Introduction to Government Accountability
Within Brazil’s Statute of the Child and Adolescent (ECA), and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) on which it is based, many of the articles place responsibility for ensuring the rights of children with the government. For this reason, the actions taken by government to ensure the safety and security of children become a central part of any discussion concerning children’s rights in Brazil.
Examples of relevant CRC articles:
-Art. 6: states the government is obligated to ensure the survival and development of children.
-Art. 27: states the government will help children and their families achieve a standard of living that supports the physical and mental needs of children.
Examples of relevant ECA articles:
Art. 3: the child and adolescent are entitled of all kinds of development: physical, mental, moral, spiritual and social, in conditions of freedom and dignity.
Art. 7: child and adolescent have the right to protection of life and health through the effective implementation of public social policies that facilitate their development and a dignified condition of existence.
As discussed in the forthcoming sections, there is currently a vast discrepancy between what is guaranteed for children under the ECA and the observance of these rights within Brazil. As the ECA is now 18 years old, I hope this hotsite can contribute to the dialogue regarding the full implementation of the ECA and promote the Brazilian government assuming responsibility making this a reality.
The Current Reality
Although the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC) and the Statute of the Child and Adolescent (ECA) are both now 18 years old, the discrepancies between the agreed upon rights for children and adolescents and the current situation in Brazil is striking.
As Amnesty International has pointed out, there remains a large gap between what is written within Brazilian human rights related legislation and what has so far been implemented in the country. Their 2008 human rights report lists some of the human rights infringements that occurred during 2007 within Rio de Janeiro and the country as a whole. Amnesty appreciates that initiatives to reduce violence are being implemented but remains concerned about the number of official police operations being conducted within the favelas.
As described in a recent newspaper articled, 144 people were killed by police in Rio de Janeiro during the month of April 2008 alone. It goes on to say that the number of people killed by police within the state of Rio de Janeiro during the first four months of 2008 is the highest yet recorded and represents a 12% increase over the same period of 2007.
These figures indicate that although Brazil has legislation aimed at protecting human rights and reducing violence, security issues within Rio de Janeiro remain worse than ever. When considering the number of children that become involved in criminal activity within the favelas, these killings and violence are an affront to what these children are entitled to under current Brazilian legislation.
Further Reading:
Link to Amnesty International’s 2008 Human Rights Report containing information on Brazil’s human rights record for 2007.
Amnesty International Report 2008-The State of the World’s Human Rights
Submission by Amnesty International to the United Nations’ Universal Periodic Review regarding Brazil and human rights.
Submission to the UN Universal Periodic Review-Brazil
A news article in Portuguese regarding the level of violence observed within Rio de Janeiro for the first part of 2008.
Level of police violence in Rio for early 2008
Enforcement of the ECA through Community Councils
In order to ensure that the children’s rights contained within the Statute of the Child and Adolescent (ECA) are enforced, the ECA specifies that councils will be created in order to ensure that children’s rights are observed in practice.
Article 88 of the ECA establishes parameters for the creation “municipal, state, and national councils … which will be deliberative and controlling entities of actions at all levels.” Futhermore, Article 131 explains that “the Council of Guardianship is a permanent and autonomous, nonjurisdictional entity, charged by society to see to the observance of the rights of the child and adolescent as defined in [the ECA].”
According to Brazil’s report to UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, by 1999 a national council, state councils, and 3,348 municipal councils had been created promoting the observance of children’s rights in 72% of Brazilian cities.
However, although these councils are in place, there still exists a vast discrepancy between rights guaranteed by the ECA and the rights that are currently enjoyed by Brazil’s children. For example, it is estimated that more than 23% of children and adolescents in Brazil, approximately 14 million, still have their rights absolutely denied. As well, it had been estimated that by the end of 2004, councils for the defense of children’s rights were lacking in close to 30% of Brazil’s cities.
Furthermore, according to an article from 2005 on Viva Rio’s Comunidade Segura website, www.comunidadesegura.org, the existing councils were lacking the basic funding needed to provide their services to the community. Essentials such as salaries, office space, and equipment such as telephones and computers could not be covered seriously affecting the ability of these councils to function effectively. As well, the councils have been cited for not having a monitoring mechanism in place to ensure they are working effectively to guarantee children’s rights.
In order to bolster the implementation of the ECA, councils must be created where needed, adequately funded, and effectively monitored so they may become a beneficial intervention for ensuring children’s rights are observed in Brazil.
Further Reading:
Brazil’s 2003 state party report to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child regarding the progress achieved in establishing community councils.
Brazil’s submission to the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child (pdf)
A report by the Government of Canada regarding the current state of child rights in Brazil.
Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada
2004 report from the Brazilian NGO National Association of Defense Centers for the Rights of the Child and Adolescent (ANCED) regarding the effectiveness of Community Councils.
A story from the Comunidade Segura website regarding some of the issues that have plagued the effectiveness of the community councils, in Portuguese.
Comunidade Segura: What the community councils are lacking
PRONASCI: A Step Forward?
Although affronts to the rights of children persist, the government has recently enacted new legislation that promises to specifically promote violence prevention, public security, and social programs while paying special attention to issues affecting children and adolescents. This National Plan for Public Security and Citizenship (PRONASCI) was enacted August 20, 2007 and represented a hopeful milestone in achieving government initiatives aimed at reducing violence, improving security, and reinforcing the human rights guaranteed in legislation such as the Statute of the Child and Adolescent (ECA). More recently, on June 27, 2008, the government allocated over R$ 600 million to the PRONASCI program which should help guarantee that children’s rights in Brazil will be more effectively protected in coming years.
The PRONASCI represents a hopeful action on the part of the government, however, the current Minister of Justice, Tarso Genro, warns that the improvements to security may not be felt immediately and that it may be three to five years before measurable improvements occur. Even so, he remains hopeful that the PRONASCI will significantly reduce the number of violent deaths in the country from a current average of 29 deaths for every 100,000 inhabitants to an average of 17.
It has now been 18 years since the ECA was originally enacted but nevertheless, Brazil still leads the world in the number of youths killed by firearms. This figure is one example of how the provisions of the ECA have yet to be fully observed in Brazil and attests to the magnitude of government action necessary for ensuring children’s rights will be protected in the future. However, new initiatives such as the PRONASCI provide us with hope that a significant shift for the protection of the rights of children and an improvement in the security of all Brazilians may be occuring. This legislation demonstrates a willingness on the part of government to make the changes necessary for narrowing the gap between what Brazil’s legislation promises, and the rights its citizens enjoy.
Further Reading:
This article details recent efforts of the Brazilian government with regards to improving security and human rights through the PRONASCI.
This article praises the passing of PRONASCI legislation as a historic milestone for human rights and violence reduction in Brazil.
Communidade Segura: Praise for the passing of further PRONASCI initiatives
A news article in Portuguese regarding the most recent PRONASCI initiatives and government expectations for the results.
Over R$ 600 million recently allocated for PRONASCI and improving children’s rights in Brazil
An article regarding the effects of gun violence on youth.
Comunidade Segura: Youth particularly affected by gun violence