XVIII PAN AMERICAN
CHILD CONGRESS
INTER-AMERICAN
SPECIALIZED CONFERENCE
Buenos Aires, Argentina, September, 22-25, 1999
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XVIII PAN AMERICAN
CHILD CONGRESS Buenos Aires, Argentina, September, 22-25, 1999 |
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(Resolution
approved at the first Plenary Session of Friday June 9th, 2000, during the
75th Ordinary Meeting of the IIN's Directing Council. Ottawa,
Canada, June 7-9, 2000) THE
XVIII PAN AMERICAN CHILD CONGRESS,
CONSIDERING that the family is intrinsic to the development of
children and that the media constitutes a technological instrument that
can assist in:
1.
making individuals more humane;
2. the development of a more
harmonious coexistence of citizens;
3.
peaceful cultural exchange among countries;
CONSIDERING that all of the Delegates are aware of the negative
influences sometimes caused by the media , for different reasons and in
pursuit of different interests,
AWARE of the political will of Member States to respect the Rights
of children and adolescents, as proven by the ratification by their
Governments of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which has become
the new paradigm that inspires the design of policies concerning children
and adolescents. The Representatives RECOMMEND: 1.
To plan, on a technical basis, child and adolescent policies that
guarantee to break the circle of poverty and to reduce to the lowest
possible minimum, the exclusion and marginalization still suffered by many
children in the Region. 2.
To design and implement, in support of
families, policies and programs that truly contribute to
strengthening the bonds between family members, so that they may
physically, mentally and spiritually accommodate the children of all
countries of the American region. 3.
To design and implement education policies and programs with
universal coverage, bearing in mind the particularities of each national
education system; education policies and programs that help to educate
citizens in the critical spirit that will allow children to use the media
responsibly and in their best interest, and to discern and discriminate,
through selective analysis, between the different messages and stereotypes
transmitted by the media, all within a family environment that facilitates
dialogue between the generations. 4.
To ensure that the family, society and the State share the
responsibility for the growth and development of children and adolescents,
according to their respective roles and in accordance with the principle
of subsidiarity that is part of the spirit of the Convention on the Rights
of the Child. 5.
To guarantee that all policies and programs concerning children and
adolescents be submitted to rigorous technical evaluation and that they be
carried out for the benefit of social, economic and cultural rights, to
the maximum extent of available resources, in accordance with Article 4 of
the Convention on the Rights of the Child. 6.
Without violating the intrinsic freedom of individuals and
families, to recommend that the effect of the media on societies must
become a public concern, calling for agreements between the public and
private sectors that will help to disseminate respect for children's human
rights, observing the true cultural, spiritual and other values of the
countries of the region. 7.
To sensitize owners and producers of media to the impact that their
programs and advertising have on children. |