will be able to welcome children in a renewed, expanded, and dedicated space where they can prepare for their meeting with the parent, identify their needs, and activate family support with a primary focus on the child.
The Spazio Giallo, born in Milan in 2007, has become a model and is active in the national network of Bambinisenzasbarre in Lombardy, Piedmont, Marche, Tuscany, Campania, Puglia, Basilicata, Calabria, and Sicily.
The Spazio Giallo and its implementation respond to Article 2 of the Charter of Rights of Children of Incarcerated Parents. The Charter was first signed on March 21, 2014, and has been consistently renewed by the Minister of Justice, the Ombudsman for Children and Adolescents, and the President of Bambinisenzasbarre. It is a unique document that formally recognizes the right of these children to maintain an emotional bond with the incarcerated parent in continuity with Article 9 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
To strengthen the impact of the Charter—and the role of the Association at the Italian and European levels—the Recommendation CM/Rec (2018)5 has also been imposed, adopted in April 2018 by the Council of Europe and addressed to the Committee of Ministers of the 46 member states. The Recommendation took the Italian Charter as a model.