OEA/Ser.GCP/doc. 3278/00
9 March 2000
Original: Spanish

ANNUAL REPORT OF THE
INTER-AMERICAN CHILDREN'S INSTITUTE
TO THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY

This document is being distributed to the permanent missions and
will be presented to the Permanent Council of the Organization.

1. General Assembly

Five resolutions resulted from the 29^th Period of Sessions of the General Assembly that have close links to the IACI.

Of these, the mandates that emerged for the organization are the following:

Its point 2 resolves:

"To instruct the Inter-American Children’s Institute to deal systematically with the problem of the sexual exploitation of children and adolescents in the region and their participation in armed conflicts, in coordination with other organs, agencies, and entities of the United Nations system and other relevant organizations, in such a way as to propose the development of strategies and plans of action aimed at preventing and combating this scourge."

Its point 3 resolves:

"To instruct the Inter-American Children’s Institute to prepare an annual report, to be submitted to the Secretary General of the Organization of American States, describing the steps taken by the member states to combat the commercial and other sexual exploitation of children and adolescents."

Its point 2 resolves:

"To request the Directing Council of the Inter-American Children’s Institute to continue consideration of the item regarding the illicit removal and retention of children by one of their parents at its 74th Regular Meeting, as a matter of shared concern."

Its point 3 resolves:

"To suggest that the items on removal and retention of children by one of their parents and right of custody over minors be closely examined at the Eighteenth Pan American Child Congress to be held in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in September 1999."

2. Directing Council of the IACI

Eight resolutions resulted from the meeting, with specific mandates for the IACI in the following:

Creation of a Child and Family Information System for the Central American Subregion

It was resolved:

1. To recommend that the IACI provide technical assistance through its PIINFA information program to all Central American countries.
2. Recommend that the countries receiving technical assistance, jointly with the IACI, mobilize funds necessary for this project.

It was resolved:

1. To reaffirm the commitment of the Inter-American Children’s Institute to children, youth and families with disabilities in the hemisphere and to reinforce programs currently implemented by the Institute in that area in cooperation with various governmental and non-governmental organizations of the Member States.
2. To urge the Member States of the IACI that have not yet done so, to ratify the Inter-American Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Persons With Disabilities.
3. To collaborate with the General Secretariat and other relevant OAS bodies in efforts to promote the ratification and implementation of the Convention.
4. To request the Permanent Council to include and enable the participation of the Inter-American Children’s Institute as a specialized advisory body of the Committee on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities created as a follow up to the Convention.

It was resolved:

1. To request the Executive Committee of the IACI to include a draft resolution on child soldiers in the Institute’s annual report to the Permanent Council, highlighting the importance of the issue and proposing specific steps to be taken to end the use of children under 18 as soldiers.
2. To encourage all the Member States of the OAS to support efforts to end the use of children under the age of eighteen years in armed conflict by any armed forces or armed group, and where appropriate, to adopt and implement national plans to end any recruitment of children under the age of eighteen.
3. To request the Director General and all of the delegates to the Directing Council to adopt all measures necessary to encourage discussion, at the Third Summit of the Americas to be held in Canada in the year 2001, on the use of children as soldiers and on children affected by war.

1. To recommend to the IACI through its PreVida Project, that it provide support to those countries in the hemisphere which request it for developing programs for the prevention of domestic violence;
2. To prepare statistical data for making comparisons between countries in the hemisphere;
3. To establish links among the countries in the three areas of the PreVida: family, school and mass communication media, for the purpose of planning and implementing common policies and programs, while at the same time respecting the peculiarities of each country;
4. To recommend to the IACI (PreVida) that it should act as coordinator of the activities provided for in the points referred to above;
5. To seek collaboration with the Inter-American Commission of Women (CIM), the funds necessary for joint action.

1. To establish the Preparatory Committee on Children’s Issues for the 2001 Summit of the Americas.
2. To instruct the Director General of the Inter-American Children’s Institute to invite his or her colleagues from other Inter-American agencies, including, but not limited to, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (CIDH), the Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO), Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), Inter-American Council for Integral Development (CIDI), the General Secretariat and Summit Implementation Review Group (SIRG), as well as the Caribbean Community (CARICOM) and the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC) to participate in the Preparatory Committee on Children’s Issues for the 2001 Summit of the Americas".
3. To instruct the Director General to serve as chair of this committee.

It was resolved:

1. To urge the Member States of the OAS, where appropriate, to strengthen the national policies intended to protect the rights of children and, among others, their right to have a personal relationship and regular direct contact with both parents.
2. To invite Member States to improve their domestic laws against the illicit removal to foreign countries.
3. To encourage greater multilateral cooperation efforts to impede the international abduction of children by one of the child’s parents.
4. To urge those Member States of the OAS which have not yet done so, to sign, ratify or adhere to Conventions dealing with this subject.
5. To emphasize the need to include in the discussions of the topic of children in the political forums in the hemisphere, particularly in the General Assembly of the OAS and specialized Agencies, as well as by the III Summit of the Americas priority aspects of consideration such as international abductions of children by one of their parents and the right of custody.
6. To reiterate the interest of Member States in receiving the opinion of the Inter-American Juridical Committee regarding this topic, which was requested by AG/RES. 1691 (XXIX-0/99).

