Partner Organisations 1984-2008

Transcription

Save the Children Norway
Save the Children Norway (SCN) was created in 1946 as a non-governmental member organisation which is partypolitically and religiously neutral. Our values are built upon the United Nations’ Declaration on the Rights of the Child
and the Human Rights Declaration. SCN works in Latin America, Asia, Africa, and Europe, including Norway. SCN is a
member of the Save the Children Alliance.
In Guatemala, from 1976 through 2000, Save the Children Norway was known as Redd Barna. Redd Barna means Save
the Children in Norwegian.
Save the Children Alliance
The Save the Children Alliance has 28 members working all over the world and is the world’s largest independent
organization for children, making a difference to children’s lives in over 110 countries.
Mission
Save the Children fights for children’s rights. We deliver immediate and lasting improvements to children’s lives
worldwide.
Vision
Save the Children works for:
•
a world which respects and values each child
•
a world which listens to children and learns
•
a world where all children have hope and opportunity
Background
Eglantyne Jebb and her sister Dorothy Buxton founded the first Save the Children organisation in May 1919, in London,
United Kingdom.
Shocked by the aftermath of World War 1 and the Russian Revolution, they were determined to secure improvements to
children’s lives. Their goal was to create a powerful international organisation, which would extend its ramifications to the
remotest corner of the globe. This was soon achieved – and Save the Children continues to build on this success.
A NEW HORIZON
FOR CHILDREN
Brief review of 32 years of cooperation
of Save the Children Norway in Guatemala
1976-2008
“I would personally like to thank Save the Children for enabling me to see other horizons, for believing in me, and for
contributing to define a future which was too difficult to dream of.”
Isabel Hernández Castro
A NEW HORIZON FOR CHILDREN
Brief review of 32 years of cooperation of Save the Children Norway in Guatemala 1976-2008
NIÑOS Y NIÑAS CON UN NUEVO HORIZONTE
Breve reseña de 32 años de cooperación de Save the Children Noruega en Guatemala 1976-2008
Compilation of information
SCN in Guatemala
Edition
Johanna Godoy
Kari Thomassen
Revision of Contents
SCN in Guatemala
Graphic Design
Pamela Guinea, Magna Terra editores
Photographs
Files, Save the Children Norway in Guatemala
Printing
Magna Terra editores
A production of Save the Children Norway in Guatemala
Guatemala, February 2009
500 copies in Spanish and 300 copies in English (translated version)
Save the Children Norway
PB 6902 St Olavs plass
N-0130 Oslo, Norway
(+47) 22990900
www.reddbarna.no
contents
Acknowledgements Presentation
Introduction
5
6
8
The years 1976-1983
The years 1984-1988
The years 1989-1993
The years 1994-1997
The years 1998-2001
The years 2002-2005
The years 2006-2008
10
16
20
24
28
34
40
Summing up
The Future
List of partner organizations 1984-2008
List of SCN staff 1987-2009
46
50
52
54
“(…) Children around the world have the
right to a life, a name and a country of
origin. I invite children to take part in the
development of our nation. We only ask
adults to let us act so we can demonstrate.
Governments of this world, for the love of
your people, take us into account in your
government plan …”
Raymunda, girl from Nebaj. Excerpt of the
lyrics of a song she wrote for the contest
A World Fit for Children
acknowledgments
We acknowledge that the processes developed and the
results achieved would not have been possible had it
not been for the collaboration, cooperation and coordination of an endless number of institutions, organizations, agencies and individuals.
We would also like to express our gratitude to all persons
and entities in Guatemala and in Norway that, throughout these years, have supported the work of Save the
Children Norway in Guatemala
To the Guatemalan Ministry of Foreign Affairs for allowing us to work in the country.
To the Ministry of Education; the Ministry of Labour,
and municipal authorities for their collaboration.
To NORAD (Norwegian Agency for Development Cooperation) for its support to the programme since 1980.
To the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs for its
support for emergency relief, since the earthquake
in 1976 and, at the present time, for the “Rewrite
the Future” campaign. Likewise, to the Norwegian
Embassy in Guatemala for its collaboration and
support to the processes implemented in the country, and for the coordination between Norwegian
organizations with a presence in Guatemala.
We would also like to express our gratitude to the sister
organizations of the International Save the Children
Alliance in and out of the country, and to international
agencies in the country, such as UNICEF and ILO.
And to all those who, with their creativity, enthusiasm and knowledge have helped in the documentation of the experiences of Save the Children Norway in the country, as well as in preparing materials
and publications.
Save the Children Norway, would especially like to thank all
the boys and girls who have participated in different processes throughout these years, as well as their families,
and partner organizations in which they have participated.
SCN is grateful to the country team, to the staff who
worked in previous years, and to the present staff members for their dedication and commitment to the mission
developed in the country.
SCN presentation
“I finished school at Talita, where I received
training and learned to produce radio programmes. I am currently working in community radio. I earn a salary and they also help
me with my education. Now, I not only talk
on the radio, but I also manage the console. I like my work because I can talk in the
Q’eqchi’ language and in the radio programmes I tell young people about their rights”.
Juan Miguel, former child communicator
SCN In 1976, Save the Children Norway (SCN) started to work in a country with approximately six million inhabitants
from four population groups: Maya, Xinca, Garífuna and Ladino. Today, the population has doubled. Back then,
there was a violent environment caused by the internal armed conflict; today, violence is exacerbated by organized
and common crime, which has taken more lives per year than during the years of the internal armed conflict.
As of December 2008, twelve years have passed since the signing of the Peace Accords, with very little progress
in its compliance in the social, political and cultural agendas. 32 years have passed since the earthquake in February 1976, 10 years since Hurricane Mitch and 3 years since Hurricane Stan. There has however been made little
progress in the country with regards to preparedness and response to natural disasters.
With this document we intend, in some way, to recapitulate how and to what extent SCN in Guatemala has responded to the adverse situation in which Guatemalan children have lived during these years. Taking stock of the
situation, it seems that there is no big difference between what happened 30 years ago and what is happening
nowadays. In actual fact, the gaps between rich and poor; and between poverty and extreme poverty, are higher
than before.
Nevertheless, despite all the setbacks, improvements were achieved in the areas in which we worked.
To date, there are more boys and girls attending school, and a greater number of them are indigenous children
when compared to previous years. It is also evident that there has been significant progress regarding knowledge
and dissemination of children’s rights issues, as well as the creation of laws for the protection of children’s rights.
There are now more children who have overcome their fears to express themselves and promote hope for increased
participation in the democratic process of the country. Many boys and girls can move around safely in their homes,
schools and communities; they have also learned to express their experiences through radio programmes and they
participate in different activities both within and outside of their communities, as well as outside of the country.
While acknowledging these and other achievements, there is still a long way to go before Guatemalan children can
fully enjoy their rights. When Guatemala signed the Convention on Children’s Rights, the State ratified its role as
a duty bearer in regard to the fulfilment of these rights. SCN, as part of the civil society, may contribute, but never
substitute the responsibility of the State. In order for the State to assume its role, political will and resources are
required, of which a fair tax system is a prerequisite. It is furthermore necessary that all Guatemalans, private enterprises and wealthy persons be willing to pay their taxes in order to enable the State to fulfil children’s rights. Once
children’s rights are fulfilled, we will have an indicator that poverty in the country has been overcome.
It is important to highlight that the achievements during these years have been the result of a solidarity chain beginning in Norway: the children, inhabitants and the government, - to SCN and then partner organizations – reaching
Guatemalan children and their communities.
For us, it has been rewarding to contribute with our “little grain of corn” to promote and contribute to fulfilling
children’s rights in the process for building peace and democracy in Guatemala.
We leave in your hands now this brief compilation of the history of SCN in Guatemala, which at the same time, is a
small proof of how much we learned through our work with children and partner organizations in the country.
Kari Thomassen
Country Representative, Save the Children Norway in Guatemala
Guatemala, December 2008
SCN “It was a very nice experience; I felt excited because it was the
first time I attended an event with so many people . We talked
to children from other organizations and the environment was
very pleasant. We worked in groups and informed about the
needs that we, as children have. Then we presented proposals
on what we could do to improve these situations. We carried
out playful activities, and in each one, we expressed our ideas.
I will always remember that, after the activity, we went to
Iximche’. There we took part of a Mayan ceremony where we
thanked our grandfathers for their help”.
Santos Genaro, 12 years old, Mam boy
SCN 10
introduction
In planning a compilation of Save the Children Norway’s 32 years of cooperation, it was necessary to take into
account the political and social history of Guatemala, which to some extent has conditioned the work of the organization in the country. The information included in this document does not pretend to be an exact account of
what happened, but rather more of a recollection of past events, based on internal reports and plans submitted by
SCN throughout the years.
This document is divided into strategic periods. Each section includes a brief presentation of the context corresponding to the strategic period. Actions implemented by SCN are presented in a two-column table, where the
first column refers to SCN’s programme in Guatemala, and the second column includes some facts of SCN in the
region as well as some facts on other SC members in Guatemala. It has been impossible to include the rich myriad
of experiences of these years on these pages; however, we hope that we have been able to provide enough information in order to support the facts.
We explicitly decided not to include the names of more than 60 partner organizations in the main document; however a detailed list of partner organizations and the years of cooperation is included at the end. It is also possible
that not all the partner organizations with which SCN has cooperated during these years have been included in this
list, especially those who received support for short term activities, but whom nevertheless have still contributed to
enabling SCN to achieve expected results for the different periods.
The staff list comprises only personnel hired during the years 1987-2009, due to the lack of a complete record of
SCN’s early years in the country.
For the same reason, financial information has not been included. It can be stated however that approximately
250 million Quetzales1, have been invested during the period from 1989 to 2008, of which around half has been
provided by NORAD and the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The remaining half was provided by private
donors, most of them from Norway, and also a contribution from SC Netherlands.
This document concludes with a brief summing up of the area of work which were emphasized during the cooperation of SCN in the country.
1
National currency of Guatemala.
SCN 11
1976-1983
“Being a communicator, getting started in
a social media and being able to express
yourself freely is priceless… The radio... the
experiences gained from working in it, the
ideas and smiles that stay in our minds and
in the minds of other persons, are priceless.
The turnaround that these projects create in
the life of a child, an adolescent or a person,
is huge”.
Renato Chic
SCN 12
Country context
On February 4th, 1976, Guatemala was struck by an earthquake, which resulted in the deaths of 25.000 people, more than
75,000 injured and left one million homeless in a country with a population, at that time, of about 6 million inhabitants.
Reconstruction after the earthquake was supported by international NGOs implementing projects for the benefit of
the society, and who facilitated the participation of the communities in the processes. Despite the political repression exerted by the government during this period, the earthquake helped people to become aware that it was
necessary to organize to help each other. Many associations, cooperatives, trade unions and popular organizations
were subsequently established.
As a result of the earthquake, the world learned that Guatemala was a country where 50 percent of school-age
children did not attend school; 70 percent of the population was illiterate; 80 percent lived without electricity and
latrines; 82 percent of children suffered from some degree of malnutrition, and almost 40,000 people, most of them
children, died of malnutrition and related diseases every year; and where 70 percent of the rural population did not
have access to drinking water.
General Kjell Laugerud García (1974-1978) was the president when the earthquake occurred. At the end of his
term, his Minister of Defence, General Fernando Romeo Lucas García was fraudulently “elected” as president of
the Republic in 1978. This governmental period, 1978-1982, was marked by an escalation of violence against the
population, reaching extreme violence:
On October 20th, 1978, Oliverio Castañeda de León, the president of the Association of University Students,
was assassinated after delivering a speech where he called on people to organize.
l On January 31st, 1980, there was a massacre at the Spanish Embassy, where 39 people were burned to death,
among them, Vicente Menchú, leader of the Committee for Peasants’ Unity (Comité de Unidad Campesina
- CUC for its name in Spanish), and father of Rigoberta Menchú, as well as peasants from Chicamán and Uspantán, who had peacefully taken over the Embassy to demand the exhumation of seven peasants who had
been assassinated by the army in Chajul, and to draw international attention to all the violence that was being
carried out against the peasants in the northern area of Quiché.
l
General Aníbal Guevara was going to take over as President of the country in July 1982, but on March 23rd of that
same year, members of the army overthrew the government through a coup d’état and appointed a triumvirate led
by generals Efrain Ríos Montt, Horacio Maldonado Schaad and colonel Francisco Gordillo.
The four guerrilla organizations that had been divided since 1970, joined together and founded the Guatemalan
National Revolutionary Unit (URNG for its name in Spanish: Unidad Revolucionaria Nacional Guatemalteca) in February 1982.
