So you think a child is in danger......................

Don't get involved unless you're planning to move from there

Before going to the authorities, I would speak with the child's mother and ask her
if she is aware that her daughter is roaming around from house to house when
she's off to work and see what she says. It could be that she leaves her daughter
in a neighbor's care and the child is not being looked after properly.

The mother returns at 2 am and nobody questions what this child is doing in their
home so late at night?

I agree with Bronzie.. and START with the assumption that you ASSUME that the mother MUST have made arrangements with a neighbor or someone to care for the child and that person is simply not doing HER job. ie NOT that the mother has just left the child. Ask if perhaps there is a grandmother or an aunt or someone else? Say that you have seen the child and are just concerned? AND tHINK hard about this, about what you are willing to do, what you are willing to offer. A working woman at a call center makes 85 to 150 pesos an hour.. so how are they going to pay for child care?

If you are not willing to DO anything except report her to the authorities, (CONANI is the place).. then are you really helping? Why not ask the neighbors first? even before you talk to the Mom.

It IS good of you to care. But DO be careful about getting involved because there is a close knit system here and we.. well.. we are not really part of it.

Dominicans have a way of sorting it out, many, many kids are in similar situations.

Unless you want a world of pain, step back and don't get involved.

MA, it's not because of a close knit system and gringos are not a part of it. It's just that
out of respect and courtesy a neighbor should first speak with the person prior to involving
the police. Nobody would like for someone especially a neighbor to tattle to the authorities
over things that the person may not have any reason to. The person would be furious and
say to the nosy neighbor, you could've simply asked me.

Then I would agreed with Frank rectenwald and leave.

bronzeallspice said:

MA, it's not because of a close knit system and gringos are not a part of it. It's just that
out of respect and courtesy a neighbor should first speak with the person prior to involving
the police. Nobody would like for someone especially a neighbor to tattle to the authorities
over things that the person may not have any reason to. The person would be furious and
say to the nosy neighbor, you could've simply asked me.

Then I would agreed with Frank rectenwald and leave.

Click to expand...

So you would go directly to the mother first, not to one of the neighbors? My instincts would be to just check with one of the houses the little one goes into,, with a mother there? And ask if the little one is ok? Here in my building there are lots of little ones and they are always mixed in with one another, but we are enclosed. And there are certainly no little ones out even in the parking area without an adult at night.

No, certainly, she should not go to the police until she has sorted it out. But I wonder if she might not want to get more of a back story before going to the mother?

mountainannie said:

So you would go directly to the mother first, not to one of the neighbors? My instincts would be to just check with one of the houses the little one goes into,, with a mother there? And ask if the little one is ok? Here in my building there are lots of little ones and they are always mixed in with one another, but we are enclosed. And there are certainly no little ones out even in the parking area without an adult at night.

No, certainly, she should not go to the police until she has sorted it out. But I wonder if she might not want to get more of a back story before going to the mother?

Click to expand...

Yes, I would go and speak with the mother first. But that is just me. Since the OP stated already
that the child is roaming around from house to house.

But I do agree with you, under no circumstances should the OP go to the police(first). We are
talking about neighbors which could mean a life of living hell.

HUG said:

In my street in SD there is a women who has a child, only child. Now the mother seems to have landed a regular job and starts late afternoon. The child of about 4 or 5 years old is then left to wander in and out of others houses and play where ever with no real adult showing any responsibility. The mother gets back around 2am. I am terrified that this child is going to missing or get abused in some waay as she just goes where ever, in people homes etc etc. The people in general are decent people in my street and surroundings, but I don't trust them all or even close to a few of them. What would be the correct step to inform some legal authority of my concerns, should this continue and I feel this is the correct thing to do?

I'm not very good at interfering, but I can't help but think if this was my daughter I'd want someone to look out for her before someone nasty really 'looked out' for her.

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Just wanted to post this again.. I do not know if you are a man or a woman, HUG. This would certainly be easier if you were a woman. When you say that you do not trust all of the folks in the street or even close to a few of them, do you imply that there are a few that you DO trust? My instincts would be to go to the ones that you do trust if you have those, rather than first to the mother.