It was resolved:

1. To instruct the Director General to assume a more active role in the mobilization of the various external resources for the financing of its programs.

1. Report on Program Activities

Social Policies for Children

The Program on Social Policies for Children was created in 1987. Efforts have been concentrated on three programs: the Inter-American Program for Strengthening Child Welfare Systems; the Inter-American Program on Alternatives to Prolonged Institutionalization; and the Regional Training Program on Children’s Rights and Social Policies. The three programs include training, research, promotion, and technical assistance components. The activities within the framework of these programs have been fully financed through external funds coming from governmental and non-governmental agencies of Sweden, Norway, Spain, Holland and the United States, among others.

During this period, the Program concentrated its efforts on the preparation of the Workshop on Social Management for Child Welfare Agencies in Central America and Panama, finally carried out in El Salvador, financed through cooperation funds from Spain and Norway. The Opening Ceremony was attended by the First Lady of El Salvador, the Ambassador of Spain and the Director General of the IACI. The curriculum was prepared by the IACI with the support of international consultants. Training was provided to thirty-five officials from governmental and non-governmental organizations from Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua and Panama.

Regional Training Program on Children’s Rights and Social Policies

This program began in 1994 within the framework of a cooperation agreement between the IACI and the UNICEF Regional Office for the Americas. It is aimed at helping the strengthening of university training on the rights of the child and social policies for children, from the perspective of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The Program designed a model course comprising 13 theme modules and a reference bibliography in four volumes. Through the consultant services provided by the Program, the course was implemented in several universities in Chile, Bolivia, Brazil, Argentina, and Uruguay. The Program is jointly coordinated by UNICEF's Regional Advisor on the Rights of the Child and by the Coordinator of the IACI's Program on Social Policies. Operational aspects are the responsibility of the Executive Secretariat of the Program, located at the IACI’s headquarters in Montevideo. Below is the report of these activities.

Planning of Courses and Central Coordination

1. Periodical follow-up meetings and proposals of the central coordinators (UNICEF-IACI) on the Regional Training Program on the Rights of the Child and Social Policies for Children and Adolescents in Latin America and the Caribbean.
2. Support for the preparation and organization of the Courses at the National University of Cordoba in Argentina, and the Catholic University in Montevideo, Uruguay.
3. Coordination of and consultant services for the program in: Buenos Aires and Cordoba, Argentina; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; La Paz, Bolivia; Santiago, Chile; Montevideo, Uruguay; and promotion of courses yet to be implemented in Mendoza and Neuquen, Argentina, in the Dominican Republic, and in São Paulo, Brazil.
4. Coordination meeting in São Paulo with the Directors of the Ayrton Senna Foundation and its representative of the socio-pedagogical area, to arrange the incorporation of the Foundation into the new activities of the Program: a) publication of the fourth volume "The Right to Have Rights"; b) translation into Portuguese of the Methodology Transference of the Program, its implementation, publication, and dissemination in Brazil.

1. Teaching within the framework of the Convention with the Catholic University, Montevideo (UCUDAL) for the development of a Diploma on Social Policies for Children and Adolescents, at the Diego Portales University (Santiago, Chile), and at the Training and Study Center of the National Institute of the Minor of Uruguay.
2. Teaching of three theses of the UCUDAL Diploma on: Families and innovative groups of social policies on childhood; Psychology behind bars: Searching for a new role; and Pilot Working Project with families from day-care centers.

The Program began in 1987, aimed at promoting the use of alternatives to the institutionalization of children, emphasizing various preventive, community-based methodologies to avoid the uprooting of children from their family environment, as well as the advantages of using substitute families in qualified cases such as adoption or foster placement. Throughout its implementation, the Program has produced teaching manuals and research studies, and carried out training workshops with the participation of 500 officials from all the Latin American and the Caribbean countries.

The Program coordinated the International Conference on Intercountry Adoption, held in Santiago, Chile in March 1999. On that occasion, a document was presented on Intercountry Adoption: Trends, Issues, and Policy Implications for the New Millenium.

Liaison Activities with Headquarters

In 1997, pursuant to reiterated mandates for decentralization emanating from the Directing Council, the Coordinator of the Program on Social Affairs was transferred to the OAS headquarters in Washington. The purpose of this initiative was to strengthen the IACI’s external ties through a permanent liaison officer. The duties of this officer are to link joint projects with other branches of the General Secretariat; to represent the IACI before other agencies located in Washington; to expedite administrative work; and to facilitate the exchange of relevant information with the political bodies of the Organization and with the missions of the Member States to the OAS. These activities were carried out in addition to the coordination work under the responsibility of the Program already mentioned in this section of this report.

Project on participatory education for the prevention of drug abuse for young people, parents, educators, and health workers in Central and South America

Component 1: Youth and parent encounters on participatory education for drug abuse prevention.

• Training Meetings on Participatory Education on Drug Abuse Prevention and Mental Health Promotion for High-School Teachers. These meetings took place in Montevideo, Uruguay in May. Training was provided to forty high-school teachers from 15 high-risk high schools, pertaining to the Supervisory Council of Canelones, Regional East.