General Ríos Montt proclaimed himself President of the Republic on June 19th, 1982. During his time in office,
which lasted one year, he ruled with the strategy called “scorched earth” which consisted in the disappearance of
entire villages and the massacre of their, mainly indigenous, inhabitants , with the aim of preventing them from helping the guerrillas. As a result, people had to flee to Mexico or to other areas within the country.
According to historical clarification reports on the armed conflict, there were more than 626 massacres of entire communities, attributed to the Guatemalan army, security forces or para-military groups such as the Civil Defence Patrols
(PAC for its name in Spanish) and military commissioners. Out of the total massacres, 95% took place between 1978
and 1984. 32 massacres were attributed to the guerrilla forces.1
On August 8th 1983, another coup d’état overthrew the government of general Efraín Ríos Montt, and
Oscar Humberto Mejía Víctores , the Minister of Defence became the President of the Republic.
Human Rights Office of the Guatemalan Archbishop –ODHAG– (for its name in Spanish). Report on Recovery of Historical
Memory Nunca Más, (Never More) 1998.
1
SCN 13
Save the Children Norway (SCN) —
Programme in Guatemala
The history of Save the Children Norway (SCN) in Guatemala begins
with the earthquake in February 1976. A few days after the earthquake,
SCN and six other SC organizations arrived in Guatemala (from Austria, Canada, Denmark, Sweden, United States of America and United
Kingdom) to provide emergency relief and help in reconstruction.
Together, they created the reconstruction programme Alianza para el
Desarrollo Juvenil Comunitario (Alliance for Youth Community Development) under the coordination of Save the Children Norway (at that
time known as Redd Barna) and with an agreement with the National
Reconstruction Committee of Guatemala.
Alianza (Alianza para el Desarrollo Juvenil Comunitario) started its
work with house building in the municipality of Joyabaj, Quiché, a
zone that was devastated but which had received little support. Many
families received building materials at subsidized prices and show
homes were built.
For Alianza it was obvious that it was not the earthquake that was
the main problem in Guatemala, but the atrocious oppression and
extreme poverty, which killed more children every year than the total
number of children who were killed by the earthquake.
“In rural areas, children are part of the economical life of the family. 60 percent of families live under the survival level; they hardly cultivate enough on
their fields to feed their families. The fathers have to migrate to the plantations in the southern coast for several months, and then, the rest of the
family members have to take over his chores. Children from an early age
are responsible for looking after the cattle, collecting fire wood and water
for their homes, and taking the corn to the mill, and helping out on the field.
For the children it is difficult to attend school, since they only speak their
mother language, one of the 23 languages of the country, and teachers
only speak Spanish; and also due to the fact that their parents have to
move to the coast in the time of school exams or during the school year. In
other cases, their communities do not have a school, or the closest school
is located several kilometers away, with high and sharp slopes and narrow
paths. These are not the problems of individual children, but of communities and the society in general”. (Internal annual report, 1981)
In many communities the situation worsened due to the escalation of
cruelty of the internal armed conflict.
SCN 14
SCN in the region of Central America,
Mexico and the Caribbean and
Save the Children (SC)
in Guatemala
The International Save the Children
Alliance was founded in 1920,
under the name of International
Save the Children Union, in order
to coordinate international support
initiatives. Eglantyne Jebb was
the founder of the first Save the
Children in the United Kingdom in
1919, and in 1920 she was the first
manager of the Save the Children
Union, with headquarters in Geneva.
In 1977, after the decision of six
members of the Save the Children Union to work together in
Guatemala, the Union became
the International Save the Children Alliance.
After three years of work in
Guatemala, Alianza turned from
being a SCN-coordinated programme into a SCN programme
with funding from the SC members which had taken part in its
creation in 1976 (the SC from
Austria, Canada, Denmark, United Kingdom United States of
America, and Norway).
As a result of the support to emergency relief and housing reconstruction, as well as experiences from SC USA, work was based on
the concept of reconstruction and integral community-based rural
development.
During the first year, activities were extended to nine more municipalities in Quiché. In 1980, three programmes were opened in the
municipalities of San Marcos, and in one municipality of Chiquimula
upon request of the National Reconstruction Committee. Activities
started in the department of Santa Rosa in 1981.
Due to the increase of terror and massacres, the programme in Joyabaj was closed temporarily in 1980. It was until 1981-1982 that it
was possible to continue with the implementation of drinking water
projects. In 1983, activities on school construction and productive
projects were re-initiated. A programme to help widows and orphans
left behind by the Internal Armed Conflict in Quiché and Sololá started in 1983.
In 1981, Alianza defined its working principles as:
a) The main target group is children in need.
b) The best and right way to assist most children is to provide support to those who are responsible for them, such as parents and
tutors.
SCN 15
“Community based integral development was a new experience
for SCN and turned into its most
important working method at an
overall level. Previously its efforts,
had been focused on specific areas
of society, such as education, and
above all, health, for over 15 years.
The focus on the whole community
had clear advantages, but during
the 1980s, SCN began to critically
question itself whether it was really reaching children through this
work. The answer was no, and the
organization started to work more
directly with children and women.
They carried out different activities
to strengthen their work such as:
child care, pre-school education,
literacy and organization. It was
called: Child-centred community
development”. (Historien om Redd
Barna 1946-2006)
c) The family must not be considered as an isolated part of the community to which it belongs.
d) To support persons in dire need and the least privileged in the communities.
In 1983, the eight work objectives, which set the basis for what would be
Save the Children Guatemala’s approach from its foundation and for the
next 20 years, were defined as follows
1) To increase community and family income.
2) To improve health standards for families and communities.
3) To promote social, cultural and sports activities.
4) To support infrastructure projects to solve family and community
problems.
5) To encourage women’s participation in development processes.
6) To maximize rational and ecological use of local resources.
7) To encourage the local population to organize to solve their problems.
8) To promote children and youth participation in solving problems.
The processes were focused on supporting and encouraging local community committees to identify and articulate community needs, to seek
local accessible solutions, and to plan, implement and evaluate the programmes that addressed those needs.
Through training activities for peasants, women, children and young
people, the communities were able to access drinking water systems,
cooperatives, the construction of schools, teachers trained on new
methods; the organization of women’s groups in preventive health and
child care, women’s groups in food preparation; nutrition and hygiene,
trained midwives, health centres, health workers, and many other activities, such as: infrastructure, agricultural production and the environment. It is acknowledged that production was one of the priority
components for the population.
Achieved results included the implementation of a process through
which projects were carried out in order to solve both old and new
problems. Special emphasis was made on avoiding projects that
were not considered a priority by the community or projects which
caused ongoing dependence on external aid.
In addition to having contributed to the reconstruction after the earthquake, community development actions were implemented in several municipalities affected by the internal armed conflict, as well as
assisting population directly affected by violence. For SCN, this period ends with the nationalization of the programme Alianza para el
Desarrollo Juvenil Comunitario, which had started in 1976.
SCN 16
With the opening of a regional office in Mexico between the years
1982-1983, SC Sweden started
a programme to support Guatemalan Refugees in Mexico and
Internally Displaced People in
Guatemala.
In 1983, from its headquarters in
Norway, SCN began to cooperate with SC Mexico for a term of
three years in a programme for
Guatemalan Refugees in Chiapas.
One of the objectives of the International Save the Children Alliance was to establish national
SC in those countries where
conditions were appropriate.
The process for creating a national organization from the programme of Alianza para el Desarrollo Juvenil Comunitario started
in 1981. In 1983, Save the Children Guatemala was “born”.
It was then known as Alianza
(Alianza para el Desarrollo Juvenil Comunitario), or ADEJUC (for
its initials in Spanish). A Guatemalan board was set up and the
proceedings for acquiring legal
status as an association were
completed on November 1983.
The director was selected from
the national staff working at that
time.
SCN 17
1984-1988
“Education is very important for adolescents because it is useful for a better
future, and it helps us to have a career,
so that tomorrow we are not denied job
opportunities. I have learned many
things at my school and have had the
opportunity to attend training activities”.
Damaris, adolescent communicator
SCN 18
Country context
The attacks of the Guatemalan Army had caused the displacement of many people to the Communities of Population in
Resistance (CPR – Comunidades de Población en Resistencia), to other regions of the country or to refugee camps in
Mexico. In 1984, many of them returned to the country from Mexico increasing the population of the CPR.
In his struggle against the guerrilla and as a mean to control the population, one of the main strategies of General Mejía
Victores (1983-1985) was to force those who survived the massacres during the period of General Efrain Rios Montt to
concentrate in camps and model villages organised by the authorities.
The government maintained a relative freedom of the press, and allowed the organisation and work of political parties.
The Electoral Supreme Court was established. One of the main goals of the government was to re-orient the institutional
process of the country. Elections were held in order to set up the National Constituent Assembly, which formulated the
current Constitution of the Republic. The army agreed to hand over the government to the civilians, but with one condition: to maintain the military power over the civil society and continue the fight against the guerrillas. The guerrillas sought
refuge in safe zones and tried to stay apart from the civil population.
During 1984, the Ministry of Education adopted the Intercultural Bilingual Educational Programme (EBI - for its name in
Spanish).
In 1986, amid the worst economic crisis up to that time, Vinicio Cerezo Arévalo (1986-1990) from the Christian Democratic Party became the first civilian president for twenty years.
Since the majority of Congress members were from the Christian Democratic Party, it was expected that they would start
implementing programmes to benefit the people. Nevertheless, time went by and after a few months, the President said,
“May I remind you that I took over the government, but not the power.”
The population’s expectations from this government included the opportunity to live peacefully, to have improved life
conditions, increased freedom of speech, organization and mobilization, more schools for children, controlled prices for
staple foods, access to better job opportunities with fair salaries and an adequate distribution of resources. Due to its
failure to respond to these expectations, the government lost the credibility and support of the population. Contrary to
what was happening in the country, Cerezo had a lot of support from the international community.
The Reform Tax Act proposed in1987 caused confrontation between the government and private entrepreneurs in the
mass media; but this did not prevent it from being approved.
In 1987, with international support, agreements were reached to negotiate the conflicts in Central America (Esquipulas
II), and Oscar Arias, the President of Costa Rica, submitted his Peace Plan for the region. The agreements considered
the creation of commissions for internal reconciliation in the Central American countries.
The National Commission for Reconciliation (CNR - for its initials in Spanish) was created the same year and the Catholic
Church was asked to lead the commission. The Catholic Church appointed Monsignor Rodolfo Quezada Toruño as
chairman of the commission. The CNR summoned the population to a national dialogue, with the participation of different sectors. They began to initiate contact between the government and the guerrillas in order to start the Peace
Process.
The government also created the Special Commission for Assistance to Returnees (CEAR - for its name in Spanish);
however, most of the refugees in Mexico refused to return to the country since the conditions for such return were not
favourable. They demanded guarantees for peace, security and employment.
During the period, national statistics showed that illiteracy had been reduced from 70% to 54%, whereas, in rural villages,
the situation whereby 50% of school-age children did not attend school persisted.
SCN 19
In 1984 it was agreed that Save the Children Guatemala would take
over SCN’s programme as of July of that same year with the commitment from SCN to support ongoing programmes until 1989. SC
Guatemala would gradually assume financial responsibility.
In 1985, SCN opened an office in Costa Rica. However, after a couple of years and due to the situation in Guatemala and in the region,
SC Guatemala and SCN agreed that it could be convenient if SCN,
once again, set up an office in Guatemala, which happened in 1987.
In 1986, from its office in Costa Rica, SCN started cooperating with
an organization in Guatemala City addressing working children. Later
on, in 1988, cooperation in this same issue was extended to include
one more organisation.
However, the main work during the years 1984-1988 was the cooperation with SC Guatemala focusing on child-centred community
development in the municipalities of Chiquimula, Santa Rosa and
San Marcos. New programmes were opened in 1987 in other municipalities and departments, such as Huehuetenango where they also
assisted the population affected by floods in the municipalities of La
Libertad and La Democracia.
In Quiché and Sololá, the programme for supporting widows and
orphans left behind by the violence that affected the population of the
western region of the country continued. A development and psycho-social recovery approach was implemented in this programme.
in Guatemala
1984
SCN’s representative in Guatemala leaves the country.
l
SCN’s head office supported
SC Canada in Nicaragua.
l
From being an operational organization in Guatemala during the
1976-1984 period, SCN transformed into an organization that
worked in cooperation with civil
society organizations and authorities in Latin America, providing financial and technical support.
l
1985
SCN opens an office in Costa
Rica to follow up the projects in
Guatemala and Mexico and to
support activities in Nicaragua
and Honduras.
l
SCN, from its head office in
Norway, supported SC Mexico
after the earthquake in Mexico
DF.
l
1986
The situation of the internal armed conflict required actions characterized by transparency towards all groups and institutions. Projects
were implemented in those departments that had been the most affected by the conflict, as well as those that had not been directly
affected.
