inter-american children’s institute specialized organization of the oas

Inter-American Children’s Institute Specialized Organization of the OAS

Annual Report of the IIN tothe General Assembly

of the Organization of American States January - December 2008

Document for the thirty-ninth regular session

IIN Annual Report 2008

Structure General Directorate

Pursuant to Executive Order 08-01 rev.1, signed by the OAS Secretary General, Dr. José Miguel Insulza, on April 9, 2008, the General Directorate of the Inter-

American Children’s Institute became a Dependency, with the status of Department, of the OAS Secretariat for Legal Affairs.

Directing CouncilConstituted by representatives of OAS Member States, who are senior national authorities in the area of childhood policies. This organ holds annual Regular

Meetings as well as Special Meetings, on specific subjects.

Pan American Child CongressAn Inter-American meeting in which senior government authorities responsible

for children's issues in the hemisphere participate for the purpose of sharing knowledge and experience and reaching agreements among member states of the Inter- American system. The Congress is held every five years.


Principal Activities of the Director General’s Office

Pursuant to the mandates and recommendations received from the organs of the OAS and from its own organs, and guided by the Action Plan 2007-2011 approved by the Directing Council of the IIN at its 82nd regular meeting (CD/RES. 11 (82-R/07), July 2007), the IIN is pursuing its activities:

Contributing to the design and implementation of policies relating to childhood with a view to promoting, protecting and ensuring full respect for the rights of children and adolescents in the region.

Program areas pursue their activities by means of ongoing training; technical cooperation; research; information and dissemination; establishing strategic partnerships for addressing priority issues as well as issues of particular interest to member states.


Internal Structure of the IIN General Directorate

Director General

Areas Director

Level 1

Level 2

Level 3

Area Coordinator:Promotion and

Protection of Rights

Area Coordinator:Legal

Area Coordinator:Communication and Information


Principal Activities

Promotion and Protection of Rights Area

Systems for the Integral Protection of Children and Adolescents. Cooperation between the Ministry for Planning and Cooperation of Chile (MIDEPLAN) and the IIN for implementing the Ibero-American Program to Strengthen Integral Systems for Children’s Protection. .

Participation of Children. Working with member states to organize forums for reflection and analysis and lines of action relating to children’s participation, including the Inter-American Forum on Children and Adolescents - “My Right to Participate”.

Participation of Children. Working with member states to organize forums for reflection and analysis and lines of action relating to children’s participation, including the Inter-American Forum on Children and Adolescents - “My Right to Participate”. .

Website on Child Participation: Reflects recommendations received during the Inter-American Meeting on the exchange of childcare experience. .

Program For a Universal Civil Registry in the Americas (PUICA-OAS): cooperation on the issue of the right to a universal civil registry.


Promotion and Protectionof Rights Area

Committee on the Rights of the Child. Systematization of the final comments of the Committee on the Rights of the Child on the States Parties of the region.

Database from indicators. Production of indicators from external sources, for use in the various activities of the IIN. .

Participation in meetings to provide regional training on violence against children, held in April in Mexico City, and in December in Managua.

Virtual Workshop on Child Participation


Legal Area

Legal database (BADAJ): The IIN legal database was updated and placed online.

Commercial sexual exploitation of children: Resolution AG/RES. 2432 (XXXVIII-O/08) “Prevention and Eradication of Commercial Sexual Exploitation and Smuggling of and Trafficking in Minors”.

• Inter-American Observatory on Child Commercial Sexual Exploitation.

Juvenile criminal justice: With the objective of putting together an inter-American network of experts in this field, the IIN has held meetings with experts and advisors on Juvenile Criminal Justice in the different regions of the hemisphere.

Institutional technical guidelines: The IIN, consistent with its mission, works with the authorities of different branches of government and with various institutions to help construct comprehensive guidelines on legislation, public policies and their use in favor of children and adolescents. .

• ¨Addendum to the Institutional Technical Guidelines No 1. IIN-OAS – Revictimization of Children and Adolescents in jurisdictional and administrative procedures in the event of sexual abuse.” This was presented at the Palacio Legislativo of Uruguay.


Legal Area

Support for the Network of Child Public Defenders within the National Offices of Ombudsmen in Latin America :

a) A Directory of persons responsible for childhood issues in the National Ombudsmen’s Offices in Latin America.

b) Contact with those responsible for organizing and establishing the network of ombudsmen for children in Latin America..