• Participatory Education Encounters on Drug Abuse Prevention and Health Promotion among Young People and Parents were offered in Managua, Nicaragua in May. The national counterpart was the Coordination Group for the Prevention of Illicit Drug Use of Nicaragua, with the support of the National Commission for the Advocacy of Children’s Rights in Nicaragua. This activity resulted in five community-based projects of young people and parents that will be monitored by a committee especially appointed to that effect, advised by the Coordination Group. In turn, as a first follow-up stage to these encounters, it was recommended that a Training Workshop for Professionals be held on this subject by the year 2000.

Component 2: Encounters on drug abuse prevention for indigenous communities in Latin America

The activities scheduled for this period in Bolivia were suspended.

• Training Workshop on Participatory Preventive Education for Teachers of the National Commission on Physical Education (CNEF), which took place in Parque del Plata, Uruguay. An intensive training activity took place with the participation of 55 Physical Education Teachers from 100 Sports Fields in the country. The activity was organized by the National Drug Council (part of the President’s Office), the CNEF-Recreation Division, the IACI, and CICAD.

• Second Follow-up Stage – Dominican Republic. As a result of 1997's Training Workshop, the NGO Casa Abierta developed project to train and update community prevention agents. After the completion of this project, which is now at an evaluation stage, it was requested that a Prevention Encounter be held within the framework of the Inter-American Project on the Impact of Drug Abuse on Women and the Family, implemented in Santo Domingo in September 1999 with the sponsorship of CICAD.

• First Follow-up Stage – Uruguay. As mentioned above, a Training Workshop for Physical Education Teachers took place in April, as a result of the follow-up on the Encounters of 1998. Within this framework, a strategy was devised for a second stage that will be implemented in the first quarter of 2000, to assess the multiple ongoing actions at the community level developed by these professionals. In turn, a donation of sports materials and pedagogical support was made to sports fields of the CNEF, to help with the course activities. In this sense, the IACI participated in activities of support to local projects in the cities of Maldonado, Rocha, Treinta y Tres, Santa Lucia and Montevideo. In turn, it has given support via the Internet to the cities of Dolores, Young, Paysandu and Colonia.

The Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) has been running this project since 1994 with the technical cooperation of the Drug Abuse Prevention Program of the Inter-American Children’s Institute (IACI).

• Prevention Encounter for Women – Dominican Republic, similar to the one held in Bolivia. The national counterpart was the NGO Casa Abierta, and it was sponsored by CICAD.

• Workshop for the preparation of a "Guide on Diagnosis, Guidance and Treatment of Domestic Violence in the context of Alcohol and Drug Abuse" held in Montevideo in December. This activity was attended by prominent professionals in the field coming from the following Uruguayan agencies: IZCALI Treatment Center, Uruguayan Association for the Prevention of Alcoholism and Drug Dependency (OPTAR), and the Maciel Hospital's Drug Abuse Service. Two sessions of a clinical nature were held for the preparation of this Guide, which will be coordinated and published by the IACI, with the financial support of CICAD. The document will be used by the various assistance and treatment programs for women in Uruguay with alcohol- and drug-related problems. In turn, it will be publicized at the regional level through the IACI's Information Program.

Project: Drug Abuse Prevention and Mental Health Promotion for the English-speaking Caribbean (In the framework of the Strategic Plan for Partnership for Development, of the Inter-American Council for Integral Development – CIDI)

Launched in January 1998 with the support of CICAD, this project aims to cause an impact at the political level, on professional technicians and on the target population (children, youth, parents and community groups) of the English-speaking Caribbean countries by analyzing the policies, strategies, plans and programs currently being developed in the inter-American system, by promoting horizontal cooperation between countries, and by transferring the participatory preventive education methods that have been in use in Latin America since 1985. After the success of 1998, the IACI is now ready to undertake more regional actions, beginning in February 2000, starting with the Second Regional Meeting on Drug Abuse Prevention and Child-oriented Policies, and the Second Regional Training Workshop on Participatory Education for Drug Abuse Prevention Professionals in the Caribbean.

Participation of the Program in International Meetings and Events

• Western Hemispheric Summit in Peoria, Illinois, United States, September 1999.
• Third Seminar on Drugs, Diego Portales University, School of Law. Graduate Course on Justice, Human Rights, and Public Policies for Children and Adolescents. Santiago, Chile, October-November 1999.
• The Global Conference on Primary Drug Abuse Prevention," Bangkok, Thailand, November 8-12, 1999.
• "Global Standing Committee" set up in pursuance of one mandate of the "Global Conference on Primary Drug Abuse Prevention", Bangkok, Thailand, November 8-12, 1999.
• World Congress "New Frontiers in the Prevention and Treatment of Drug Abuse for the Twenty-first Century," Montevideo, December 1-3, 1999.

The IACI designed a Model for the Development and Updating of policies, legislations, plans, programs, and services for vulnerable and disabled populations, whose conceptual base is made up of the paradigms of inclusion and human rights and a proposal for systemic planning that is based in the community.