The participation of women, children and youth in development
processes was an outstanding characteristic of the working model
applied by SC Guatemala. Children’s participation in community
development was promoted through the organization of groups of
school-age children in order to build their skills and abilities.
The communities highlighted the importance of health activities, as
well as those related to production and small industries, given that
innovations were made enabling them to significantly improve their
standard of life.
SCN 20
Representatives from SC
Canada, SCN, and SC USA assisted SC Guatemala in an event
to celebrate 10 years of work of
Alianza para el Desarrollo Juvenil
Comunitario, first as an international cooperation programme
and later on as a national programme.
l
SCN starts supporting projects
in Honduras.
l
SCN, through its head office
in Norway, starts to prepare for
cooperation in Nicaragua to start
in 1987.
l
1987
SCN closes its office in Costa
Rica and returns to Guatemala to
open an office to coordinate the
work in Guatemala, Honduras and
Nicaragua. It is acknowledged as
an International Mission.
l
1988
SCN opens its office in Nicaragua.
l
“When we look back, not only during these years but also
in previous years, we can count many “Lorena” stoves, and
schools which Alianza built together with the communities.
But above all, what we cannot count is that which counts the
most: the many men, women, children and communities that
now have a new perspective on life having built their self-confidence and hopes for a better future”. (Annual Report 1984.)
SCN 21
SC Sweden starts cooperating
with SC Guatemala from its regional office in Mexico.
l
During this period, SC Guatemala
received support from other SC
members that did not have presence in the country, including:
SC Canada, SC United Kingdom
and SC USA.
1989-1993
“That is why I ask all organisations working
for children and youth, from the different
forms of expression and work they carry out,
not only to be concerned about delivering
results to donors, but to be really committed to what they are doing, wherever they
are. Children appreciate that, and I will be
forever thankful to you”.
SCN 22
Country context
Guatemala was one of the first six countries to ratify the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1990, providing
the civil society with a tool to promote the fulfilment of the rights and therefore improve the situation of children.
During the government of Vinicio Cerezo (1986-1990), the army believed they had defeated the guerrilla; therefore,
all repression was aimed at anyone they suspected of supporting rebel groups, directly or indirectly. The militarization
of the National Police made it even more evident that they were using soldiers and police officers to commit crimes
against popular leaders. On September 11, 1990, the anthropologist Myrna Mack Chang was assassinated by an
military intelligence officer, and on December 1st, the same year, 13 people died in the massacre in Santiago Atitlán.
Another atrocity occurring at that time was the abuse by the police of children and young people who lived in the
streets. A representative example of that period was the murder of Nahamán Carmona López, a boy living on the
street, who was attacked by four police officers on March 4th, 1990. The Court of Appeals confirmed the conviction of the four police officers to imprisonment for twelve years. It was estimated that there were somewhere
between 5,000 to 15,000 children living on the streets, many of them coming from families that were displaced
during the internal armed conflict. These children were a reflection and direct consequence of the unjust structures
of the Guatemalan society.
Jorge Serrano Elías, of the political party MAS (Movement of Solidarity Action) took over as President of the country
in 1991, with two problems from the previous period: the lack of control over the actions of the army and the discontent over the rejection of the globalization proposal, formulated by the business sector, and which included the
privatization of state enterprises following the structural adjustment model imposed by the International Monetary
Fund (IMF).
International pressure forced Serrano Elías to consider the peace proposal as part of his government. On July
25th, 1991, the Framework Agreement on Democratisation for Seeking Peace by Political Means was signed in
Mexico.
The issues that were addressed during the negotiations were: democratization, human rights, the truth commission, displaced populations, the identity and rights of indigenous people, socio-economic and land issues, the
army and reforms to the Constitution, the demobilization of the URNG, and the integration of combatants into civil
life. The peace negotiations were supported by friendly countries such as Colombia, Mexico, Norway, Spain and
Venezuela.
In 1992, Rigoberta Menchú Tum received the Nobel Peace Prize. As a result, the indigenous movement achieved
an important momentum. However, certain sectors of the Guatemalan society were reluctant to recognize the
nomination.
In May 1993, Jorge Serrano Elías led a coup d’état which revoked the Congress, the Supreme Court of Justice
and the Constitutionality Court. However, different sectors of the society opposed the coup and demanded the
reestablishment of the constitutional order. On June 6th of that year, the Congress elected Ramiro de León Carpio,
the Human Rights Ombudsman at that time, as President.
In 1993, according to the Inter American Commission of Human Rights, the situation of Guatemalan children was
difficult due to unacceptable conditions of child mortality, malnutrition, family poverty, very low levels of school
attendance, school dropouts, and irregular child labour, which was contributing to “the creation of generations
shaped by deprivation, frustration and fear.” At that time, it was estimated that 30,000 children were working in
Guatemala and that 120,000 children had become orphans due to the internal armed conflict. Violence and displacement were the worst issues that marked the lives of these children.
SCN 23
In spite of the positive expectations regarding the government of Ramiro de León Carpio (1993-1994), he was not
able to live up to these expectations. The privatization of state services started during his period.
As a result of the ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the
Child in 1989, SCN decided to base all of its work on the Convention.
According to the 1989-1991 plan for SCN in Latin America, they
should: “Maintain and strengthen the cooperation with SC Guatemala, our main partner organization from now on. Since SC Guatemala
is focusing its work in rural areas, SCN will complement these actions
by working with organizations who assist children in extremely difficult circumstances. The main target group will be indigenous children
and their families in the highlands or in growing cities.”
To fulfil its mission in Guatemala, SCN sought to identify partner organizations that implemented effective strategies to promote and fulfil
children’s rights. SCN also looked for alliances and coordination between organizations that worked for these rights.
During this period, in addition to cooperating with SC Guatemala,
partner relations were established with thirteen organizations1 working in Huehuetenango, Quetzaltenango, Quiché and in Guatemala
City. Some of the implemented actions had nationwide impact.
Since 1991, in compliance with the 1989-1991 plans and thanks
to the funding of the Norwegian Telethon2, emphasis was made on
those projects aimed at working children and poor children in the city.
In addition, work with indigenous groups was promoted.
As in the previous period, SC Guatemala was the partner with the
greatest financial support. SC Guatemala implemented child-centred
community development programmes in eight departments: Chiquimula, San Marcos, Santa Rosa, Huehuetenango, Quiché, Sololá,
Jalapa and Guatemala, covering a total of 12 municipalities. The
promotion of children’s rights was the key component in their work.
One result of this is that, in 1993, SC Guatemala opened the Education Centre for Children’s Rights.
in Guatemala
On November 1989, the General
Assembly of the United Nations
adopted the Convention on the
Rights of the Child. Both the Save
the Children Alliance and individual
member organizations participated actively for years in the preparations preceding its ratification.
Eglantyne Jebb, the founder of
the Save the Children Union in
1919, promoted the first declaration on children’s rights in 1923.
In its 1989-1991 plan for Latin
America, SCN stated, “It is a priority to open new programmes in
Nicaragua, to consolidate those
already in place in Guatemala, and
to keep the level of cooperation
with Honduras at the same level
as of 1988. It is important to manage the same type of projects in
the three countries in order to promote exchange of experiences.”
l
In 1989, SCN, from its head office in Norway, initiated a long-term
cooperation with SC Mexico.
l
Funds collected by the Norwegian Telethon in 1990 were allocated to SCN to address the issue of child labour in Guatemala
and Nicaragua, as well as other
countries.
Please refer to list of partner organizations.
The Norway Telethon is held annually and its funds are allocated each year to Norwegian organizations fighting for social
causes of common interest.
1
2
SCN 24
One action from this period that can be highlighted is SC Guatemala’s
coordination in preparing the conditions required for refugees and displaced persons in Mexico to return to Guatemala. This was a highly
political and sensitive task. SC Guatemala and SCN worked together
in Mexico and in Guatemala with Guatemalan authorities, international
organizations, the United Nations and the CPR (Communities of Population in Resistance), and other non-governmental organizations.
l
SC Guatemala focused its efforts in the region of Ixcán, Quiché. The
first return of refugees to Guatemala took place on January 20th,
1993. The community they returned to was named Victoria 20 de
enero. Activities contributing to a dignified return of the population to
Huehuetenango were also supported.
l
During this period, SCN also increased activities aimed at the promotion of organization and participation of working children; partner
organizations assisted young people from marginal areas of Guatemala City; worked with children in the streets of Quetzaltenango;
implemented vocational training in San Pedro Jocopilas as well as
vocational training to girls; the health conditions for children living in
zone 5 of Guatemala City were improved; children’s games including elements of the Mayan culture were produced; knowledge on
the Mayan culture was promoted among indigenous children; and an
entity that coordinated organizations working for children’s rights was
supported in order to increase the number of participating organizations and to produce material and organize workshops.
During this period, coordination to promote the Convention on the
Rights of the Child, was carried out at national and regional level.
From July 1991 through September 1992, the campaign “Telling the
Truth to Power” was implemented by holding local events in the 22
departments of the country, with the participation of the civil society and military authorities. Children expressed themselves through
songs, role plays, drawings and oral presentations. At the national
closing event of the campaign, twenty-two children, one from each
department, expressed their visions on development, ecology and
peace as seen from their communities.
During this period, SCN began considering building the capacity of
partner organizations including: exchanging experiences, networking
and coordination at various levels; critical evaluation and reflection of
the work; building competencies; and analysis in regard to the social,
economic and political context of the country.
SCN 25
Several meetings for the exchange of experiences and training were held between SCN
Guatemala and SCN Nicaragua
staff during the period.
During this period, the International Save the Children Alliance
started a process of regional cooperation in Latin America and
the Caribbean, through a meeting in Mexico in 1990. Since
then, annual regional meetings
have been held.
In 1991, it was agreed to carry
out a study on the impact of the
economic crisis on children in
eight countries: Bolivia, Brazil, El
Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras,
Mexico, Nicaragua and Peru, with
the participation of eight SC members: Canada, Denmark, Guatemala, Mexico, Norway, Sweden,
the United Kingdom and USA.
National reports were developed
and fed into the regional document entitled The impact of the
economic crisis, adjustments and
foreign debt on children in Latin
America. The regional document
was adopted as a working document at the General Assembly
of Save the Children, which was
held in the Dominican Republic in
1992.
l
In 1992, representatives from
the Norwegian NGOs in Guatemala were threatened due to the
fact that the Peace Nobel Prize
was awarded to Rigoberta Menchu.
l
1994-1997
“Being a communicator, knowing that your
ideas are listened to, that your voice is there,
knowing that this mass media that you
considered impossible during the first years
of your life, is there to help you bring about
change… that is actually a good experience
in your life.”
Renato Chic
SCN 26
Country context
After signing the Framework Agreement for Resuming the Negotiation Process between the Guatemalan government and the Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unit (URNG - for its initials in Spanish), on January 10th, 1994,
the negotiation process continued. The Civil Society Assembly was established. Despite the fact that it did not take
part directly in the peace negotiations, it did have a vote and could submit proposals.
In 1994 a milestone was achieved upon the signing of the Global Agreement on Human Rights between the URNG
and the government, which enabled setting up the United Nations’ Verification Mission in the country (MINUGUA
for its name in Spanish).
In 1996, Álvaro Arzú Irigoyen, from the political party PAN (Partido de Avanzada Nacional) was elected President.
His main proposal was focused on infrastructure, especially highways, and to get funding to support the compliance of the Peace Accords.
In 1996, while peace negotiations were still taking place, the Congress of the Republic approved the Children and
Youth Code, a legal framework for the fulfilment and protection of children’s rights. The optimism caused by the
approval faded when its enforcement was postponed until 1998.
The Agreement for a Firm and Long-Lasting Peace was signed on December 29th, 1996, in Guatemala City, between President Arzú and the URNG. This enabled the enforcement of all the accords signed in the 1994 – 1996
period, putting an end to a civil war that lasted more than 34 years, and which had been characterized by extreme
brutality against civilians, especially Mayan people. During the internal armed conflict, 200,000 persons were murdered; 50,000 persons went missing; one million persons were displaced and 600 villages were devastated.
A national reform of the health system was enforced by the end of 1997. However, several sectors considered
that the programme, which was based on private health services, would not solve the serious problems faced by
children and the population in general. At the end of the period, it was estimated that only a third of Guatemalan
children had access to health services.
In 1977, out of a population of 6 million , the number of persons living in poverty was 70%, while in 1997, out of
an estimated population of 11 million, it had risen to 87% of the population.
