Laura Chaves Luna:

 Journalists think of the strangest things on their way to interviews. For example, this phrase by poet, essayist and nature lover Thoreau: “In wildness is the preservation of the world.”  There certainly is truth to that, he thinks, at a time when globalization and profit maximization and tearing down forests and the “free” market and the rush for success and lot’s of other peculiarities of the present age wreck havoc with families and victimize children. How tranquil Walden Pond must have been!

Oh! There’s Laura Chaves Luna sipping in a cozy looking bar kitty-corner to the Dorrego Square in Buenos Aires’ colonial district.   

“You’re Laura, I presume,” ventured the journalist gingerly. 

“Yes, you’ve got my name right.” 

“And you’re not from the moon, you’re from Argentina.” 

“Right again! I’m from the earth, unfortunately.” 

“Which means that you must have an earthly view of things…well, I understand you are a family lawyer, something that must be a challenge in a country like this.” 

“True. It is quite difficult, although my work is not in politics, rather with families in conflict and children, how children are subject to abuse in spite of laws which appear to be adequate: you might have good laws or bad ones, what is important that people take awareness of the laws and of their rights.” 

“Might we say that the problems involving children reflect society as a whole?” 

“Yes indeed. Children suffer abandonment, sexual abuse... 

“Domestic violence...” 

“Yes but domestic violence is a bigger issue because it involves not only the children but also the mother and everyone who lives in the home. Children can do nothing about these situations. This is something I know about because of my work as attorney at law for a foster care home.” 

 “Would you say domestic violence is on the rise?”

 “If you think about it in terms of time, it has always been an issue but nowadays it has become more visible. We have access to the information, to the cases, people are talking about it so  it has become a social issue.” 

“How is this problem specifically dealt with in Argentina?”

 “Well, one of the main problems is access.  It is difficult for many people to pay lawyer’s fees. A second problem appears when you answer your client’s questions and they realize that in order to change something you need money to pay the lawyer and other costs involved. The third problem is that you also need some psychological advice because the problems involve feelings and conflicts in the family.” 

“What is your specific task?” 

“Well, as a family lawyer I have to go to the courts, look at the files and give my clients  legal advice, a task which also involves social workers and psychologists. And then I attend mediation hearings.  

“How is mediation carried out?”

 “Well here in Argentina the mediator is a neutral third party which facilitates the conversations between the two parties that come before the mediator. They must attend the meeting with an attorney to get legal assistance because the mediator cannot do that The parties try to come to a mutual beneficial agreement with the aid of the mediator. The role of the mediator is to help them resolve their disputes. In Argentina you can resort to public or private mediators."

 “I imagine that your work must involve some amusing or frustrating situations.” 

“Ha! Ha! Well I remember a case in which a couple complained about the neighbor who had 20 cats in his flat. He would feed the cats outside his apartment, in the hallway. Well they got into heated discussions concerning how the cats should be treated. Quite funny for me but the man complained that when he had to go to the bathroom it was like going through a cat-house.”

 “So much for cats and children and problems...what about you?” 

“Well, I’m a woman...” 

“That’s quite obvious!” 

“And I’m 31 years old and I lead an enjoyable and adventurous life, alone, although I do have a mother and a father...” 

“Are you married?”

 “No I’m not.” 

“Have you ever been on the point of marrying?” 

“At the right time, when the right guy appears, perhaps. 

 “What would that right guy be like?”

 “He should have a good sense of humor.” 

“The tender or macho type?” 

“Somewhere in the middle.” 

“In a man-woman relationship who should take the initiative?” 

“50-50, some days one, other days the other.”

 “Are roles changing?” 

“Yes, but it isn’t easy for men to accept the change. It’s difficult for them to realize that women have professional lives, that they have their own goals in life...actually it’s difficult for them and for us too.” 

“Let’s do a little science fiction. How do you imagine man-woman relations in the future?”

 “I suppose the child bearing function of the woman will gradually disappear.” 

“In the meantime how you come to terms with everyday existence?” 

“I  practice a technique called  body combat and swim” 

“Against women or men?” 

“Against nobody. We are just a bunch of women and men in front of the teacher, practicing with music in the background.  I also have the habit of having coffee and reading the paper. I love to read. It is a sort of escape for me. It allows me to connect up with myself. “ 

Those who wish to contact Laura Chaves Luna may do so by writing to  

e-mail: [e-mail] or visiting her website at

web:  http://www.chavesluna.com.ar