The Secretary of Security and Peace organizes masses, dinners and posadas; and also involves more than 400 people deprived of liberty in the performa
The Secretary of Security and Peace organizes masses, dinners and posadas; and also involves more than 400 people deprived of liberty in the performance of nativity plays
One of the nativity plays organized by Persons Deprived of Liberty will compete in the national competition for prison nativity plays
Guanajuato/Gto News
Persons Deprived of Liberty -PPLs- in Guanajuato Cepreresos enjoyed a posada, a dinner and pastorelas organized by the General Directorate of the Penitentiary System of the Secretary of Security and Peace of Guanajuato on the occasion of the December holidays.
In the Cepreresos people profess several religious cults, however, since the one with the most devotees is Catholic, in December the Virgin of Guadalupe is celebrated and from there the penitentiary posadas follow in which Christmas gifts, sweets are distributed and piñatas are broken all donated by various groups of volunteers, informed Julio Cesar Perez Ramirez, general director of the Penitentiary System of the State of Guanajuato.
On the night of December 24, they were offered a different dinner than they normally have, they were able to enjoy peanut-infused pork, creamy pasta with celery, pineapple and parsley, with white bread and apple salad.
On December 31, they will have Hawaiian chicken for dinner, with a side of rosemary-roasted potatoes with green beans, white bread and a Brazilian salad. The drink that accompanied the dinner was the traditional punch.
At the Celaya State Social Prevention Center, the Social Work Coordination and the Prison Pastoral Support Group organized a mass on Christmas Eve officiated by Bishop Victor Alejandro Aguilar Ledesma, attended by 158 people who were able to confess.
As part of the activities framed within the institutional efforts for social reintegration, the Bishop visited the dormitories to share a reflection on the Christmas festivities and gave his blessing to the Persons Deprived of Liberty.
The General Directorate of the Penitentiary System also holds a nativity scene competition: each of the eleven centres organises a nativity scene in which an average of 40 people are involved, participating in each of the stages and even in the writing of the script. In total, more than 400 people collaborated in the 11 nativity scenes, their work is evaluated by cultural personnel and directors of each of the centres.
In the dialogues of the pastorelas, Julio Cesar Perez Ramirez affirms, the struggle between good and evil is shown in a comical way: the little angel who gives good advice and the little devil who gives bad advice. “In the end the little angel triumphs and with this we transmit that good always wins, that is, the good.”
The General Directorate of the Penitentiary System encourages families to get involved. Dads, moms, sons and daughters encourage people deprived of liberty with messages to support them. They see them learning very long dialogues, participating, acting, making them laugh and happy.
Children, parents, grandparents, and generally the relatives of those who perform in the nativity plays are allowed to attend the performance, from the person who painted to those who help move the stage. One of the objectives here, although not the main one, is for families to be able to see that there really is a change in the centers.
This year the production will not be limited to the State level. There is a national competition for prison nativity plays to which all states send evidence to participate and there are prizes: first place wins 50,000 pesos, second place 30,000 and third place 10,000.
“We know that if we have trash, we can create from it, so we wash the sheets that are going to be destroyed, we paint them and we all made a very cool design for the nativity play. That is what we are promoting, improving to be among the first places,” said Perez Ramirez.
The results of the national competition organized by the General Directorate of Open Institutions for Prevention and Social Readaptation, of the General Coordination of Prevention and Social Readaptation of the Federation, will be announced in January 2025.
“We hope to win a prize because the supporting staff, private donors and actors put a lot of effort” into preparing the dialogue and the stage, says Julio Cesar Perez Ramirez.
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