The Convention on the Rights of the Child was taken as the main frame of reference, along with the Agreements and Political Resolutions that have resulted from the Meetings of Heads of State and Government of the Americas, from the Organization of American States, from the Directing Council as a governing organ of the IACI, and from Resolutions relative to Children, Family, Disability, and Social Policies that have come out of national, international, and inter-governmental events.

Activities

The activities presented in this report are grouped by country, within the four programmatic areas of work during the period.

El Salvador

Design and Implementation of the National Policy of Equalization of Opportunities. Review and Adjustment of a Bill of Law on the Equalization of Opportunities, which included the following activities:

• Diagnosis of the national situation, training and professional development of inter-sectoral and inter-institutional planning groups (government and civil society), sensitization and training of various actors on the central concepts of inclusion and human rights.

• Seminar-Workshop on Techniques for Approaching the Development of Social Policies, directed at Mayors and Mayorship Staff. Carried out in conjunction with the National Council of Integral Attention to Persons with Disabilities.

• Support for the Incorporation of the Subject of Disability as a National Priority, contained in the document "The New Alliance." Government Program 1999-2004.

• Cooperation with and Support for the National Secretariat of the Family, for the review of the Documents: "National Policy of Attention to Children and Adolescents," "Bases for Salvadoran Family Policy," and "Second Situational Diagnosis Report on the Family in El Salvador."

• Inauguration of the Center for Information and Documentation on Disabilities, at the Salvadoran Institute for Child Protection, in the framework of the Inter-American network coordinated by the IACI.

• Design and Implementation of the National Policy for Integral Rehabilitation, including a document review, a tracing of the main lines of the Constitution of the National Rehabilitation Council, and the preparation of the Model for the Formulation of Policies, designed by the IACI.

• Design of the National Plan for Integral Attention to Persons with Disabilities. In the framework of this activity, the first stage included a National Seminar on New Approaches for Attention to Persons with Disabilities, where an inter-institutional working group was formed, and where the main lines for the elaboration of the Plan were established. The second stage included a Review of the process that had been initiated, as well as the design of the different sections of the Plan.

Peru

• National Seminar for Sensitization and Discussion About New Approached to Disability. Held in conjunction with the Ministry for the Promotion of Women and Human Development (PROMUDEH).

• First Seminar on Architectural Accessibility. Activity carried out in conjunction with PROMUDEH and the Royal Foundation of Spain for Prevention of and Attention to Persons with Disabilities. Participants included planners from PROMUDEH, professors and students from the Faculty of Architecture, and representatives of construction companies.

• Inauguration of the Center for Information and Documentation on Disability. This Center has been installed as part of the Information Focal Center, which is being developed in part by the IACI at the PROMUDEH Headquarters.

Saint Kitts and Nevis

• A document on "Policies Relative to Persons with Disabilities" has been developed, with the contribution from a national team from the Ministry of Education, which had been approaching the subject for a period of eight months. The indicators of vulnerability and disability were designed, which will allow for the evaluation of the impact of the policy to be implemented. Also, the Center for Information and Documentation on Disability, within the Ministry of Education, was inaugurated.

Uruguay

• Project "Children and Youth in Situations of Vulnerability or with Different Abilities: System of Support and Integral Social Promotion Based in the Community (SIAPSI)." This Project is being developed jointly by the National Institute of Minors (INAME), the IACI, and UNICEF, starting from a first stage which includes the initial Diagnosis of the population reached by the INAME, and the services and human resources involved. In the framework of this project, indicators of vulnerability and disability are being developed, as well as indicators that allow the measurement of the impact of the Plan and strategies that would be applied in the Project. Also, an Information and Documentation Center was inaugurated, as a support for the different components of the System and for use by the whole community, and Training and Updating Courses were given, which are directed at Authorities, Heads of INAME Departments and Divisions, and Directors of NGOs who work with them under agreements. A Pilot Reference and Support Center also initiated its activities, and will act as a Center for the Demonstration of Innovative Techniques and Strategies for attention to situations of Vulnerability and Disability.

MERCOSUR

• Support for the Development of Educational Policies. We continued collaborating with the Educational Group, in which Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay and Uruguay participate, for the design and coordination of educational policies relative to children with special educational needs. To these ends, advisory services and background documentation were contributed for the design of policies.

Argentina

• Support was given to the Buenos Aires Provincial Council of Attention to Persons with Disabilities and a seminar was given on the organization and functions of a Provincial Council, with training of the various actors involved.

El Salvador

• Strengthening of the National Council for Integral Attention to Persons with Disabilities. We contributed to consolidating an organic structure and plan of action for the Entity. In the second semester of 1999, we supported the definitive approval of the National Policy and the Law to create the Council.

Central America and Panama

In support of the Horizontal Cooperation between Entities that Articulate and Govern Policies related to Disability, the following activities were carried out:

• X Regional Council Meetings, held in El Salvador in February 1999, with the participation of authorities and directors of governmental and non-governmental organizations related to policy and disability.

• XI Meetings of the Central American Regional Council, held in Panama City in July, where the IACI was responsible for the evaluation and follow-up of the application of the Model in February 1999.

El Salvador

• Collaboration in the Design of the Academic Curriculum for the Graduate Course on Disability and Integration, which will be used at the José Simeón Cañas Central American University, in El Salvador.