International abduction of minors: Work on the launching and dissemination of the standard model on national procedures is being pursued at the parliamentary level in Honduras, Uruguay and Guatemala.


Communication and Information Area

Work to improve the image of the Institute as a specialized technical agency in the field of childhood and adolescence.

Preparation of the IIN Communication Strategy .

Web page: a) Development of the contents and permanent updating of news on the web portal of the IIN.b) Creation of new spaces within the web.

Ongoing dissemination of communication materials produced by the IIN, among them: a) Books: "Children and Their Rights" .

b) 11 videos on the Rights of the Child[1] . c) Publication: “Public Policies and Children’s Human Rights”


Communication and Information Area

IIN e-newsletter Inter-American Child and Family Information Network (RIIN): 100% response to requests for bibliographic information and communication materials received through the Network .

Prof. Dr. Luis Morquio LIbrary: Service to users and permanent dissemination and organization of new-entry documents within IIN .

Virtual training courses.


IIN Virtual Training Program– 2008

The distance courses of the Inter-American Virtual Training Program are a key element of the IIN's training activities, viewed from the rights approach, the family and community perspective, and democratic governance, which are key thrusts of the Institute's current work.

This training reflects member states' human resource training needs, in order to link learning to the context and the new challenges facing officials responsible for promoting and protecting children's rights.

The general objective is to have an impact on the training of those responsible for children and adolescents in the region.


IIN Virtual Training Program – 2008

Course/Workshop Content Students selected by country

Refresher Course on

Children's Rights

I Doctrinal platform 1.1. Principles of the CRC. 1.2. Family and community perspective. 1.3 Perspective of democratic governance and building citizenship II. Public policies with a rights approach 2.1 . Design and implementation of policies with a children's rights Systems for verifying application of the CRC III. Alarming trends in the region 3.1. Unprotected child migrants 3.2. Violence against children 3.3. Juvenile justice systems without rights guarantees 3.4. Education: quality, resources and retention 3.5 Commercial sexual exploitation of children 3.6 Inappropriate treatment of children's issues in the media 3.7. Public policies that ignore the rights approach; mismatch between laws and institutions.

5 from Peru, 4 from Argentina, 4 from Ecuador, 3 from Dominican Rep., 2 from Mexico, 2 from Chile, 2 from Uruguay, 1 from Bolivia, 1 from Colombia, 1 from Costa Rica, 1 from El Salvador, 1 from Spain, 1 from Panama, 1 from Paraguay, 1 from VenezuelaTOTAL: 30 students from 15 countries



Course/Workshop Contents Students selected by country

Course for lawyers of the central

authorities and public officials

involved in cases of international abduction of

children

Module 1Brief history of the rights of the child. The rights approach in the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Migration and the rights of families and children.Module 2The phenomenon of international abduction of minors. The situation in the Americas. The civil effects of international abduction of minors. International trafficking in minors. Specialized international law in the universal and international system. The Hague Convention of 1996. Other provisions of specialized international law.Module 3 The role of the central authorities in cases of international abduction of minors. Visiting rights, custody rights, restitution and other related rights. Systemic overview of dealing with the phenomenon of international abduction of minors in States signatory to the relevant international provisions. Inter-American Program to prevent and remedy cases of international abduction of minors. Conclusions and follow-up plan .

10 from Ecuador, 7 from Peru, 6 from Argentina, 4 from Uruguay, 2 from Mexico, 2 from Dominican Republic, 1 from Colombia, 1 from Italy, 1 from Paraguay, 1 from Switzerland TOTAL: 35 students from 10 countries



Course/Workshop Contents Students selected by country

Workshop on Children's Participation

Identification of experience with children’s participation.Identify and assess the main achievements and limitations relating to this issue. Identification of social values and practices that promote or impede effective exercise of children’s right to participate.Analysis of communication and/or training strategies. Analysis of an experiment in the trainee’s locale, developed in the context of policies, programs, or projects supported by governments in relation to the family, school, neighborhood, community, or city setting, or the civic political environment.. Identification and description of policies, programs or projects that governments have implemented, promoted, and supported to build opportunities and develop participation by children and adolescents.

Organized groups of children and adolescents.

Systematization.

Theoretical proposal.