The investment in education decreased, even though only 50% of school-age children had access to education.
The school drop-out rate was another issue, 10% of children attending elementary school did not stay in school
for the full term, and 1 out of every 5 children had to repeat the grade. Bilingual education was and continues to
be a challenge in a country with 23 linguistic groups, where Spanish is not the mother tongue of most pre-school
and elementary school children. Even though commitments to investment in education increased significantly as
a result of the Peace Accords, the effects were not visible.
During this period, the violations of human rights and the perpetration of political crime decreased; nevertheless,
common delinquency increased, which led the private sector to invest more funds in personal security than those
allocated by the government to the National Police. Another issue of concern during the period was the increased
number of children, from a very early age, engaged in the formal and informal labour market.
Based on the Peace Accords and with the support of the international community, the government of President
Arzú (1996-1999) was committed to set up a fairer tax system, increasing contributions from 8.6% of the Gross
Internal Product in 1997 to 12% for the year 2000. This commitment was not fulfilled.
SCN 27
SCN in the region of Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean and
in Guatemala
SC United Kingdom starts
cooperating with Guatemalan
NGOs from its regional office in
Honduras, in 1994.
For this period of the peace process, SCN’s vision was that all sectors
of the Guatemalan society would take children into account, not only
as consumers and programme targets, but as resources and holders
of rights with potential that should be nurtured and valued.
l
To achieve further changes in practices, programmes and policies in
relation to the situation of children, more emphasis was given to alliances with other entities and movements. Four working areas were
defined:
1. Child-centred community development
2. Advocacy for children’s issues
3. Children living in especially difficult circumstances (working children and children with disabilities)
4. Displaced children or refugee children
In 1994, NORAD started to support the peace and democratization process in Guatemala,
in cooperation with Norwegian
NGOs in the country (Norwegian Church Aid –NCA–, Norwegian People’s Aid –NPA–, the
Refugees’ Council and SCN).
This enabled closer cooperation
among these organizations.
During this period, the number of partner organizations increased from
twelve to thirty-five organizations, which were located in: Alta and Baja
Verapaz, Chimaltenango, Huehuetenango, Jalapa, Quiché, Quetzaltenango, San Marcos, Sololá, Totonicapán, and Guatemala City.
There was also coordination with nationwide and regional networks.
By the year 1997, SCN, in cooperation with the partner organizations,
reached about 40,000 children directly.
By the end of the period, it was concluded that most of the expected
objectives of the four working areas had been achieved, in cooperation
with partner organizations. In addition, specific funding from NORAD was
allocated to support the peace and democratization process in Guatemala, enabling SCN to increase its efforts on issues such as: repatriation,
the educational reform, Mayan Education, advocacy for children and assistance of children with disabilities and children affected by violence and
sexual abuse. In this period, community-based organizations and peasants’ movements were supported.
The child-centred community development programme provided new
ways to work with children and youth, not only as beneficiaries, but as
builders of integral development. Several mayors’ offices attended workshops and were committed to include children’s needs in their municipal
plans.
SCN 28
In 1994, Norway opened its embassy in Guatemala to support
the Peace Process.
In 1995, SC Denmark and
SC Sweden opened offices in
Guatemala.
l
As of 1995, the Scandinavian
SC members shared offices,
which gave way to closer coordination. The question of “What
should be the role of the members of the Save the Children
Alliance in Guatemala?” was
raised. This role required facing
challenges in regard to how to
be more effective in a changing and complex environment,
since the formal peace process
-with its multiple agreements
on educational reform, cultural
rights and the elaboration of a
historical memory on the violations to human rights – was
gaining ground.
l
Although the issue of education was not a working area, it became a relevant cross-cutting component. Teacher training was supported, as well
as implementation of education in the children’s mother tongue and bilingual education; teachers in regions where persons were repatriated were
trained on improved methodologies. The educational reform based on the
Peace Accords was followed up, as well as education for working children
and training for the teaching and caring of children with disabilities. Support was provided to a network of parents of children with disabilities, with
a nationwide coverage. Several teachers were trained on conflict solving
issues.
In coordination with other agencies, the first alternative report on the situation of children’s rights in Guatemala was prepared and submitted to the
United Nations’ Child Rights Committee in Geneva. Likewise, the book
entitled: Between Oblivion and Hope: the children of Guatemala, which
provided relevant information on the situation of children in Guatemala was
published. In 1997, the creation of the Social Movement for the Rights of
Children and Youths was promoted. The movement developed advocacy
strategies in relation to the Children’s Code.
Workshops were held in order to disseminate information on how to prevent child abuse and sexual abuse as well as the implementation of processes for awareness raising and training on HIV/AIDS, for teachers and
students.
Children’s participation in partner organizations was promoted and the
first steps were taken to include children in the agendas of organizations
that did not usually work with children.
It became evident that, in the projects with returned and displaced populations, it was necessary to provide psycho-social assistance to the different
generations that had been affected by violence, massacres, displacement
and military practices of scorched land. In addition, these generations were
to face exhumations, a future without those who had left, the return to their
communities or new areas, with a future that did not seem to hold many
opportunities. To address this issue, a mental health guide was produced
to facilitate psycho-social rehabilitation with a Mayan perspective, aimed
at populations affected by the internal armed conflict. There was also a
programme of Norwegian observers, who accompanied the process of
the return of refugees in Mexico to Ixcán.
During the first two years of this period, two annual workshops with partner organizations were held in order to exchange experiences and ideas
as well as to improve inter-institutional coordination. In 1995, a matrix for
organizational development was introduced as a tool for SCN to accompanying partner organizations in a more systematic manner.
By the end of the period, SCN came to the conclusion that it was necessary to reduce the number of partner organizations in order to allow for
closer accompaniment.
SCN 29
Scandinavian SC members
supported efforts for the development of an innovative model
for elementary education and
teacher training on repatriation
issues. This programme was
endorsed by the Ministry of Education and its commitment comprised continued funding and
certification of trained teachers.
l
Scandinavian SC members
and SC Guatemala developed a
work plan for SC in Guatemala
based on the Peace Accords
and the Children’s Code. An activity that was jointly supported
was the Cultural Festival for
Children, which was held once
a year.
l
As part of the observers’ programme, SC cooperated with a
Norwegian-Latin American solidarity group (Latinamerikagruppen i Bergen).
l
In 1997, the International Save
the Children Alliance decided to
create a more formal structure,
and its head office was moved
from Geneva to London.
l
1998-2001
“The radio and many other projects helped me understand that every one of us
has a purpose in life, to do what we like,
and to help those who need help”.
Renato Chic
SCN 30
Country context
At the beginning of this period, most of the population (80%) continued to live in poverty and extreme poverty. Guatemala still had the highest level of illiteracy in the region, after Haiti: Six out of 22 departments had an illiteracy level of
more than 50%. 37% of the population over 15 years old was illiterate and 77% of them lived in rural areas. Only half
of the school-age children of the country were enrolled in the school system, and out of these, only 70% continued on
to a higher level. About two million children were forced to work to contribute to supporting their families.
The impact of Hurricane Mitch in October 1998 resulted in further deterioration of the situation of many Guatemalan
children.
The period of the government of President Alvaro Arzú ended (1996-1999), and it became evident that peace
had not turned into a national concern. The Guatemalan society in general did not assume any ownership of the
Peace Accords and did not feel committed to their fulfilment.1 During Arzu’s government, the number of human
rights violations decreased significantly and it was therefore seen as a major setback when Monsignor Juan Gerardi
Conedera, architect of the Catholic Church’s project to recover historical memory, was assassinated two days after
submitting the projects final report in April 1998. In general terms, the period ended with a society that showed
more openness to debate, where attempts were made to increase investments on social issues such as education,
but which could not address the issue of poverty, and in which there was a significant increase in social organization and participation.
Alfonso Portillo, from the Guatemalan Republican Front (Frente Republicano Guatemalteco - FRG), was elected
President in 1999, and took over office in 2000. He represented a more liberal approach than Ríos Mont, the leader
of the party, and at that time, the President of Congress.
For the first time after the signing of the Peace Accords, there was an increase in the number of human rights violations. Confrontation between the government and the business sector was also evident, due to differences linked
to the fiscal pact and wage policies, in addition to the accusations of corruption and incompetence levied at the
government, and which led to imprisonment of several government officials.
During this government several sectors of the civil society joined together to create the Guatemalan Forum, which
was aimed at promoting dialogue within the civil society in order to achieve a certain level of consensus that would,
in turn, enable convergent positions to be presented to the State.
By 1999, ten years after the ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the enforcement of the Children’s
Code had been postponed three times. In February 2000, its enforcement was postponed indefinitely.
Guatemalan representatives attended the Millennium Summit, which was held in New York in the year 2000 and
where the Millennium Goals were formulated.
In 2001, contrary to the commitments linked to the Peace Accords, there was a major reduction in allocations for
basic services, such as reductions in the education and health budgets, while the budget for military defence was
doubled. A consequence of the reduction of the budgets was the delay in the implementation of programmes such
as scholarships, training for teachers and education managers, as well as reduction of financial contributions for
bilingual education programmes. By this point, the goal of ensuring access to at least three years of education for
all children 7 thru 12 years old had not been achieved. The average of formal schooling among the poor population
was only 1.9 years, while for the rest of the population it was 5.4 years.
1
Pásara, Luis. “Acuerdos de paz y cambio en Guatemala”. Revista Nueva Sociedad, 2002.
SCN 31
Nevertheless, even though Guatemala allocated a low percentage of its budget to education, there were significant
achievements in decentralization policies such as the creation of local parents’ councils that would evaluate and
support teachers. This enabled organizations and private businesses to build schools as well as serve breakfast at
the schools. As a result, the education situation in the country did not worsen.
In its recommendations based on the second report on the situation of children’s rights submitted by the Guatemalan government in 2001, the United Nations’ Child Rights Committee emphasized the need for a law that
was based on the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Despite all the social mobilization, there had been no
significant progress in the enforcement of the Children’s Code. There was some progress, however, in the political
framework for working children; Convention 182 of the International Labour Organization (ILO) was ratified in 2001
and a plan for the elimination of the worst forms of child labour was approved.
According to the United Nations’ Verification Mission for Guatemala - MINUGUA, there was no significant progress in
the fulfilment of the Peace Accords during the first two years of Portillo’s government owing to the lack of political will
to perform significant changes required by peace and democratization. It also highlighted the harassment of human
rights organizations, which was undertaken with the support of the state. According to MINUGUA, the situation of
children had not improved even though it had been five years since the signing of the Peace Accords. The country still
lacked a policy on children and youth. Despite the fact that Guatemala seemed to have a growing economy, UNDP’s
human development indexes were dropping2. Education and health indicators were the worst in the Americas.
The United Nations’ Special Session for Children was held in New York City in 2001. Guatemalan children, as well
as the official delegation, participated in this Special Session.
This was the first period in which all of SCN’s country programmes
had to contribute to global strategic objectives set for the whole organization, taking into account the context of each country. In addition,
a new reporting system was in place, focussing on thematic issues
instead of on the work of individual partners. It was also required to
report the number of beneficiaries.
The overall objectives for SCN in Guatemala were as follows:
• To promote the co-responsibility between the civil society and the
State in building a culture of respect, commitment, and actions to
fulfil the rights of children and youths
• To promote child participation
Through the following strategic objectives:
• To promote the Convention on the Rights of the Child
• To increase access to education for children
2
UNDP: United Nations’ Development Programme.
SCN 32
SCN in the region of Central America, Mexico and the Caribbean and
in Guatemala
In 1998, SCN and SC United
Kingdom in Honduras signed a
cooperation agreement through
which the administration of SCN’s
programme in Honduras was delegated to SC United Kingdom. A
programme coordinator was recruited in June 1998. In this way
it was possible to provide closer
accompaniment to SCN’s partner organizations in that country.
l
The Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs granted support to
SCN to implement rehabilitation activities in the aftermath of
Hurricane Mitch, which struck
Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua in October 1998.
• To reduce economic exploitation of children
• To support psychological rehabilitation for children affected by
armed conflicts
• To promote children’s participation in community development.
As planned, the number of partner organizations was reduced from
thirty seven in 1998 to twenty in 2001. Consequently, the number of
direct beneficiaries had been gradually reduced from about 65,000
children in 1998 to around 42,000 in 2001. Actions were implemented in Alta and Baja Verapaz, Chimaltenango, Huehuetenango, Izabal,
Jalapa, Quetzaltenango, Quiché, San Marcos, Sololá and Guatemala
City. Some of the actions had national impact.