Uruguay

• Support for a Graduate Degree on Learning Disabilities at the Dámaso Antonio Larrañaga Catholic University of Uruguay. In September, and later in November, a Seminar-Workshop on Attention Deficit Disorder, Hyperactivity, and Aggressiveness was organized and held.

Argentina

• Support for the Program on Disability and Equalization of Opportunities at the National University of Mar del Plata, and for the Development of Graduate Programs at the National University of La Plata.

Updating of human resources on new approaches to the education of children with disabilities.

Argentina

• 1^st Congress on Integration-Inclusion of Children and Youth with Disabilities. A Master Conference was prepared for this Congress, organized by the Municipality of Ituzaingó, in the Province of Buenos Aires.

• XXX Argentine Meetings of FENDIM: "The Rights of Persons with Disabilities: From Words to Action," held in Salta in November 1999. We collaborated and presented a paper titled The Responsibility of Governmental Organizations and NGOs: A Challenge for the Next Millennium.

Uruguay

• Regional Seminars on Human Rights, Integration and Inclusion. Three events were organized, in the cities of Fray Bentos, Trinidad and Montevideo (jointly with the INAME), achieving national coverage with the participation of teachers, Departmental Heads, Directors, Technical Professionals, Health Professionals, and Staff Members involved in Direct Attention to Children in Situations of Vulnerability or Disability.

• II Training Course for Human Resources for Educational Inclusion and Integration of Persons with Different Abilities. We prepared the central paper on the theoretical-methodological framework, and followed up on the course activities, in a program of integration of children with different abilities into the general education system, in the Course organized by the Ministry of Education and Culture and the Uruguayan Society of Specialized Teachers.

Information on Children and the Family (PIINFA)

The Inter-American Program of Information on Children and the Family (PIINFA), created in 1987 and approved by the General Assembly of the OAS in 1990, has the central objective of producing and promoting the use of information systems directed to all those individuals and institutions working on behalf of children, in order to generate spaces of integral information that contribute to creating processes of change in the living conditions of children in the Region, and to always have the principles of the Convention on the Rights of the Child as the main axes of its work.

During this period, PIINFA has focused its efforts on three initiatives: the Inter-American Information Network, the Information System for Children, and the Legal Database, which are detailed below.

This Network is the biggest of its kind in the Region, currently including 15 countries, with more than 50 Information Centers having been created, all of which are based on the Program’s main governing principles and which are maintained in strict harmony with the political mandates of the Region. The latest Information Center was created in December 1999 in El Salvador, in a city called San Miguel, with a population of 700,000 people, and located 160 km from the nation’s capital.

Complementary to the handling of information, the Program has also promoted a strategy to improve its impact and to generate mechanisms that mobilize opinion, which consists of working with the support of Key Persons in the area of Children. This has also been articulated within the activities of the Regional Drug Abuse Prevention Program.

During the period covered by this report, and within the framework of an agreement signed with UNICEF, we have initiated a project whose objective is to create a system of information on social projects for children and adolescents in Uruguay in especially difficult circumstances, for which we are testing a methodology that, if favorably evaluated, will be replicated in the countries of the region where parts of the RIIN Network function.

SIPI is an instrument for the monitoring of the rights of the child, and which translates into a tool that is oriented toward the evaluation of systems of attention, the monitoring of situations where children's rights are violated (for those children involved in public and private attention programs), as well as the generation of institutional and social policies for children.

SIPI has a strong presence in Central America, where, based on a resolution of the 74^th Meeting of the Directing Council of the IACI in Buenos Aires, a regional information system is being developed for the monitoring of children's rights in Central America.

This database is a fundamental instrument for the researchers, students, juvenile court attorneys and judges, and legislators. With a magnetic medium and containing full text, it contains information on international and national legal norms, including Juvenile Codes, Family Codes, legislation on disability, legislation on drug prevention, on young offenders, etc.

Missions during the period:

Note: The missions listed, which were carried out by the PIINFA in 1999, do not include the services provided by long-distance to the rest of the countries that participate in the programs. Technical support for the functioning of the system and services to the user institutions in all of the countries have been provided periodically, through the Internet and electronic mail.

Events Organized During the Period

New Software

From 1998 to November 1999, PIINFA has developed three software packages, including the source programs, the databases, the documentation, and the assistance. These are: OPD (Organizations, Projects and Documents) applied within the RIIN Network; SIPI (Information System for Children); and BADAJ (Legal Database).

Prevention of Domestic Violence: Impact on Children (PreVida)

We have carried out a series of activities, seeking to make an impact on the three areas in which the project focuses its attention: the family, schools, and the media.

Statistics of women who have reported domestic violence in Montevideo, as the beginning of a comparative study with other Departments of Uruguay and with other countries in the region.

Coordination and Representation of the IACI at Seminars on Domestic Violence. At the IDB's Assembly of Governors, we attended two Seminars on the subject of violence: "Breaking the Cycle of Poverty: Investing in Children" and "Development and Culture," which took place in Paris in March 1999.

We participated in the "2^nd Workshop on Family Violence: Approaching Family Violence from the Justice System," organized in April in Montevideo by the Ministry of the Interior of Uruguay's Program on Citizen Security, sponsored by the IDB.