28 from Ecuador, 15 from Uruguay, 9 from Peru, 6 from Argentina, 3 from Bolivia, 3 from Colombia, 3 from Chile, 2 from Nicaragua, 1 from Brazil, 1 from Costa Rica, 1 from Spain, 1 from United States, 1 from Honduras, 1 from Mexico, 1 from Panama and 1 from VenezuelaTOTAL: 77 participants from 16 countries


Institutional Strengthening On May 15, at IIN Headquarters in Montevideo, in the presence of Dr. Ricardo Domínguez, Chief of Staff to the OAS

Secretary-General, and Dr. Jean Michel Arrighi, OAS Secretary for Legal Affairs, there was a presentation of the book, “Public Policies and Children’s Human Rights – General Comments of the Committee on the Rights of the Child,” the fruit of a joint effort by IIN and the Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.


Meetings


Meetings

Held pursuant to resolution CD/RES. 07 (82-R/07) on April 24 and 25, with the presence of official delegations from 14 member states of the OAS.

Three central topics of common interest were identified: a) Experiences with child and adolescent participation in the promotion,

implementation and defense of their rights. b) Experiences with family and community strategies in the alternative care of

children deprived of parental care c) Experiences with follow-up and independent monitoring in the implementation of

public policies with rights approach To address these issues, working committees were established. They made presentations

and prepared conclusions and recommendations on technical guidance for action in relation to public policies on childhood.

Inter-American Meeting on the “Exchange of Experienceand Programs on Child Care”


Meetings

Inter-American Forum on Children and Adolescents: “My right to participate” (April 22-24, 2008)

Convened as an opportunity for children and adolescents from various social backgrounds in the region to meet and exchange experiences.

Youngsters with experience in child participation from 14 OAS member states attended.

They analyzed and reflected upon the importance of participation and shared their experiences, expressed their points of view as to how they would like to participate in their families, schools and communities, and put forward proposals for child-oriented plans and programs.

Inter-American Forum on Children and Adolescents: “My right to participate” (April 22-24, 2008)


Meetings

83rd Regular Meeting of the IIN Directing Council, October 15-16, 2008, Ottawa, Canada

Pursuant to the resolution approved by the Directing Council at its 82nd regular meeting, CD/RES. 04 (82-R/07), the 83rd Regular Meeting of the IIN Directing Council was attended by 26 OAS member states .

This meeting elected a new chair and vice chair for the Institute's Directing Council for the period 2008-2010:, was elected Chair, and:

• Chair,. Mario Viquez Jiménez, Executive President of the National Children's Office (PANI) of Costa Rica. • Vice Chair, Kirsys Fernández de Valenzuela, Executive President of the National Council for Childhood and Adolescence

(CONANI) of the Dominican Republic.


Meetings

83rd Regular Meeting of the IIN Directing Council, October 15-16, 2008, Ottawa, Canada

The Government of Peru reiterated its offer to host the 20th Pan American Congress and the 84th Regular Meeting of the Directing Council, proposing that these be held in September 2009. Of particular importance was resolution CD/RES. 07 (83-R/08), "20th Pan American Congress on Children: Agenda and Regulations".

The meeting approved the Annual Report of the IIN Director General, the Final Reports from July 2007 to April 2008, and the agreements signed by the Director General, ad referendum to the Directing Council Executive.

IIN Annual Report 2008 Principal Meeting at IIN-OAS Headquarters

Meeting with the Executive Secretary of the Permanent Secretariat of the Inter-American Commission of Women (CIM) of the OAS, Mrs. Carmen Lomellin, and the Alternate Representative of the United States to the IIN Directing Council, Mrs. Melissa Kopolow, to renew cooperative initiatives under the IIN action plan, with particular emphasis on the Program for the Prevention and Eradication of Child Commercial Sexual Exploitation and Illegal Trafficking (Resolution CD/RES. 10 (82-R/07)

Meeting with the International Institute for Child Rights and Development (IICRD) of the University of Victoria, Canada, Mr. Gary D. Robinson, which resulted in signature of a general cooperation agreement.

Presentation of the book on Public Policies and Children’s Human Rights, the fruit of joint work between the IIN and the Regional Office for Latin America and the Caribbean of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.

Meeting with the Liaison Legal Officer for Latin America of The Hague Conference on Private International Law, Dr. Ignacio Goicoechea, to coordinate actions within the Inter-American Program for the Prevention and Remedy of Cases of International Abduction of Children.

IIN Annual Report 2008 Principal Meetings at OAS Headquarters in Washington

Meeting with Mr. Felix Ortega, Universal Civil Registry, for the Americas, which included the IIN in the PUICA work program.

Special Forum on Migration Issues-Special Commission on Migration Issues of the Permanent Council on "Migration of children from a rights focus".

On April 25, 2008 the IIN participated at the OAS-UNICEF meeting organized by the Department of International Affairs of the OAS External Relations Secretariat.

IIN Annual Report 2008 Principal Meetings at OAS Headquarters in Washington

On April 30, 2008 a General Cooperation Agreement was signed at OAS headquarters between the Ibero-American General Secretariat (SEGIB) and the IIN, pursuant to the mandate from the Directing Council.* This event was held in the context of celebrations of the 60th Anniversary of the Organization of American States, and was attended by the Secretary General of the OAS, José Miguel Insulza.

* CD/RES. 11 (81-R/06), "Request to the Secretary General of the OAS, Mr. José Miguel Insulza, to take the steps needed for establishing an inter-institutional alliance between the SEGIB and the IIN."

IIN Annual Report 2008 Principal Political and Technical Forums

Tenth Ibero-American Conference of Ministers and High-Level Authorities Responsible for Childhood and Adolescence, held in the framework of the 18th Ibero American Summit of Heads of State and Government under the theme, “Security and Protection of the Rights of Children and Adolescents and Prevention of Risks to Development,” held in San Salvador, El Salvador, on June 19-20, 2008.

Latin American Regional Preparatory Meeting for the Third World Congress against Sexual Exploitation of Children, held August 19-21, 2008 in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

The Global Movement for Children (GMfC) is the most important worldwide alliance of organizations working on behalf of children.


14th Meeting of senior human rights authorities of MERCOSUR - Niñ@Sur Working Group, held in Brasilia. Presentation to the authorities responsible for children's issues in member states and associate states of MERCOSUR, specifically the Niñ@Sur Working Group, explaining the contents and structure of the Inter-American Observatory on Commercial Sexual Exploitation.


Third World Congress against Sexual Exploitation of Children and Adolescents, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, November 25-28, 2008.

The IIN was represented by the Chair of the Directing Council, Mario Vasquez Jimenez, the Technical Assistant for the Inter-American Observatory on Child Commercial Sexual Exploitation, Florencia Barindelli, and María de los Dolores Aguilar, Director General of IIN..

The coordinator for the Communication and Information Area, José Carlos Thissen, was a special guest at a workshop for journalists, and had meetings with managers of Red ANDI for Latin America. Directing Council representatives from the following member states took part in the Third Congress: Antigua and Barbuda; Bolivia; Colombia; Costa Rica; Dominican Republic; Ecuador; Honduras; Mexico; Panama; and Uruguay.

IIN Annual Report 2008 Cooperation

General Cooperation Agreement signed with ECPAT International and Save the Children-Sweden - Inter-American Observatory on Child Sexual Exploitation

This innovative instrument for systematizing information has had as one of its priority themes the compilation and systematization of data on the commercial sexual exploitation of children in the 34 member states of the OAS.

The information in this computerized tool is available via Internet at www.annaobserva.org and offers the general public, and in particular the operators of the integral protection systems, ready access to information, training and the exchange of experiences for influencing policies with a human rights focus.

The Observatory gathers the official information supplied by member states themselves, both to the oversight bodies of the United Nations and to the organisms of the Inter-American system and other regional organizations.

The Observatory has the following components: Legislation; Public Policies; Coordination; Data; Independent Monitoring; Civil Society Initiatives; and Good Practices.

IIN Annual Report 2008 XX Pan-American Congress on Children

(to be held in Lima, Peru, September 22-25, 2009)

The Director General has made trips to Peru, together with the Chair of the Directing Council and accompanied by the IIN Communication and Information Coordinator, to reinforce the relationship and to optimize coordination with the authorities of the host country for the Congress.

The meetings held during these missions included sessions with the MIMDES technical team and authorities of the Foreign Ministry.


Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID)

"Program for Promoting and Defending Children’s Human Rights in the Americas", approved by the Project Evaluation Committee of the OAS General Secretariat.

The main themes are: unaccompanied migrant children, children's participation, and ombudsmen


Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA)

Project “Strengthening Governance in the Inter-American System for the Promotion and Protection of Children’s Human Rights” approved by the OAS General Secretariat’s Project Evaluation Committee.

The project is designed to build capacity in national institutions responsible for protecting the rights of children and families.


International Institute for Children Rights and Development (IICRD)Initiative for Education on the rights of children for

professionals (CRED-PRO)

General Cooperation Agreement to establish cooperation and the exchange of information for developing academic and professional training programs to strengthen childhood and family policies .

IIN Annual Report 2008 Technical Assistance

February 28-29, Colombia: training sessions on the two optional protocols to the Convention on the Rights of the Child

April 10-11, Chile: Participation in the workshop on the "Ibero-American Program for Strengthening Integral Systems of Child Protection". AG/RES. 2320 (XXXVII-O/07).

April 22, Mexico: Regional Forum of Judges, conference on judicial intervention and protection of children's rights, Sistema DIF – CONATRIB.

October 30, 2008, Dominican Republic, on the topic "Information System and database for the design and monitoring of public policies"

IIN Annual Report 2008 Financial Report

The budget approved for the IIN amounted to $1,076,000 in 2008. Those funds were used, among other things, for technical assistance in response to various requests and mandates issued by member states of the IIN Directing Council.

Specific funds during 2008 (Action Plan 2007-2011):

a) "Communications strategy", financed with funds from Save the Children-Sweden in the amount of $7,500.

b) “"Portal for the Observatory on Child Commercial Sexual Exploitation," financed with grants from Save the Children-Sweden ($4,000) and End Child Prostitution and Child Pornography & Trafficking of Children for Sexual Purposes (ECPAT) International ($2,500).

IIN Annual Report 2008 Financial Report

For 2009, the IIN has arranged project funding as follows:

a) "Inter-American Program of Cooperation to Remedy Cases of Abduction of Minors", financed by the Argentine Ministry of Foreign Relations, Trade and Religion, through a $10,000 contribution for one year.

b) 10% of funding available: "Program for the Promotion and Defense of the Human Rights of Children of the Americas," financed by the Spanish Cooperation Agency for International Development, through a contribution of $600,000 for two years.

c) Approved and pending disbursement: "Strengthening Governance in the Inter- American System for the Promotion and Protection of the Human Rights of Children", financed by the Canadian International Development Agency through a $2 million contribution for three years.


Follow-up to the resolutions approved during the 82nd Regular Meeting of the Directing Council of the IIN

Resolutions Process

CD/RES. 03 (82-R/07) – Application of the Inter-American Program of Cooperation for the Prevention and Remedy of Cases of International Abduction of Children by One of Their Parents

Ongoing activity

CD/RES. 04 (82-R/07) – Site of the 83rd Regular Meeting of the Directing Council Completed

CD/RES. 05 (82-R/07) – X X Pan American Child CongressOngoing process

CD/RES. 06 (82-R/07) – Special Meeting of the Directing Council. Analysis of the Implementation of New Laws on Child Issues, Public Policies, and Institutional Reforms within the Framework of the Convention on the Rights of the Child

Completed

CD/RES. 07 (82-R/07) – Inter-American Meeting on the “Exchange of Experience and Programs on Child Care”. (MEXICO) Completed

CD/RES. 08 (82-R/07) – 80th Anniversary of the Inter-American Children’s Institute. Completed

CD/RES. 10 (82-R/07) – Inter-American Program for the Prevention and Eradication of Child Commercial Sexual Exploitation and Illegal Trafficking.

Ongoing activity

CD/RES. 11 (82-R/07) – Inter-American Children’s Institute Action Plan 2007-2011Ongoing activity

IIN Annual Report 2008 Final Reports

During the 83rd Regular Meeting of the Directing Council, by means of resolution CD/RES. 03 (83-R/08), "Adoption of the Final Reports of the IIN Meetings (July 2007-April 2008)," the reports for the following meetings were also approved:

a) 82nd Regular Meeting of the Directing Council, July 26-27, 2007, Cartagena de Indias, Colombia, - CD/RES. 03 (81-R/06) .

b) Special Meeting of the IIN Directing Council “Analysis of the implementation of the new laws on child issues, public policies and institutional reforms within the framework of the Convention on the Rights of the Child”, (CD/doc. 09/08), November 29-30, 2007, Quito, Ecuador - CD/RES. 06 (82-R/07).

c) Second Meeting of Governmental Experts on the International Abduction of Children by One of Their Parents, held on September 19-21, 2007 in Buenos Aires, Argentina and which had as a main theme the development of the Inter-American Program of Cooperation for the Prevention and Remedy of Cases of Abduction of Children by One of their Parents - AG/RES. 2133 (XXXV-O/05); CD/RES. 03 (82-R/07).

THANK YOU!

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