One of the main challenges for this period was setting up a social
basis in which children’s rights were promoted and demanded. One
of the results of the actions aimed at promoting the enforcement of
the Children’s Code, was that children’s issues were addressed in the
mass media (press) and put on the national agenda.
SCN supported many initiatives for training and organization of children and youths in regard to their rights, as well as in creating spaces
for children to participate more actively in their communities.
In 2001, several children and adolescents’ organizations supported
by SCN, participated in events at local, regional and national level in
preparation for the United Nations’ Special Session for Children, which
was held in New York City. During these preliminary meetings, referred
to locally as “mini-summits”, children and youths expressed their views
and interests in regard to the reality in which they lived. As a result, a
youth group submitted these opinions and demands to the President
of Guatemala, Alfonso Portillo. This in turn provided inputs for the decade plan that the official Guatemalan delegation committed to formulate and implement at the Special Session.
SCN supported activities to improve the quality of education for
children who were participating in teaching-learning processes in
the regions covered by partner organizations. Materials to support
Bilingual education were provided to teachers in geographic areas
with high prevalence of Mayan languages, as well as materials for
teaching children with special needs. SCN supported the printing
and distribution of a bilingual magazine, which was made by children.
In addition, SCN accompanied activities so that curricular guides for
implementing elementary education for working children and adolescents would be approved by the Ministry of Education Moreover, an
education model for assisting working children was systematized in
the western region of the country.
SCN 33
Actions implemented in the
aftermath of Hurricane Mitch resulted in closer cooperation between the SC organizations both
in Guatemala as well as Central
America.
l
In 1998, as part of a new effort,
SCN opened regional offices for
Asia, Africa and Latin America, in
order to provide technical support
to SCN’s country programmes in
those regions. This effort did not
achieve the expected results and
the regional office in Guatemala
was closed in April 2001, a few
months after the other regional offices had stopped working.
l
SC Honduras became a member of the SC Alliance in 1998, and
has been part of the SC’s regional
coordination in Latin America ever
since then.
l
SC USA opened its office in
Guatemala at the end of 1999.
At the same time, they began
cooperating with SC Guatemala in the Project Comunidades
Mayas Alfabetizadas –COMAL–
(Literate Mayan Communities)
[1999-2002].
l
In 1999, members of the SC Alliance signed “license agreements”
for the use of the name and new
logo of the Alliance, as agreed by
its members. The agreement enabled members to keep the original name in their own countries,
as long as this was an accurate
translation of Save the Children,
which was the case for the Scandinavian countries.
In the area of economic exploitation of children, in addition to the
aforementioned education activities, several studies on the issue of
child labour in the exportation of non-traditional products and in urban areas were performed. These studies set the basis for the implementation of strategies aimed at eliminating the worst forms of
child labour, not only in Guatemala, but throughout Central America,
complementing efforts from other entities such as the Ministry of Labour, IPEC/ILO and UNICEF. The Plan for Eradicating Child Labour
submitted to Congress by the Ministry of Labour was elaborated with
the support of SCN, ILO and UNICEF.
In the area of psychosocial rehabilitation for children affected by the
internal armed conflict, SCN identified a strategy to follow up the
recommendations of the reports of historical clarification. For this
purpose, it started a relationship with one of the most important organizations in the area of searching for children who disappeared
during the internal armed conflict. Teachers, leaders and parents
were trained on the issue of the internal armed conflict. Educational
and informational materials on this issue were distributed.
In the area of child-centred community development, surveys on the
situation of children were carried out in several municipalities. Activities
to raise awareness on the issue of children’s rights and the required
change of attitude in order to visualize children as holders of rights
were held in several communities. Local organizations gained a better
understanding of human rights and their duties in the communities.
Some municipal authorities adopted the Convention on the Rights of
the Child. Actions were coordinated with education and health authorities. Several communities participated in cultural festivals on children’s
rights, and families were able to increase their family income. Teachers
were trained on children’s rights issues. Activities to raise awareness
on the negative effects of child abuse and economic exploitation were
held in several communities. Communities benefited from the construction of roads, community and school halls, recreation parks and
water projects.
As of 1999, cooperation with partner organizations was developed
within the framework of the Initiative (Initiative for children and youth in
a post-war and peace building context), an effort to improve systems
for planning, monitoring, evaluation and systematization of experiences with the participation of children, youths, partner organizations and
SCN. Pretty soon, it became evident that processes aimed at communication and cooperation among partner organizations required time.
The idea of a common information system was set aside and instead
actions were focused on the implementation of the principles of selforganization, interdependence and sustainability applied to the participation of children and youth. In 2001, as a result of the Initiative, the
book Simiente de primavera (The Seed of Spring) was published.
SCN 34
In 1999, all SC members in
Guatemala (Denmark, Guatemala, Norway, Sweden, the United
Kingdom and USA) worked jointly
to formulate a Common Framework for Operations to develop
joint actions and to promote a
single voice and image of SC in
the country.
l
SC members in Guatemala
promoted Children’s Rights
in the municipalities and held
contests where the municipality with the best public policy
for children was awarded with a
small fund to be invested in the
implementation of said plan.
l
A meeting between SC members with presence in Guatemala
(Denmark, Norway, Sweden, the
United Kingdom, from its office in
Honduras, and USA) was held in
March 2000. Programme Directors from the corresponding head
offices and the Programme Coordinator of the Secretariat of the
SC Alliance attended this meeting,
with the objective to consider the
future of the cooperation in Guatemala. They agreed on the importance of promoting SC Guatemala’s leadership as the national SC
member in the country.
l
SC Guatemala and SC USA
start cooperating in the Project
for Mayan Food Security (PROMASA for its name in Spanish)
in 2000.
l
As of 2001, a new cooperation
period between SCN and SC
Mexico started, aimed at achieving technical and financial sustainability of the programme.
l
In 2001, after 15 years of cooperation, SCN ended the relations with organizations in Honduras.
l
The process of changing the name from Redd Barna to Save the
Children Norway1 took place during this period.
SC USA’s regional office was
moved from Miami to Guatemala, in July 2001.
l
A Common Framework of Operations for SC in Guatemala was
developed, to be implemented
during the 2002-2004 period.
This framework took into account
the organizational strengthening
process of the national member
and the characteristics of every
one of the other members (Denmark, Norway, Sweden, United
Kingdom and USA). SC Guatemala and SCN coordinated efforts
to strengthen actions linked to
communication and advocacy.
l
• As of January 2001, the Scandinavian SC shared offices with SC
Guatemala.
1
The phrase Save the Children means Redd Barna in Norwegian.
SCN 35
2002-2005
“We have experienced that there are still teachers who use dull and boring methods. That
is why we, as children and adolescents, want to
work with the government in order to find other
creative ways for teaching. We know about the
needs because we have experienced ourselves what
is happening in our communities.”
Yolanda, young women from Quetzaltenango
SCN 36
Country context
During 2002, a new initiative to reformulate the Children’s Code was consulted with key stakeholders such as the
Evangelic and Catholic Churches. The Law for Integral Protection of Children and Youths was finally approved by
the Congress in 2003.
In 2002, three laws that enabled the work for promoting children’s rights at local level were approved: the Decentralization Law; the Law on Councils for Urban and Rural Development, and the Municipal Code.
During the term of President Portillo (2000-2003), social matrixes were submitted, which, unfortunately, were not
implemented. Instead, it was made to look like there were opportunities for developing children’s issues. Nevertheless, this was not the case and the government was characterized by a lack of political will, transparency and
excessive corruption.
The political party Frente Republicano Guatemalteco (Guatemalan Republican Front) (FRG for its name in Spanish),
led by General Efraín Ríos Montt ended it’s term in government with a violent demonstration (referred to as Black
Thursday) aimed at imposing General Rios Montt’s candidature as president. This event severely harmed the image
of the party. The overall results of Portillo’s government were increased poverty and unemployment and the unsuccessful implementation of the Fiscal Pact.
Guatemala did not submit its third report to the United Nations’ Committee on the Rights of the Child in 2002. The
Committee then asked the country to submit one single report in 2006, comprising the third and fourth reports.
This report was not submitted either. Out of the recommendations given by the Committee in its previous report,
Guatemala had fulfilled the one regarding the creation of a law based on the Convention. This law clearly set the
difference between children in need of protection and children in conflict with the law.
In 2004, Oscar Berger from the political party Gran Alianza Nacional (Great National Alliance) (GANA for its name in
Spanish) assumed office as President of Guatemala. His government was characterized as being in favour of the
interests of the powerful economic sector of the country. During his term in office, legal frameworks were promoted;
which re-edited neo liberal models for new world economic and political conditions. The Free Trade Agreement
(FTA) between the United States, Central America and the Dominican Republic was ratified. There was sustained
economic growth and stability, even though unemployment was evident.
In his first year in power, Berger approved public policies for children, which were formulated by the National Commission for Children and Adolescents. This enabled children and other sectors to demand its compliance and, in
turn, the improvement of life conditions for Guatemalan children. The policy, together with a National Plan of Action
for its effective implementation, was approved. An important limitation was that the budget allocated for implementing said policy was not sufficient. How to achieve a cultural transformation in a society that has traditionally
considered children as objects and not as holders of rights continued to be the main challenge. Added to this, the
multi-cultural characteristics of the country represented an enriching yet complex challenge in regards to children’s
rights. Funding required for the implementation of the Plan for the Progressive Eradication of the Worst Forms of
Child Labour was not allocated during this period either.
In the area of education, there was an improvement in regard to a reduction of illiteracy and repitence in elementary
school. An outstanding achievement in 2005 was the increase in the number of children enrolled in elementary
school, which reached a level of 92.4%. The major challenge faced was how to improve the quality of education
and enable children to stay in school once they are enrolled.
The vulnerability of children in relation to a growing wave of violence was evident in 2004: 452 children and youths
were murdered that year. From this point forth, the violence rates could only be compared to those of the worst
SCN 37
years of the internal armed conflict. During 2005, violence against children and adolescents continued through organized crime, drug trafficking, delinquency, territorial fights between gangs and child exploitation. There was also
an increase in children’s participation in gangs, responsible for illegal actions.
After several years in which it was acknowledged that adoptions had resulted in significant profits for the lawyers
that performed them, and included the kidnapping and selling of Guatemalan children. The Guatemalan Congress
attempted to ratify The Hague Convention on international adoptions in 2005, but the lawyers whose interests
stood to be affected, gave notice of appeal and claimed that this was an act against the Guatemalan Constitution.
As a result, errors in procedures were identified, which forced the Congress to take back this decision.
In the first week of October 2005, Hurricane Stan struck the region. Violent storms caused floods and landslides,
resulting in the deaths of over one thousand persons, the complete burial of villages, destruction of highways and
bridges and left about 180,000 children and adults homeless. The emergency served to highlight the continued
critical situation of the country.
During the years 2002-2005, SCN, with the cooperation of 34 partner
organizations, directly influenced the lives of approximately 50,000
boys and girls. Actions were implemented in Alta and Baja Verapaz,
Chimaltenango, Chiquimula, Izabal, Huehuetenango, Quetzaltenango, Quiché, San Marcos, Sololá and the metropolitan area of Guatemala City. Some of these actions had nationwide impact.
In 2003, over 400,000 boys and girls learned about their rights and
democratic processes through the Children’s Elections. This activity
was co-financed by SCN and other entities.
The strategic objectives and the partner relations from previous years
continued into this period and child rights programming was more
evident.
SCN asked all country programmes to give special emphasis to the
inclusion of girls in all of its strategic objectives. At that time girls already represented half of the children assisted through the activities,
and therefore no new activities were implemented in order to respond
to this recommendation.
The “Initiative of children and youth” initiated in 1999 gained ground
during this period. This process required real commitments in the
participation of all partner organizations, as well as SCN itself.
SCN 38
in Guatemala
2002
SCN started cooperating with
SC Honduras in 2002, through
its office in Guatemala. The office in Nicaragua took over the
relationship with SC Honduras in
2003.
l
In 2002 a regional SC meeting
was held in the Dominican Republic. The issue addressed during this meeting was the organisational strengthening of the four
SC members in the region (the
Dominican Republic, Guatemala,
Honduras and Mexico).
l
2003
As of 2003, SCN started to
cooperate with SC Dominican
Republic through its office in Nicaragua and SCN in Guatemala
assumed the cooperation with
SC Mexico, which until then had
been accompanied by SCN’s
head office. This decision implied
technical exchange, in addition to support to organisational
strengthening.
l
One of the success stories of this period was the creation of the Quality Education Group, which consisted of SCN’s partner organizations
working with the strategic objective of education. The partner organisations formulated a strategic plan that comprised quality education
efforts with an aim to contribute to setting up common processes
that could transcend the simple sum of individual actions.