We participated in the activities done in Uruguay for the coordination of the "World March of Women 2000" organized by "la Fédération des femmes du Québec." And as part of the Popular Education Campaign, we sent to Canada the Municipal Programs of Prevention of and Attention to Domestic Violence, from the Montevideo Mayor's Office's Women's Commission, which will be part of the Collection that pays homage to the struggles of women across the world.

We participated in the "1^st Meeting of Women's Social Organizations of the MERCOSUR Countries," organized in May in Montevideo by the Regional Center of the International Democratic Federation of Women.

We participated in the "5^th Meeting of the Women's Forum of the MERCOSUR Countries," which was held in Montevideo in May, particularly in the Public Sector Workshop, for the preparation of the Proposals that were submitted to the Women's Specialized Meeting (REM) of the Common Market Group (GMC), which met in June in Paraguay. At this Workshop, at the request of the IACI, children were introduced as a fundamental element of cultural change in favor of non-discrimination for reasons of gender and the eradication of violence, both domestic and urban, proposing to make preventive Family Violence legislation compatible with a school curriculum that includes issues of non-violence, as well as the regulation of violence in the media.

We offered Orientation talks for parents on the prevention of domestic violence at the Kindergartens of Public Schools in Montevideo, with transparencies and explanatory brochures.

We prepared a Database of Legislation against Domestic Violence in Latin America and the Caribbean. During this period, we gathered legislation, international conventions, etc. having to do with domestic violence in Latin America and the Caribbean, with the purpose of producing a study on comparative legislation.

We prepared a Comparative Table on domestic violence legislation in the countries of Latin America and the Caribbean, with the following variables: Reporting and Punishment; General Prevention; Family Education; School Education; Spectator Training; Re-education of Aggressor; Protection of Minors; and Assistance to Victims.

Sexual Exploitation of Children in Latin America and the Caribbean

Background

Based on a preliminary diagnosis and on the activities that the IACI had begun in the area of the sexual exploitation of children, the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB) decided in 1998 to support an initiative to implement a Research Project on violence and sexual exploitation in Latin America and the Caribbean in ten countries in the region, with the objective of promoting the development of strategies and plans of action oriented to preventing the sexual exploitation of children.

The countries involved were Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua and Uruguay. They were selected with the purpose of obtaining a balanced representation in the continent's six sub-regions: the Southern Cone, the Andean Countries, Central America, the English-speaking Caribbean, the Spanish-speaking Caribbean, and North America.

In March 1999, the Seminar on "Sexual Violence and Exploitation of Children in Latin America and the Caribbean" was held in Montevideo, Uruguay. A total of 70 representatives of both the governmental and non-governmental sectors of the countries involved in the study were present, as well as representatives from UNICEF, UNESCO, INTERPOL, ECPAT, the IDB, AECI, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, the Focal Point on Sexual Exploitation NGO Group for the CRC, and BICE (le Bureau international catholique pour l'enfance). The results of the meeting were disseminated throughout the world by international agencies and the main radio and television stations.

At the meeting, the results of the ten studies were presented, a platform was given for non-governmental organizations to present their programs on the subject, the points of view of governments were presented, and the fundamentals of a regional Plan of Action were debated. The meeting constituted the first widespread, systematic research effort on the issue in the region and is an inevitable reference when approaching the problem. Surely one of the most important aspects of these studies is their methodological unity, as it allows for comparative studies.

The studies consisted of four main chapters:

1. The situation of children victims of sexual violence in each country, including its diverse forms.
2. The institutional responses, including actions implemented by the State, by Civil Society and its non-governmental organizations, and by International Cooperation.
3. Elements that make it difficult to approach the problem at the national level.
4. Set of recommendations, keeping in mind the opinions of decision-makers from both the state and non-governmental organizations.

Three months after the Seminar, in June 1999, at its 29^th regular period of sessions held in Guatemala City, the General Assembly of the Organization of American States approved a resolution (AG/RES./3804/99) instructing the Inter-American Children’s Institute "to deal systematically with the problem of the sexual exploitation of children and adolescents in the region (…) in coordination with other organs, agencies, and entities of the United Nations system and other relevant organizations, in such a way as to propose the development of strategies and plans of action aimed at preventing and combating this scourge." It also instructs the Inter-American Children’s Institute to "prepare an annual report, to be submitted to the Secretary General of the Organization of American States, describing the steps taken by the member states to combat the commercial and other sexual exploitation of children and adolescents."

Based on the mandate received at the Montevideo Meeting, the Institute is aiming for the implementation of the Declaration in new multilateral fora as well as through National Plans of Action.

We actively participated in advising various governments in the design of an operative Plan of Action, agreed upon with civil society in each country, with priorities being the areas of prevention, rehabilitation and legal reforms.

In Chile, in June, the First National Conference on the Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents was held at the ECLAC headquarters in Santiago, co-organized by the Ministry of Justice, the IACI, the Margen Foundation, UNICEF and ACHNI-PRODENI, under the auspices of the Carabinero Police of Chile, the Investigations Police, Sernatur, the Lawyers' College, and Chilean Universities.