For instance, in my little neighborhood, we have a streetschizophrenic that I was pretty frightened of at first because, well, he is definitely a street person and definitely "off" but I watched and lots of folks, even young women, would walk and talk with him. No one was afraid of him. He only asks me for money which I give him on alternate Tuesdays.

So perhaps this little girl is in fact being watched by EVERYONE but you are just not seeing it? Perhaps the mom has lived in that neighborhood forever? Perhaps the houses that she goes in and out of are relatives? Or she is just KNOWN. I know that where I live there are number of kids.. sin zapatos.. who live around the comedor.. who are always about .. but they do have places, family, etc. So just because there does not seem to be AN adult in charge does not mean, necessarily that there are NO adults watching her. Do you catch my drift?

Have you lived there for a long time? Is your Spanish good enough to have this conversation with the neighbors, with the mother, with Conani.. (whom I really really would not call until you have talked with the neighbors and the mother)

HUG said:

In my street in SD there is a women who has a child, only child. Now the mother seems to have landed a regular job and starts late afternoon. The child of about 4 or 5 years old is then left to wander in and out of others houses and play where ever with no real adult showing any responsibility. The mother gets back around 2am. I am terrified that this child is going to missing or get abused in some waay as she just goes where ever, in people homes etc etc. The people in general are decent people in my street and surroundings, but I don't trust them all or even close to a few of them. What would be the correct step to inform some legal authority of my concerns, should this continue and I feel this is the correct thing to do?

I'm not very good at interfering, but I can't help but think if this was my daughter I'd want someone to look out for her before someone nasty really 'looked out' for her.

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Don't import your values.
Let Dominicans sort out their own affairs.
Interference by a foreigner in their private lives concerning their children, will not be welcome.

Go have a beer!
It's not your business.
Most mothers just padlock their kids in the house.
Every year many burn when the house goes up in flames.
CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC

When I am at my girlfriend's place in La Union, the door stays open most of the evening in the apartment. Kids come and go all evening. I used to ask who the kid was sitting next to me watching tv.....I have stopped asking. Back when I would ask who this kid was, the answer was "blabla"s kid...where is "blabla"? I would get a shrug in response...most times the kid eventually gets up and leaves....off to the next neighbour....in would come another. Takes some getting used to. It is very common in my experience....it takes a village to raise a kid.....

dont you remember its what we used to do in the 1960s, before children werent allowed out of sight

Lobo Tropical said:

Don't import your values.
Let Dominicans sort out their own affairs.
Interference by a foreigner in their private lives concerning their children, will not be welcome.

Click to expand...

Exactly!

You can't do ANYTHING,...."Anonymously" in the DR!!!!!!
"NADA"!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
CCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCCC
"Grab That BEER"!!!!!!!
You go to inform the police, you say you have something bad to report. You tell them there is an unattended child roaming the streets at 1 am!!!!!!!
They say, ."OK", but whats the problem you want to report??????

HUG said:

In my street in SD there is a women who has a child, only child. Now the mother seems to have landed a regular job and starts late afternoon. The child of about 4 or 5 years old is then left to wander in and out of others houses and play where ever with no real adult showing any responsibility. The mother gets back around 2am. I am terrified that this child is going to missing or get abused in some waay as she just goes where ever, in people homes etc etc. The people in general are decent people in my street and surroundings, but I don't trust them all or even close to a few of them. What would be the correct step to inform some legal authority of my concerns, should this continue and I feel this is the correct thing to do?

I'm not very good at interfering, but I can't help but think if this was my daughter I'd want someone to look out for her before someone nasty really 'looked out' for her.

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Landed a job? P/T Ho? She is returning around 2AM? Maybe you should volunteer to baby sit. Perhaps some of these people are related? Sometimes as much as you want to get involved it is better not to.

ramesses said:

When I am at my girlfriend's place in La Union, the door stays open most of the evening in the apartment. Kids come and go all evening. I used to ask who the kid was sitting next to me watching tv.....I have stopped asking. Back when I would ask who this kid was, the answer was "blabla"s kid...where is "blabla"? I would get a shrug in response...most times the kid eventually gets up and leaves....off to the next neighbour....in would come another. Takes some getting used to. It is very common in my experience....it takes a village to raise a kid.....

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I cosign what Ram said 100%. The best thing to do, leave it alone......or offer to babysit at a good price.