Another success story was the diffusion of regional radio programmes,
which were produced and broadcast by children. Several groups received training on radio techniques and partner organisations supported children in identifying local radio stations in which they could
broadcast their programmes. This enabled children to be listened to
in their own voices, to share their ideas with a wider audience and to
express themselves in their own words.
A third success story was the creation of the Children’s Parliament. To
follow-up children’s participation in the United Nations’ Special Session, a movement of children and youth was formed, giving way to
the Children and Youth Parliament, with representatives from the four
population groups of the country. The movement was coordinated by
one of SCN’s partner organisations, with SCN funding. Through this
organisation, children and youths from different regions of the country
were able to promote their rights at national level.
In that same year, SC Guatemala and the other SC members
in Guatemala (Denmark, Norway,
Sweden and USA) signed an
agreement to support SC Guatemala’s organisational strengthening for the 2003-2005 period.
l
An emergency plan for the
2004-2005 period was prepared
jointly by the SC members.
l
The first joint workshop on
Child Rights Programming was
held, with the participation of SC
Denmark, SC Guatemala, SCN
and SC Sweden. The latter was
appointed by SC as the lead in
this issue.
l
SC Sweden closed its office
in Guatemala and coordinated
activities through its regional office for Latin America and the
Caribbean, in Peru, and through
its sub-regional offices in Costa
Rica and Brazil.
l
Promotion of the Convention on the Rights of the Child. During this
strategic period the Law for Integral Protection of Children and Adolescents was approved, and children’s participation in raising awareness and demanding the fulfilment of their rights as well as dissemination and knowledge of the law was strongly supported. Partner
organisations were trained on relevant issues such as the child rights
approach and the Law for Integral Protection. Children’s participation
continued to be an important cross-cutting issue which was evident
in, for example, the prominence of child communicators. The tenth
and last Children’s Cultural Festival was held in 2004.
More children, especially girls, receive basic quality and relevant
education. During this period, it was relevant to support education
alternatives that enabled access to education for vulnerable children.
In addition, there was increased focus on quality education. Access
to education was provided for working children, indigenous children,
marginalised children and children with disabilities. Efforts were implemented to unify curricula on the issue of intercultural bilingual education and the Quality Education Group formulated quality education
indicators applicable to their experiences. As of 2004, the education
programme was extended as a result of increased funding from the
Norwegian Telethon in 2003. This enabled SCN to start a cooperation
relation with the Ministry of Education, through its General Directorate
for Intercultural Bilingual Education (DIGEBI for its name in Spanish).
SCN 39
SC Denmark and SC Guatemala signed an agreement for
SC Guatemala to accompany
SC Denmark’s partner organisations in the country, as of 2004.
l
During that same year, the
agreement signed between SC
Guatemala and SC USA for the
PROMASA project ended.
l
To promote protection, development and social integration of children affected by armed conflicts and/or natural disasters. One of the
recommendations of the reports of the Historical Clarification Commission (CEH for its name in Spanish) was followed-up by supporting
the search for children who disappeared during the armed conflict in
Quiché and other affected regions. Search processes cumulated in the
child reunion with his/her biological family. Training of children and adolescents on mental health issues was supported in order to improve
the quality of the children’s lives and the lives of their families, also in
the area of Quiche. A partner organisation produced materials on historical memory for teachers, in response to another one of the recommendations of the historical clarification reports. Concerts to promote
a culture of peace in marginal areas of Guatemala City were held in
coordination with the Guatemala City Hall. In 2004, SCN carried out a
thematic global evaluation on children and armed conflicts. The Guatemala programme took part in this evaluation. As a result of the findings
of this evaluation in relation to children’s participation, one boy and one
girl from Guatemala attended the event entitled “Childhoods 2005” in
Oslo, Norway. At this event, children shared their experiences of the
internal armed conflict with children from different countries.
To prevent economic exploitation of children. In addition to supporting
education and participation of working children, support was provided to
the Ministry of Labour for the creation of three secretariats in the departments of Huehuetenango, Quiché and San Marcos, in order to follow
up the Plan for the Progressive Eradication of the Worst Forms of Child
Labour. The Quality Education Group discussed and validated issues
linked to children’s exploitation with an aim to promote the formulation of
policies related to education for working children.
Child-centred community development. Child-centred community
development continued to be SC Guatemala’s main approach, although it also started a process to focus on the rights of children and
adolescents. The Law for Integral Protection of Children and Adolescents was disseminated at local level. Children’s protagonism was
promoted through projects such as “Adolescent Communicators
– Spokespersons for Children’s Rights”, “Child and Adolescent Promoters of Children’s Rights”, “Child Promoters of the Environment”,
and “Child Health Promoters” in the municipalities where SC Guatemala worked. In addition, the organisation and participation of the
civil society in local and municipal development were promoted by
supporting community organisations to build their capacity for planning, implementation, evaluation and follow-up of plans and projects.
A new strategy to ensure investment in children’s issues was developed through the formulation of municipal public policies for children
and adolescents’ rights.
During the last semester of this period, SC Guatemala, SCN, and SC
USA joined efforts to respond to the emergency caused by Hurricane
Stan in October 2005. Several partner organizations received funding
to carry out necessary actions aimed at alleviating the emergency.
SCN 40
A campaign for positioning SC’s
brand and logo in the region was
launched, through photography
contests; production of agendas, calendars and planners;
and holding concerts in Mexico
and Guatemala.
l
In 2003, the Norwegian Telethon
was assigned to SCN to support
education programmes in Guatemala and Nicaragua, among
other countries.
In 2003, SC at global level was involved in the United Nations’ Study
on Violence. SCN in Nicaragua,
together with SC Sweden, coordinated actions in Latin America.
l
2004
SCN decided to close its office
in Guatemala during the 20062009 strategy period.
l
SCN started a process for closer accompaniment to the 4 SC
members in the region, through
annual meetings
l
2005
The SC Alliance advised
changes in the regional structure. Regional coordination was
maintained in order to exchange
information and Professional Exchange Networks (PENs) were
established. The region decided
to continue to hold annual meetings.
l
In coordination with the National Coordinator for Disaster Reduction
(Coordinadora Nacional para la Reducción de Desastres – CONRED)
and international organisations such as the UNDP, an Emergency Kit
was produced. This kit contained radio messages with an aim to
inform communities and provide them with tools that would enable
their preparedness for emergency situations.
During this period, as part of the development of the Initiative of Children and Youths, children from partner organisations, participating
in networks based on their geographic location, were consulted on
projects they wished to implement. As a result, four projects corresponding to four networks were identified: in the western region, the
network of Children’s Voices – Beauty of the Cultural Dawn (VIBAC for
its name in Spanish) selected a radio project, as did children from the
Verapaces region. The Quiche network decided to hold one children’s
meeting and a public march to demand the fulfilment of children’s
rights. The Metropolitan region decided to hold a Children’s Rights
Fair. SCN provided technical and financial support to the planning
and implementation of these projects. In order to promote technical
training for children, SCN published the Pedagogical Guide for Production of Radio Programmes.
Two books were also published during this period: Tiempos de siembra (Time to Plant), which comprises the theoretical approach of the
Initiative, and Germinando Humanidad (Germinating Humanity) which
provides pedagogical elements applied during this process.
SCN in Guatemala participated in the development of the United Nations’ Study on Violence in 2005. In order to do this, research was
performed in Guatemala, which comprised children with disabilities,
and Garifuna, Mayan and Mestizo children who were not assisted by
NGOs and living in the departments of Alta and Baja Verapaz, Escuintla, Huehuetenango, Izabal, and the department of Guatemala.
The report from Guatemala was included in the regional report submitted to the United Nations. SC Guatemala has followed up and
implemented the recommendations from the Guatemala report.
Six visual reports in Spanish and English were produced as material for communication and advocacy. These were recorded as DVDs
and showed examples of successful projects supported by SCN and
corresponding to each of the strategic objectives selected for this
period. These visual reports enabled SCN to give a human touch to
written reports.
SCN 41
SCN, with representatives from
its head office, visited the four
SC members in the region (Dominican Republic, Guatemala,
Honduras and Mexico). The visit
ended with a joint meeting in
Mexico, where SCN confirmed
the intention to support the organisational strengthening of SC
members in the region.
l
2006-2008
“I would personally like to thank Save
the Children for enabling me to see other
horizons, for believing in me, and for contributing to define a future which was too
difficult to dream of.”
SCN 42
Country context
This period began with the reconstruction in the aftermath of Hurricane Stan, which struck the country in October
2005.
Some of the issues that generated dissent during the last years of the government of Berger were the coming into
force of the Free Trade Agreement between Central America, the Dominican Republic and the United States, the
permanent dissatisfaction among teachers and the continual violence exerted by former civil patrolmen towards
the government in order to receive compensation for services rendered during the internal armed conflict. This
period of government ended with serious accusations relating to environmental issues due to the approval of
contracts for mining exploration that not only had a negative impact but were also rejected by indigenous communities from different locations. In the social arena, Berger’s government achieved improvements in education
through the reduction of illiteracy from 28% to 26% as well as decrease in the number of children repeating grades
in elementary school, from 32% to 25%. The education sector was a priority, coinciding with the interests of the
business sector.1
The Guatemalan government failed to submit its report on the situation of children to the United Nations’ Committee on the Rights of the Child in Geneva in 2006, despite the Committee’s request.
During the last quarter of 2007, the Guatemalan Congress approved the Law on Adoptions. This law is based on
the principles of The Hague Convention on international adoptions, and will enable the regulation of adoption processes, which had turned into a highly profitable business for unscrupulous lawyers.
After long discussions and as a result of lobbying by organizations of the civil society, the CICIG (United Nations’
Commissioner against Impunity in Guatemala) was created on August 1st, 2007 and began operating in January
2008, focusing on counteracting the impunity that prevailed in the country.
Alvaro Colom, from Unidad Nacional de la Esperanza – UNE (National Unity of Hope) was elected President and
assumed office on January 14th, 2008. Despite the claims made during his campaign that his government would
have a social democratic approach, the cabinet did not reflect the cultural and gender diversity one would have
expected from this kind of government.
The continuance of great social deficits, particularly in education, health, employment and security, and the high
poverty rates prevailing in different parts of the country, especially in those municipalities ranked as high-risk areas,
resulted in a significant part of the Guatemalan population remaining in a vulnerable situation. For many decades,
policies implemented by the government have failed to reduce the great social gaps and have not contributed
to transforming these adverse conditions. It is expected that Colom’s government, through the Social Cohesion
Council, will respond to the needs of the poorest and most vulnerable sectors of society. Nevertheless, by the end
of 2008, there was no information available on the impact of the Social Cohesion Council and many of its activities
have a dependency approach.
At this time, it is acknowledged as being unlikely that Guatemala will be able to fulfil the Millennium Goals. Some
examples to illustrate this issue are: in regard to universal elementary education, estimates from the Planning and
Programming Bureau of the Presidency (SEGEPLAN for its name in Spanish) state that the government is only fairly
likely to be able to achieve the goal that all school-age children complete elementary school by the year 2015. In
regard to the reduction of child mortality, this is a challenge for the government and its fulfilment shall depend on
the increase of health services, as well as education coverage. In order to achieve this, it is required that the Guatemalan economy shows an annual growth of at least 4%.
The increase in violence seems to have no end. The year 2006 was considered one of the years with the highest
violence rates: 417 women, 430 children and more than three thousand men had been murdered by August of that
Gómez, Rossana. Balance y perspectiva política de la administración Berger (Political Balance and Perspectiva of the Berger
Administration). USAC, 2006.
1
SCN 43
year.2 In 2007, it was reported that 462 children and adolescents and a growing number of women had died as a
result of violent acts. As of November 2008, 2,956 homicides had been reported, including the murder of three volunteers from one of SCN’s partner organisations. It seems that this situation is the result of an increase in organized
crime, of violence from youth gangs and the ineffective response of the authorities. Extortions, whereby people
receive death threats from gang members or members of organised crime factions if they don’t pay ransoms or
so-called “taxes”, are common practice and on the increase. The main targets for these extortions are drivers of
public buses (more then 120 had been murdered in 2008), formal and informal traders, and schools.
At the present time, the international community does not consider Guatemala as important as it was during the
period of the internal armed conflict as well as during the negotiations and implementation of the Peace Accords.
Nevertheless and in spite of all this, it has been stated recently that the CICIG will operate for two more years.
in Guatemala
In this period, even though working areas were organized in a different way, SCN continued in the same direction as in the previous
period. HIV/AIDS prevention was included as a new issue.
