- Sectors of civil society and a representative of ECLAC meet to reflect on the problems that affect the region.
- Organizations that promote and defend the rights of children and adolescents develop proposals to reduce the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on girls and boys.
- ECLAC warns about the increase in poverty in the region and suggests forming a new global and regional pact based on inclusion, transparency and respect for human rights.
- Children and adolescents demand that their opinions be taken into account in the construction of the regional plan to face the crisis of the COVID-19 pandemic.
With the aim of advancing in the construction of a strategic plan, at the regional level, to reduce the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on society, the initiative #Weaving NetworksChildhood in Latin America and the Caribbean, as a promoter and member of ISALC - Social Initiative for Latin America and the Caribbean, participated in the first meeting between sectors of civil society and ECLAC, called: “Voices and proposals from Latin America and the Caribbean: Transformations to get out of the crisis”.
This dialogue had the participation of Alicia Bárcena, Executive Secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean-ECLAC, as well as representatives of human rights organizations, social organizations, statesmen, leaders, politicians, academics and spokespersons, who reflected about poverty, inequality, discrimination, machismo and other problems that worsened with the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a session, the Coordinator of the #TejiendoRedesInfancia Initiative in Latin America and the Caribbean, Juan Martín Pérez García, explained that this meeting constitutes an opportunity to promote solidarity between countries and achieve responses that make it possible to guarantee the rights of people during and after the pandemic.
He also stressed that from #TejiendoRedesInfancia, it is not only seeking to make visible the problems that affect children, but also to propose proposals or solutions with a human rights approach that are translated into public policies favorable to the needs of girls and boys.
Pérez highlighted: "Our contribution is to mainstream the childhood agenda, change the sexist and adult-centered discourse that makes children invisible, and help States understand that the response to current problems lies in prioritizing the best interests of children , strengthen public investment and promote the active participation of girls and boys ”.
In this regard, Alicia Bárcena, ECLAC Executive Secretary, recalled that due to the COVID-19 pandemic, an increase of 233 million people in poverty is expected, 96 million in extreme poverty; in addition to the increase of 118 million women in shortage; For this reason, he stressed the need to create a global and regional pact based on inclusion, transparency and respect for human rights.
“An inclusive multilateralism is needed, a public policy that takes into account all non-governmental visions, movements, networks, all actors of civil society; including women, youth, older adults, indigenous peoples, Afro-descendants, local governments and parliamentarians. It is essential to move decisively towards regional integration to build more egalitarian and sustainable societies "added.
In this understanding, the representatives of the other organizations presented a document that summarizes the main proposals of the civil society sectors, such as: implementing public policies in favor of the inclusion of indigenous peoples and Afro-descendants, promoting respect towards the rights of the LGTBI population, guarantee internet access for people to exercise their right to education, guarantee gender equality, among others.
Similarly, Gloria Carvalho, representative of the Coalition Alianza por la Niñez Colombiana, a member organization of the Social Initiative for Latin America and the Caribbean, pointed out some effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on children, such as the decrease in protection, the increase in child labor, malnutrition, school dropouts and as well as the increase in different types of violence.
Likewise, given the importance of guaranteeing the comprehensive protection of girls and boys in the context of the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, the #TejiendoRedesInfancia initiative presented some proposals that are framed in: reorienting the containment, care and prevention of COVID-19 pandemic to the human rights approach, addressing the best interests of children as the main criterion of public action; fully recognize the human equivalence of girls, boys and adolescents to leave behind adult-centered gazes and heed the recommendations of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, especially OG-19 on public spending for the realization of children's rights.
Similarly, Andrés Camilo, a Colombian adolescent, asked the organizations present and the representative of ECLAC, to listen and respect the opinion of children in all spaces, to provide timely responses to the violation of children's rights. , facilitate access for victims of violence, guarantee access to sex education at school and at home, and allocate more resources to establish programs in favor of children.
Dilma Rousseff, former President of Brazil, Clara López Obregón, former Minister of Labor of Colombia and Cecilia López Montaño, former Minister of Agriculture of Colombia also participated in this important dialogue.
Finally, Marco Romero, Consultant for Human Rights and Displacement CODHES and promoter of the Social Initiative for Latin America and the Caribbean-ISALC, expressed: “The pandemic has revealed the shortcomings, social lack of protection, economic informality and job insecurity, the pandemic hits the historically most unprotected sectors; therefore, we must seek solutions and answers at the regional level, recover the idea that Latin America is a brotherhood and must have more solid integration processes based on the principle of solidarity ", he concluded.
Proposals of organizations that promote the defense of the rights of children and adolescents:
• Adopt public policies and finance response plans to COVID-19 that comprehensively address the secondary impacts of the pandemic on children and their families.
• Have the National Systems for the Promotion and Comprehensive Protection of Girls, Boys and Adolescents (SIPPINNAS).
• Analyze the restrictive measures based on the evidence of their effectiveness.
• Expand social security measures to help poor families.
• Protect the jobs, wages and livelihoods of the poorest people, allocate an emergency basic income.
• Rebuild economies from the base of the social pyramid.
• Strengthen the public health system to guarantee universal coverage and prioritization of services focused on children.
• Reduce the impact of the food crisis and stimulate a healthy diet, recovering traditional kitchens.
• Ensure safe and inclusive access to education, during and after the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Democratize access to technology and universal access to the internet to facilitate online education.
• Give psychosocial support and pedagogical training to teachers, parents and caregivers so that they can take on the new challenges of online education.
• Strengthen family and community protection networks against gender violence and intra-family violence.
• Avoiding is the escalation of violence through human security and a brake on corruption and impunity.
• Guarantee placement in spaces with decent conditions for unaccompanied returned migrant children.
• Establish national protection strategies for children without parental caregivers
• Strengthen institutional mechanisms for the participation of children.
Watch the broadcast here:
The video is available in HD, please request it directly.
Press contact: Verónica Morales, Regional Communication Officer / [email protected]
About:
#Weaving NetworksChildhood, is a project co-financed by the European Union that seeks to contribute to the strengthening and consolidation of a platform for the defense of children and adolescents in 19 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean.
The content of this publication is the sole responsibility of Children's Rights Mexico AC / #TejiendoRedesInfancia and in no case should it consider that it reflects the views of the European Union.