The Minister of Justice participated in the meeting, as well as 80 representatives from 45 governmental and non-governmental organizations. The Final Declaration of the meeting requested that the IACI, together with the organizers of the event, act as the Technical Secretariat of the Working Group for the formulation of a National Plan of Action.

In Managua, Nicaragua, in September, the First Forum on the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents was held, titled "To Prevent and Eradicate it is Our Challenge." This meeting was held by the National Commission for the Promotion and Defense of Children's Rights, the Association of Workers for Education, Health and Social Integration (TESIS) and the Inter-American Children's Institute.

The objective of this meeting was to analyze the situation faced by sexually exploited children and adolescents, in order to define lines of joint State and Civil Society action oriented to preventing and eradicating this problem. The meeting was attended by the First Lady, the Ministers of the Family, Health and Social Action, the Chief of Police, the Attorney General of the Nation, and representatives of public as well as non-governmental agencies. A total of 168 participants worked for two days in groups and workshops, generating input for the Plan.

The Seminar's Final Declaration requests that the IACI give "technical support for the design of a National Plan of Action, as well as its execution, follow-up, and monitoring." The Forum was sponsored by ECPAT, UNICEF, Save the Children Canada, Räda Barnen of Sweden and Redd Barna of Norway.

A working group is currently editing the final version of the Plan, which will be submitted for consideration to State and civil society for approval.

In August, in the Dominican Republic, with the Office of the Executive Director of the Governing Organ of the Child Protection System, the "Preparatory Meeting for the Seminar on Violence and Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents: The Case of the Dominican Republic" was held.

The meeting gathered representatives from 53 governmental and non-governmental organizations in order to establish the regional working groups that will advance in the in the definition of outlines and programs of the National Plan of Action. The Seminar took place in October in Santo Domingo, where this country's National Plan was defined.

Participants included representatives of INTERPOL, the IDB, as well as representatives of Chile and Nicaragua to transfer their experience from the preparation of the National Plan in their respective countries. The meeting was preceded by an evaluation by the IACI of the programs and projects being run by the country in this area, in order to become familiar with the abilities, strengths and weaknesses of the proposals that have already been implemented. Also present at the meeting were the Secretary of State Coordinator of the Commission of Support to the Reform and Modernization of Justice, and the IDB Representative in the Dominican Republic, among others.

In September, in Managua, Nicaragua, the IACI signed a Framework Agreement for Reciprocal Cooperation with the NGO "End Child Pornography and Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes" (ECPAT) in order to establish permanent cooperation for the joint development of proposals, projects and programs in the area of the commercial sexual exploitation of children in the Americas.

Regional Focal Point on the Sexual Exploitation of Children

Since 1999, the IACI has been the Regional Focal Point for the "Focal Point On Sexual Exploitation" of Geneva. In this role, the IACI is responsible for collecting information on the subject throughout the region, circulating it through the Network. The IACI translates into Spanish, publishes, and distributes the trimestral "Focal Point" Bulletin. In September 2000, the IACI will be the site of the Third World-wide Meeting of "Focal Point."

1. External Cooperation Relations

In addition to what we have reported about the activities of the IACI linked to external cooperation, we are pleased to highlight that, during this period, we signed agreements with various entities in order to achieve our purposes. The list of agreements is found below.

1. Collaboration Agreement with the General Administration of the Spanish State, Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, signed in February 1999, to hold the Regional Conference on Intercountry Adoption in Santiago, Chile in March 1999.
2. Agreement signed in June 1999 with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) and with Uruguay's National Institute of Minors (INAME) for the implementation of the Project "Children and Youth in Situations of Vulnerability or with Different Abilities: System for Support and Social Promotion Based in the Community (SIAPSI)."
3. Cooperation Agreement signed in August 1999 with the National Council of Minors and the Family, the Secretariat for Social Development (part of the Office of the President), and the Office of the General Coordinator of Social and Assistance Action (part of the Office of the Chief of Cabinet of Ministers), all of the Republic of Argentina, to hold the 74^th Regular Meeting of the Directing Council of the IACI and the XVIII Pan American Child Congress, in September 1999.
4. Agreement signed in August 1999 with the Specialized University of the Americas for the creation of a National Center for Information on Children and the Family in the Republic of Panama.
5. Framework Agreement for Reciprocal Cooperation with the NGO "End Child Prostitution, Child Pornography and Trafficking of Children with Sexual Purposes" (ECPAT) in order to systematically and permanently develop proposals, projects and programs in the area of the commercial sexual exploitation of children in the Americas.

1. 74^th Regular Meeting of the Directing Council

The IACI Directing Council held its 74^th Regular Meeting in the city of Buenos Aires, Argentina, in September, prior to the Pan American Child Congress, and adopted important resolutions related to the workings of this specialized organ:

1. Approval of the Annual Report of the Administration of the Office of the Director General.
2. Selection of the list of three candidates for the position of Director General, to replace the current Director, Chilean attorney Rodrigo Quintana, starting in the coming year. The list of candidates chosen to be submitted to the Secretary General of the OAS, Dr. Cesar Gaviria, who makes the final decision, was Guillermo Dávalos of Bolivia, Dr. Elva Cárdenas of Mexico, and Alejandro Bonasso of Uruguay.
3. Creation of an information system on children and the family for Central America.
4. Commitment of the IACI to issues affecting children and youth with disabilities.
5. Support for ending the use of children and youth under the age of 18 as soldiers.
6. Prevention of domestic violence: its impact on children.
7. Preparatory Committee on children's issues for the Summit of the Americas in 2001.
8. Strengthening of inter-American cooperation to avoid situations of the international abduction of children by one of their parents.