2
Actions during this period were marked by the decision to close SCN’s
office in the country in 2009. Therefore, the gradual phase out from all
cooperation agreements with partner organisations was planned for
the 2007-2008 period. The participation in Rewrite the Future, SC’s
campaign implemented in several countries affected by armed conflicts or in post-conflict contexts, was also relevant. The objective of
this campaign is to provide more access and improved quality education to vulnerable children. Projects linked to the emergency caused
by Hurricane Stan were implemented in 2006 and 2007. It was also
important for the Guatemala programme to participate, together with
Nepal, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Uganda, in the global thematic evaluation on children’s participation in armed conflicts, and post-war and
peace building conflicts.
2006
The number of partner organisations decreased from twenty in 2006
to fifteen in 2008. Nevertheless, the number of children reached has
been maintained at a level of 60,000 per year, due to the extension of
the education programme within the framework of Rewrite the Future.
Actions were implemented in Alta and Baja Verapaz, Chimaltenango,
Chiquimula, Escuintla, Izabal, Jalapa, Quiché, Retalhuleu, Sololá,
Suchitepequez, Zacapa and the metropolitan area of Guatemala City.
Some actions had national impact; such as the radio programme Chispas al Aire (Sparks in the Air).
l
It is also worth mentioning that Children’s Elections were held in
2007, with the support of SCN and other entities. A total of 450,000
children took part in the elections, were trained on children’s rights
and fulfilled one of their democratic duties.
SC Mexico established emergency relief programmes for members
that work in Latin America.
Report submitted to Philip Alston, Special Rapporteur for Extrajudicial Executions
SCN 44
Under the leadership of SC
Guatemala, SC members in
Guatemala (Guatemala, Norway
and USA) coordinated actions to
respond to the aftermath of Hurricane Stan (October 2005) with
the support of the Dutch government through SC Netherlands,
and the Norwegian Ministry of
Foreign Affairs
l
SC’s 2006 – 2010 campaign Rewrite the Future was launched in
2006, in several countries affected
by armed conflicts or in post-conflict contexts. In Guatemala this
campaign is coordinated by SC
Guatemala, with the participation
of SCN and SC USA.
l
Children’s right to education. During this period, in cooperation with
partner organisations, the quality education approach continued to
be implemented, with an aim to improve the quality of learning for
school children, to minimize school drop out rate and to contribute
to the coverage of education as a national goal of the Ministry of
Education. Education activities for working children and children with
disabilities continued to be carried out. Teachers from the national
education system were trained on the use of active methodologies.
The participation in the Rewrite the Future campaign created the opportunity for implementation of other objectives in addition to quality, such as: education coverage, protection and financing. An initial
product of the cooperation between SC and the Ministry of Education was the study to re-structure a model of intercultural bilingual
education performed by the Vice-ministry of Intercultural Bilingual
Education, with the support of SC Guatemala and SCN. The objective of this product was to strengthen and implement intercultural
and bilingual education for children from the four population groups:
Maya, Garifuna, Xinca and Ladino.
The rights of children affected by armed conflicts and disasters.
The identification and documentation of new cases of disappeared
children continued, and disappeared children (who are now adults)
were reunited with their biological families. The creation of an Association of Relatives of Disappeared Children was extremely important since their legal status will enable them to contact the National
Compensation Programme to demand that their cases be followedup. Community mental health processes with children continued to
be supported and these children were supported to become mental
health promoters in Quiche, one of the most affected departments
during the internal armed conflict. 450 children from five partner organisations participated in the global evaluation on children’s participation in armed conflicts, post-war and peace building contexts.
These children did not only provide information but also participated
as researchers. The evaluation process was designed to build the
capacity of children, both at individual and at group level. This complemented all the efforts implemented by SCN since 2000, in relation
to children’s participation through the Initiative. Some of the relevant
findings of this evaluation are the impact of violence and gangs in
children’s lives and the need to be considered and respected as
holders of rights. The main recommendation of the study was that
the issue of historical memory be addressed by teachers in the national education system. As of 2007, SC Guatemala began assisting
a group of Guatemalan returnees who used to live in Bolivia and have
now settled in Livingston.
SCN 45
2007
SC United Kingdom ended
the cooperation with Guatemala
upon leaving the region in 2007.
l
SC Spain initiated cooperation
with SC Guatemala, as part of
the regional project for preventing child trafficking in El Salvador,
Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua. Project implementation
started in 2008.
l
An agreement with the Ministry
of Education, through the Viceministry of Intercultural Bilingual
Education, was signed in 2007,
within the framework of the Rewrite the Future campaign in
Guatemala
l
As part of Rewrite the Future,
the three SC members (Guatemala, Norway and USA) and SCN’s
partner organizations, organised
two encounters of educators
(2007-2008). The objectives of
the encounters were to facilitate
exchange and validation of successful education experiences to
build on the process of learning
of school children. The Ministry of
Education directly participated in
the second encounter.
l
2008
SC Sweden and SC Guatemala
agreed that, as of 2008, all of SC
Sweden activities in Guatemala
would be carried out through
agreements signed with SC Guatemala.
l
Children’s right to the protection against physical and psychological violence and sexual abuse. A protection network is operating
and carrying out activities for preventing and protecting Guatemalan
children from violence and sexual abuse. The results of the United
Nations’ Study on Violence were disseminated, and the creation of
Municipal Protection Boards for Children at local level was supported.
Schools participating in Rewrite the Future programmes have begun
implementing protection activities.
l
Children’s right to protection against the impact of HIV/AIDS. During 2006 and 2007 the use of the 1540 hotline was promoted among
school children and young people, so that they would have access to
information on sexuality, sexually transmitted diseases and HIV/AIDS.
The inter-institutional coordination with SCN’s partner organisations
was promoted in order to disseminate educational information on
HIV/AIDS among groups of organised children.
l
To achieve better results for children through a stronger Save the
Children. In order to contribute to the achievement of this strategic
objective, SCN in Guatemala supported the organisational strengthening of SC Guatemala and SC Mexico, participated in the coordination between SC members in Guatemala as well as the coordination
at regional level. In Guatemala, emphasis was made on the Rewrite
the Future campaign and in the formulation of plans to respond jointly
to emergencies.
To strengthen the implementation and monitoring of children’s
rights. Journalists were trained to address children’s issues with a
rights based approach. In 2006, the radio programme Chispas al Aire
was created, which is broadcast every week on a radio station with
nationwide coverage. Children and adolescents from regional groups
produced radio programmes to be broadcast at local level, and which
were then in turn to be used as inputs for Chispas al Aire.
SC Guatemala actively participated in several networks for children
and edited a report on the situation of children in 17 municipalities.
At local level, it supported that municipalities allocate budget and
implement plans to benefit children and promoted the implementation of public policies and the formulation of new policies for the 2008
– 2012 period. It supported the integration of a social movement for
children in the different communities where it works. Children and
adolescents organised themselves as promoters of children’s rights,
the environment, health, culture and sports and as communicators
through the radio. SC Guatemala also carried out relevant actions in
regard to the Community Development Committees and the Municipal Development Commitees trained leaders and promoted womens
participation.
SCN 46
SCN in Nicaragua was unified
with the other SC members in the
country (Canada, Norway, Spain,
Sweden and USA) and the unified presence programme SC in
Nicaragua was set up during the
second half of 2008. SCN is the
managing member.
Last year of operations of SCN
in Guatemala.
SCN, SC in Nicaragua and the
four SC members of the region
(Dominican Republic, Guatemala,
Honduras and Mexico) held a
meeting to re-confirm SCN’s commitment to support the organisational strengthening of the four SC
members, despite the fact that, as
of 2009, SCN will not have an office in the region.
l
SCN in Guatemala continued to
accompany SC Mexico during this
period.
l
In January 2009, three representatives of the more than 400
children and adolescents who
participated throughout the process of the thematic evaluation
on participation will attend the
Closing Workshop and Global
Launch of the report of the aforementioned evaluation. This event
will take place in Oslo, Norway.
Children and youth representatives from Bosnia-Herzegovina,
Nepal and Uganda, the other
three countries that participated
in this evaluation, will also attend
this activity.
l
To combat political and economic structures and systems that violate children’s rights. The financial support granted to the Ministry of
Labour and Social Welfare was complemented by UNICEF and the
ILO so that said Ministry could continue to follow up the prevention of
child labour, through the department sub-secretariats that are operating in Huehuetenango, Quiché and San Marcos; likewise, they have
opened two new sub-secretariats in the departments of Sololá and
Totonicapan, with the same aim as the aforementioned.
During this period, no specific activities of the Initiative were carried
out; nevertheless, through the daily activities of partner organisations
and regional child participation groups (in radio activities and in the
fair) it was possible to observe the impact in regards to the application of the principles of self-organisation, interdependence and sustainability in relation to children and youth participation. The book
La Primavera está aquí (Spring is Here), which compiles successful
stories of the child participation networks which were created back
in 2003, was published. In order to continue supporting and building
the capacity of educators from partner organisations, SCN published
the books entitled Jugando con el arte 1, 2 and 3; (Playing with Art
1, 2 and 3), Los Jóvenes Cósmicos (Cosmic Youths), and El Libro de
las Emociones (The Book of Emotions).
Due to the closing of the office, SCN planned for more intensive
organisational strengthening in administrative-financial issues for
partner organisations. During this period, workshops were held on
project formulation, updated laws on accounting and fiscal issues
regarding NGOs, prevention of fraud; social marketing for NGOs and
fundraising.
SCN 47
“For a long time, I would only think about one person: Me. I
had no idea about what was going on around me and I only
considered relevant those facts that had a direct influence on me:
my life and my education. One day, I joined IDEI’s group and
there I realized that there were many things I had been ignoring
… that everything is not as I imagined it to be, that there were
many problems in our communities which had an influence on
the everyday activities of many children, and I understood that
every one of us can be part of a daily effort to overcome obstacles. For my part, I have learned that I can be the voice of those
who do not have a voice, and I try to make the most out of those
communication spaces to which I have access.”
Norma Elizabeth, adolescent from the Parliament
SCN 48
summing up
After this run through of 32 years of work, we would like to highlight very briefly the following themes addressed
throughout the years:
Education
Since the beginning of Save the Children Norway’s work in Guatemala, education became one of its main crosscutting issues, starting with reconstruction and building schools. The priorities have evolved, according to national
education policies that respond to the Guatemalan Constitution, the Accord on Identity and Rights of Indigenous
Populations, and Conventions ratified by the State, as well as Declarations at Forums and Conferences, and the
Millennium Development Goals. All of these documents highlight the Right to Education.
The quality of education became SCN’s main approach to be implemented in the classrooms, to ensure children’s
access, permanence and learning throughout elementary school. Inclusive education was developed by which education experiences of working children, intercultural bilingual education, education for children with disabilities and integral education for children’s early years were supported and endorsed by the Ministry of Education of Guatemala.
These processes were strengthened by the implementation of the campaign Rewrite the Future including another
important objective: protection of school children.
Children and armed conflicts
This is another theme that started out with support to widows and orphans due to the violence of the armed conflict.
SCN also supported the return of refugees in Mexico, as well as psycho-social assistance and accompaniment not
only for children, but also for others affected by the internal armed conflict. In order to fulfil the recommendations of
the Report on Historical Clarification1, SCN supported the search for children who disappeared during the conflict
and several of these children (now adults) were re-united with their biological families. These experiences have
brought about significant changes in the lives of these persons. Processes for recovering the historical memory
were also accompanied in order to enable the population to build on their identity and plan future actions with an
aim to building truly significant peace. Materials on this issue was delivered to schools, and teachers were trained
on the use of the materials. This contributed to ensuring that some schools are able to provide education with a
historical perspective to the students. Children, adolescents and youths, from their contexts, have implemented
projects that contribute to building peace and which, in addition, have enabled them to gain relevant skills and
capabilities for participating in their communities.
Violence against children and adolescents
In the mid 90s, SCN started to support processes for prevention of violence against children in its different spaces
and forms. Initially, child abuse was considered the main issue, whereas actions later on were focused on the prevention of physical, psychological, sexual and social violence.
Due to its magnitude and importance, SCN supported the United Nations’ Global Study on Violence against Children and Adolescents. After receiving the General Report, child-friendly versions were prepared and distributed,
and applied at local level. At the present time, activities for protection in schools covered by the Rewrite the Future
campaign are being implemented.
1
By CEH —Comisión de Esclarecimiento Histórico.
SCN 49
Child labour
Since the very first years of SCN in Guatemala, assistance was provided to children who work in their communities,
without the ILO’s child labour focus. By the end of the 80s, SCN was focussing its actions on groups of working
children in urban areas, promoting their access to elementary education, contributing to reducing the number of
children who join the labour market, according to ILO’s Convention 138, which sets the minimum age for children
to start working. These actions were intensified during the 90s.
In 1999, Convention 182 on “the Worst Forms of Child Labour” was approved, within which framework working
children continued to be assisted, in coordination with UNICEF, IPEC/ILO and the Ministry of Labour and Social
Welfare. One of the milestones was the approval of the National Plan for the Eradication of Child Labour and setting
up of executive secretariats, both at national and departmental level. These were established in the departments of
San Marcos, Huehuetenango, Quiché and Totonicapán, with the participation of municipal authorities and entities
of the Ministry in these departments.
Children’s rights
Children’s rights have always been at the core of actions implemented by SCN, and since 1989, they have turned
into the cornerstone of the work to support partner organisations and children’s groups. Work on children’s rights
has enabled the creation of networks and alliances that have not only implemented advocacy activities but also
actions to promote the Convention on the Rights of the Child. Since the approval of the Convention, SCN has
been involved in supporting the adaptation of the laws of the country in regard to this Convention, in monitoring
its compliance and enforceability both at local and national level. The approval of the Law for Integral Protection of
Children and Adolescents was the corollary of a long-term process that entailed many actions in order to achieve
the approval of a law that is congruent with the Convention. As a result, many municipalities at local level have allocated funding and implemented activities and works for children, which has improved their life conditions.
Working principles
In addition to non-discrimination and advocacy for children’s rights and children’s participation, the principle of
building the capacity of local structures is highlighted. This started out with the support to community organisations
back in 1976 and the nationalisation, in 1983, of the programme Alianza para el Desarrollo Juvenil Comunitario
(now SC Guatemala), as well as the accompaniment and building of capacities of partner organisations in the 90s,
which, in turn, gave way to the process, started in 1999, entitled “Initiative for children and youth in a post-war and
peace building context”.
As a result of “The Initiative”, several organisations gained a new perspective on how to address children’s participation in their groups. This new perspective, in line with the rights based approach, has resulted in meaningful
participation by children. One of the most developed aspects was interdependence, through which, partner organisations started to cooperate among themselves, enabling them to have a greater impact on the lives of children
who work with them. It has also enabled them to negotiate joint technical and financial support that benefits them
collectively. In the pedagogical arena, tools for developing more democratic participation processes have been
adapted. Another result was the participation of organised children in regional groups of communicators.
In the past few years, the organisational strengthening of SC Guatemala has been a priority, due to the fact that it
is the national SC member in the country.
Evaluations
Even though, it has not been mentioned in the document, SCN’s programme in Guatemala as well as projects
implemented by partner organisations, have taken part in many evaluations during this period. Evaluations contrib-
SCN 50
uted to improving performance in the field of cooperation within the country. For SCN, some of these evaluations
had a national approach, and some had a global approach. In the latter, the Guatemala programme was able to
compare its experiences with those from other countries where SCN works. Some of the most recent evaluations
were: Alternative Quality Education: the education projects of ASCATED, FUNDEMI, PENNAT and PRODESSA
(2001); Save the Children Norway in Guatemala’s Partnership Evaluation (2002); Evaluation of the 1998 – 2001 Programme Period of Save the Children Norway in Guatemala; Global Evaluation on Children and Armed Conflicts and
Disasters (2004); Evaluation of the Initiative of Children in a Post-war and Peace Building Context (2005); Evaluation
on Development Cooperation through Non-Governmental Organisations in Guatemala (2007); Global Thematic
Evaluation on Children’s Participation in Armed Conflicts, Post-conflict and Peace Building Contexts (2006-2008),
and Evaluation–SC Guatemala (2008).
SCN 51
the future
“The organised work started out because
of the different problems that exist in
my community, and because we did not
have a space to express ourselves. In the
region we expect that our rights are respected and that children and adolescents
are given the importance they deserve.”
María Tiniguar
SCN 52
The closing of the office by the end of March 2009 does not mean the end of the cooperation with the country.
This cooperation will continue through a partnership with Save the Children Guatemala to support processes that
enable children and adolescents to be present in the agenda of the State, local authorities, and the civil society so
that their rights to participation, quality education and to a life without violence are actually fulfilled.
Support will continue to be provided to the Programme for Working Children and Adolescents (PENNAT for its
name in Spanish); the Quality Education Group; four regional projects of child participation through radio and the
Children’s rights fair; and to Association Comunicares, which produces the radio programme Chispas al Aire. This
support will be channeled through Save the Children Guatemala.
Even though the way in which Save the Children Norway cooperates will change, its commitment to Guatemalan
children and adolescents stands firm.
SCN 53
Partner Organisations 1984-2008
Name of the organisations
Cooperation period
ACJ - Asociación Cristiana de Jóvenes
2002-2008
ACNI - Asociación Cultural de la Niñez
1994-2004
ADEBQ’I - Asociación de Educadores Bilingües Q’eqchi de Izabal
2002-2007
ADMI/ CEFIMI - Asociación de la Mujer Maya Ixil / Centro de Educación
y Formación Infantil Maya Ixil
1995- 2003
AEMG - Asociación de Escritores Mayanses de Guatemala
1990-1993
AGEMA - Asociación para el Desarrollo Generación de Maíz
1996-1999, 2005
AGPCS - Asociación Guatemalteca para la Prevención y Control del SIDA
AMI - Acción Médica Infantil
1996-1998
1990-1993, 1996 -1999
APAES Solidaridad - Asociación para la Prevención y Asistencia a Enfermos de SIDA
1995-1998
APAPTIX - Asociación de Promotores Agrícolas y Pecuarios del Triángulo Ixil
1995-1999, 2002-2005
ASCATED - Asociación de Capacitación y Asistencia Técnica en Educación
y Discapacidad
1996-1999, 2002-2008
ASEDSA - Asociación para la Economía y el Desarrollo Social Autosostenible
1995, 1997-2003
ASI - Asociación de Salud Integral
2004-2007
Asociación COMUNICARES - Comunicación Pro Mujer, Niñez y Comunidades
Asociación Conrado de la Cruz
2008
1996, 1998-2001
Asociación Futuro Vivo
2004 -2008
Asociación Uk’ U’x B’e
2006-2008
Asociación Utz K’aslemal
2002-2008
CALDH - Centro para la Acción Legal en Derechos Humanos
1998-2000
CAM - Centro de Aprendizaje Maya
1994-1999
CAMM - Centro de Aprendizaje Maya Mam
1999-2001
CECMA - Centro de Estudios de la Cultura Maya
1995-1996
CEIPA - Centro Ecuménico de Integración Pastoral
1991-2000
CENDEP - Centro de Estudios para el Desarrollo de los Pueblos
1998-2004
Centro Maya Saqb’e
1996, 1998-2005
CEODI - Centro de Educación Ocupacional y Desarrollo Integral
1991, 1993-1996
CHILDHOPE
1995-1996, 2003-2005
CHOLSAMAJ
1991-1992
CIPRODENI - Coordinadora Institucional de Promoción por los Derechos del
Niño
1989-1990, 1992-1996,
1998-2000
CNEM - Consejo Nacional de Educación Maya
1996-2001, 2003-2008
COCEP - Colectivo de Centros de Educación Popular de Guatemala
1998-1999
Comité Femenino Chajabal
1996-1997
CONACMI - Comisión Nacional contra el Maltrato Infantil
SCN 54
1989-1991, 1993-1998,
2006-2008
CORDIC / ASEDSE - Coordinadora Regional de Desarrollo Integral Comunitario
1995-1997
DIGEBI - Dirección General de Educación Bilingüe Intercultural del Ministerio de Educación
2004-2007
Diócesis del Quiché
1995-2001
DOSES - Asociación Desarrollo, Organización, Servicios y Estudios
Socioculturales / La Nana
2004-2007
EDECRI - Escuela de Educación Especial y Centro de Rehabilitación Integral
1996-2008
ESF - Escuela Sin Fronteras
1996 -2001
FADES - Fundación para el Análisis y Desarrollo de Centroamérica
2003, 2007
FLACSO - Facultad Latinoamericana de Ciencias Sociales
2004-2008
FUNDAJU - Fundación para la Juventud
1999- 2005
FUNDEMI/Talita Kumi - Fundación para el Desarrollo de la Mujer Indígena
1995-2008
FUNDESCO - Fundación para el Desarrollo Comunitario
1991-1999
Grupo de Calidad Educativa
2005-2008
Grupo de Mujeres Chajabal
1994-1998
GTI - Grupo de Seguimiento al tema de Trabajo Infantil
2002-2005
HIJOS - Hijos e hijas por la Identidad y la Justicia contra el Olvido y el Silencio
2003-2005
IDEI - Asociación de Investigación, Desarrollo y Educación Integral
1991, 1993-2005, 2007
IIPS - Instituto para la Investigación Política y Social
1996-1997
IRIPAZ - Instituto de Relaciones Internacionales y de Investigación para la Paz
1995-1997
La Novena
1986-1987, 1989-1991
Liga Guatemalteca de Higiene Mental
2002-2007
Ministerio de Trabajo
1999, 2006-2008
Movimiento Social por los Derechos de la Niñez y la Adolescencia
1998-2000
ODHAG - Oficina de Derechos Humanos del Arzobispado de Guatemala
2005 -2008
PAMI - Asociación Programa de Apoyo para la Salud Materno Infantil y
para la Salud de otros Grupos en Riesgo
2002, 2006-2007
Pastoral Social de la Niñez en Desamparo - Diócesis de Cobán
1994-2001
PDH - Procuraduría de Derechos Humanos
2002-2008
PENNAT - Programa Educativo de la Niña, Niño y Adolescente Trabajador
1996-2008
PRODEN - Comisión para la Convención de los Derechos de la Niñez
1995 -1996, 1998-1999
PRODESSA - Proyecto de Desarrollo Santiago
1991, 1996, 1998-2003
PRONICE - ProNiño y Niña Centroamericanos
1995 -2001, 2004- 2005
SADEGUA - Servicios y Apoyo al Desarrollo de Guatemala
1992, 1995-2004, 2007
SAVE THE CHILDREN GUATEMALA (inicialmente conocido como Alianza
para el Desarrollo Juvenil Comunitario - ADEJUC)
1984-2008
SODIFAG - Sociedad para el Desarrollo Integral de la Familia Guatemalteca
1989-1995
Sólo para Mujeres (Centro Educacional y vocacional)
1993-1996
TIMACH - Centro de Estudios Mayas Adrián Chávez
2003-2004, 2006
SCN 55
Save the Children Norway in Guatemala
Personnel 1987-2009
Accountant
Zaira Arevalo
1997-2009
Administrative Assistants
Julieta Zenteno
Patricia Badillo
1994-2009
1998-1999
Administrative Coordinators
Thelma Padilla
Dora Mancio 1987-1997
1998-1999
Communication Coordinators
Raúl Piedrasanta
Claudia Cabrera
1998-1999
1999-2008
Drivers / Messengers
Miguel Ángel Calderón
Mario Roberto García Carlos Fedorenko
Héctor Castellanos
Francisco Taque
1996-1997
1997-1999
1999-2000
2001-2004
2006-2009
Financial Coordinators
Héctor Sánchez Jorge Pecks 1997-1998
1998-2009
Gardener
Bernardo Solís
1987-2000
Janitors
Verónica Cuyún
Maria del Rosario Alvarado
Maria Luisa Castañeda 1987-2000
1998-2000
2003-2009
Programme Assistant
Ingrid van der Sluys Veer de Soto
2000–2009
Programme Coordinators
Víctor Hugo López José Campang Diana García Marta García Brenda Córdova Carlos Lima Johanna Godoy 1988-1996
1988-2000
1994-1996
1994-2000
1997-1998
1997-2005
1997-2009
SCN 56
Heliodoro Cumes Ubaldo Ruíz 1997-2009
1999-2009
Programme Coordinators in Honduras
José Luis Utrera Reynelda Aguilar María Alicia Fuentes 1989
1991-1997
1998-2000
Secretaries / Receptionists
Gladys Reyes
Lillian Córdova
1996-1998
1998-2000
Country Representatives
Ann-Lis Svensson-Niño
Annette Giertsen
Beate Thoresen (acting)
Tom Lent
Eva Irene Tuft
David Bergan
Jon Bakkerud
Kari Thomassen
1987-1989
1989-1993
1993
1993-1998
1998-2000
2000-2003
2003-2006
2006-2009
SCN 57
“As the Intercultural Children and Youth
Movement, we realized that in order to
make sure that our requests were heard, it
was necessary to have the support from the
other members and to invite other children
to organize as well.”
Eric Samuel, boy from the Intercultural
Children and Youth Movement

Partner Organisations 1984-2008

Transcription

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