1.  
2. Pan American Child Congress

Background

The Pan American Child Congress, one of the organs of the IACI, meets every four years, called by the Directing Council, according to Article 22 of the Statutes.

At the 72^nd Regular Meeting of the Directing Council of the IACI, held in Montevideo, Uruguay, it was resolved that the XVIII Pan American Child Congress would be held in Argentina, accepting the offer from the government of that country, and that its central theme would be "Information at the Service of Children." At the Special Meeting of the Council, held in Chile in 1996, details were adjusted, and it was decided that the city of Mar del Plata would be the site for the meeting. The General Assembly declared this Congress to be a Specialized Conference of the OAS.

Later, at its 73^rd Regular Meeting, and at the request of the Argentine government, the Directing Council resolved to approve a change of date and site of the XVIII Pan American Child Congress; thus the meeting was definitively planned for 1999 in Buenos Aires.

Development

Governmental experts and representatives from twenty countries in the Americas met at the end of September in Buenos Aires to debate the role of information at the service of children, at the XVIII Pan American Child Congress, the highest regional forum on children and the family, which meets every year.

The Congress, organized by the Argentine government jointly with the IACI, and which was declared by the General Assembly of the OAS to be a Specialized Inter-American Conference, congregated more than 150 representatives from 20 countries in the region. These participants were divided into eight working groups to debate the influence of information on child development. The theme was chosen keeping in mind its importance and gravity at the end of the millennium, and the fact that its potential is being tapped by the latest technological advances, which have grown to unsuspected proportions.


The starting point for the work agenda of the XVIII Congress was constituted by three Master Conferences on the following topics:

"The Media and the Protection of the Rights of Children and Adolescents";

"The Right of Children and Adolescents to Protection of Information and Privacy";

and

"The Right of Children and Adolescents to Information, Participation and Expression."

Simultaneously, eight working groups were formed to debate the following issues:

"Comprehensive Development from the Point of View of Health and Media Influence";

"The Family, Primary Agent of Protection and Access to Information";

"Critical Thinking Skills for the Internet";

"Media, Technology and the Ethics of Information";

"Information and the Psycho-Social Development of Children and Adolescents";

"Confidentiality of Information: Its Legal Regulation";

"Participation of Children and Adolescents in the Political Process";

and

"Role of International Agencies and Children's Right to Information"

The resolutions that resulted from the Congress will be analyzed again for ratification at the next Meeting of the Directing Council, to be held in Canada in June 2000. These resolutions relate to the following topics:

"The Family: Primary Agent to Ensure Protection and Access to Information";

"Regional Inter-American System of Promotion and Reform of the Rights of Children and Adolescents";

"Internet Literacy for Young Persons";

"Joint Cooperation to Avoid Situations of the International Removal of Children by One of their Parents";

and

"Inter-American Year of the Child."

The governmental representatives also signed the Declaration of Buenos Aires on "The Exploitation of Children and Adolescents."

 

3. Financial Situation

ANEXO

DRAFT RESOLUTION

NON-ACCEPTANCE OF CHILDREN UNDER EIGHTEEN YEARS OF AGE IN REGULAR ARMED FORCES, REBEL FORCES OR IN ARMED CONFLICTS IN THE REGION

THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY,

HAVING SEEN that at present more than 300,000 children are currently taking part under eighteen years of age are involved in armed conflicts around the world;

IN VIEW OF the principles of the best interests of the child, of non-discrimination and of integral protection that are promoted by the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which has been ratified by 191 States;

CONSIDERING that the UN Commission on Human Rights, in its resolution 1999/80 on the Rights of the Child, has reaffirmed the "urgent need to raise the current minimum age limit set by article 38 of the Convention on the Rights of the Child on the recruitment and participation of any person in armed conflicts" and that the Special Rapporteur on extra-judicial, summary or arbitrary execution of judgments, among other recommendations, firmly supports the adoption of an optional protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child to prohibit the recruitment of children under eighteen years of age in the armed forces and in armed groups, also urging the States to adopt immediately unilateral provisions to raise the age limit for recruitment to eighteen years of age.

RESOLVES:

1. To urge the Member States to approve relevant provisions to make it mandatory to be eighteen years of age to be recruited in the Armed Forces, the National Guard or Police Services.
2. To urge all parties involved in armed conflicts in the region, unilaterally and as an unequivocal signal of their quest for peace, to refrain from allowing persons under the age of eighteen to become part of armed groups, and to exhaust every effort so that those who are presently part of these groups drop their weapons, being integrated into their communities, and reinserted into the educational system, into training programs or employment.
3. To request the Inter-American Children’s Institute to adopt the necessary measures to encourage discussion of the subject in the fora in the Region, and particularly during the Third Summit of the Americas to be held in Canada in 2001.
4. To propose specific measures: