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Braving the streets of Brazil: Children, their rights, and the roles of local NGOs in northeast Brazil

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Braving the streets of Brazil: Children, their rights, and the roles of local NGOs in northeast Brazil

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Content INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UM I films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UM I a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these w ill be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note w ill indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand comer and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. ProQuest Information and Learning 300 North Zeeb Road. Ann Arbor, M l 48106-1346 USA 800-521-0600 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. BRAVING THE STREETS OF BRAZIL: CHILDREN, THEIR RIGHTS, AND THE ROLES OF LOCAL NGOS IN NORTHEAST BRAZIL by Robert Heman Cubillos A Dissertation Presented to the FACULTY OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY (RELIGION AND SOCIAL ETHICS) August 2002 Copyright 2002 Robert H. Cubillos Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UMI Number: 3073764 Copyright 2002 by Cubillos, Robert Heman All rights reserved. ___ ® UMI UMI Microform 3073764 Copyright 2003 by ProQuest Information and Learning Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. ProQuest Information and Learning Company 300 North Zeeb Road P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, M l 48106-1346 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. UNIVERSITY OF SOU HERN CALIFORNIA THE GRADU.' IE SCHOOL UNIVERSr Y PA JU C LOS ANGELES. O LtfORNIA M O O T This dissertation, writte: by R obert Hernan Cut .llo s under the direction of h _ _ Dissertation Committee, and approoa; by ail its member* has been presented to a, id accepted by The Graduate School in part: ai fulfillment of re quirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PH IOSOPHY D ate A H I .6/.. 2002_____ DISSERTATION COMMIT EE Omirjtno* Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. DEDICATION For the world’s street children and their NGO advocates. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Many individuals contribute to a work such as this. I wish to express my sincere appreciation and gratitude to my dissertation committee: Professor Steven Toulmin (Chair), Professor Alison Dundes Renteln, and Professor John B. Orr who also chaired my comprehensive examinations committee. Deep appreciation for the lecture invitations and research opportunities goes to Jovens com uma Missao, in Recife and Fortaleza, Brazil. Mention ought also be made of the very valuable time shared with many wonderful people in Brazil, in particular, Mr. and Mrs. Mati Gali for enabling me to observe and experience their unique compassion for the street children of Recife first hand and Demares Silveria for her gifted assistance and superb language skills. And, finally, I wish to express my indebtedness to each member of my family; to Deb for her continuous support and encouragement, and to Robby and Kelli, who permitted my spending less time with them in order that I might complete my research and writing. My family’s reliable affection has sustained me throughout this project. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. CONTENTS Page DEDICATION................................................................................................................ ii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS............................................................................................. iii LIST OF TABLES......................................................................................................... vi ABSTRACT..................................................................................................................vii Chapter I. INTRODUCTION...............................................................................................1 II. SOCIAL JUSTICE AND CHILDREN: A BRIEF HISTORY OF ETHICS AND RIGHTS......................................... 33 HI. NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS: THE SOCIAL FOCI OF LOCAL HUMAN RIGHTS INTEREST GROUPS.......................................................................74 IV. LOCAL NGOS AND SOCIAL RELIEF ACTIVITIES FOR CHILDREN IN RECIFE...............................................123 V. CHILDREN AND THEIR ETHICAL SPHERES: STREET AND HOME, SHELTER, AND NGO.......................................... 192 VI. BRAVING THE STREETS OF BRAZIL: NGOS AND THE AUTONOMY ENHANCEMENT OF STREET CHILDREN.................... 227 VH. CONCLUSION...............................................................................................276 BIBLIOGRAPHY....................................................................................................... 286 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. V Appendices A. PRINCIPLES ON THE EFFECTIVE PREVENTION AND INVESTIGATION OF EXTRA-LEGAL, ARBITRARY AND SUMMARY EXECUTIONS............................................................... 302 B. CODE OF CONDUCT FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS 307 C. BASIC PRINCIPLES ON THE USE OF FORCE AND FIREARMS BY LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS...............................313 D. CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD.................................. 320 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. LIST OF TABLES Tables Page 1.1 Focus of 5,000 New Brazilian NGOs................................................................10 1.2 Membership Structures of NGOs...................................................................... 12 3.1 Terms used to define NGOs.............................................................................. 75 3.2 Areas of NGO Operations................................................................................. 77 3.3 Comparison of the Need Hierarchy and an NGO M odel............................ 101 3.4 NGOs and Basic Human Rights......................................................................102 3.5 NGO Approaches.......................................................................................... 108 3.6 Brazilian NGOs Comprising the Internet PO P...............................................I l l 3.7 Characteristics for Understanding NG Os....................................................... 119 4.1 Indicators of Education and Literacy: Brazil and the United States 140 4.2 Statistics— Creche Communitaria.....................................................................145 4.3 NGO Stages— Subsistence to Empowerment.................................................. 184 5.1 Recife Social Actors........................................................................................ 219 Figure 3.1 NGO Matrix of Social Foci.......................................................................... 121 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. ABSTRACT Scholars have studied nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and the proliferation of their socio-political activities around the globe since their inception in the early nineteenth century. Yet little has been done to examine the status of emerging local NGOs in general and to describe their dedicated efforts toward poor street children in particular. This study investigates the tragedy, the intensity, and the drama of street children in northeast Brazil, Recife, and some of the local NGOs who are just as real and central a character. It is argued that the description of Brazilian street children is entirely deficient if the roles of local NGOs are ignored or treated as peripheral. NGOs recognize that the long-term poor bear few of the attributes that social advancement necessitates. Furthermore, while some researchers underscore the social complexities that result in children showing up on the street and others concentrate on their eradication from the street, this study argues that street children will continue to inhabit the streets and will use NGOs’ resources to secure their survival and success. After an introductory, chapter two explores the evolution of the concept of childhood through various periods of significant philosophical and theological thought. It is argued that among the various historical conceptions of childhood and their bases for ethical reflection and just action toward children, a suitable equilibrium between the rights of children and the rights of parents to control and Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. viii direct the behavior of their children is unresolved. Moreover, traditional concepts of childhood are antithetical to the Brazilian street context. Chapter three describes this social backdrop and the roots of child suffering in Northeastern Brazil. It identifies their needs and argues that within a broad context of NGOs they operate with a limited number of social foci, apart from which NGO roles are difficult~if not impossible— to understand. Using the foci described in chapter three, chapter four discusses the author’s narratives from his field research and demonstrates how NGOs, with their various alignments, are striving to fulfill the needs of street children. Then, in examining the social ethics of Brazilian local NGOs and the ethical spheres where street children exist in chapter five, the chapter draws together the moral issues of local Brazilian NGOs and emphasizes the ethical issues surrounding the plight of street children. It is asserted that through the assistance of local NGOs, children are not only prepared to work and survive on the street, but gain a greater sense of autonomy and remain on the street. Chapter six describes the limitations and new opportunities for NGOs and the street children. The chapter also provides recommendations for local Brazilian NGOs to make sustained impacts upon the Brazilian politics of children’s human rights and local governmental decision making. The concluding chapter summarizes and assesses the findings of this research. Suggestions for further research are also outlined. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 Chapter I INTRODUCTION Until recently, it was a common conviction among most non-Brazilians that the Brazilian childhood experience, apart from the yearly Carnival, was filled with kite flying, futbol games, the circus, going to the zoo, and picnics on a broad, snow-white beach. Mixed with the many other experiences that typify childhood in general, it may have been thought that Brazilian children perchance also enjoy ferry boat rides to visit nearby islands and drives along slow, winding roads under high-arched trees. One can easily step into a Brazilian child’s romanticized notions of fairy-story-styled cottages covered with red and purple and gold flowering vines. More difficult to imagine for non-Brazilians is the lure and luxe of Carnival, its mystical appeal, and dream-creating quintessence for Brazilian children. Excerpts from Vera Kelsey’s tale of a Brazilian child captured this experience. Maria Rosa opened one eye a tiny bit. Yes, there was the round red face of the sun. That meant it would be a fine day. She listened and heard puffs and thuds. That mean that her brothers, Jonjuco and Carlos, were playing leapfrog while they waited for her. She heard something else. ‘O-O-O-O, Aurora,’ ’ Benedita was singing outside her door. Benedita was her best friend and daughter of her jolly black nurse. ‘O-O-O-O, Aurora,’ was a Carnival song. Carnival! Maria Rosa sat up eagerly. As Benedita’s kinky head, dotted with bits of braids and ribbons, peeped in her door, she cried, ‘Is it time, Benedita? Is it the day?’ “I am six years old and a big girl now. And I will go to Carnival. Won’t I, Benedita?’ Maria Rosa could not decide what she liked best. The warm sand? The sparkling little waves that rolled over her bare feet? The huge bright Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. butterflies? The picnic? The stories Vovo {her grandfather} told her about the Indians who had lived there once, hunting and fishing? How beautiful Mamae was! Surely the loveliest mother in the whole world! And now she had gone to Carnival! Maria Rosa clung more tightly still to Vovo’s hand. She was going to Carnival, too. And Benedita with her. She knew it. Now they were passing through streets where streetcars, busses, auto mobiles, and sidewalks were overflowing with people in all kinds of costumes. And all were going in the same direction.. . . Slowly they crept ahead while confetti and serpentines rained down on them from windows crowded with laughing, singing people, from sidewalks, from other cars___ And Vovo was ripping open a fat package that had lain at his feet. On Maria Rosa’s dark curls he placed a little golden crown. About her shoulders he fastened a long blue satin cape lined with gold. ‘Now you are a Queen,’ he said. ‘And I am your knight. And Benedita--’ he drew out a cape of darker blue for her~‘Benedita is your lady in waiting.’ The story of Rosa Maria and her dream-like parade in the streets of Brazil and her coronation as the Queen of the Carnival for whom King Momo had been searching ends with her falling asleep in the King’s firm arms. The singing and laughter come to her from further away. She rocks on waves and whirls of light and tangled confetti. “The Queen is wiser than the King,” she heard King Momo’s voice saying, far away, too. “She knows there will be other years and other Carnivals. She sleeps.”1 Nowadays, “the modem Brazilian camaval embodies a single overriding ethic: the conviction that in spite of all the evidence to the contrary, there still exists 1. Vera Kelsey and Candido Portinari, Maria Rosa: Everyday Fun and Carnival Frolic With Children In Brazil (Garden City: Doubleday, Doran & Co., 1942): passim. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 3 a time and place where complete freedom is possible.”2 Indeed, the dream of Carnival and the yearning to dance and parade in the streets of Brazil has been supplanted for many children with the reality of the need to survive on the streets of Brazil. While all Brazilian children awake from their dreams with the same question as Maria Rosa, “Was it really real?” many do not have the privilege of awaking to the sound of dancing feet in their doorways, or to the warm embrace of a loved one, or to the rousing scent of breakfast prepared for them. For these, their waking hours are spent in search of food, their days are filled with hawking tidbits to obtain drugs to escape their reality, and their evenings spent evading the police and searching out a safe place to sleep. Living the nightmare of the streets of Brazil, the existence of these “have- nots” is increasingly punctuated by the growing assistance and numbers of local Brazilian non-governmental organizations (NGOs). Other “have-nots” include the children of the Brazilian favelas (shanty towns) where some NGO workers are intimately acquainted with the plight of these growing numbers of poor children. One NGO worker, Sarah de Carvalho, lives in the favelas with the poor in order to provide care for the children in present-day Brazil. Her story is a striking contrast to the preceding tale. I heard the crack of a gunshot. My heart skipped a beat. But it sounded far in the distance from where we were, so I relaxed again, wiping the sweat off my 2. Richard G. Parker, Bodies, Pleasures, and Passions: Sexual Culture in Contemporary Brazil (Boston: Beacon Press, 1991): 140. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 4 brow. My head felt as if it would burst from the heat of the Brazilian afternoon sun. Suddenly another shot rang out, now louder than the first. I felt my heart beating faster and my mouth was becoming dry. Then two shots, three shots, four shots... ‘Oh my God,’ I heard myself cry out, ‘they’re coming closer.’ ‘They’re above us, Sarah,’ screamed Lila. ‘Quick, lie down on the floor,’ I shouted back. The four of us sprawled on the cold mud floor, filling the tiny slum hut. The pressure of someone’s body was over my legs, and my head was squashed under the old iron bed, restricting all movement. My heart was racing, my thoughts were running in a hundred different directions. A bullet whistled over the tin and cardboard roof... then from the opposite direction an explosion of bullets rained out from a machine gun in retaliation. We were caught in the middle of a crossfire. The baby started to cry. I shifted my body and stretched out my left arm, straining to touch him. I reached his small soft foot and held it. He can’t die, I pleaded in my thoughts, he’s so young. I could hear someone else crying. ‘Sarah,’ exclaimed Lila, ‘they’re all around us.’ ‘It’s the gang from the other favela of Casa Branca,’ gasped Andre, ‘they heard that the police were here this morning and that they managed to arrest some of the leaders and members of Borel’s quadrilha {gangsters}. Now Casa Branca think it’s their opportunity to fight back at their rival enemies here in Borel.’3 Carvalho’s Brazilian “neighborhood”--like the majority of other favelas— are protected by their own gangs. Formerly a journalist, she reports that the gangs’ “livelihoods are made from the trafficking of drugs and from robberies. The more drugs trafficked, the more powerful and rich the gang.”4 Berkeley anthropologist Scheper-Hughes confirms that it is the “Columbian cartels and the Italian Mafia, trafficking in cocaine, {who} brought upscale firearms into the shanty towns and 3. Sarah de Carvalho, The Street Children o f Brazil: One Woman's Remarkable Story (London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1996): 1-2. 4. Ibid. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 5 distributed them to youths and even to street children, whom they also recruited as messengers.”5 From the relatively carefree and secure existence of Maria Rosa to gun wielding juvenile druglord messengers, the children of Brazil constitute a much more difficult to understand present social crisis and a future unknown to the Brazilian social order. It is little surprise that the children, their streetlife, and their domiciles are quickly becoming the subjects of academic and popular media notoriety. Indeed, the shantytowns themselves engender a curious inquisitiveness: now also among tourists. The hot new attractions for visitors to Rio de Janeiro are thefavelas— ihose infamous, scruffy, often felonious shantytowns that cling to Rio’s sheer peaks. More than 1 million people make their homes in 500 or so shantytowns like Rocinha, a jumble of cinder-block, tin-roofed homes threaded by a web of cramped alleyways. Now they’re a curiosity for better-heeled foreigners.6 Nevertheless, while the media labors to provide trendy reports and academicians conduct their research to understand these social crises better, nested in the midst of these social tragedies and uncertainties are the local NGOs, each attempting in its own way to act as a social buffer against such social misfortunes. There exists today a more conscious and cooperative effort to promote and protect 5. Nancy Scheper-Hughes and Daniel Hoffman, “Brazil: Moving Targets— Despite new laws protecting them, street children in Brazil are often viewed as undesirable and expendable,” Natural History 106, no. 6 (1997): 41. 6. “Brazil: Slumming Is Hot in Rio,” Newsweek (April 17, 2000): 74. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 6 the human rights of children on a global scale than ever before. The ceaseless and little-known work of NGOs and their committed staffs account for the continued promotion and protection of children’s rights. Yet, while it is acknowledged that NGOs have played a key role in these efforts, only recently has there appeared a more systematic attempt to assess and understand such organizations. Why do NGOs exist today? What social functions do they perform? How are such local efforts related to the notion of promoting human rights? Scope of the Study Originally, my study intended to look at the emergence of NGOs in the development of the human rights movement and a particular NGO’s contribution to the formation of international law. The decision to concentrate on NGOs, as opposed to IGOs, states, or peoples as human rights principals, was based on a research stint with an international NGO and the guiding declarations of Sieghart who stated, It would scarcely be possible to exaggerate the influence that NGOs have had on the development of international human rights law. There has not been a single resolution, declaration, or treaty in this field which does not ultimately owe its very existence— and frequently its formulation, its adoption, and its later entry into force— to the untiring work of NGOs.7 But a trip to the coastal capital of the Northeastern Brazilian state of Pernambuco, Recife, and contact with the local NGOs identified in my study marked a shift in my focus toward the remarkable and scarcely documented work of local NGOs with 7. Paul Sieghart, The International Law o f Human Rights (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1983): 442. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 7 street children. Now I decided to write about the phenomenon of NGOs overall because I wanted to investigate their contributions to the broad human rights movement, their “fight for rights” at the local level. My first impressions of street children were formed when I was nine years old and living in South America. While I played in the streets of Vina del Mar with my Chilean cousin, I would notice the younger shoe-shine-boys receiving money for their service. They intrigued me. They announced their availability at the top of their voices. Every person within earshot would take notice of them. I could never yell in public. The way they wielded two brushes, one in each hand, and attacked the polish they liberally smeared onto a shoe was a street show. When finished with one angle of buffing and brushing they would twirl the brushes in their palms before striking the shoe at another angle. The loud snap of the buffing rag, the rhythm of their work, the occasional cheerful song they sang, and their efficient, portable box of cleaning tools, all captured my attention. They appeared to be happy, they were free to move about without parental supervision, and I noticed that their smiling patrons would occasionally pay with an Escudo (the base denomination in Chile at the time) instead of a few coins; the prospects of joining their ranks and reaping the rewards of easy labor appealed to my desires to gain some sort of compensation. In my mind, I thought they were lucky: they could buy candy and drinks, they could tote along their shoe shine kit and catch a ride on the back or top of a bus if they wanted to go to the beach. There they would relax with friends and eat barquillo. I had often seen them at the beach. But my economic envy was dashed when I was told by my Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 8 parents that I could not shine shoes in the street. “Most of their money is for their family, they work to help the family,” I was told. Not knowing the circumstances of my family’s financial condition, much less the overall state of our affairs, I wondered if the cryptic statement “work to help the family,” forecasted a familial predicament. Because such things were never discussed in my presence, I did not know if it was incorrect to conclude that our living in Chile might require me to shine shoes one day. I imagined I was up for any challenge and would work along side the street children if my fate should so become. My renewed contact with the street children, now in Recife and many years later, along with a brief season of field research among a sampling of Recife’s local NGOs, prompted an interest to write about street children as recipients of specific NGO services; recipients rather than what Brazilian society has dubbed them since the 1980s: “meninos carentes (needy children), crianqas abandonadas (abandoned children), or the more derogatory and still common terms pivetes (knaves) or trombadinhas (scoundrels),. . . or meninos de rua (children of the street), a term considered free of derogatory connotations.”8 My observations of local NGO activities piqued my interest with the varied yet specific foci of NGOs all striving to fight for the rights while meeting the divergent needs of street children. On the 8. Tobias Hecht, At Home In The Street: Street Children o f Northeast Brazil (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998): 94. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. subject of these Brazilian NGOs, Brazilian social psychologists report, NGOs active in welfare often provide alternative services to individuals or groups whose needs are not adequately met by existing policies. In Brazil during the 1980s, many NGOs were created to provide social assistance to street and working children. A survey conducted in 1990 in Rio de Janeiro, for instance, revealed the existence of 502 ‘traditional’ institutions for children (social assistance institutions, residential establishments and creches) and 31 ‘alternative’ (community-and street-based) projects for street and working children. Not only did many of these NGOs provide services to children who were not eligible to receive public assistance, but they also had a role as innovators, questioning existing practices and developing new intervention strategies, including advocacy and a ‘fight for rights.’9 My interest is to investigate these local NGO roles. Therefore, broadly speaking, this dissertation is about local Brazilian NGOs, the street children they strive to support, and the human rights they attempt to protect. The reader will be given sufficient details to understand the roles of NGOs, their organizational philosophies, structures, leadership, driving principles, and hopes for the future. The scope of the study involves an assessment of the impact of local NGO participation in human rights interests on social relief activities, in mitigating or exacerbating their members’ or others’ social problems, and on the local social problem solving techniques employed by other social actors, viz., the municipal government, business owners, and others who are hostile to street children. 9. Irene Rizzini, Irma Rizzini, Monica Munoz-Vargas and Lidia Galeano, “Brazil: A New Concept of Childhood,” in Urban Children in Distress: Global Predicaments and Innovative Strategies (Switzerland: Gordon and Breach, 1994): 91, citing Irene Rizzini and F. B. Wiik, O que o Rio tem fieto porsuas Crianqas? (Rio de Janeiro: Universidade Santa Ursula— USU/CESME/IBASW/Ford Foundation, 1990). Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 10 Brazilian NGOs and Brazilian Children The Brazilian NGO movement is exploding.1 0 Hundreds are devoted to specific causes, including human rights, the environment, and the plight of the street children. In 1993 alone more than five thousand Brazilian NGOs were founded. Many thousands more NGOs are spread throughout the country and operate in Brazil without proper registration with the federal government. I am told that is due to the harsh and rigid bureaucratization of the government, its corruption, and its utter failure to allocate sufficient funds for the implementation of social reforms, which continue to force the populace to mobilize and unify around the solutions NGOs promise for the fulfillment o f their needs (see Table 1.1).1 1 The US State Department cites the findings of a current two-year study carried out by an NGO based in the Northeast state of Pernambuco, the Centro Josue de Castro. It found child labor to be common on sugar cane plantations and its study estimated that 54,000 minors work on sugar cane plantations in Pernambuco. In 40 percent of the families the researchers interviewed, 10. For purposes of comparison, Edward L. Cleary has studied human rights NGOs in Mexico and concluded that within the last decade their multiplication has risen from virtually none to over 300. See his “Human Rights Organizations in Mexico: Growth in Turbulence,” Journal o f Church and State 37, no. 4 (1995): 793-812. 11. Veja, No. 1326 (February 9,1994): 70. Table 1.1 — The Focus of 5,000 New Brazilian NGOs Organized in 1993 Ecology 40% Popular Movements 17% Women’s Rights 15% Racial Justice 11% Children in Need 6% AIDS 3% Indians 1% Other Causes 7% Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 11 children contributed 30 to 50 percent of the family income. In the sugar cane industry in Pernambuco, 25 percent of the workers are younger than 18 years, 90 percent of whom began working on the plantations between the ages of 7 and 13. And citing a study by the nationwide labor confederation (CUT), it reported that child labor is common among orange pickers in Sao Paulo. Reports were also received of child labor in the charcoal production industry in Minas Gerais, Mato Grosso, Mato Grosso do Sul, and Para; on sisal plantations in Bahia and Paraiba; on cotton plantations in Parana; and in the area of reforestation, where children are used principally to put toxic chemicals on trees and anthills, in Minas Gerais, Bahia, and Espirito Santo.1 2 Notwithstanding progressive laws designed to protect the rights of children and a growing awareness of their plight through NGO campaigns and the media, millions of children continue to fail to get an education, must work to survive, and suffer from the poverty afflicting their families. One positive development, however-cited by the US Department of State— mentions a report issued by the Brazilian Institute for Geography and Statistics (IBGE). It states that the number of children between the ages of 10 and 14 who were employed decreased by 163,000 from 1993 to 1995. There are, however, more than 3 million children in the same age range who continue to work, many of them together with their parents, under 12. See the U.S. Department of State, “Brazil Country Report on Human Rights Practices for 1996,” (n.p.: Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, January 30,1997). Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 12 conditions approximating forced labor or debt bondage. Many other children beg on the streets of cities.1 3 President Cardoso has recently signed protocols focusing on the plight of Brazilian children and has expressed a commitment to eradicate child labor in Brazil. At the signing ceremony in September 1996, Cardoso said that child labor was “unacceptable” because it involved the degradation of human beings, which reflected badly on all Brazilians. Acknowledging that child labor has long existed in Brazil, he nevertheless insisted that the situation was different now because the federal government, in cooperation with state governments, businesses, and NGO’s, was taking concrete steps to combat it. The local Brazilian NGOs who are monitoring the quest and calls for improvements spend a considerable amount of time collecting, documenting, and making available information relative to the rights of children and others. Table 1.2 contains examples of some of the NGO staff workers I encountered at the local level. These are the people who make the collection, verification, and dissemination of this information possible. The Problems Addressed While the notion of human rights is increasingly gaining social acceptance, the idea of children possessing rights presents something o f a problem. Are the 13. Ibid. Table 1.2 - Membership Structures of NGOs ► women ► youth ► religious workers ► volunteers ► students ► professionals Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 13 rights of children real? If so, where did they come from, what are they and how might they be applicable to street children? Furthermore, the local NGOs who define their child-helping activities by social values similar to the human rights thinking are relatively unknown. My research will help to understand their nature, their driving moral principles, and their function within the value structure of the human rights movement. If the human rights movement is a response to the evolution of particular world problems, what are those social problems in the Brazilian context which define the objectives of local Brazilian NGOs? Related to this is the question of how are we to better understand the proliferation of NGOs and why may they be successful or unsuccessful in attaining their socially ameliorative objectives? To do this the study proposes a paradigm for categorizing the foci of these organizations, especially in their local manifestations as they partner with communities and peoples to improve the quality of life. One of the practical social problems which the research may help alleviate is associated with the current social tensions between Brazilian street children and the decisions being made on their behalf by their local and federal government. I will demonstrate how the social ethics lens brings their issues into focus and from this standpoint can serve as a means of maximizing a point-of-crisis response by local NGOs in a fragmented society in which typical resources allocation mechanisms are very cumbersome or ineffective. Thus, one of the major questions addressed is, “Do NGOs make significant impacts on the social experience of street children?” Are there additional measures on which NGOs can rely or themselves invoke which may Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 14 advance their protection of childrens’ human rights? The answers to these questions mark the final task of this study. Review of the Literature As a subject of study, human rights is a relatively new topic. Prior to World War II, the global potential of this subject received little regard from scholars.1 4 After 1945, in concert with the implementation programs of the new human rights institutions, the post-war literature is weighty.1 5 Yet, for the most part, these works 14. See A. H. Robertson, Human Rights in the World: An Introduction to the Study o f the International Protection o f Human Rights (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1982), especially chapter 1, “International Concern with Human Rights,” and Antonio Cassese, Human Rights in a Changing World (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1990), chapter 1, “The Emergence of Human Rights on to the World Stage.” 15. Of special importance are Moses Moskowitz’s publications, including Human Rights and World Order: The Struggle for Human Rights in the United Nations (New York: Oceana, 1958), The Politics and Dynamics o f Human Rights (Dobbs Ferry, New York: Oceana, 1968), International Concern with Human Rights (Dobbs Ferry, New York: Oceana, 1974); Vemon Van Dyke, Human Rights, the United States, and the World Community (New York: Oxford University Press, 1970); Ivo D. Duchacek, Rights and Liberties in the World Today: Constitutional Promise & Reality (Santa Barbara, California: ABC-Clio, 1973); Jorge I. Dominguez, et al., Enhancing Global Human Rights (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1979), and with Nigel S. Rodley, Human Rights and International Relations (New York: McGraw-Hill, 1977); Louis B. Sohn and Thomas Buergenthal, International Protection o f Human Rights (Indianapolis: Bobbs-Merrill, 1973); James Avery Joyce, The New Politics o f Human Rights (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1979); B. G. Ramcharan, Human Rights (Boston: Martin Nijhofif, 1979); Richard B. Lillich and Frank C. Newman, International Human Rights: Problems o f Law and Policy (Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1979); Myres S. McDougal, Harold D. Lasswell, and Lung-chu Chen, Human Rights and World Public Order: the basic policies o f an international law o f human dignity (New Haven: Yale University Press 1980); Paula R. Newberg, ed., The Politics o f Human Rights (New York: New York University Press, 1981). More recently, however, see Richard B. Lillich and Charles N. Brower, eds., International Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 15 are either descriptive or exclusively devoted to legal analyses of international human rights instruments. Works devoted to the roles of human rights NGOs and their interactions within a global human rights context are an even more recent occurrence within the growing body of literature. Such human rights NGO research has been more focused toward the function, roles, and the impact of NGOs. For example, some studies have sought to provide typologies and assessments of their effectiveness.1 6 Others discuss the NGO consultive capacities in education, mediation, and the restraint o f States.1 7 Moreover, only a few studies exist that focus exclusively on the endeavors of single organizations. Amnesty International’s activities have been well documented1 8 as has its role with the United Nations.1 9 The activities of the Arbitration in the 21st century: Towards "Judicialization " and Uniformity? (12th ed.; Charlottesville, Va.: Sokol Colloquium, 1992); Theodor Meron, Human Rights in International Law: Legal and Policy Issues (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1984) and the helpful bibliographical study by Frank Newman, David Weissbrodt and Frank C. Newman, Selected International Human Rights Instruments and Bibliography for Research on International Human Rights Law (Cincinnati, Ohio: Anderson Publishing Company, 1996). 16. See Laurie Wiseberg and Harry M. Scoble, “Monitoring Human Rights Violations: The Role of Nongovernmental Organizations,” in D. P. Komers et al., eds., Human Rights and American Foreign Policy (South Bend, Indiana: University of Notre Dame Press, 1979), as well as their “Recent Trends in the Expanding Universe of NGOs Dedicated to the Protection of Human Rights,” in V. P. Nanda et al., eds., Global Human Rights (Boulder, Colorado: Westview, 1981). 17. See J. J. Shestack, “Sisyphus Endures: The International Human Rights NGOs,” New York Law School Law Review, 24 (1978): 89-127. 18. See for example, Jonathan Power, Amnesty International: The Human Rights Story (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1981), and Harry M. Scoble and Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 16 International League for Human Rights have been chronicled.2 0 And detailed studies of the International Committee of the Red Cross2 1 and the International Commission of Jurists have also been produced.2 2 Indeed, while literature on the more high-profile NGOs is easily found, little has been written in academia about less visible, local NGOs and their important contributions on behalf the human rights of street children. The literature about NGOs whose work is exclusively devoted to child advocacy abounds,2 3 yet literature Laurie S. Wiseberg, “Human Rights and Amnesty International,” The Annals o f the American Academy o f Political and Social Science 413 (May): 11-26. 19. See R. Thakur, “Human Rights: Amnesty International and the United Nations,” Journal o f Peace Research 31, no. 2 (May 1994): 143-60, wherein it is argued that the two entities play complementary roles, namely, the former is the world’s most prominent NGO and effective watchdog against violations, the latter is the world’s preeminent IGO, strong in its standard-setting and norm-generating roles, but weak in monitoring and enforcement of state behavior. 20. Laurie S. Wiseberg and Harry M. Soble, “The International League for Human Rights: Strategy of a Human Rights NGO,” Georgia Journal o f International and Comparative Law 7 (Spring [Supplement]): 289-313. 21. David P. Forsythe, Humanitarian Politics: The International Committee o f the Red Cross (Baltimore: The John Hopkins University Press, 1977). 22. Howard B. Tolley, Jr., The International Commission o f Jurists: Global Advocates fo r Human Rights (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1994). 23. See for example, Michael Longford, “NGOs and the Rights of the Child,” and Angela Penrose and John Seaman “The Save the Children Fund and Nutrition for Refugees,” which contains an excellent history of Britain’s largest international voluntary agency concerned with child health and welfare. Both are in The Conscience o f the World: The Influence o f Non-Governmental Organizations in the U.N. System, edited by Peter Willetts (Washington, D. C.: Brookings Institution, 1996): 214-40,241-69, respectively. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 17 written from an ethno-graphic and a social ethics standpoint about local NGOs and their roles in the rights of street children movement is extremely limited. On the one hand, the popular media has meticulously documented the violent treatment of street children: the death-squad murders. International NGOs like Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and Anti-Slavery International have brought their plight into sharp relief and recently released films intended for the public at large have also served to gamer the attention of the global conscience.2 4 Thus, there exists a significant body of work on human rights and death squads, but my focus is different. Several critical studies of street children per se have recently appeared. On the descriptive side are the various anthropological studies by Hecht2 5 and Scheper- Hughes,2 6 just to name two. The former argues that while the street is an intolerable alternative to the home, it is nonetheless a resource for nurturing the home and a betrayal of matrifocality. The later emphasizes the cultural ideas of childhood, their economic and political realities, the violence inherent to their lives, and their active involvement in shaping both their own fives as well as those who five around them. 24. Note the intensity with which this is dramatized in the Brazilian movie Pixote (1980), the American movie Boca (1994), and the HBO special Innocence Lost (1998) devoted to the plight of street children and child prostitution around the globe. 25. Hecht, At Home In The Street: Street Children o f Northeast Brazil. 26. Nancy Scheper-Hughes, Death Without Weeping: The Violence o f Everyday Life in Brazil (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998) and edited with Carolyn Sargent, Small Wars: The Cultural Politics o f Childhood (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998). Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 18 Of particular interest is the fact that these researchers have captured their subjects’ voices: they tape recorded or video recorded the life experiences and recollections of their child subjects allowing them— perhaps for the first time--to speak for and about themselves. Examples of work on the prescriptive side include the UNICEF promoted anthropological studies of Blanc and contributors2 7 and the sociological work edited by Mickleson.2 8 The former analyzes the programs and policies designed to assist Brazilian street children and assesses the innovations and successes. The later charts the rise in Brazilian street children, examines the educational experiences of these children and offers a variety of policy recommendations. The attention of the media and consequence of specialized studies has resulted, argues Scheper-Hughes, in an emergent childrens’ rights discourse. “If the 1980s will be remembered as the decade of neoliberalism and structural adjustment programs, the 1990s will be remembered, in turn, as the decade of radical transitions to democracy and the pursuit on a global scale o f individual and human rights.”2 9 But while the existing literature makes reference to the rights of children, it~for the 27. Cristina Szanton Blanc et al., Urban Children in Distress: Global Predicaments and Innovative Strategies (Switzerland: Gordon and Breach, 1994). 28. Roslyn Arlin Mickelson, ed. Children on the Streets o f the Americas: Globalization, Homelessness and Education in the United States, Brazil, and Cuba (London: Routledge, 2000). 29. Nancy Scheper-Hughes and Carolyn Sargent, eds. Small Wars: The Cultural Politics o f Childhood (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998): 7. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 19 most part— lacks a regard for the local NGOs striving to provide services to street children and their efforts to protect those “rights.” Thus, the quasi-ethnographic portions of study will contribute to the existing literature an understanding of children’s NGOs as well as the children they serve. Description of Method and Research Plan Type of Study As the term “social ethics” is one of the larger frameworks in which this study takes place, it seems necessary to comment on the need for a more precise distinction between the terms “morals” and “ethics” as used in ordinary English usage. These terms and their cognates appear throughout this study synonymously.3 0 But “social ethics” usually refers to normative ethical reflection that focuses upon social structures, processes, institutions, and communities, especially those that are large and complex, such as government, economic life, or international politics. In this study, social ethics also refers descriptively to socially shared patterns of moral judgment and behavior. Thus, in an elemental sense all ethics are social because human beings are by nature social. The study begins with a brief review of the justice on behalf of children. It is a short history of the ethics and rights afforded them, the various historical conceptions of childhood conceived by adults in the West and a demonstration of 30. Among ethicists and moral philosophers it is typically understood that “moral statements” make specific evaluative or prescriptive judgments and “ethical statements” justify and reflect on moral statements. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 2 0 how these conceptions provided a basis for ethical reflection and action toward children. What were those legal norms and social ethical “qualities” possessed by groups and communities that have tended to direct them toward moral excellence and a social worth criteria with respect toward the child? Each era reinterprets the idea of justice or rights as they relate to the child in the light of new ethical demands. Then, a study of the phenomenon of NGOs and their commitments to human rights and the rights of the child is analyzed in this light. Using a quasi ethnomethodological approach on NGOs, I propose to investigate the meaningful and understandable properties of each local group’s “indexical expressions,” or~in other words— I will describe what each NGO does in its contexts, what its practical actions are as contingent ongoing accomplishments of its organized practice of promoting and protecting the human rights of children. Thus, the research plan for this section involved traveling to foreign local NGOs and observing and interviewing their staffs and key leaders. This study uses several survey instruments designed to assess NGOs’ involvements in the lives of the street children. As another large part of the study is ethnographic, the research plan involves field research, participant observation, the acquiring o f rich descriptions, and sustaining a prolonged contact with the subject matter. The majority of interactions were recorded and transcribed and were followed by intensive, qualitative interviews. The process involved data collection and analysis, studying of organizational processes, and consideration of emergent theoretical implications. My focus is on capturing, interpreting, and explaining the way in which people devoted to the needs Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 2 1 of street children and their local NGO activities live out their commitments to the cause of street children’s human rights, and to make sense out of their professional life and experience, their world, and their society and group. Ethnomethodology and Social Theoretical Inquiry as a Method of Analysis Ethnomethodology, an offshoot of phenomenological sociology, is enjoying increasingly wide attention and readership among sociologists and social researchers.3 1 In brief, it is a grounded theory approach— or qualitative analysis— that looks at practical sociological reasoning. According to Harold Garfinkle, who— at minimum— is the leading champion of the approach, and— at most— the father of a “sociological movement,” ethnomethodology is an exercise in “practical sociological reasoning” that has reference to “the investigation of the rational properties of indexical expressions and other practical actions as contingent ongoing accomplishments of organized artful practices of everyday life.” For him, “rational” 31. For a good review essay on the ethnographic enterprise, see Clinton R. Sanders, “Producing, Presenting, and Professing Ethnography,” Journal o f Contemporary Ethnography 25, no. 2 (July 1996): 285-90, who considers books by Robert M. Emerson, Rachel I. Fretz, & Linda L. Shaw, Writing Ethnographic Fieldnotes (Chicago, EL: U of Chicago Press, 1995); John Van Maanen, ed., Representation in Ethnography (Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 1995); and Robert Prus, Symbolic Interaction and Ethnographic Research: Inter subjectivity and the Study o f Human Lived Experience (Albany, NY: State University of New York Press, 1996). Another survey dealing more directly with NGOs in a quasi-ethnographic approach is W. F. Fisher, “Doing Good: The Politics and Antipolitics of NGO Practices,” Annual Review o f Anthropology 26 (1997): 439-64, a survey of current literature concerned with the growing numbers, changing functions, and intensifying networks of NGOs which have had significant impacts upon globalization, international and national politics, and local lives. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 2 2 is synonymous with “meaningful”/“imderstandable,” while “indexical” is to be understood as “contextual” or “context-bound,” and “artful” stands for “deliberate” or “purposive.”3 2 It appears, on the one hand, as if the ethnomethodological gaze has only recently turned toward NGOs and human rights concerns. As a matter of fact, human rights ethnographies— catalogued as such— are rarely found.3 3 As well, this appears to be the method least utilized when studying aspects of NGOs, and thus the dissertation will constitute a contribution to the research on NGOs. On the other hand, perhaps a few alternate explanations exist for this occurrence that may have to do with library science or with either human rights researchers or ethnomethodologists. While the researcher must rely on the authoritative judgment o f librarians and their accurate categorization of subject matter in their databases, perhaps even the trained librarian perceives an unrelatedness between the categories of “ethnography” and “human rights.” Or perhaps either the human rights researcher or the ethnographer— or both— are unaware of the ethnographic genre or see them as mutually exclusive. By another reckoning, 32. See Harold Garfinkel, “What is Ethnomethodology?” in Studies in Ethnomethod-ology (Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice-Hall, 1967). 33. One example o f a human rights “ethnography” is a study about the Ecuadorian Amazon which proposes that informal social controls restrict access to the forests when formally constituted property rights do not exist and actually limit the rates of tropical deforestation in T. K. Rudel, “When Do Property Rights Matter: Open Access, Informal Social Controls, and Deforestation in the Ecuadorian Amazon,” Human Organization 54, issue 2, (Summer, 1995): 187-94. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 23 perhaps human rights field research is pure enthnography where the persons whose “lived experiences” comprise the expanse of data and are in fact representative only in the now-fashionable “discursive” sense.3 4 Human rights narratives attempt to be faithful to factual events and are constructed from stories about those experiences and are shaped in such a fashion as to be ontologically meaningful. In fact, such narratives begin teleologically— with the purpose or goal of reporting the “lived experience.” The ethnographic approach used in the study is admittedly limited in that it focuses on local, pragmatic rationales as its conceptual methods. Believing the need exists to avoid a foundationalist project in a broad sense— elaborating general theories and principles of justification— what is left is social theory as social narrative. Thus, the social narratives contained herein are event-based, densely contextual, and comprise historical analysis (versus general sociological theory).3 5 Instead, I propose 34. J. Coulter, “Is Contextualising Necessarily Interpretive?” Journal o f Pragmatics 21, issue 6, (June, 1994): 689-98, emphasizes the purposefulness of “contextualization” as a form of problem-solving practice in its own right, it becomes possible to allay several contemporary misconceptions of contextualization as involving “boundless” interpretive assumptions and “indeterminacies.” 35. It is said that sociological theory evades the centrality of the ideas of progress that have served as the unifying themes of modernist thought; they amount to millennial, Salvationist tales. On this, see Steven Seidman, “The End of Sociological Theory: The Postmodern Hope,” Sociological Theory 9, no. 2 (Fall, 1991): 131-46. This approach is conceptualized in a small body of literature, see also: Zygmunt Bauman, “Is There a Postmodern Sociology?” in Theory, Culture & Society: Explorations in Critical Social Science 5, no. 2-3 (June, 1988): 217-37, who claims “if the radical manifestos proclaiming the end of sociology and social philosophy ‘as we know them’ seem unfounded— equally unconvincing are the pretensions that nothing of importance has happened and that there is nothing to stop ‘business as Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 24 to use ethnomethod-ological results with a socially efficacious character. Not only do these social narratives possess a moral and social character, they have a moral dimension that serves as a site for a more elaborated analysis. Therefore, the study takes on a social theorist/ethicist framework, even an advocacy, increasingly not uncommon among theorists. As a challenge to his colleagues, Seidman argues: “the advocacy of theorists would take the form of elaborated social and moral argumentation about consequences and social values.”3 6 Similarly, anthropology, argues Scheper-Hughes, must be ethically grounded if is to be worth its salt.3 7 This standpoint is evident at various points of this study where I move from understanding usual.’” (229); Charles Lemert, “The End of Ideology, Really,” Sociological Theory 9, no. 2 (Fall, 1991): 164-72, who claims “Sociology in the nineteenth century was a reasonably simple activity. It was intelligent, concerned people caught up in social changes, trying to make sense of and improve a world that wasn’t so good after all. What, at the time, made the world not so good was that too many promises were made, against which the payoffs were both insufficient and inexplicably evil. If Seidman is right about postmodernism (and I think he is), then what has changed since the nineteenth century is that sociology need no longer suffer the indignity of trying to explain the failed promises of modernity. It can now return to its original business of making sense and doing good-local theory (by whatever name) and politics.” (171); and, suspicious of such an approach is Laurel Richardson, “Postmodern Social Theory: Representational Practices,” Sociological Theory 9, no. 2 (Fall 1991): 173-79, who asserts, “The elevation of sociologists to the role of moral arbiters, elaborators of moral discourse, seems to me at best ironic. I have trouble imagining the same human beings who are picking at each other’s putative conceptual cooties as able or willing to accept the relevance of the postmodern moral domain, much less to elaborate upon it. A discipline-serving twist on Plato’s maxim has seduced us: If sociologists were kings. The marginalized would remain marginalized. We have no special moral or leadership gifts.” (176). 36. Ibid., 143. 37. Nancy Scheper-Hughes, “The Primacy of the Ethical: Propositions for a Militant Anthropology,” Current Anthropology 36, Issue 3 (June 1995): 409-40. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 25 the operations of local NGOs to the application of ethical theory to specific moral issues about children. Data Collection The study is limited to Recife, Brazil, where the moral problems and the social telics of NGOs have become particularly important since the economic crisis of the late 1980s. In the study, questions of justice and rights determination gives rise to local NGO public policy formation for street children and the need for social change. Source material on local NGOs, apart from participant or observer occasions and interviewing their leaders and staffs, will be derived from primary sources as well as NGO publications, secondary source materials, periodicals, and newspapers as mentioned previously. The participant-observer requirements of ethnographic research forced a reliance on depth as a proxy for breadth in the treatment and observations of local NGO activities among street children and others. Much of my interaction with the local NGOs was facilitated by a long-time child advocate and translator, Demares Silveria. Her work with the street children of Recife and contact with local NGOs provided me with a map, of sorts, of the various local resources on which street children rely. As well, the Gali family, themselves NGO leaders and friends living in Brazil, gave me insights into the workings of the street children relief efforts in and around Recife. The obvious initial desire after observing and interviewing NGO leaders in Brazil, New York, England, and Ghana, West Africa, was to immerse myself in a Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 26 full-blown analysis of all aspects of the mushrooming movement and analyze both more the prominent NGOs who provide leadership as well as the less conspicuous organizations responsible for the local protection and reporting of human rights concerns. Granting the generalizing advantages of a larger sample from a extensive variety of NGOs and their respective fields of operation and the various benefits afforded the researcher from a meticulous survey instrument and data analysis process, I have instead opted to study the developing roles, the organizational development and the status of NGOs in general and the roles of the subject local NGOs, their organization, structure, leadership, norm development, future, and driving human rights principles in particular in situ. Furthermore, preferring to contextualize the multiple and interacting voices of the various leaders of the NGOs’ professional staff, I am reluctant to do research that amounts to merely acquiring, collecting, and assembling somewhat more premeditated and contrived accounts from individuals lost in their organizational milieus in other NGOs. Outline of the Study and Sequence of the Arguments Every summer countless visitors to Brazil descend upon the beach cities and the tourist sites. They enjoy an intriguing, if many times curious, admixture of the socially traditional and the novel: idealized in Carmen Miranda and Antonio Carlos Jobim’s “girl from Ipanema” as well as the experimental phantasmagorical symbolism of Carnival. Every Brazilian yearns for the tropical summer to draw to a close and the time of camaval to begin in early March. This is when Brazilian Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 27 society will suspend the majority of its rules. Its dominant hierarchicalism will give way and an egalitarianism will prevail that dissolves the struggles of daily living and creates an atmosphere wherein Brazil will enjoy the unrestrained quest of frolic and fancy not too different from the delicate dreams of Maria Rosa. Such examples of virtually irreconcilable contradictions comprise the Northeast of Brazil. The majority of NGOs I visited had the very latest in computer technology, were able to send and receive electronic mail, and easily accessed the World Wide Web. But the methods used to clean each NGO facility involved hosing down the kitchens and scrubbing the floor on hands and knees as the technological innovation of a mop is still non-existent in Brazil. The director of one NGO who recently acquired a large piece of land converted one of the small buildings on the estate, one which housed the dogs of the previous owner, into a more habitable dwelling for his mother-in-law. It occurred to the NGO staff that the edibles once served to the dogs in the “dog house” were undoubtedly more nourishing than what was consumed by the children in the nearby favelas. The previous estate owner, a social parasite at one extreme, and the favela children, those at the other, both live off— albeit to different degrees— Brazilian society. Indeed, the leisure class or the “idle rich,” has been seen as one form of social parasitism. Now the street children are also strangely reckoned as social debtors in that they do not contribute a fair return to society for the goods and services they consume. Street children are scarcely reconcilable with this world o f contradictions. Yet, all my observations indicated that with regard to the tragedy, the intensity, or Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 28 the drama of the street children, the local NGOs are just as real and central a character. The other characters are consequences of the street children: rampant drug abuse, ostracism, violence, and murder. But it is the NGOs and the rights for which they fight that I will push into the ethnographic spot light along with the street children. The hope is that this study will shed light on their circumstances and points of contact, their shared discouragements and aspirations, and their participation in the quest for rights and for justice. The rights of children is the subject of the next chapter. Some of the various historical ideas of justice toward children and those giving rise to the concept of children’s rights will be briefly reviewed. I argue that among the various historical conceptions of childhood and their bases for ethical reflection and action toward children, a suitable equilibrium between the rights of children and the rights of parents to control and direct the behavior of their children is unresolved, it is the Convention on the Rights of the Child that attempts to provide a balanced understanding. Chapter three examines more closely the socio-political phenomenon of individuals assembling together in order to form new socially conscious organizations or NGOs. The chapter addresses the historical framework that generated the NGO movement and its social values and introduces the social situation in Brazil where local NGOs are flourishing. I argue that within the broad context of NGOs there exists a limited number of social foci, apart from which their roles are difficult— if not impossible— to understand. The chapter also discusses the Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 29 social backdrop and the roots of the suffering of the people in Northeastern Brazil. It identifies the needs of those most seriously displaced and affected: the endangered street children. Chapter four examines various local human rights NGOs and their social relief activities for street children. The chapter identifies and contrasts several styles of NGO alignments: charitably aligned or philanthropically focused NGOs, community service NGOs, and empowering and participatory NGOs. In their various alignments, I use the narratives from my field research to demonstrate how local NGOs are striving to fulfill the needs of street children. In a quasi ethnographic fashion I recreate the mood and feeling, the purpose and mission, as well as issues of context and social setting to provide a sense of dimension. While NGOs may have common interests, I maintain that each is unique in its focus, program design, leadership, and moral logic. I argue that these issues are important because they situate the NGOs in conditions under which their particular forms of social relief activities will become accepted or renounced. In chapter five my research examines the social ethics of Brazilian local NGOs and the ethical spheres where street children exist: the house, the shelter, the street, and with the NGOs. The chapter draws together the moral issues of local Brazilian NGOs and emphasizes the ethical issues surrounding the plight of street children. With this information, I argue that through the assistance of local NGOs, children are not only prepared to work and survive on the street, but remain on the street. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 30 Finally, in chapter six, I set the stage for offering new viable opportunities for NGOs and the street children: alternatives to the disappointed attempts of treating the causes of street children and to the futile efforts of removing them from the street. By appraising the problems facing local NGOs and the limitations of their initiatives, this chapter makes various proposals relating to NGOs’ reinforcing the bases of their activities. The chapter also addresses what local NGO measures may have a chance at making a difference in the lives of those children with the greatest need: the children who brave the streets. Here I will discuss my consultive recommendations for local Brazilian NGOs to make sustained impacts upon the Brazilian politics of human rights and local governmental decision making with regard to street children. A seventh and concluding chapter of the dissertation will summarize and assess the findings of this research. Suggestions for further research will also be outlined. It is hoped that this study’s findings and suggestions will contribute to improving our understanding of local NGOs, their struggles for the plight of the Brazilian street children, and will stimulate greater research interest in more systematic analysis on this subject. This study observes the quest for the human rights of street children and the local organizations that strive to achieve those rights. It not only proposes an understanding of the children, the long debate about the appropriate balance between their rights and those who control and direct their behavior— which will be briefly considered in the next chapter— and their local NGOs supporters, but how NGOs perceive the reality of the street children and how they are organized for and helping Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 31 to transform that reality. Reality or fairy tale? Children’s NGOs know that the reality of what goes on in the lives of their children: in the street, their homes, or in church, in school, or in their entertainment— if it is to be helpful— must provide children with a wealth of reassurance and resources, just like they find in their stories.3 8 The curious dialogue of Kelsey’s fairy tale with which we began ends with little Maria Rosa— the Queen of Carnival— being told by the King, “The Queen is wiser than the King.” I suggest that the tale shows its proximity not to a promise of the child’s supremacy of noble discernment, but to a plea for a pedagogy of the rights of the child, that the child knows better than anyone else what are her best interests. The King symbolizes Brazilian paternalism yielding to benevolence and now ready to provide the child a chance at her self-determination.3 9 Symbols mediate the power of that toward which they point. The symbol of this egalitarian King does what all symbols do, he does not refer to the world, but draws the world into himself. But is Maria Rosa, the symbol of the Brazilian child, ready to take on the reality of 38. See Zena Sutherland and May Hill Arbuthnot, Children and Books (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, Inc., 1991): 13, where it is announced that “increased awareness of, and concern for, the rights of children, those who create and produce children’s books have responded with books about child abuse, children’s legal rights, the social agencies that deal with children, children as investors, and children’s rights in personal relationships. Some of these books incorporate facts about children’s rights into stories about the plight of children in foster homes— or, as in Katherine Paterson’s touching story of a loving foster mother in The Great Gilly Hopkins, on the security found in some foster homes.” 39. The expression “self-determination” suggests not only the right to take part in familial or communal decision making— as a custom may provide— but the right to have decisions followed. Absolute child autonomy is clearly not suggested as Article 5 of the Children’s Convention explains. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 32 responsibility? Does she have such a right? If so, of what does it consist? That will be the concern of the next chapter. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 33 Chapter II SOCIAL JUSTICE AND CHILDREN: A BRIEF HISTORY OF ETHICS AND RIGHTS Introduction Humanity and its history have not been kind to children. The purposes of this chapter are not to sketch the details of this, but to first discuss several of the various historical conceptions of childhood conceived by adults in the West and to demonstrate how these conceptions provided a basis for ethical reflection and action toward children. Second, while an overarching paternalism has historically justified the need to control the child and to protect him from himself and others, there is an emerging historical sense that adults may not always know what is in the best interests of the child and that children often can make sensible decisions for themselves. Thus, whereas rights have been historically assigned exclusively to adults and denied to children due to their lack of ability to be responsible for their own welfare and their lacking a conception of their own present and future interests, does there exist any adequate foundation which will ensure children’s rights? Accordingly, before we look at the issues of the Brazilian street children in particular and apply our aims in this chapter to subsequent chapters, we need to discuss the social history of ethics as they relate to children and the bases of children’s rights in general. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 34 Unfortunately, our focus will not permit an inquiry into our subject philosophers’ and ethicists’ views about the family and how these relate to historical transformations of child-rearing as an institution. Nor does space exist for us to discuss the relationship between these theorists’ notions on the child and how such views relate to the theorists’ other works. Related to this, my purposes do not permit me to make an assessment of the disparate frameworks in which these understandings of the child and his rights occur. I do not make a comparison of what the ancients say about the child in an ideal state, or what Locke makes of the state of nature and the family and children in it, and what re-marks Rousseau makes about child-rearing in eighteenth-century Europe in order to derive the ethics of child relations which are applicable to various twenty-first-century social settings. The distinctions made here are not intended to impose a construction upon the Brazilian child’s setting. Instead, this chapter is about describing those conceptions that have sustained an historical paternalism and those notions which have sought to provide for children’s autonomy. Antiquity: Ethics and Rights of the Child Are the ethics and rights of the child carefully conserved in Ancient Greece? In the mind of Plato, the State includes only three classes: the men of thought who rule, the soldiers who fight, and the laborers who produce. For these classes the State must provide wives, whose children are to be reared in common, being the Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 35 property of the State rather than of the family.1 State absolutism, in essence, swallows up the child. Aristotle espouses the idea that the child is the parent’s possession. He calls them “another self’ of the parents, yet likens them to a tooth and a piece of hair.2 Family relations are generally submitted to the goals of the polis3 and thus their issues of justice are inconsequential.4 Antiquity primarily sees in the child the element of immaturity. Oepke claims that, “[t]here is hardly any word which better denotes the ancient estimation of children than emdire {which} presupposes that only by strenuously educative effort, and only then with normal gifts and the right technique, can something be made of the raw material.”5 The mindset of the age toward the child can be characterized by a objectifying idealism merging with a insignificant assessment of 1. The Republic 5. Only men above the age of twenty-five and below fifty-five, and women above the age of twenty and below forty, would be permitted to have children. Plato’s utopian eugenics called for government controlled procreation. Through the careful selection of mates, the polis would be strengthened by improved children. Any child bom in violation of these state laws would be abandoned outside the walls of the city. 2. Nichomachean Ethics 8.12. 3. Politics 1:13.15. 4. Issues of the financial rights of those who rescued the victims of exposure are discussed by Pliny the Younger (Epistles 8.10). These “foundlings” were raised to meet the demand for slaves and exposure is reflected in some, but not all, of the uses of the Greek proper name KoTtpiccq: “off the dung heap.” 5. Theological Dictionary o f the New Testament, s.v. “Ttcdq,” by Albrecht Oepke. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 36 the child.6 There is a heightened sense o f the advantages of the educator and education in general, yet there is no concern for the cultivation of personality, no significant adoration of or love for the child, even in the late classical era. As with families of wealth in all ages, the burden of rearing children in ancient societies often fell less heavily upon those parents who had servants to assist, raise, and educate the children. In the more cohesive family structures of ancient society, however, members of the extended family were also nearby to contribute to the child’s support and guidance. A predominant sense of social responsibility for children also extended over a much longer period than it does today. Parents held on to this responsibility longer, but the community also saw to it that they did. They did not lay aside their parent duties when the children reached culturally recognized ages of accountability. Ancient Israelite society affirmed a depth of connection between the lives of parents and child that its influence upon both can hardly be overestimated. Thus, the importance of children according to the Hebrew bible is attested by the numerous references to them. With regard to the family, the child was to be the focus of love and care. It was the mother who provided the first rudiments of education, especially 6. Philippe Aries, Centuries o f Childhood: A Social History ofFam ily Life, translated from the French by Robert Baldick (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1962): 34, comments that “the realistic representation of children or the idealization of childhood, its grace and rounded charms, was confined to Greek a rt. . . and Romanesque art returned to that rejection of the special features of childhood which had already characterized the periods of antiquity before Hellenism.” Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 37 in the child’s moral formation.7 Her advice to her children may carry on even in adolescence,8 but as the boys approached manhood, it was their father to whom they were entrusted. Among his more sacred duties were teaching his son the truths of religion9 and imparting a basic education.1 0 In this training corporeal punishment had a role.1 1 Thus, the general judgment of the child is one of being inclined toward disobedience which compelled both discerning divine and human discipline.1 2 Within Judaism the child is self-willed but without understanding, yet there is little discerning of a child’s individuality.1 3 Indeed, any individuality is proscribed by the divine command ethic. “The religious community has to maintain both its social ethic and its personal ethic, its fidelity to the tenents of prophetic religion with its social norms, and its fidelity to the demands of God upon the individual.”1 4 7. Proverbs 1:8; 6:20. 8. Cf. Proverbs 31:1. 9. Exodus 10:2; 12:26; 13:8; Deuteronomy 4:9; 6:7,20f.; 32:7,46. 10. Proverbs 1:8; 6:20, and especially Sirach 30:1-13. 11. References to the rod and whip include Proverbs 13:24; 22:15,17; cf. Deuteronomy 8:5; II Samuel 7:14; Proverbs 3:12; Sirach 30:1. 12. H ICings 2:23f; Sirach 30:1-13. 13. See Roland de Vaux, Ancient Israel, vol. 1, “Social Institutions” (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company, 1965), esp. chapter 4, “Children”. 14. Walter J. Harrelson, The Ten Commandments and Human Rights (rev. ed., Macon, Georgia: Mercer University Press, 1997): 7. One author who attempts a biblical basis for the rights of children is C. Glen Cupit, “Children’s Rights and the International Year of the Child,” Journal o f Christian Education 64 (1979): 25-39. His argument is that while the rights o f children has biblical support, it is largely Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 38 The New Testament understands the child in greater terms of distinction. “Christianity introduced a new concept into the discussion— childhood innocence.”1 5 Jesus in effect raises the lower estimation of children in his pronouncements.1 6 He refers to the fact that children are unassuming and unspoiled as compared with adults, who typically do not want anything given to them.1 7 This is not a quality which belongs to the child and which might be discovered. The child’s littleness, immaturity and need of assistance, though routinely depreciated, keep the way open for the “fatherly” love of God, whereas adults are prone to block it. Commonly numbered with the community, children take part in crucial events concerning community life,1 8 and upon reaching the years of discretion, they are present at religious services.1 9 Even today, at a peasant or Bedouin wedding in the Middle East, a pomegranate is still sometimes split open on the threshold of the house or at unenforceable. A child has the right to be accepted and welcomed, to have his needs taken seriously and to be helped to recognize his right to possession of the Kingdom of God. 15. Lloyd deMause, ed., The History o f Childhood (Northvale, N.J.: Jason Aronson Inc., 1995): 47. 16. Matthew 19:13-15. The well-known saying, “Suffer little children. . . , ” is a poor rendering of the original pericope. The modem, preferred translation is, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” 17. Matthew 18:2ff; 10:13ff. 18. Acts 21:5. 19. Acts 20:9, 12; Colossians 3:20; Ephesians 6:1-3. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 39 the opening of the tent: its grains symbolize the many children their Mends wish them.2 0 By the fourth century and with the Roman emperors’ conversion to Christianity, the Roman law of the postclassical period reformed family law. Berman points out, “the wife {was given} a position of greater equality before the law, requiring mutual consent of both spouses for the validity of a marriage, making divorce more difficult (which at that time was a step toward women’s liberation), and abolishing the father’s power of fife or death over his children (patria potestas).” 2 1 Medieval Children What was the place of the child and his “rights” among medieval sensitivities? Admittedly, such research is ethereal because direct witnesses to the feelings of real people are rare, and indirect indications are highly susceptible to the risk of manufactured explanation.2 2 On the one hand, perspectives toward children 20. Historically, this region has embraced theistic morality: God imposes a moral obligation by virtue of his right to command. At times this right is compared to that which parents have over their children, which is thought to derive from a filial debt of gratitude. On this see, Joseph L. Lombardi, “Filial Gratitude and God’s Right to Command,” Journal o f Religions Ethics 19, no. 1 (1991): 93-118, who examines arguments for divine authority based on gratitude which employ the parental analogy. Neither parental rights over children nor divine authority is based on gratitude. 21. Harold J. Berman, Law and Revolution: The Formation o f the Western Legal Tradition (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1983): 168. 22. One early “child rights” reference, from Basil the Great— who took up the task of making Christian ethics a living option for the masses and confronted the shocking differences between the very rich and very poor in the fourth century— is found in his “Homily on Luke 12,” inPatrologiae Cursus Completus, ed. J. P. V. Migne, (Paris: Gamier, 1857-1912): 31:267f., wherein he laments the poor people’s being forced to Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 40 were affected in medieval life by severely difficult living conditions. These imposed a different pattern on all human existence, a different division into age-groups,2 3 and a different vision of childhood.2 4 Thus, to attempt an answer to the question, addressing several spheres of a child’s existence may provide some insight. In the middle ages life among the common masses was characterized by tremendous hardship. The entire family was under the eye of servants among the rich; and parents were always in the presence of their children among the poor throughout the year. “Winter-time is the peasant’s hell. For winter intensifies all his sell their children into slavery in order to provide the barest necessities for the remainder of the family. The rich, who were unwilling to avert such miseries— and who in fact made them possible— were harshly castigated by Basil as thieves and robbers. Another issue relating to “child rights” concerned the extent to which the children of heretics were to be punished for the erroneous views of their parents. On this, see Kenneth Pennington, “Pro Peccatis Patrum Puniri”: A Moral and Legal Problem of the Inquisition,” Church History 47, no. 2 (1978): 137-54, and his discussion of Pope Innocent Hi’s resolved to use all of the ecclesiastical resources to eliminate heresy from Christian areas in 1199. 23. Aries, Centuries o f Childhood, 18-19, comments that the pseudo-scientific treatises of the Middle Ages frequently wrote on the ‘ages of life’: childhood, puerility, adolescence, youth, senility, old age; a “system of physical description and explanation which went back to the Ionian philosophers of the sixth century B.C.” revived by the medieval compilers. 24. Ibid., 34, suggests that “the men of the tenth and eleventh centuries did not dwell on the image of childhood,. . . that image had neither interest nor even reality for them. It suggests too that in the realm of real life, and not simply in that of aesthetic transposition, childhood was a period of transition which passed quickly and which was just as quickly forgotten.” Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 41 other hardships; in winter he must herd in confined space with his family and his cattle, and sickness will be the too frequent consequence.”2 5 On the other hand, Aries argues that the idea of childhood did not exist in medieval society. He is careful not to imply that children were disregarded or deserted. The idea of childhood is not to be confused with affection for children: it corresponds to an awareness of the particular nature of childhood, that particular nature which distinguishes the child from the adult, even the young adult. In medieval society this awareness was lacking.2 6 Life was indeed hard for everyone. “The children worked too, at everything for which they could be utilized.”2 7 Concluding from Aries, as an indistinct segment of the medieval social structure, children possessed no explicit rights. Not at least, until the “invention of childhood” in the early modem period. Lloyd deMause disagrees. Without incorporating rights language into his study of comparative childhood 25. G. G. Coulton, Medieval Village, Manor, and Monastery (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1960): 322-23. Coulton discusses child-murder and the “shameful” death of children eaten by swine, designating this “crime” as “‘characteristic,’ by far the most frequent type of animal-trial in the Middle Ages is that of swine for devouring children.” Coulton cites E. Agnel, Curiosites judiciaires (Paris: Dumoulin, 1858): 8- 13. 26. Aries, Centuries o f Childhood, 128. 27. Coulton, Medieval Village, 322, citing K. Lamprecht, Deutsches Wirthschaftsleben im M ittelalter (Lepzig: n.p., 1885-6): 1:463. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 42 history, he provides an example of medieval legal concerns toward child-beating2 8 and other cruelties. Lyman concludes that, Folk-customs are deep-seated, and repeated prohibitions by civil and religious authorities seemed to avail little against such grim acts as infanticide, abortion, sale of children, and abandonment.. . . The continued need for legislation, as well as other scattered evidence, suggests, however, that the distance between ideals and actuality had closed rather little in half a millennium.2 9 Catholic and Reformation Teaching The Catholic teaching about marriage, the family, and rearing of children is based essentially on the natural law. The family is a natural society which, in the exercise of the complementarity of the sexes, assures the service of propagation and education of children, as well as the mutual perfecting of the spouses. Within the walls of the Catholic Church concern was expressed toward the crisis of paternal authority as well as the emancipation of youth, namely, the termination of the phase of parental responsibility and control. It was not until the nineteenth century and the 28. deMause, History o f Childhood, 42-43. “Most medieval descriptions of beating were quite severe, although St. Anselm, as in so many things, was far in advance of his time by telling an abbot to beat children gently, for ‘Are they not human? Are they not flesh and blood like you’” (citing Eadmer, The Life o f St. Anselm: Archbishop o f Canterbury (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1962: 38). Also, as yet another counter to Aries argument that it was the modem family that restricted the child’s freedom and increased the severity of punishment, deMause argues that “it is only in the Renaissance that advice to temper childhood beatings began in earnest, although even then it was generally accompanied by approval for beatings judiciously applied.” 29. Richard B. Lyman, Jr., “Barbarism and Religion: Late Roman and Early Medieval Childhood, in de Mause, History o f Childhood, 95. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. more “soft” sentimental attitude toward human depravity when Catholic thought depicted children as potential recipients and bearers of grace. This new view of children characterized the revivalist movements in both Protestant and Roman Catholic communions.3 0 According to Luther3 1 and Calvin,3 2 the family circle is already the church in the true sense with the result that catechism inseparable from family worship is the leit m otif of the educational task assigned to parents. Protestantism conceived religious education in the family context so as to inculcate the need for obedience and to begin the reformation of children. Protestant theologians in this age expounded on the “vanity of childhood,” which “[t]he mind of man, in the state of childhood and youth, puts itself forth in all kinds of vain actings, in foolish 30. See, for example, John Sharp, “Juvenile Holiness: Catholic Revivalism Among Children in Victorian Britain,” Journal o f Ecclesiastical History 35, no. 2 (1984): 220-38. The Catholics were pacesetters in the large-scale revivalist work among children in Great Britain, most notable among them was the career of John Joseph Fumiss (1809-1865). 31. Luther emphasizes in the Large Catechism, that children should honor their parents, offering that it is a greater thing to honor parents than love. Significant references to children are in Luther’ s Works, vol. 44 (St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1952). 32. Calvin’s references to children are disseminated throughout his commentaries with several references in the Institutes. While Calvin and Luther are in agreement with Catholic thought that a large family is evidence of God’s favor, a fierce economic competition in the struggle for greater amounts of food was also created in this age; a curious situation worthy of God’s favor. On the clash of labor (and child labor) with capital for a living wage in the Calvinist legacy, see the standard work by Max Weber, The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit o f Capitalism (New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1958). Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 44 imaginations, perverse and froward [sic] appetites, falseness in words, with sensible effects of corrupt inclinations in every kind.”3 3 Under the impact of Pietism, the means of putting away such “childish things” was the institution of family worship and bible study; it became the norm rather than the exception among its adherents. Religious and lay iconography in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries portrayed the child in this and other similar contexts. Genre painting in these centuries depicted, . . . the child with his family; the child with his playmates, who were often adults; the child in a crowd, but very definitely ‘spotlighted’ in his mother’s arms, or holding her hand or playing or even piddling; the child among the crowds watching miracles or martyrdoms, listening to sermons, or following liturgical rites such as presentations or circumcisions; the child serving as an apprentice to a goldsmith or a painter or some other craftsman; or the child at school, and old and popular theme which went back to the fourteenth century and would go on inspiring subject paintings up to the nineteenth century.3 4 Nevertheless, child portraiture came into prominence in the seventeenth century and the child-as subject-came into his own; indeed, into almost a place of near honor. Essentially, a new idea of childhood was appearing. The child, on account of his good-naturedness, innocence and prankishness, was becoming a source of entertainment for the adult and family. In fact, there were emerging two general concepts of childhood according to Aries: The first concept o f childhood-characterized by ‘coddling’— had made its appearance in the family circle, in the company of little children. The second, on the contrary, sprang from a source outside the family: churchmen or gentlemen of the robe, a few in number before the sixteenth century, and a 33. The Works o f John Owen, vol. 11, “Continuing in the Faith,” (London: Banner of Truth Trust, 1976): 476. 34. Aries, Centuries o f Childhood, 37. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 45 far greater number of moralists in the seventeenth century, eager to ensure disciplined, rational manners. They too had become alive to the formerly neglected phenomenon of childhood, but they were unwilling to regard children as charming toys, for they saw them as fragile creatures of God who needed to be both safeguarded and reformed. This concept in its turn passed into family life.3 5 Aries’ and deMause’s studies of the beginning and development of the conceptions of childhood reveal that whether they are creatures treated with excessive care for a time that extends not much beyond infancy, or whether childhood is expressed in terms of a realization of being innocent and weak, a responsibility was expressed to safeguard the former and strengthen the latter. These ideas were institutionally reinforced and reiterated by educators, priests, and moralists. The notion under which these ideas are fixed is that parental child-rearing duties are preeminent. The child is utterly dependent. Philosophical Considerations The few philosophers who treated the subject in the seventeenth through the mid-twentieth centuries placed the scales squarely on the side of parents’ rights. The notable few who made mention of children with a reference to ethics and rights will be our next subject. Beginning with Locke, his middle-aged recollections as a bachelor of his own childhood experience, agreed with his father’s “restraint and discipline.” But in his upbringing Locke was on the receiving end of the austere discipline of a Puritan home. His family life consisted of training to promote 35. Aries, Centuries o f Childhood, 132-33. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 46 sobriety, industry, and perseverance; in the control of the home he was made to love simplicity and to detest immoderate embellishment and spectacle. For, methinks they mightily misplace the treatment due to their children, who are indulgent and familiar, when they are little, but severe to them, and keep them at a distance when they are grown up. For liberty and indulgence can do no good to children: their want of judgment makes them stand in need of restraint and discipline 3 6 Similar to Mill, Locke observed that children were an exception to his general proposition that “all men by nature are equal.”3 7 A child is not free but is subjected to parental rule because, and only as long as, he cannot understand the law that governs him. Children lack reason in at least their early years. Therefore, parents, says Locke, “have a sort of rule and jurisdiction over them, for some time after.”3 8 But this is temporary. It is the child’s age and maturing reason that are determinative of when they participate in the full state of equality. Rousseau’s eighteenth century view of the child can be found in his Emile. This imaginary pupil is Rousseau’s “free” novice. Emile’s childhood is an “age of gaiety,” guided by an ethic sans “tears, punishment, threats, and slavery.” He gambols barefooted in a meadow, falls down frequently, jumps and leaps, shouts, climbs trees and walls, and Rousseau removes only harmful objects in order that 36. John Locke, Some Thoughts Concerning Education, 1693, p. 41, cited in Maurice Cranston, John Locke: A Biography (London: Longmans, Green and Co., Ltd., 1968): 12 (italics are Cranston’s). 37. John Locke, Two Treatises o f Government, ed. Peter Laslett (1960; reprint, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994): §4 at 269-70. 38. Ibid., §55 at 304. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 47 nature might educate the child. Rousseau repeatedly points to Emile’s weakness during infancy and childhood.3 9 The ethic of a “natural” duty of parents demands that Rousseau “absolutely” refuse to “order anything” of Emile. Rousseau has “relinquished all rights to exhortations, promises, threats, emulation or the desire to show off” before others.4 0 While “free” as a child, the natural bond between parent and child is dissolved when the child no longer requires the preservation provided him. While Rousseau may be viewed as a forerunner of child-rights advocates or one who sought to balance the natural interests between parent and child, he nonetheless “abandoned five of the children he fathered.”4 1 Children: they are bom men and free; their liberty belongs to them, and no one but they has the right to dispose of it. Before they come to years of discretion, the father can, in their name, lay down conditions for the preservation and well-being, but he cannot give them irrevocably and without conditions: such a gift is contrary to the ends of nature, and exceeds the rights of paternity.4 2 John Stuart Mill’s doctrine of individual “liberty” was applicable “only to human beings in the maturity of their faculties. “We are not speaking of children, or of young persons below the age which the law may fix as that of manhood or 39. Emile, pp. 247, 273-74,285-87. 40. Emile, pp. 300-302, 312, 344, 390,421, 423, 393. 41. Gregory A. Loken, “‘Thrownaway’ Children and Throwaway Parenthood,” Temple Law Review 68 (Winter, 1995): 1716. 42. Jean Jacques Rousseau, The Social Contract, in The Social Contract and Discourses 1.4, trans. G.D.H. Cole (London: Dent, 1983): 169-70. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 48 womanhood. Those who are still in a state to require being taken care of by others, must be protected against their own actions as well as against external injury.”4 3 The right to liberty, or to equal respect, recognizes the capacity for reason. Children are thereby excluded.4 4 In the eighteenth century, again in the Anglo-Saxon countries and France,. . . sentiment takes on a greater importance. And thus the sentiments of love, concern, and affection for one’s spouse come to be cherished, dwelt on, rejoiced in, and articulated. Something similar occurs with the affection of parents for children. And partly as a result, childhood takes on an identity as a separate phase of the life cycle, with its own peculiar feelings and needs. And as a further consequence, child-rearing becomes a subject of absorbing interest to the literate public. We are on our way to the spiritual age of Dr. Spock.4 5 As Taylor also observes, “In the early nineteenth century. . . [m]en and women look for full emotional support from their spouses and children; they look to build a haven in an otherwise inhospitable world.”4 6 Such moral principles have 43. John Stuart Mill, On Liberty, ed. David Spitz (New York: A Norton Critical Edition; W. W. Norton & Company, Inc., 1975): 11. 44. Ibid., “Liberty, as a principle, has no application to any state of things anterior to the time when mankind have become capable of being improved by free and equal discussion.” 45. Charles Taylor, Sources o f the Self: The Making o f the M odem Identity (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1989): 291. 46. Ibid., 293. Richards is in agreement (with his Lockean limitation) where he says, “It has been argued . . . {that} in the mature morality of a reasonable man, the principles of morality. . . are transcultural: they apply to all persons by virtue of their having certain minimal moral capacities, capacities which, in Locke’s phrases, only ‘Lunaticks and Ideots’ and ‘Children’ lack.” See David A. J. Richards, A Theory o f Reasons fo r Action (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1971): 262, citing Locke’s Second Treatise o f Government, §60 at 326. Peoples’ equality in rationality is not a class- dependent attribute according to Locke. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 49 strong transcultural implications. Similarly, the transition from childhood to adulthood in most western cultures is characterized by a series of small transition points rather than a single initiation into adulthood. Final among the philosophical considerations of child rights and those who squarely align with parents’, Amy Gutmann— who looks at who ought to have the power to determine how children are educated in a liberal democracy— simply advances the statement, “it would be absurd to apply a principle of equal freedom to children. Children must be educated by someone to become adults capable of exercising their future freedoms.”4 7 If children have any rights, they must be defined— according to Gutmann— by a “primary goods standard.” These are neither unchanging nor universalizable. But they “reflect a common understanding within a society of what goods rational individuals, ignorant of their particular interests, would want provided for them within that society. . . and define children’s rights over us and our paternalistic duties toward them.”4 8 We find in these philosophical formulations of rights theory there is little place for talk about “freedom for children” or their “rights.” These analyses will prove important as an historical backdrop for our later study and decision making with regard to the competing interests facing the children’s issues upon which we will touch. 47. Amy Gutmann, “Children, Paternalism, and Education: A Liberal Argument” Philosophy & Public Affairs 9, no. 4 (1980): 338. 48. Ibid., 341. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 50 The First Organized Child-Rights Advocates The minimal moral capacity perspective was also in large part responsible for the late nineteenth century United States social reform efforts of the “child savers,” the first organized U.S. child rights effort which gave impetus to increased child autonomy in the more specific context of legal rights for children. While this movement was essentially a middle-class women’s response to having lost their domestic authority and social roles with the increased urbanization of family life, child saving was seen as an essentially practical social ethic endeavor. The movement was not so much a break with the past as an affirmation of faith in traditional institutions. Parental authority, home education, rural life, and the independence of the family as a social unit were emphasized because they seemed threatened at this time by urbanism and industrialism. The child savers elevated the nuclear family, especially women as stalwarts of the family, and defended the family’s right to supervise the socialization of youth.4 9 While its efforts had the most direct consequences on the children of the urban poor, the movement was truly an effort of social control and maintaining the dependent status of children.5 0 The institutions which governed childrens’ lives 49. Anthony M. Platt, The Child Savers: The Invention o f Delinquency (Chicago: Chicago University Press, 1969): 98. The movement also perceived that society’s moral values were threatened, not only by urban life and rampant industrialism, but also as a result of the incoming flood of immigrant cultures. “In a rapidly changing and increasingly complex urban society, the child-saving philosophy represented a defense against ‘foreign’ ideologies and a proclamation of cherished values” (p. 177). 50. Ibid., 99, the child saver’s extended restrictive activities also stemmed from the belief that “social progress depended on efficient law enforcement, strict supervision of children’s leisure and recreation, and regulation of illicit pleasures. Their efforts were directed at rescuing children from institutions and situations (theaters, dance Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 51 effectively denied young people the option of withdrawing from or initiating any institutional changes. Any oppositional stance against the recreational center, reformatory, school, or family, “was treated as a problem of personal maladjustment which evoked ‘therapeutic’ programs from the child savers.”5 1 Granted, many of these attitudes toward the urban poor and other “delinquent” youth were largely paternalistic and romantic, but their commands were backed up by force and the juvenile court.5 2 But what is most notable about this early manner of obtaining rights for children, is that it was not based upon a child’s autonomy or right to self- determination. At a separate level, the movement did challenge the tradition of extensive parental jurisdiction by declaring the community’s own right to “its” children as the source of democracy’s future and by asserting children’s needs for protection against parental exploitation. During the last century, United States society designed formidable commitments both to protecting and developing its children. The public school system and the nation’s juvenile courts are examples. During this time, the concept of minority legal status has protected children from their own temporary lack of capacity. Rather than discriminating against children, halls, saloons, etc.) which threatened their ‘dependency.’ 51. Ibid., 100. 52. Ibid., on how children were handled by the criminal courts in the nineteenth century, see the appendix, “The Criminal Responsibility of Children,” pp. 183-202, which rebuts some of the more sensational sketches of judicial repression facing children. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 52 this tradition sought to give children advantages designed to protect them from abuse and nurture them toward maturity. Recent Notions of Children’s Rights and Dependence With the dawning o f the sixties, more permissive social attitudes heralded a greater acceptance— albeit, at times an approval under “mature” protest--of premature autonomy in children. Attempts to restrict youthful independence were declining. The view that dependence is a child’s natural condition also began to wane. Broadly stated, it was during the decades of the sixties and seventies that American society was experiencing a tremendous sense of social individualism, an infirmed public hope, an expanded moral and cultural pluralism, and alternative theories of justice, including those affecting children.5 3 Cross-cultural studies of children at the time were also launched to understand societal similarities and differences in child behavior. One in particular, the Six Culture Project,5 4 along with its subsequent work,5 5 investigated the 53. Note Worsfold’s Rawlsian preference wherein he proposes several criteria which any acceptable defense for children’s rights must achieve in Victor L. Worsfold, “A Philosophical Justification for Children’s Rights,” Harvard Educational Review 44, no. 1 (February 1974): 142-57. 54. John W. M. Whiting and Beatrice B. Whiting, Children o f Six Cultures: A Psycho-Cultural Analysis (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1975) compared the naturally occurring behavior of 134 children aged 3 to 10 years who lived in communities in India, Okinawa, the Philippines, Mexico, Kenya and the United States. 55. Beatrice B. Whiting and Carolyn P. Edwards, Children o f Different Worlds: The Formation o f Social Behavior (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1988). Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 53 socialization of children and suggested that while varying degrees o f a meager autonomy in children are found (i.e., “The Six Culture findings suggest that overall, across cultures, older children and boys have more access to the wider community than do younger children and girls. Other data collected by our collaborators confirm this suggestion”5 6 ), a profound sense of dependence exists cross-societally, transculturally. The universalities observed in children’s behavior— particularly the high proportion of dependent or ‘seeking’ behavior— can be attributed to the fact that children are bom genetically prepared to develop behavioral systems that ensure, first, their proximity to caregivers and, second, their interaction with experienced members of society who guide their entry into culturally meaningful situations and scaffold their learning.5 7 The Child Rights Absolutists/Autonomists During the seventies and early eighties, children’s rights came into much greater prominence. Directed by the child advocacy movement and the child liberation front,5 8 the pendulum was swung in the direction of child autonomy. The publication of a number of books and essays analyzing the rights o f children,5 9 56. Ibid., 53. 57. Ibid., 267. 58. See C. R. Margolin, “Salvation as liberation: the movement for children’s rights in a historical context,” Social Problems 25 (1978): 441-52. 59. See, for example, the qualitative analysis of George W. Bohmstedt, Howard E. Freeman, and Tom Smith, “Adult Perspectives on Children’s Autonomy,” Public Opinion Quarterly 45, Issue 4 (Winter, 1981): 443-62, which surveyed a representative sample o f adults and found a lack of consensus about children’s rights but a correlation with liberal-conservative orientations on this subject. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 54 comparing their development by country,6 0 and encouraging their active promotion added to the sway in opinion. One author, Cohen, consolidates much of the child rights advocates program of the 1970s6 1 in his Equal Rights fo r Children. He proclaims, “it is time to extend all of the rights which adults in our society now enjoy to children as well. We should abolish the double standard of one set of rights for adults and another— more restricted— set for children.”6 2 As a model of the magnitude of the advocates’ program, Cohen cites Farson: 1. The Right to Self-Determination. Children should have the right to decide matters that affect them most directly. 2. The Right to Alternate Home Environments. Self-determining children should be able to choose from among a variety of arrangements: residences operated by children, child-exchange programs, twenty-four hour child-care centers, and various kinds of schools and employment opportunities. 3. The Right to Responsive Design. Society must accommodate itself to children’s size and to their need for safe space. 60. John Boli-Bennett and John W. Meyer, “The Ideology of Childhood and the State: Rules Distinguishing Children in National Constitutions, 1870-1970,” American Sociological Review 43 (December, 1978): 797-812. One more current assessment focusing on child poverty and the protection of children’s social and economic rights provided by a number of national constitutions is Geraldine Van Bueren, “Combating Child Poverty— Human Rights Approaches,” Human Rights Quarterly 21 (1999): 680-706. 61. See Richard Farson, Birthrights (New York: Macmillan, 1974) and John Holt, Escape from Childhood (New York: E. P. Dutton, 1974). 62. Howard Cohen, Equal Rights fo r Children (Totowa, N.J.: Littlefield, Adams & Co., 1980): viii. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 55 4. The Right to Information. A child must have the right to all information ordinarily available to adults— including, and perhaps especially, information that makes adults uncomfortable. 5. The Right to Educate Oneself. Children should be free to design their own education, choosing from among many options the kinds of learning experiences they want, including the option not to attend any kind of school. 6. The Right to Freedom from Physical Punishment. Children should live free of physical threat from those who are large and more powerful than they. 7. The Right to Sexual Freedom. Children should have the right to conduct their sexual lives with no more restriction than adults. 8. The Right to Economic Power. Children should have the right to work, to acquire and manage money, to receive equal pay for equal work, to choose trade apprenticeship as an alternative to school, to gain promotion to leadership positions, to own property, to develop a credit record, to enter into binding contracts, to engage in enterprise, to obtain guaranteed support apart from the family, to achieve financial independence. 9. The Right to Justice. Children must have the guarentee of a fair trial with due process of law, and advocate to protect their rights against parents as well as the system, and a uniform standard of detention.6 3 The main contentions among children’s rights advocates is that a child’s shortage of the required capacity as a rights holder is insufficient justification for denying rights to a child. Furthermore, the care-taking nature of the parent-child relationship has only served to disadvantage children. And, finally, the human rights strategy o f promoting children’s interest is of limited use to the children’s 63. Ibid., 13, citing Richard Farson, “A Child’s Bill of Rights,” in Beatrice and Ronald Gross, eds., The Children’ s Rights Movement (New York: Anchor Press, 1977): 325-28. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 56 movement. “At best, it can be used to establish a baseline for the quality of our relations to children. And the children’s rights movement is by now well past that point.”6 4 One author advocates child rights by avoiding the issue of capacity. Federle emphasizes “powerlessness” over “capacity” and argues that rights rhetoric has in fact disadvantaged children. She advances an “empowerment perspective” while affirming that “rights talk does have a place in the lives of children. Our efforts seldom have neutral consequences.”6 5 This is but one example of the numerous points on the rights/protection continuum. The variety of nuanced positions situated between the opposite ideological poles of child rights advocacy and child protection and the conflicting responses6 6 cannot be reviewed here. After a brief review of the case for child protection we will look more closely at the advocates’ claim that United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child stands squarely in the tradition of their rival caretaker ideology. 64. Ibid., 39. 65. Katherine Hunt Federle, “Looking Ahead: An Empowerment Perspective on the Rights of Children,” Temple Law Review 68 (Winter, 1995): 1596. 66. On the subject of an empowerment perspective and its significant limitations, see Jenny Kitzinger, “Who Are You Kidding? Children, Power and the Struggle Against Sexual Abuse,” in Allison James and Alan Prout, eds. Constructing and Reconstructing Childhood: Contemporary Issues in the Sociological Study o f Childhood (London: The Falmer Press, 1990): 171-78. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 57 The Child Protectionists The ideas of the child rights absolutists/autonomists were opposed by others who argued that issues of best interest and decision-making authority should remain with parents.6 7 Giving children rights, it was thought in the seventies, and the opportunities to decide more for themselves, would not settle the problems of children having rights. Rights of children now recognized in law include the right not to be forced into self-reliance, the right to be supported by adults. They also include the right to make mistakes, embodied in the notion that children cannot be obliged to abide by contracts made with adults, whereas the adults can be held to their promises. The law may well have gone too far in emphasizing the dependency of children, but the remedy should surely not require throwing children back on their own resources.6 8 On a much broader scope, the child protectionists can argue a fortiori against the absolutists/autonomists by placing their arguments within the context of specific social problems in which children are trapped or from which they require protection. Some of the problems facing children are worthy of brief mention. On the problems of child labor, “There are 100 million children abandoned by their families and forced to exist through back-breaking labor, prostitution, or 67. Ferdinand Schoeman, “Rights of Children, Rights of Parents, and the Moral Basis of the Family,” Ethics 91 (1980): 6-19 and his “Childhood Competence and Autonomy, Journal o f Legal Studies 12 (1983), both of which discuss the importance of focusing on “the protection of relationships” instead of rights of children. 68. Mary Jo Bane, Here to Stay: American Families in the Twentieth Century (New York: Basic Books, Inc., 1976): 112. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 58 begging.”6 9 The protectionists’ efforts are both to prevent the exploitation of young children7 0 and to improve conditions for older children at work. Companies who either discover (or are discovered to have) child labor are required “to ensure that their actions are in the ‘best interests’ of children.”7 1 With regard to the sexual exploitation of children, it is believed by some child rights advocates that children should have the right to manage their sexuality with no more limitation than adults.7 2 Yet, how are we to weigh this insistence against the fact that the media have increased the global awareness of child sexual exploitation by documenting innumerable wide-spread instances of young women and women, as well as boys and girls, being sold into prostitution or sexual slavery, coerced into child pornography or trafficked across borders into bonded sexual labor?7 3 These and other examples of 69. Mike Dottridge, Executive Director, Anti-Slavery International, interview with author, London, England, 18 August 1998. 70. One distressing example involves “the estimated fifteen million bonded child laborers in India alone, 85 percent of which is in agriculture.” See Lee Tucker, “Child Slaves in Modem India: The Bonded Labor Problem” Human Rights Quarterly 19 (1997): 573. 71. Anti Slavery International, “Working with Companies to Prevent the Exploitation of Child Labour,” Guidelines produced by the NGO Group fo r the convention on the Rights o f the Child, Sub-Group on Child Labour (1997): 3. 72. Farson, “A Child’s Bill of Rights,” in Gross, Children’ s Rights Movement, 325- 28. 73. See, for example, Laurie Nicole Robinson, “The Globalization of Female Child Prostitution: A Call for Reintegration and Recovery Measures Via Article 39 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child,” Indiana Journal o f Global Legal Studies 5 (Fall, 1997): 239, wherein she states, ‘Temale child prostitution is an epidemic that touches every comer of the world Figures estimate that the child Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 59 child sexual atrocities culminated in the August 1996 meeting in Stockholm, Sweden, of the World Congress Against the Commercial Sexual Exploitation of Children, the first global conference convened specifically to address this issue.7 4 The use of children in armed conflict is another problem on the rise.7 5 In response to this phenomenon, there is an international effort to raise the minimum age for recruitment and participation in armed conflict to a minimum of eighteen years.7 6 And in response to the lack of adequate attention to child rights in the peace accords, domestic and international agencies are implementing children’s rights and prostitution business employs approximately I million children in Asia,” [citing “Children on the Alter,” Indianapolis Star, (June 17, 1995): A4], “1.5 to 2 million children in India,” [citing Cynthia Price Cohen, “Child Sexual Exploitation in Developing Countries,” International Commission o f Jurists 36 (1990): 43, n. 2], “100,000 children in the United States,” [citing Dorianne Beyer, “Child Prostitution in Latin America, in Forced Labor: The Prostitution of Children 32 (U.S. Department of Labor, 1996), “500,000 children in Latin America” [citing Margaret A. Healy, “Prosecuting Child Sex Tourists at Home: Do Laws in Sweden, Australia, and the United States Safeguard the Rights of Children as Mandated by International Law?” Fordham International Law Journal 18 (1995)]. 74. See Karen Mahler, “Global Concern for Children’s Rights: The World Congress Against Sexual Exploitation,” International Family Planning Perspectives 23, Issue 2 (June, 1997): 79-84. 75. Amy Beth Abbott, “Child Soldiers: The Use of Children as Instruments of War,” Suffolk Transnational Law Review 23 (Summer, 2000): 498-537, see especially section IV, “Increased Use of Child Soldiers” and the 1998 estimates o f between 200,000 and 250,000 “enlisted” children, p. 509, n. 56. 76. On the standard-setting efforts to prohibit the participation of under-aged children in armed conflict, see Alison Dundes Renteln, “Sixteenth Annual International Law Symposium ‘Rights of Children in the New Millennium’: The Child Soldier: The Challenge o f Enforcing International Standards,” Whittier Law Review 21 (1999): 191-205. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 60 child welfare programs.7 7 The widespread drift of national and international action on behalf of children is the moral and legal recognition of their physical, emotional, and psychological vulnerability, their special care requirements, and a general recognition of the need to secure respect for their rights. The concerns for then- rigorous labor, sexual exploitation, participation in armed conflict, as well as other somber child involvements, reflect the value that society places on childhood for its own sake and reflect a realistic apprehension toward granting children an increased autonomy and rights to self-determination. Faced with these and other perilous obstacles to adequate training for adulthood, greater care toward children and more protective— and, at times, restrictive— measures regarding children are needed to combat societies’ indifference toward children. Indeed, as Campbell argues, “[r]eal childhood occurs when the child is dependent, and must be seen and treated in her connections with other children and significant adults. This does not mean we should, at this stage, abandon talk of children’s rights and concentrate on adult obligations alone.”7 8 Let me now make an attempt to briefly describe the protective safeguards and the rights provided to children in the Convention on the Rights of the 77. See, for example, Ilene Cohn, “The Protection of Children in Peacemaking and Peacekeeping Processes,” Harvard Human Rights Journal 129 (Spring, 1999): 128- 95. 78. Tom D. Campbell, “The Rights of the M inor as Person, as Juvenile, as Future Adult,” in Philip Alston, Stephen Parker, and John Seymour, eds., Children, Rights and the Law (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1995): 22. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 61 Child as a balancing of the competing interests I have been discussing before looking at the Brazilian legal provisions for children. Children’s Rights on the International Front: The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child is the most important and comprehensive international agreement designed to protect the rights of children. Entering into force on September 2, 1990, every country in the world have ratified this convention as of February 1998, except two: the United States and Somalia. Referred to as a “Magna Carta for children,”7 9 the Convention is the most widely ratified human rights treaty in history. Within the framework of our discussion, the Convention does not strive to place the rights of children in opposition to those of adults or parents; in other words, the Convention does not grant children autonomy; indeed, it is their rights that are made autonomous.8 0 Neither does the Convention emphasize the definition or content of parents’ rights or 79. Alison Dundes Renteln, “United States Ratification of Human Rights Treaties: Who’s Afraid of the CRC: Objections to the Convention on the Rights of the Child,” ILSA Journal o f International & Comparative Law 3 (Winter, 1997): 630. 80. An example of an alternate opinion, one which sees the CRC as granting children autonomous status, is Bruce C. Hafen and Jonathan O. Hafen, “Abandoning Children to Their Autonomy: The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child,” Harvard International Law Journal 37 (Spring, 1996): 449-491. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 62 duties. Yet, it evokes a shared parental responsibility for children into its vocabulary8 1 and distinctively calls for their respect by States Parties.8 2 The Convention affords special protection and provisions for children.8 3 Beginning with abundant references to “protection and care,”8 4 “life,” “survival,” “development,” even rights to a “name and nationality” are recognized.8 5 Children can work,8 6 but they must not be exposed to work that is exploitive or dangerous.8 7 Protection extends also to “sexual abuse,” “torture” or “degrading treatment.”8 8 Their “best interests”8 9 are to be sought. As well, education of the child and the 81. See article 18, Convention on the Rights of the Child. 82. See articles 5, 9, and 10, Convention on the Rights of the Child. 83. Precursors to the CRC and related international instruments relative to children and their jurisprudence are catalogued in Paul Sieghart, The International Law o f Human Rights, 205-213. 84. See articles 3, 7,18, 20, and 25, Convention on the Rights of the Child. 85. See articles 6 and 7, Convention on the Rights of the Child. 86. See ILO Convention 138, the Minimum Age Convention, ratified by Brazil in January 2000, where the minimum age for admission into employment is 18 years, and under special conditions, 16 years of age. 87. See article 32, Convention on the Rights of the Child. Also see ILO Convention 182 on the Worst Forms of Child Labour, 1999. 88. See articles 34 and 37, Convention on the Rights of the Child. 89. See articles 9,18, 20 and 21, Convention on the Rights of the Child. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 63 recognition of his right to “rest and leisure” and participation in “cultural and artistic life” are recognized among other rights.9 0 The child is therefore no longer considered merely a vulnerable human being needing special care and assistance, but also as the subject of fundamental rights and freedoms, having the right to hold opinions and express views and see those views taken into consideration, and to be informed and share decisions together with adults. On the other hand, the Convention has set up a holistic approach to the rights of the child [T]he Convention avoided establishing a hierarchy or giving any kind of priority to the implementation of some rights to the detriment of the others. The Convention upholds the same essential importance for each. Also extremely important is the relevance attached by the Convention to the best interests of the child, a standard to be given primary consideration in all actions concerning the child, undertaken both by public and private entities, through administrative, judicial, or legislative bodies.9 1 The Convention essentially created a social force to revamp structural forces inimical to children. The social justice it affords children does not portend a drive to release or to free children nor to structure an unfettered social and political existence. Were such the case, the order of effects would be most curious and complex. The wrongful life suit9 2 is but one example where a child may bring suit against an 90. See articles 29 and 31, Convention on the Rights of the Child. 91. Marta Santos Pais, “Rights of Children and the Family,” in Human Rights: An Agenda fo r the Next Century, Louis Henkin and John Lawrence Hargrove, eds. Studies In Transnational Legal Policy, No. 26 (Washington, D.C.: The American Society of International Law, 1994): 187. Where Pais sees the family as the first democratic experience for the child, Winfield, more recently, portrays the family as an institution that makes it possible for people to realize themselves as free beings in ways not fully possible otherwise. On the basis of this portrait, he draws a host of what might be thought of as liberal and progressive conclusions about family. See Richard Dien Winfield, The Just Family (Albany, N.Y.: SUNY Press, 1998). 92. Melinda Roberts, A Child versus Childmaker: Future Persons and Present Duties in Ethics and the Law (Lanham, Md.: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 64 individual or group making the claim that negligence resulted in the existence or the coming into being of the plaintiff, a veritable philosophical and ethical— not to mention a legal— mess. Malfeasance aside, how is it that one can be better off though not existing? One must be in order to be better off.9 3 For its part, the Convention instead forecasts the right of a child to have more opportunities for self-development and to receive associative empowerments which enhances his existence through dependency upon the family in general and parents in particular. Rather than protectionism or paternalism, the Convention advocates a relationalism which respects the child’s familial, ethnic, religious, racial, and national setting. Thus, on balance, while the rights of the child have universal significance, they must be understood contextually. The convention recognizes alongside with the child dependence theorists that children often must be assisted in their lives. Yet, with the child autonomists, it recognizes that the individuality and capacity of children ought not be minimized in their self-determination to exercise their rights. Anthropologically speaking, however, this “translation of basic rights across society and culture, even when as seemingly blameless as promoting the 1998). 93. On a similar point, see Robert Nozick, Anarchy, State, and Utopia (New York: Basic Books, Inc., 1974): 337, n. 8, who recalls a Yiddish joke: — “Life is so terrible; it would be better never to have been conceived.” — “Yes, but who is so fortunate? Not one in a thousand.” Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 65 citizenship rights of women and children, can be a risky business.”9 4 Transcultural child-hostile policies and opinions have had a social effect on children’s private lives. While it is a step in the right direction for children across the globe, the Convention should not be understood as a panacea for children. “As Phillipe Aries predicted close to the end of his life, the modem notion of childhood is disappearing and real children are losing ground.”9 5 Brazil: Children and Rights The national constitution of Brazil expressly protects the social and economic rights of children.9 6 In fact, Brazil enjoys some of the most progressive legislation on children’s rights in the world. With the establishment of the National Street Children’s movement in June 1985, Brazil held its first Street Children’s Congress in Brasilia. Inspired by the Convention on the Rights of the Child and supported by 1,300,000 children and 200,000 voters, two constitutional amendments were 94. Nancy Scheper-Hughes and Carolyn Sargent, eds., Small Wars: The Cultural Politics o f Childhood (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998): 7. This transcultural study of the ideas of childhood includes various accounts o f children’s assessments of their situations from their perspective, which, in essence, grants children their voice. 95. Ibid., 28. 96. The Brazilian Constitution, article 7, §XXV provides financial assistance for children and dependents up to the age of six. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 6 6 proposed.9 7 The two proposals became the Brazilian Constitution’s Chapter on the Rights of Children and Adolescents (1988). Therefore, how does the Brazilian government view the child? With regard to his employment, current law in Brazil prohibits all “nocturnal, dangerous or unhealthy labour to individuals of less that [sic] 16, save in the condition of apprentice, starting at the age of 14.”9 8 Be this as it may, the Brazilian national census bureau “identified 4,121,932 working children between the ages of 5-14 in 1995. In the age bracket of 5-9, there were 522,000 children working, representing 3.2% of all children within this age group.”9 9 It is the goal of various organizations to prepare children for non-exploitive child labor and to enable their legitimate entry into the labor force thereby facilitating their self-determination. But just as the Brazilian child labor reality contrasts with the law, so does the reality of violence demonstrated toward children contrast with the laws designed to protect them. Over 500,000 prostitutes under the age of seventeen work the Brazilian streets.1 0 0 The Brazilian penalties relating to sex offences with children younger than 18 years and 97. See Irene Rizzini et al., Childhood and Urban Poverty in Brazil: Street and Working Children and Their Families (New York: UNICEF, 1992). 98. ILO/IPEC Working Paper, “Social Labeling Against Child Labour: Brazilian Experiences” (Universidade de Sao Paulo, 2000): 12. 99. Ibid., 13. 100. Human Rights Watch, Final Justice: Police and Death Squad Homicides o f Adolescents in Brazil (New York: Human Rights Watch, 1994): 11. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 67 more than 14 years of age range from one to five years imprisonment.1 0 1 Of similar conspicuous incongruence is the strong economic motivation for young girls to become involved with prostitution, even with the strong sexual division of labor where poor girls are typically able to find jobs as domestic servants or maids and the social motivation for them to avoid either formally or informally trading in sex is just as strong.1 0 2 On the one hand, Article 227 of the Brazilian Constitution establishes that the implementation of children’s rights is the “duty of the family, the society and the state.”1 0 3 In practice, however, the federal government has generally failed to act decisively to see that this legislation is adequately implemented. For the most part, the impediments to allowing legal protection from violence have been serious. This is due to “the popular discourse on violence that casts street children as hordes of 101. Penal Code, Art. 217, 218. Seduction and Corruption of minors, and Penal Code, Art. 228, Induction or temptation into prostitution with violence (which brings two to eight years imprisonment with a fine). 102. Hecht, 58, discusses young girls’ motivation to be with a boyfriend to protect them from prostitution and sexual abuse, and Scheper-Hughes, Death Without Weeping, 102, discusses how a prostitute “can never claim for herself the social status of an ‘abandoned’ or ‘widowed’ woman. And she cannot make claims on her neighbors for help as a right, although she may ‘beg’ for the charity due a miserable sinner.” 103. The Brazilian Constitution, article 227, reads, “It is the duty of the family, society, and the state to assure with absolute priority the rights of children and adolescents to life, health, food, education, leisure, occupational training, culture, dignity, respect, freedom, and family and community life, and in addition to protect them from all forms of negligence, discrimination, exploitation, violence, cruelty, and oppression.” Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 6 8 actual or potential criminals, malefactors, and murderers.”1 0 4 Thus, the government rarely addresses the problem of immunity for the killers of children. As we will take note later in the study, while the constitution of Brazil may provide for the general rights of the population, it has not been utilized to its maximum potential for children. The challenge is not with drafting the right nor with the semantics of interpretation, but with the raising of consciousness and the distribution of state resources. Conclusions Lloyd deMause’s “periodization of modes” represents a sequence of closer approaches between parent and child and parents’ abilities to better fulfill the needs of the child. It provides a useful overlay to our discovery of ethics and rights pertaining to the child. In sum, he asserts that throughout antiquity to the fourth century of this era was the infanticidal mode “when parents routinely resolve their anxieties about taking care of children by killing them.”1 0 S The second, the abandonment mode--from the fourth to the thirteenth centuries— was when parents began to accept the child as a living soul,. . . {and to} escape the dangers of their own projections . . . {abandoned the child} whether to the wet nurse, to the monastery or nunnery, to foster families, to the homes of 104. Scheper-Hughes and Sargent, eds., Small Wars, 383. For a thorough discussion of the new laws and their effect upon children, note in this same work the article by Scheper-Hughes and Daniel Hoffman, “B razilian Apartheid: Street Kids and the Struggle for Urban Space.” 105. deMause, History o f Childhood, 51. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 69 other nobles as servants or hostages, or by severe emotional abandonment at home.1 0 6 From the fourteenth to the seventeenth centuries was the mode of ambivalence.1 0 7 The popular image was that of “physical molding of children, who were seen as soft wax, plaster, or clay to be beaten into shape.”1 0 8 The eighteenth century marks the intrusive mode. “The child was so much less threatening that true empathy was possible, and pediatrics was bom, which along with the general improvement in level of care by parents reduced infant mortality and provided the basis for the demographic transitions of the eighteenth century.”1 0 9 The socialization mode is during the nineteenth to mid-twentieth centuries. Here, “the raising of a child became less a process of conquering its will than of training it, guiding it into proper paths, teaching it to conform, socializing it.”1 1 0 Finally, the helping m ode- 106. Ibid. See also Mary Martin McLaughlin, “Survivors and Surrogates: Children and Parents from the Ninth to the Thirteenth Centuries,” in deMause, History o f Childhood, 101-81, and the comment that “[A]ttempts to translate law and precept into practice were in this sphere, as in many others, faltering and often ineffective.” (P. 140). 107. See James Bruce Ross, “The Middle-Class Child in Urban Italy, Fourteenth to Early Sixteenth Century,” M. J. Tucker, “The Child as Beginning and End: Fifteenth and Sixteenth Century English Childhood,” Elizabeth Wirth Marvick, “Nature Versus Nurture: Patterns in Seventeenth-Century French Child-Rearing,” Joseph E. Dlick, “Child-Rearing in Seventeenth-Century England and America,” and John F. Walzer, “A Period of Ambivalence: Eighteenth-Century American Childhood,” in Ibid., 183-228,229-57,259-301, 303-50, and 351-82, respectively. 108. Ibid. 109. Ibid., 52. 110. Ibid. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 70 which begins in the mid-twentieth century— marks the beginning of formalized rights for children. It “involves the proposition that the child knows better than the parent what it needs at each stage of its life, and fully involves both parents in the child’s life as they work to empathize with and fulfill its expanding and particular needs.”1 1 1 If deMause’s historically linear measurements reflect closer approaches between parent and child, then it also reflects an historical maturation; one resulting in the West’s ascription of rights to the child and the child’s ability to assert those rights. One child advocate, a child himself— Craig Kielburger— who witnessed the living and working conditions of children around the globe,1 1 2 sees the problem of children’s rights not in terms of the limits of various social function systems, but as a function of the global political will. Kielburger’s accounts demonstrate that the child 111. Ibid. 112. Craig Kielburger, Free the Children: A Young M an's Personal Crusade Against Child Labor (New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1998): 296, says, “I have seen children living in the streets in some of the world’s largest cities— sleeping on concrete, in gutters, with rats, in the cold. I met children as young as five years old sold as domestic servants, children in factories pouring molten metal with no protective gear, children working as bonded labourers in carpet factories twelve to sixteen hours a day. I stood with children working in sugar-cane fields in Brazil, wielding huge machetes as they cut cane that ends up on our tables in our sugar bowls and on our cereal each day. I saw children in Haiti on the street half dazed from sniffing glue to dull their misery and pain. I even walked the streets of Patpong in Bangkok, Thailand, with an under-cover agent who in my presence was promised an eight-year-old boy for his sexual pleasure. Children. . . all children.” Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 71 possesses the ability to know better than the parent. Indeed, his work engenders our empathy to fulfill the expanding and particular needs of the child. Do all children, even the poorest of the poor, even street children, have the right to go to school? Are all children created equal? If child labour is not acceptable for white, middle-class North American kids, then why is it acceptable for a girl in Thailand or a boy in Brazil? . . . We simply do not believe that world leaders can create a nuclear bomb and send a man to the moon but cannot feed and protect the world’s children. We simply do not believe it.1 1 3 The perspective of this young human rights advocate and founder of the children’s rights NGO, Free the Children, and his understandings of childhood offer an age- appropriate insight into the nature of childhood today, What is a good and normal childhood in the world today? In my travels I have found two extremes. In many developing countries, children are often asked to work long hours at hazardous jobs with no opportunity to play or to go to school. They are not allowed to develop physically, intellectually, and emotionally as they should. They support entire families. They fight in wars. They are given too much responsibility at too young an age. On the other hand, in many industrialized countries everything is done for children. They are segregated most of their lives with members of their own age group and are given little opportunity to assume responsibility, to develop a social conscience, or to learn through interaction with adults. Through media they learn to be consumers, to gain their self-image through the electronic toys they own and the labels they wear. They, too, are exploited. They see violence and suffering on the news every day but are told that they are too young to do anything about it. They are conditioned to become passive bystanders. This is the other extreme. Marian Wright Edelman, founder of Defense for Children International, once said, ‘ Affluenza and lack of moral purpose are more dangerous viruses than influenza for m illions of America’s and the world’s children.’ We want to help free children from both extremes.1 1 4 113. Ibid., 297. 114. Ibid., 290-91. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 72 Like Keilburger, child rights advocates must “speak” the “language” of existing social function systems. But, even where this communicative reformulation is successful, it may still be the case that no existing system is charged with the task of addressing the specific interests of children. Absent a more authoritative moral system1 1 5 provided to societies by the Convention, children may appear as social “irritants.” As such, a social system may potentially respond in ways that perceives irritants as forming a liability or a danger to the system’s operations. Or, perchance, the irritants may be perceived as an element which threatens the very stability of the society. The Convention turns this thinking on its head. “The CRC provides an opportunity to develop a coherent philosophy and policy for... children. Through the eyes of the CRC, children are not a problem: they are the solution.” 1 1 6 How does it do this? By providing a significantly different world view. NGOs fight for childrens’ rights represent organizational attempts to give children a different world view. We will see in the following chapter Northeastern Brazilian street childrens’ social context and the scope of their society’s possible system responses. Here we will note a predominant child protectionist ideology. The social function systems response to children’s welfare and rights issues of the child autonomist ideology are possible only to the degree the system will permit, and 115. Michael King, A Better World fo r Children: Explorations in M orality and Authority (New York: Routledge, 1997), argues that efforts toward reforming child welfare advocacy forecasts little improvement absent a moral authority. 116. Van Bueren, “Combating Child Poverty,” 706. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 73 only in the way the current Brazilian system will allow. While the end of NGOs and the Convention is to provide occasion for alleviating some harms that plague some children’s lives, we need to better understand those social systems impacting Brazilian street children. As well, because of the unpredictability of social reform for children in a social settmg— admittedly, change in one system may stimulate unexpected change in other systems, which may, paradoxically, result in some unexpected harm to the very same (or to other) children~we will now focus our attention onto those para-social systems which ride the balance between empowering children and sustaining their dependence: the NGOs and their child-assisting efforts to make the new formalized child rights metaphor into a triumphing reality that empathizes with and fulfills children’s extending and unique needs. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 74 Chapter III NONGOVERNMENTAL ORGANIZATIONS: THE SOCIAL FOCI OF LOCAL HUMAN RIGHTS INTEREST GROUPS This chapter discusses the roles of NGOs in Northeastern Brazil and the roots of the suffering of the people located there in general and the children in particular. The chapter looks at the social backdrop of Northeast Brazilian hardships and answers the questions: What were the factors leading up to and affecting the creation of new associations of local interest groups in the Northeast of Brazil? What are the social foci of these local interest groups? What people groups are most seriously displaced and affected? How are NGOs organized to meet the needs of those in distress? Prior to answering these questions, the phenomenon of NGOs and their functions in their broader roles will be helpful in understanding the discussion of particular Brazilian NGOs. NGOs: The Problem of Definition With a broad view toward NGOs, one notices they are remarkably diverse in terms of both their goals and their structures. As for their organizational purposes and missions, there is evidence of great variance. On the one hand, in the history of NGOs there stands the early great organizations devoted to human rights and humanitarian relief, perhaps most notably— the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies as well as the League of Red Cross Societies and the World Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 75 Health Organization. The International League for the Rights of Man, Anti-Slavery International, and Amnesty International, just to name a few, come to mind when we think of organizations devoted to eliminating humanity’s enslavement and subjection of fellow humans. Those organizations devoted to environmental protection such as the International Union for the Conservation of Nature--which spun off the NGO World Wildlife Fund--as well as Save the Whales, and Greenpeace (with nearly six million members worldwide, offices in thirty countries, and an annual budget of about SI00 million), come readily to mind.1 The environmental NGOs are particularly difficult to understand, functionally. While they may define themselves as devoted to the environment and do so in relatively narrow terms, one finds that they engage in a variety of other issues such as human rights, public health, and indigenous peoples. And while this enables alliances and coalitions with other NGOs, it only adds to the difficulty of properly understanding and categorizing NGOs. The fact that 1. For an especially helpfiil text on environmental NGOs, see John McCormick, Reclaiming Paradise: The Global Environment Movement (Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 1989). Table 3.1 — Terms used to define NGOs_________________ ► non-govemmental organization ► non-govemmental development organization ► government-organized NGO (GONGO) ► donor-organized NGO (DONGO) ► non-profit organization ► private voluntary organization ► social movements ► civil society ► peoples’ organization ► community-based organization ► grassroots organization Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 76 there also exists a variety of terms and references to NGOs (see Table 3.1) further confounds the issue of proper definition. On the other hand, more recently founded NGOs represent a great diversity of friendly interests beyond human rights, humanitarian concerns, or the environment. These NGOs range well beyond the imaginable. There are NGOs that represent the interest in extra-terrestrials and their space craft vehicles. Operation Right To Know, for example, argues that democracy itself is at stake when governments suppress the truth about UFOs. On a more " ‘scientific” footing, the SETI Institute is a research organization dedicated to the discovering of “other” life in the universe with an emphasis on the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence. SETI was founded in 1984 as a California non-profit corporation and focuses on the dissemination of public information and education. There exist NGOs whose sole purposes are to represent institutions ranging from educational interests to humanism, religious sects and denominations to cults, and the occult. For example, The Centre for Critical Studies in Religion, Ethics & Society is an international center for the study of humanism within the religious and cultural context of twentieth century life and thought. It is an accredited research institute of Westminster College, an associated society of Oxford University, and is a commission of the International Humanist and Ethical Union, a worldwide body officially represented as an NGO of the United Nations and one of the founders of UNESCO. IHEU has a long, distinguished record in the field of peace and justice Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 77 studies and in human rights activism, having contributed to the framing o f the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. As well, there also exist NGOs representing industries like foods and other goods, services, and chemicals. For example, the Chemical Manufacturers Association (CMA), founded in 1872, is one of the oldest trade associations in North America and is the chemical industry’s collective political action arm on legislative, regulatory and legal matters at the international, national, and state levels. CMA’s advocacy spans the gamut of NGO- type activities: from the cultivation of long term political relationships at the state and federal level through both grassroots and grasstops programs to initiating litigation as a counter to unsuitable governmental regulations and restrictions. Indeed, the wide ranging assortment o f NGOs challenge a simple understanding of their purpose (see Table 3.2). The Broad Constitution of NGOs As to their natures, some NGOs are fervently autonomous. While others are either suspected or known as the devices of unscrupulous overseers, even governments, some represent businesses attempting to seize additional interests or further less-than-selfless interests. Some have no more than one or two people on Table 3.2 - Other NGO Areas of Operation_________ ► human rights ► environmental issues ► food, clothing, and housing ► health ► democracy ► education ► social order / community ► poverty issues ► infrastructure ► political mobilization Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 78 their staff. Others consist of tens of thousands of members around the world. Some have large central secretariats, others are largely decentralized. And while some lean to the left, some are definitely far to the right. Thus, the wide diversity of NGOs strain at a modest definition. Admittedly, with such variety, generalizations about what constitutes this growing socially-focused organizational phenomenon and how NGOs are best understood can be easily misdirected. Be that as it may, one feature regarding NGOs is inescapable, as the nation states of today curtail budgets, trim regulations and abandon protective social programs, a great many NGO groups will continue to appear in our midst to provide for social needs and will become increasingly indispensable. With this in mind, criteria for better understanding and defining NGOs, in terms of their social alignments, foci, and other important distinctives, is a worthwhile endeavor. I offer later in this chapter a matrix to provide much-needed structure to the wide and increasingly disparate variety of NGOs and to discuss how, within this proposed structure, NGOs are furthering the broad cause of the human rights movement at the local, national, and international levels. Because NGOs are an eclectic mix, the problem of definition is indeed exacerbated. Even among human rights NGOs, there are sharp differences in action strategies and human rights discourses, despite shared objectives. One scheme attempting to make sense of the apparently competing paradigms uses a five-fold classification scheme: (1) process: using how NGO actors define themselves and their roles within the human rights machinery; (2) objectives: perceptions of the purpose of the international human rights system and goals to be pursued therein; (3) Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 79 scope: the breadth of issue definition and consequent action; (4) evidence: the standards whereby empirical claims are filtered, constructed and judged; and (5) action strategies: the enduring patterns of practical action founded upon the preceding categories.2 Such classifications, while useful and assist in the delimitation of NGOs, are nonetheless unable to address the multi-dimensional character of NGOs and provide sufficient delimitation. Furthermore, such a classification bogs down at the local level. What is needed for NGOs operating at this level is one which may also serve a definitional narrowing purpose and action- clarifying aims of both national and international NGOs as well. In working toward my proposal of a matrix to better understand the social foci of NGOs, perhaps at this point a general explanatory statement is helpful. Consider the definition used by the World Bank. They [NGOs] include many groups and institutions that are entirely or largely independent of government and that have primarily humanitarian or cooperative rather than commercial objectives. They are private agencies in industrial countries that support international development; indigenous groups organized regionally or nationally; and member-groups in villages. NGOs include charitable and religious associations that mobilize private funds for development, distribute food and family planning services and promote community organization. They also include independent cooperatives, community associations, water-user societies, women’s groups and pastoral associations. Citizen Groups that raise awareness and influence policy are also NGOs.3 2. L. A. Pal, “Competing Paradigms in Policy Discourse: The Case o f International Human Rights,” Policy Sciences 28, no. 2 (May 1995): 185-207. 3. The World Bank, “How the World Bank works with Non-Govemmental Organizations.” (N.P.: The World Bank, 1990). Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 80 Staying with this working definition for a moment, the statement distills down to a non-commercial, community promoting, developmentally oriented civic association understanding of NGOs. An even more narrow definition sees NGOs as referring to publicly registered private non-profit organizations whose primary function is to implement those development projects that are most beneficial to poorer sectors of the population. Both viewpoints clearly understand that such organizations have a social worth as they are organized to provide social benefits— of sorts— and to figure prominently in the improvement of the human situation. And inasmuch as they seek to provide benefits and services, a discussion of the human and social needs NGOs organize to mitigate may prove helpful to our designing a more useful definition of NGOs. Are there social foci of NGOs or other criteria for more clearly understanding NGOs, ones which identify which NGOs’ interests and activities are more socially redeeming than others? Using my observations on Brazil to answer this question, I will show how local NGOs are organized to both fight for the rights of and meet the needs of the displaced children and other needy people groups. It is the particular function of these local Brazilian NGOs that contribute to understanding the larger phenomenon of NGOs. Brazil Before discussing the variety of NGOs operating in the locations I visited and their social foci, it would be useful to make several remarks about the social setting and the contexts in which I examined the Brazilian NGOs. First, Brazil is the largest Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 81 country on the South American continent and the fifth largest country in the world. It had a GDP in 1995 of $563 billion and the economy grew at a rate of 4.1 percent. It was 5% in 1998 and foreign investment totaled nearly 10.2 billion (1996 capped at 9.9 billion),4 thus ranking second world-wide to China in direct foreign investment. After two decades of hyper-inflation and currency devaluation which robbed Brazilian consumers of purchasing power, the planned economic resurgence and emergence as a major market5 has done little for closing the large gap in income distribution, narrowing only slightly in 1995. The minimum salary in Brazil should be about USS250 per month if it had the same buying power that it had in 1940; it is currently at around USS115 per month. In relative terms, the minimum salary of workers in the 1940 was 3.6 times greater than that of workers today. Today, in order to achieve such a minimum wage, the government would only need to spend 1/3 of the costs of the interests on its debt.6 Recent statistics indicate a general decline in income and rise in unemployment and work in the informal sector. The most recent study from IBGE (Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics)7 reveals that unemployment 4. “No Bombshells on the Radar,” Business Week, no. 3549 [Business Outlook Section on Brazil] (October 20,1997): 32. 5. Chris Kraul, “Brazil Slowdown Means Shake-Up in United States,” Los Angeles Times (November 21,1997): D l, D16. 6. Sem Terra: Jom al dos Trabalhadores Rurais (March, 2000) cited in SEJUP. 7. Ibid. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 8 2 increased from December 1999 to January o f 2000 by 7.6%. This figure represents the biggest increase since January of 1984. At the same time, the number of people working in the informal economy increased dramatically. In this past decade, the number grew 62%. In 1999, 78% of the people who gained employment did not have signed work cards (which guarantees retirement funds and other benefits) and were underemployed, some nearing conditions of slave labor. The IBGE also revealed that the average salary of the industrial worker fell by 2.8% in 1999. In 1998, the richest 20% of the population controlled 64% of the national income, while the poorest 20% only had 2.5% of the national income. The poorest tenth of the population earned 1 percent of national income, compared with 0.7 percent in 1993, while the richest tenth earned 47.1 percent, down from 49 percent in 1993. With a preponderance of the poor in the state of Pernambuco and throughout the Northeast, the area has “earned” the ignoble designation, “the Calcutta of the Western hemisphere.” Brazil itself is sometimes described as Bel-India, as it contains in one country the affluence of Belgium and brutal poverty of subcontinental proportions. Second, the phenomena of endangered and high-risk young girls, uneducated and neglected rural children, destitute seniors, and incorrigible street boys in Brazil— and the NGOs I visited who are striving to meet the particular needs and promote the rights o f these groups— have evolved within a period of social dislocation brought on by the processes of rapid industrialization, social and political upheaval and economic failure. The problem of “street children” itself is emblematic of a larger Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 83 dilemma in Brazil: a failed economic development model that has relegated a vast proportion of the population to misery. From this social context emanates the specter of the homeless and abandoned street child, perceived by the government, businesses, tourists and the wealthy as a social defect of the urban terrain.8 Indeed, the life of the poor and needy here is the product of being pounded in the bottom of a social crucible with these social developments which began with the events bringing Getulio Vargas to power in 1930 through to the 50s.9 During this time the progress of peoples’ rights protection ebbed and flowed, much like the idea of human rights itself in history. The truth is that Brazilian history does not follow a straight line of development but a cyclical path, with phases of advance and phases of retreat. . . . Periods of progress are followed by times of stagnation, depending on leaders, economic conditions, and international situations . . . {beginning with} the revolution of 1930, regarded by some as a creative movement, characterized by industrialization, nationalism, and development, and considered by others as a chaotic eruption of the forces of destruction, corruption, and subversion.1 0 During the 1950s, Brazil embarked upon an exuberant industrialization program both to end its reliance on foreign imports and to enhance the internal and 8. See Nancy Scheper-Hughes and Daniel Hoffman, “Kids Out of Place,” NACLA report on the Americas 27, no. 6 (May 1994): 16. 9. For a more detailed study of the regional dynamics of Brazilian federalism and its impact upon state-level social and political structures in the early phases of Pernambuco’s modernization, see Robert M. Levine, Pernambuco in the Brazilian Federation, 1889-1937, (Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1978). 10. Jose Honorio Rodrigues, The Brazilians: The Character and Aspirations, trans. Ralph Edward Dimmick, The Texas Pan American Series, (Austin and London: University of Texas Press, 1967): xxi. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 84 international position of its economy. Urban planners designed and conceived a network of industrial cities and lengthy highways were constructed to connect them. A new industrial infra-structure was established and sizeable incentives and subsidies were given to modernize agriculture, encourage large industrial corporations, and attract and retain foreign investments. This social policy resulted in 30 million people leaving the countryside between 1960 and 1980. The process of urbanization was chaotic. In-migrants from the countryside, finding no housing, erected their own shanty towns, sprawling developments {often called favelas} that typically appeared on the city edges and often became more populous than the formal city. Although urban services were poor or nonexistent, these in-migrants rightly saw their life chances as better in the city than in the countryside. They found jobs in the service sector, many in the informal economy. And they could also flow back to the countryside when the city economy turned sour. Of this rapidly growing urban population, the increasing proportion of Brazilians under twelve years of age was a special burden because the infrastructure for education and health care services was thin and grossly underfinanced. Schools, hospitals and clinics were all inadequate. Although the outside world saw a relatively favorable picture through films such as Black Orpheus, which romanticized favela life in Rio de Janeiro, the growing favelas frightened the urban elite within Brazil.1 1 Beginning with the coup d 'etat and subsequent “reign of the military government” (1964-1985), these rural people were encouraged and, at times, forced to relocate to the cities. Here they could be better contained and controlled more easily and would serve as an economical source of labor needed for the “success” of the industrialization programs. Many were coerced to leave the countryside by 11. Thomas E. Skidmore, Brazil: Five Centuries o f Change (New York: Oxford University Press, 1999): 139. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 85 powerful land owners or as a result of new enclosures for cattle ranches, hydroelectric project developments, and other industrial improvements. In the midst of this social upheaval, the migrants themselves were in need of work, food, and the management of their general welfare. Cramming into the most unwelcome and unsuitable public places, these rural migrants built their own shelters and a bleak infrastructure. Concurrently, the population of Brazil was erupting. In 1940 there were 41 million people in Brazil. Now it is estimated that Brazil has 148 million inhabitants, 74% of them are urban dwellers. Consequently the slums (or favelas) exploded. The 70 percent of the urban working class who are not unionized and who do not benefit from social and labor legislation, form an underclass with very little political voice or power. Along with the rural poor, they are at the very bottom of the political power pyramid in contemporary Brazil. For these people, urban poverty is recycled rural despair. They form Brazil’s ‘silent majority.’ Because they have the lowest levels of education and organization, and the barest of incomes, the political maneuvers of the elites, the military, middle class, and organized labor largely shape the fate of these rural and urban poor people.1 2 With the departure of the military government, a legacy of vast foreign debt (estimated at over $100 billion) was left in its wake. This does not include the massive accumulated “social debt” resulting from years of neglect with regard to basic housing, general health and welfare, and educational needs. Several of the directors of my subject NGOs suggest that adding to this the recession of the 1980s— when rampant recession and near zero growth in the formal sector jobs, creating in 12. Marshall C. Eakin, Brazil: The Once and Future Country (New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1997): 191. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 8 6 Brazil a rampant inflation— we can begin to understand the enormous pressure placed on poor families. Having said this, it is important to mention that most street children are today, “as they were in the 1960s, ‘supernumerary’ or ‘excess’ kids, the children of impoverished and often single or abandoned women.”1 3 It is also noteworthy during the 1970s there were few reports of children being the victims of the death squads. This underlines the extent to which economic crisis has recently forced children into the streets along with the criminal atmosphere. Today 50.5% of Brazilian children and adolescents live in families with less than half of the minimum salary, or $55 per family per month. Of this total, more than a quarter live in families where the income is merely $20 a month (the equivalent cost of 4 hamburgers and large drinks at a local restaurant). In the Northeast of Brazil, the figure rises to just under 50%. This means that there are 20 million children, as a modest estimate, who live on the poverty line. But economic consideration are not the sole reason for the existence of street children. Citing the Goiania Study, researchers conclude that the statistical data and case studies confirm that economic factors alone are not the cause of the child leaving home. Other factors include hostility, lack of unity, and rejection within the family. The greater the disintegration of the family’s ability to cope, the more pernicious are the effects of poverty. The physical presence of the parents is not enough to ensure the integrity of the family. This explodes the myth that the nuclear family in itself can guarantee that children will remain under the control of the parents. It is the quality of care that makes the difference. In the ‘empty house,’ characterized by physically and/or emotionally absent parents and general conditions of 13. Scheper-Hughes and Hoffman, “Kids Out of Place,” 18. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 87 stress, interpersonal relationships among family members are weakened and the control mechanisms that govern the lives of the children deteriorate. It was found that, of the difference families, only those of the street children had mothers who were main providers of the household more often than the fathers. This situation represents an affront to the traditional patriarchal values of families in Brazil. It contributes to the father’s frustrations and to the strained relationships among household members. Street children have great difficulties in their relationships with their fathers. They do not feel that they can confide in them, or establish a relationship. Street children are also subject to corporal punishment more often than working children. As the child feels increasingly detached from the home, the street band as a social organization becomes more attractive. The street band makes life on the streets feasible, both in terms of practical survival and emotional support.1 4 The most recent statistical data applicable to the situation of Brazilian children is from UNICEF. Brazil was ranked 85th among 193 world nations. It’s overall rating of 0.5 (on a scale of 0 to 1) was the result of its municipalities’ poorer scores in the North and Northeast. The majority of the best scores are in the South and Southeast of the country.1 5 Northeastern Brazil: Recife and Environs The vast expanse of the Northeast of Brazil, and especially the state of Pernambuco, is by far the poorest region of Brazil. It is also a veritable laboratory for local NGO experimentation and, for the NGO researcher, the capital of Pemambuco— Recife— is a key place to visit and observe local NGO operations. The 14. Irene Rizzini et al. “Brazil: A New Concept of Childhood,” 74-75. 15. “The State of the World’s Children, 2001,” Online Posting. February 17,2001. <http ://www.unicef.org/sowc0 l/toc.htm#> Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 8 8 city has come to be known for its distinctive sort of wretchedness; one not found in the Northeast, nor anywhere else in Brazil, and even perhaps in the West. Recife is the fourth largest city in Brazil with nearly 1.3 million inhabitants. It was the mercantile Dutch of the seventeenth century who made Recife “the first really bourgeois commercial center of Brazil.”1 6 Near the end of the nineteenth century it was the setting for meager industrialization as many of the inefficient if picturesque sugar mills had been replaced by the usinas, mechanized refineries. Some limited industrialization began in the traditionally sugar-oriented Northeast after the ports were closed to the slave trade. In the quarter century thereafter, Recife acquired 9 textile mills, a candle factory, a tobacco factory, a soap factory, and a biscuit factory along with some other industries.1 7 Throughout most o f Pernambuco’s and Recife’s history, life was brutal. “High fertility, high mortality, malnutrition, and violence . . . were the consequence of social policy. Contemporaries have testified to the squalor of life in Recife, half of whose residents in 1923 lived in mocambos (shanties).”1 8 The Recife of today it is less modem and cosmopolitan than its more famous counterparts. The city and its environs have only recently become a tourist destination, so visitors are often a novelty for its inhabitants, especially those of the neighboring fishing villages. Today’s northeast economy is based on tourism, heavy 16. E. Bradford Bums, A History o f Brazil, 2nd ed. (New York: Columbia University Press, 1980): 62. 17. Ibid., 203. 18. Levine, Pernambuco, 165. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 89 and light industry, export/import, and sugar. Sugar has always fueled the economy of the northeast, the principle crop of Pernambuco.1 9 Recife and its sea-side environs of Boa Viagem, Recife’s counterpart to Copacabana, boasts fashionable, iridescent high rises and a new shopping mall. Colonial churches and local outdoor markets quilt the city of Recife with a mix of old and new. The center of Recife is a bustling business center, full of shops and offices. The old center endures as the seat of city and state governments and comprises immense numbers of employers and footings of power. Also called “the Venice of Brazil” because of its many canals, bridges~and the Afogados, Beberibe, and Capiberibe rivers that weave their way through the city of tiny one-way streets-- Recife is a strangely wonderful city in which to carefully wander around. The rivers and canals have long served Recife as an open sewer system. The smell is at times overwhelming, yet the street children— often seen swimming in the waterways— appear to be immune to the foul smell. Recife’s once vibrant downtown has been totally abandoned by the upper and middle classes and has become a gigantic bazaar, taken over by ambulantes (street vendors), thirty thousand according to one estimate. It is a world of its own, where only the fittest survive. Every conceivable kind of merchandise is peddled, cheaply, without regard to quality, and often on the sidewalk in front of stores that sell the same goods. The ambulantes pay no taxes or licensing fees, but they are susceptible to shakedowns by criminal gangs as well as poorly paid policemen and government functionaries. They constantly face the risk of violence at the hands of competitors and thieves. 19. See Eakin, Brazil: The Once and Future Country, especially chapter one, “The Presence of the Past.” Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 90 The labyrinth o f narrow streets also provides a setting for camelos, or pitchmen, who use colorful language and seductive sales techniques to peddle wares such as folk medicine.. . . One can encounter other remarkable sights- -for example, a whole row of abandoned automobiles that have been converted into workshops for the repair of used products such as electrical goods and watches. And, of course, the usual complement of beggars and homeless people clutter the area. The plight of the downtown (“our Bedford-Stuyvesant,” as one former resident put it) is a visible symbol of the grinding poverty that still afflicts what Ralph Nader once called the “shadow city of Recife.” Other aspects include an unemployment rate that may be the highest of any city in the country; the chronic hunger that forces people to pick through the city’s garbage dumps in search of food, and to consume popcorn as a stomach- filling staple; the spread of infectious diseases because of the closing of clinics where those with illnesses such as tuberculosis could be interned during their contamination period; the steady deterioration of basic municipal services (that were never adequate to begin with); and a spiraling crime rate attributable in large part to the exigencies of survival. Those trapped in the web of penury occasionally resort to desperate measures. A local dentist told of a man who obtained some anesthesia from him, to castrate his dog, he said. “The guy kept coming back for more, so I got suspicious and investigated. It turned out he was injecting it into the hands of some of his friends and then hitting their hands with a hammer, so that they could qualify for social-security disability benefits.” Conditions in the sertdo and the sugar zone produce a steady influx of migrants to the city of Recife. Most of these newcomers make their homes in mucambos on the sides of hills or on the banks of a river. In 1989 it was estimated that there were 520 of these settlements within city limits.2 0 This is the social setting wherein NGOs are making extensive efforts to manage the distress of those in need, to improve the quality of their lives, and to 20. Joseph A. Page, The Brazilians (Reading, Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley Publishing Company, Inc., 1995): 195-96. Page adds the interesting comment that the names of these settlements “bestowed by slumdwellers on newly formed neighborhoods reflect a surprising degree of awareness of current political and cultural events. They include fran-Iraq, Skylab n, and Planet of the Apes.” Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 91 create viable futures for the lowest of the lower class, those seemingly trapped in this society’s cellar lacking vertical social mobility. But what were the factors leading up to and affecting the creation of these new associations designed to meet the needs of these people and to advocate for their local interests? The Genesis of Brazilian “Focused” NGOs Within the Brazilian social context mentioned in the previous section— that of extreme poverty, rampant violence and exploitation, combined with the phenomena of endangered and high-risk young girls, uneducated and neglected rural children, destitute seniors, and incorrigible street boys in Brazil— specifically “focused” NGOs have both emerged and have “come-along-side” to bring relief. Other factors contributing to the creation and attraction of NGOs include the process of continuing social decline from its previous condition or norm in such matters as the general welfare of its citizens, the degree of social unity and cooperation among its members and institutions, and adherence (or lack of sufficient adherence) to the codes and standards of Brazilian groups in power. These occurrences begin to provide for us a basis for not only understanding the affected individual and group behaviors in the light of these social relationships, but also the need for the existence and operations of local NGOs and their formulation of specific plans for social treatment. The various NGO plans for improved social treatment of children and the concern for Brazilian children in general are long-standing. As Moulin and Pereia report, religious and charitable organizations were already in place during the Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 92 ninetheenth century. Specific community groups and social assistance legislation affecting minors began in the twentieth century. When the social problems became more extensive, “the number of social assistance institutions grew. Ultimately, they were joined by the nongovernmental organizations.”2 1 John Drexel recalls the tragic stories of children in the history of Brazil: There were true heroic efforts by Jesuits with the young Indians but all to no great avail. Many others including young black slaves separated from their parents suffered horribly in various ways. Further examination reveals other frightful situations during the imperialist period camouflaged by hypocrisy where a high incidence of infanticide was covered up by the alleged institutionalization of these ‘disappeared’ child victims. Following further this history of attitudes and practices towards children at the beginning of this century we find that many children were working in the developing industries. It is possible therefore by historical examination o f the attitudes displayed towards children to sense some dark continuity in the lot of children as we find them in Brazil today. This means that the battalion of ‘excluidos’ that we see now is not an entirely new phenomenon but one which is presently being given a sharp focus by media attention and the fact that Brazil has developed the Child and Adolescent Statute and become a signatory to the United Nation’s Convention on the Rights of the Child. Traditionally the child was never seen as truly a priority but rather as an obstacle, never the object of investment but rather an expense; never looked upon as a subject but rather as an appendix to the citizen.2 2 But to better understand the nature of the needs of these people and those specifically of the children, the social foci of local Brazilian NGOs I visited is discussed next. 21. Nelly Moulin and Vilma Pereia, “Families, Schools, and the Socialization of Brazilian Children: Contemporary Dilemmas that Create Street Children,” in Roslyn A. Mickelson, ed. Children on the Streets o f the Americas: Globalization, Homelessness and Education in the United States, Brazil, and Cuba, (London: Routledge, 2000): 51. 22. John Drexel, “Human Rights of Street Children in Brazil,” Educational and Child Psychology 11, no. 4 (1994): 31. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 93 The Social Foci and Limitations of Local Brazilian NGOs Perhaps the greatest of values inherent to NGOs is their unswerving dedication to help improve people’s lives and protect their rights. I propose that one helpful method of understanding the values of NGOs is through a Maslowian lens. But I invoke Maslow only as a means of describing the Brazilian NGO situation. My purpose is not to impose a Maslowian framework nor to endorse a particular interpretation. After using his analysis, I will briefly discuss the limits of his applicability to NGO studies. NGOs in different ways address the five basic human need levels developed by humanistic psychologist Abraham Maslow.2 3 Applying Maslow’s theory to the work of NGOs will also assist in our more narrowly defining NGOs. According to Maslow, the hierarchy of needs are physiological, safety, social, ego, and self-actualization. His model suggests that basic human needs are complex and that all humans migrate through this particular categorization of needs.2 4 These categories form a hierarchy, where~in general— the lower level needs must be at least partially fulfilled or satisfied before higher-level needs surface. But a fulfilled or satiated need, perse, only gives way to emergent higher-needs. 23. For an excellent perspective on his background, see Edward Hoffman, The Right To Be Human: A Biography o f Abraham Maslow (Los Angeles: Jeremy P. Tarcher, Inc.; New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1988). 24. Abraham H. Maslow, Motivation and Personality, 3rd ed. (New York: Harper & Brothers, 1954). Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 94 Humans, suggest Maslow, are always wanting and needing something. Fortunately, the higher-needs can be satisfied in many more ways than can the lower-level needs. At once other (and higher) needs emerge . . . and when these in turn are satisfied, again new (and still higher) needs emerge, and so on. That is what we mean by saying that the basic human needs are organized into a hierarchy of relative prepotency. This statement might give the false impression that a need must be satisfied 100 percent before the next need emerges. In actual fact, most members of our society who are normal are partially satisfied in all their basic needs and partially unsatisfied in all their basic needs at the same time. A more realistic description of the hierarchy would be in terms of decreasing percentages of satisfaction as we go up the hierarchy of prepotency. For instance, to assign arbitrary figures for the sake of illustration, it is as if the average citizen is satisfied perhaps 85 percent in physiological needs, 70 percent in safety needs, 50 percent in love needs, 40 percent in self-esteem needs, and 10 percent in self-actualization needs.2 5 The Physiological Need Focus NGOs make significant contributions to socioeconomic development. Some NGOs function to fulfill the basic, universal human need experience at the physiological level. In the language o f human rights, Maslow’s most basic human need and the corresponding human right is the need and right to life. And where human life is threatened because of an acute need for food, clothing, and/or shelter, an NGO that affirms these most basic of human needs and the attached human right can be found. For example, Maslow points out that it is extremely rare in the United States that chronic extreme hunger o f the emergency type exists. “Average American citizens are experiencing appetite rather than hunger when they say, ‘I am hungry.’ They are apt to experience sheer life-and-death hunger only by accident 25. Ibid., 17,27-28, italics are in original. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 95 and then only a few times through their entire lives.”2 6 A great many NGOs typically target the “Third World” where such needs are prevalent. Here they institute the necessary mechanisms to mitigate against such needs and to provide for future socioeconomic development serving to minimize such needs. Again, the needs at this level, as with all levels, must be at least partially met before higher-level needs emerge. The Safety Need Focus If and when the physiological needs are substantially well satisfied, there emerge a set of needs relating to issues approximating the idea of safety. Maslow makes reference to issues of “security, stability; dependency; protection; freedom from fear, anxiety, and chaos; need for structure, order, law, and limits; strength in the protector; and so on.”2 7 The need for safety, in a human rights context, is perhaps better translated as or intended to include more than simply freedom from physical harm— it is the right to a job and freedom from loss of income and protection from disease. In the Northern hemisphere and in the West, the physiological and safety needs are fulfilled for most people. But in the Southern hemisphere and in other parts of the globe, whether through regular shipments of food and medical supplies or the creation of food and clothing distribution centers or treatment and medical 26. Ibid., 17. 27. Ibid., 18. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 96 clinics, many NGOs gear themselves to meet the most basic of human needs. Examples of NGOs organized to fulfill safety level needs include: World Vision, Doctors Without Borders, WHO, Habitat for Humanity, and the International Red Cross and Crescent Societies. Safety needs are also fulfilled by NGOs with their providing skills training and other livelihood programs. This typically occurs more at the state and local levels where NGOs prepare and implement development projects and work to prepare individuals and strengthen local institutional capabilities and promote individual and community self-reliance. NGOs often have advantages over government and private sector institutions and can deliver much-needed services to hard-to-reach communities in a more efficient, cost-effective manner. The Social Need Focus But with the mention of strengthening community self-reliance, we are at the level of another emergent need: the social. This need includes the necessity to relate and be a part of a family or group and includes the sense of belongingness and being part of the social system; to participate in society and— at the same time— to be accepted by others and to give and receive friendship, even love. This longing for friends, for closeness, can take complete possession of the most rugged individualist. At one point, the once starved or threatened or endangered individual would only think of food and safety; but now that these needs have been taken care of, the person wants— more than anything else in the world— to be loved and accepted. The person Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 97 hungers for affectionate relations with people in general, for a place in the group. In many cultures, it is just these needs and cravings that are most often left unsatisfied. Feelings of not being loved, of rejection, of “not belonging” are at the root of most cases of maladjustment and the more severe neuroses. At this level, many religious NGOs operate, though not exclusively. As part of their recognition of such needs religious organizations have created a “small group” movement of sorts. These new intentional communities are a response to what Maslow refers to as “this unsatisfied hunger for contact, intimacy, and belongingness.”2 8 The small group movement also promotes the ideas of emotional and spiritual support and personal moral accountability within these intentional group formations. Indeed, NGOs operating in a given location are undoubtedly faced with many, if not all, of these needs. And while performing their primary services on behalf of a particular constituency for a specific human need, it must be seriously doubted that many NGOs operate as a “full-service-and-all-need-fulfillment” NGO. For each need their target societal group experiences, the supporting NGO will undoubtedly be faced with the challenge of fulfilling the next emergent need or directing their beneficiaries toward another NGO or group who may be able to assist. Fortunately, in terms of their values, the fact that NGOs have the ability to experiment freely with innovative approaches and, if necessary, to take risks gives 28. Ibid., 20. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 98 the NGO a tremendous advantage over other social groups to meet the social needs. They are flexible in adapting to local social situations and responding to local needs and therefore able to develop fully integrated projects to meet the many various social needs confronting their target group. The Ego Need Focus Next in the hierarchy of needs are the needs of the ego and the needs for esteem. Actually it is a plurality of needs all of the same character subsumed under the rubric of ego needs. These needs can be divided into two categories. First is the need for freedom and independence. These readily translate into the human rights vernacular. While the former is easily understood, the latter may be understood to include, for example, freedom of movement and of choice of residence, freedom of aliens from arbitrary expulsion, freedom of opinion and expression, or the right to privacy. Combined with this is the need for strength, competence, and personal assurance of one’s ability to face the myriad of challenges in the world. The second division consists of the respect and approval of others, reputation or prestige, and the striving for status, even perhaps personal power over others. The Self-Actualization Need Focus Yet, with the assumption that all the foregoing needs have been adequately satisfied, the individual may still be dissatisfied and unsettled. What need is now sought? According to Maslow, the almost universal need of self-actualization Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 99 embraces the desires and strivings to become everything that one is capable of becoming. This striving takes various forms and will differ from individual to individual.2 9 Challenges to a Maslow/NGO Link Maslow’s need theory is not without its challengers in the human rights arena. Pollis charges that “to the extent that Maslow’s hierarch o f needs has validity, Western capitalist states have failed to guarantee satisfaction of these needs for their people.”3 0 The adjoining “Third World” concern is that self-actualization occurs in a climate where civil and political rights are honored “and their functional relevance is dubious in the absence of economic and social rights; the latter may well be a precondition for a meaningful implementation of self-actualization.”3 1 Indeed, Pollis appears to have embraced the western liberal idea that self- actualization embodies the traits of autonomy and the strong requirement of self- determination. Instead, perhaps a view more true-to-life is that while self- actualization (and all of Maslow’s needs for that matter) are in fact a global phenomenon, its specific manifestations vary from one culture to the next, just as 29. Ibid., 22 and, for a fuller analysis, see chapters 11,12, and 13. 30. Adamantia Pollis, “Liberal, Socialist, and Third Word Perspectives of Human Rights,” in Toward a Human Rights Framework, ed. Peter Schwab and Adamantia Pollis (New York: Praeger, 1982): 1-26, cited in Human Rights in the World Community: Issues and Actions, eds. Richard Pierre Claude and Bums H. Weston, 2nd edition (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1992): 151-52. 31. Ibid., n. 13. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 0 0 they vary from individual to individual. Therefore, a self-actualizer in the United States probably exhibits the aforementioned traits, but her Brazilian counterpart would be far more committed to acting in a communitarian fashion of servicing family members, friends, and her community as part of her self-actualizing endeavors. A much stronger variant of this argument was lodged against the human rights position of the United States during the 1970s where in our proclamation and acting upon our commitment to human rights we were less willing to address seriously our own glaring deficiencies, especially in the areas of substantive rights to food, shelter, and health.3 2 Pushing on to my point, the basic human need hierarchy, as a general proposition, appears to have some degree of applicability to NGO studies and, as of yet, has not been discussed in the NGO literature. Without overgeneralizing in building on the model, I would propose a slight modification. My change relates the need theory more closely to NGO activities and the particular human rights they organize to protect. I believe the five levels can be reduced to three levels of core, basic human needs: subsistence, connectedness, and development. (See Table 3.3 next page). With this arrangement of needs I believe NGOs’ activities of meeting human needs are more easily identifiable and discussed. The following examples of 32. This argument was originally launched against President Carter’s human rights policies, see J. Patrick Dobel, “Bearing Witness and Human Rights,” Christian Century 94, no. 27 (1977): 751-53. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 0 1 rights and freedoms at each level are a minimal list. The first level, subsistence,3 3 includes the physiological (survival) and safety categories, among them basic social securities of adequate food, adequate clothing, adequate shelter, and a minimal preventative public health care. The prevailing idea at this level, drawing upon a more philosophical understanding of individualized, rational substance and human personality, is that of persons endowed with certain inalienable rights. The second level of NGO activities, connectedness, focuses on the social and ego or esteem levels. The basic ingredient of this need is mutuality (or solidarity), or sharing, with such significant persons as family members, friends, neighbors, co workers, and other community members. Included in this level are the right to freedom of physical movement, reasonable pay, suitable working conditions, right to a minimal education, a fair trial, nondiscriminatory treatment, speech and association, and political participation. The third level, development, involves the individual and group desire to be self-confident, productive, and creative. It includes the desire to engage in tasks that 33. For a developed view on such “rights to subsistence,” see Henry Shue, Basic Rights: Subsistence, Affluence, and U. S. Foreign Policy (Princeton, N. J.: Princeton University Press, 1980): 65ff. Table 3.3 — Comparison of the Need Hierarchy and an NGO Model Maslow NGOs Self-actualization Development Ego Social Connectedness Safety Subsistence Physiological Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 1 0 2 require the full utilization of abilities and the development o f capabilities or skills and interests. But this is not all. The developmental level possesses the diverse and proleptic content implying that economic, social, cultural, even political progress are justifiable ends. Rights such as ownership of property and other self-determining individual and group interests exist here.3 4 Thus, I define developmental needs as those which develop human potentials and unfold what is deeply within ourselves. It requires mutual respect and engagement, which is integral to such development and ranges from fundamental definitions of human potentials to various means of reaching them. Table 3.4 — NGOs and Basic Human Rights As must be understood from Table NGOs / Needs Human Rights 3.3, there is an overlap between Life; food; clothes; the development and Maslow’s Subsistence adequate shelter, preventative health care. ego and self-actualizing needs. A Physical movement; number of different needs may be reasonable pay; suitable working conditions; in operation at any one time, and Connectedness right to a minimal education, fair trial, not all of them can be satisfied nondiscriminatory treatment, speech and association, simultaneously. To give a graphic and political participation. representation of my proposal, Developmental Economic, social, cultural, and Table 3.4 demonstrates my political progress 34. See Hector Gros Espiell, “The Right of Development as a Human Right,” Texas International Law Journal 16, no. 2 (1981): 189-205. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 103 synthesis of a modified Maslowian needs hierarchy which represents the basic human needs NGOs intend to meet and their correlating link to human rights. In support of this proposal, Milner, Poe, and Leblang state, To date no efforts have been made to examine personal integrity rights, basic human needs, and political and economic freedoms together in a single study. Still a number of linkages have been theorized and empirically supported by previous studies.. . . [P]erhaps the initial hypothesized relationship between subsistence rights and physical integrity rights occurs only after a certain threshold of needs fulfillment is met.3 5 The Maslow/NGO Values Model On another level of analysis, I believe it can be said of NGOs that they consider human fulfillment to be associated with outside-the-self commitments and concerns. Thus, the needs they fulfill are a result of their coming-along-side the individual or group and servicing their needs or advocating for their rights. This is much in contrast to many current books, programs, and thinking that tend to focus upon the self in bringing people to a richer life experience. Additionally, NGOs— on a human rights theoretical at times practical level— serve to liberate the self from the confinements of the State. The Maslow/NGO model comparison gives rise to the idea that NGOs act heroically to bring about social change on behalf of the individual or to advocate on behalf of individual and group rights. The NGO construct of need fulfillment and rights advocacy builds on 35. Wesley T. Milner, Steven C. Poe, David Leblang, “Security Rights, Subsistence Rights, and Liberties: A Theoretical Survey of the Empirical Landscape,” Human Rights Quarterly 21, no. 2 (May 1999): 411-12. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 104 Maslow’s idea that the human search for self-knowledge must emphasize the individual as an independent unit of causation and motivation by concentrating on the individual as a good in himself rather than what he is good for. This is the foundational idea in human rights theory and will prove helpful in discussing and identifying NGO field activities. This model will be applied to my subject Brazilian NGOs discussed in the next chapter. Other value considerations beyond the ability to aid in the meeting of basic human and social needs and rights, apply at the national and international levels. At these three levels there exists a degree of overlap. And while both national and international NGOs can greatly assist in meeting both social needs and human rights like local NGOs, the former are perhaps less flexible in adapting to local situations and responding to local needs on their own. On the one hand, when they work with local NGOs national and international NGOs are able to develop integrated projects, as well as larger sectoral projects. With the local NGOs they can enjoy good rapport with people and can render micro-assistance to very poor people as they can most easily identify those who are most in need and tailor assistance to their needs via the local NGOs. On the other hand, national and international NGOs have the ability to communicate at all levels, from the neighborhood to the top levels of government. The local NGO can only envy this sort of NGO value. Many local NGOs, even when combining their resources and energies, cannot match the power inherent to national and international NGOs. These are also able to recruit both experts and Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 105 highly motivated staff. They operate with fewer restrictions and, when compared to the prospects of governmental success in an area of operation, are more likely to make the appropriate social changes than the government. At this level there is also a greatly reduced replicability of an idea; these NGOs are less likely to opt for a “re- invention of the wheel.” They are also more likely to move swiftly and efficiently through the phases of their project, due to non-representativeness of the project or selected area, relatively small project coverage by their personnel, and independence on and from outside financial resources. NGO funding at all three levels of approach comes through contributions and donations, government assistance, and a wide variety of other sources. But the fact that NGOs have the ability to experiment freely with innovative approaches and, if necessary, to take risks, is an added value over and against governmental programs and solutions. Much of the value and success of NGOs comes from dynamic leadership and very committed staffs. This value is readily apparent in the Brazilian NGOs I visited. The value of institutional autonomy is also evident. This manifests itself in a usually more flexible and innovative attitude where NGOs are affected less by bureaucratic constraints prohibiting the government to supply social needs. In sum, NGOs are to be greatly valued because they so often enjoy service advantages over the government and private sector institutions in that they deliver goods and services to hard-to-reach communities in a more efficient, cost-effective manner. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 106 The Limitations of NGOs NGOs also have limitations. Many NGOs are small in both size and scope of operations and their impact or ability to protect and promote human rights is sometimes limited. And while NGOs often focus on a specific concern or a specific location, NGOs may lack a broader social perspective. In other words, it is quite possible that in their mission to gratify certain basic needs or protect only certain human rights, other emergent needs and important rights may continue unmet and unprotected. Furthermore, NGOs can suffer from financial and technical constraints. One of the NGOs I interviewed had a particular financial constraint forcing it to operate extra-legally. And in an increasingly techno-dependent local (and global) communities, contact and communication with other similar entities becomes vital. NGOs self-impose limitations upon themselves when they remain unconnected or ignorant of other NGOs operating in the same field. This is the primary plight of many smaller NGOs. In their quest to become more effective and better serve their constituents, contact and counsel from those who may have preceded them may prove helpful inasmuch as they may have experienced and successfully cleared similar obstacles. Many smaller NGOs appear to be more loosely structured and may, in turn, have a more limited accountability. As well, their management and planning may be poor or powerless or too flexible. Considering other limitations, just as in any organizational setting where a program or project design can suffer for the lack of collaboration— perhaps due to a Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 107 prevailing paternalistic behavior--so too in NGOs. While the greatest chance of problem solution or new approaches to solving a problem lies with group interaction, an organizational posture of restriction or suppressing typically serves to limit organizational potential and success. This is a limitation facing some NGOs. Finally, and perhaps less obviously, an NGO’s implied or actual territorial possessiveness over an area or project tends to reduce cooperation between NGOs, thereby serving to limit both or all NGOs involved in the region or on the NGO interest. NGOs seen as threatening or competitive can tend to limit their effectiveness and that of other NGOs. Additional Dimensions for Analyzing NGOs Operational and Approach Distinctions As part of their efforts to fulfill basic human needs, NGOs operate in a variety of fashions. Their approach to meet social needs vastly differ. Such differences provide for a fitting set of categorizations. Thus, the second step I propose toward categorizing NGOs is to recognize that they operate in a variety of approaches: internationally, nationally, and locally. The farthest reaching NGOs, those whose approach span across national borders, are the international NGOs. These range from secular agencies such as Save the Children organizations, Oxfam, CARE, the Ford and Rockefeller Foundations to religiously motivated groups, and others. Their activities vary from funding local NGOs, institutions and projects, to implementing the projects themselves. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 108 On another approach, operations limited to within a country’s borders are national NGOs. A national NGO may also be an offshoot of an international NGO which is being “hosted” in a country. But for the most part, organizations such as the YMCAs/YWCAs and professional organizations such as the American Bar Association or the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, et al., typify the national NGO. These have state and city branches and assist local NGOs, perhaps as citywide organizations. These local NGOs include organizations such as the Rotary or Lion’s Club, Chambers of Commerce and Industry, coalitions of business, ethnic or educational groups and associations of community organizations. Some exist for other purposes and become involved in helping the destitute as one of many activities, while others are created for the specific purpose of helping the poor. Community-based Organizations (CBOs) arise out of people’s own initiatives. These can include sports clubs, women’s organizations, neighborhood organizations, religious or educational organizations. There are a large variety of these, some supported by NGOs, national or international NGOs, or bilateral or international agencies, and others independent of outside help. Some are devoted to raising the consciousness of the urban poor or helping them to understand their rights in gaining access to needed services while others are involved in providing such services. Finally, it is immediately apparent to the researcher that there also exists an hemispheric difference among NGOs. For the most part, it appears that Northern and Table 3.5 - Various NGO Approaches____________ ► International NGOs ► National NGOs ► Local NGOs & CBOs Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 109 Southern NGOs are prone to be differentiated from one another in terms of a perceived operational, even professional competence, and a greater degree of managerial capabilities with the former and an influential local knowledge, outreach mobilization capacity, and credibility at the grassroots with the latter. A research stint to the Northeastern Brazilian state of Pernambuco during the month of December 1997 contributed greatly to my classifications and observations of Southern NGOs in particular and local NGOs in general. The Cultural and Focus Distinctions: Local NGO Paradigms and Endeavors In addition to their operational and approach differentiations, NGOs’ alignments further distinguish their wide variety. Their specific focus or raison d 'etre in combination with the preceding distinctives makes for a very broad multiplicity of NGO permutations. And, based upon my observations, the culture in which an NGO is founded or operates can also greatly influence its operations and add a dynamic not found among other NGOs in its category of permutation. For example, the “Brazilianness” of the Southern NGOs and organizations seeking registration with the Brazilian federal government for NGO recognition I visited demonstrated the possibility of cultural differences among NGOs too. The leaders and staff with whom I had contact exhibited an organizational openness, spontaneity, vociferousness even joyfulness, and— to borrow a phrase used by the weekly Brazilian news magazine Veja— an “ethical indelicacy” about their activities, which has— on occasion— led to problems with NGO and other authorities. Each also made Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 110 use of what they call jeitinho or jeito, a term that is very difficult to translate. Inasmuch as Brazilians are said to characteristically search out subtle ways to circumvent difficult situations as opposed to resorting to confrontation or a conflictual situation, they prefer instead to resort to employing jeito. According to Brazil scholar and Georgetown Law Professor, Joseph Page, the term refers to what a French scholar once described as ‘“an ingenious maneuver that renders the impossible possible; the unjust just; and the illegal legal.’ It is a rapid, improvised, creative response to a law, rule, or custom that on its face prevents someone from doing something. The jeitinho personalizes a situation ostensibly governed by an impersonal norm”3 6 and is nimbly drawn upon by several of the Brazilian NGOs I visited. National Approaches of Brazilian NGOs While my particular interest in this chapter has been the focused activities of local NGOs and their fulfillment of basic human needs. Brief mention of national NGOs ought to be made. Here again, Brazil serves as an example with its national NGOs. After this very brief survey of an even more diffuse area of NGOs’ approaches, I combine my findings into a matrix of NGOs. With this matrix I propose a better understanding both NGO approaches and their orientations as they seek to meet human needs and rights. 36. Page, The Brazilians, 10. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. I ll National NGOs are likely to possess or have access to a greater number of resources than local NGOs. Their staffs are more organized, better equipped, make better use of technology, and appear to do a better job at engineering or building a meaningful consensus for the social issues they monitor and the constituencies they serve. This is not to imply that they may be more able to work toward social improvements than local NGOs. Indeed, the more successful efforts will be those that are shared mutually by the local and national. Local NGOs may have a breadth of experience or network contacts on a social need which greatly surpasses that of the national NGO (and that of governmental officials for that matter). And while a national NGO may be able to cohere a variety of groups and individuals sensitive to a particular social Table 3.6-Brazilian NGOs Comprising the Internet POP Environmental Preservation Area ► GAMBA Environmental Group of Bahia ► GERMEN Environmental Restoration Group ► Project TAMAR Preservation of the Marine Turtles Educational Area ► CEDECA Defense of Children and Adolescents ► OAF Fraternal Help Organization ► Projeto AXE Protection and Assistance to Children ► SONADI National Learning Society Social Action Area ► Agata Esmeralda North-South Cooperation ► ATUE Association of Embasa Univ. Teenies ► BCA Combonian Afro-Brazilian Library ► CEAS Center of Studies and Social Action ► CPT-BA Pastoral Comission on Land— Bahia ► ELO Escritorio de Liga<;ao e Organiza?ao ► Fund. Dom Avelar Mass Media and Popular Organization ► FUNDIPESCA Foundation for Community Development of Handicrafts for Fisherfolks Trade Unions ► SENDAE Union of Sanitation Department Workers Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 112 issue or social need, the local NGO activists may commit a lifetime to one particular social need or field of interest. In 1995, some of the more visible NGOs of the Brazilian state of Bahia (see Table 3.6) signed a collective agreement for the creation of a Point of Presence (POP) on the Internet. The primary driver of the initiative was the NGO, Rede Bahia, who saw the need for a Web site that would serve as an open space for the exchange of information and documentation concerning the activities of the state NGOs. Their Internet directory, complete with e-mail links, foundation minutes, minutes of their meetings, and on-line NGO application for connection to the POP, promotes mutual cooperation as well as providing for an exchange of experiences among their organizations. The aim of enabling such associations and interactions among informal gatherings is to foster and encourage mutual NGO development in addition to the dissemination of important data. Local Approaches of Brazilian NGOs: The Street Children of Recife, NGOs Point of Contact How Many Are There? Anthropologist Tobias Hecht indicates there is one recurring figure estimating the number of Brazilian street children: 7 million. The number is said to refer to what some of the institutions call “hard-core” street children, or children who live and habitually sleep in the street, and it is cited by institutions, journalists, and academics alike.. . . Invariably, the figure is referred to as someone else’s estimate— . If someone chases down the citations, one is invariably referred again to someone else’s estimate, or the reference is simply omitted. It is a curious example of shared hearsay Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 113 given the allure of truth through an endless and circular process of one source citing as fact the reference or estimate of another.3 7 It is certainly possible that the same “numbers game” exists in Recife. During my visit to Pernambuco and the city and surrounding towns of Recife, I too discovered the nonexistence of reliable figures on the number of street children. Presuming for a moment the number of 7 million street children living in Brazil is accurate, and figuring an urban population of 114 million, then street children would comprise more than 6 percent of all the inhabitants of Brazilian cities. And if this ratio held true for Recife, it would mean there are 80,000 street children there. Yet, several of the NGOs I questioned referred to a government estimate that there are perhaps nearly 20,000 street boys and girls on the street. It was clarified to me that while some of these may be homeless, the majority of them return home at night or on the weekend. Recife, however, did commission a survey of its street children to arrive at as accurate number as possible. The study was conducted under the direction of professional researchers, and the census takers were experienced street educators, familiar with the children of the city and the places where they sleep. Five teams of at least four street educators surveyed distinct areas of the city, including sites rarely visited by any of the NGOs, such as the city’s bus station and the wealthy neighborhood of Boa Viagem. The teams worked during three nights in June 1993, from 37. Hecht, At Home In The Street, 98-99. Those sources using the figure 7 million include: Victoria Bitar de Fernandez, Proyecto regional: Ninos de la calley drogas (Washington, D.C.: Organization de los Estados Americanos); Amnesty International, Brazil: Torture and Extrajudicial Execution in Urban Brazil (London: Amnesty International, 1990); Christina Lamb, “Why Rio Is Murdering Its Children,” Marie Claire (June, 1991): 48-52; Bradford E. Bums, A History o f Brazil (New York: Columbia University Press, 1993); and Childhope, “What Is die Going Rate for Killing a Street Child?” Guardian (June 10, 1992): 19. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 114 approximately 10:00 PM . until 3:00 A.M. Any children found in the street were given a snack and asked to answer a short questionnaire. Over the three nights, a total of 212 children under the age of 18 were found in the street. Approximately 150 children were found all three nights (the remaining 62 were found on only one or two of the nights).3 8 One of the NGOs I visited, JOCUM in Camaragibe— which focuses on assisting street children— estimated recently that while perhaps some o f these 20,000 frequent the streets by day, it is probably less than 1,000 who sleep there. Both NGO’s and the government have made shelters available for homeless children, but some children prefer the freedom and drugs that street life offers.3 9 And because they have such a high rate of drug use and have been involved in assaults and robberies, a significant portion of the public supports harsh police measures against them, viewing the issue as one of crime and security, not human rights. It is estimated that of the 1,000 children, it is perhaps a large percentage of these who actually “live” on the streets. The reason accurate numbers are difficult to acquire relates to the diversity of relationships between the children and their families and a tendency for this segment of the population to be moderately nomadic. According to Hecht’s study, “A full 84 percent in the sample of 50 children were 38. Ibid., 100 citing CIELA, Primeiro relatorio da segunapesquisa realizadapelo CIELA sobre meninos e meninas de rua do Recife: Os que vivem e dormen na rua (Olinda: Centro Interuniversitario de Estudos da America Latina, Africa e Asia, 1993), and noting that “this figure includes 17 infants and children under the age of 4, nearly all accompanied by a homeless adult, usually their mother.” 39. According to Hecht, the 26 street children surveyed, 14 (54%) stated that they were currently sniffing glue. At a later point, 49 children were surveyed and 33 (77%) said they had used Rohypnol (a sedative) and o f47, 30 (64%) used Artane (a synthetic which gives the user a feeling of euphoria). Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 115 bom in the metropolitan area, and most of the street children said their parents had always lived in the city. But within the city most have moved around quite a lot.”4 0 Children “Of/On” The Street A very thoughtful distinction between children o f the street and children on the street is included in educators Moulin and Pereira’s analysis. Children o f the street are defined as “children and adolescents to the age of 18 and living in urban zones and who claim the streets as their principal residence in substitution of the family-even if tenuous ties remain.” Children in the street refers to “children in a survival strategy.” Some research shows that children and young people of/on the street retain some links to their families of origin or their reference groups. During the 1980s, studies on the status of poor children in Brazil identified a host of contributing factors leading to their marginalization: their need to generate income; the disintegration of traditional family forms; truancy from school; and the ostracism of children and adolescents by their families.4 1 Why Are They On The Streets? Several of the NGO’s I interviewed report that extreme poverty at home or sexual abuse by fathers and stepfathers are the principal reasons cited by many children who make the choice to live on the streets. Hecht states, “When asked why they have left home, the girls frequently cite sexual abuse.. . . Boys typically reveal . . . beatings, fear of the favelas, or a sense of rejection or simply boredom at home. 40. Hecht, 47. 41. Moulin and Pereira in Mickleson, Children on the Streets o f the Americas, 49. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 116 What they are least likely to cite, at least initially, is maternal rejection.”4 2 One other consideration is the estimation that these children typically come from families earning less than the minimum wage of $115 per month. In those instances where the need for additional income is the primary motivation, the children’s presence on the street is critical. They sell goods and services. Some of their primary means of earning include: selling vegetables and pastries, or other items which require little capital, such as candies or chewing gum. They also beg for money or show tourists around. At times they will take on an odd job: washing store windows or carrying items for someone. It is typical for them to resort to petty theft and/or to scavenge for things which can be sold, including aluminum cans, glass bottles, and cardboard. Hecht notes, “But whereas poor mothers in Recife expect their children to work, they see them as far more than an economic lifeline.” Reporting on one mother’s maternal instinct, he quotes her as saying, My husbands were all no good. Every one of them left me with a kid to lug around. I depend on the garbage dump (where I rummage for food), the traffic signal (where I beg). Some days my kids eat, sometimes they don’t. I get home, I put one hand on my head and say, ‘Lord, my kids ain’t got a droppa milk today.’ Sometimes I feel like stealing, killing . . . killing everyone in sight. Then I think, ‘Who would take care of my kids? No, I’ll hold on. No one is mightier than God ’ I ask God to help me, to look my way so I’ll have a normal life. What I want is for my children to have their food, (with tears streaming down her face) They suffer so much! I only ask God that they have bread, then I will sleep in peace. I would like to wake up 42. Hecht, 55. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 117 every morning and find that my children have bread instead of them waking up hungry, crying ‘Mommy, I want bread!’ ‘Mommy, I want milk!’4 3 One of Hecht’s primary arguments is that the interference (by NGOs or others) with poor children’s ability to work in the streets serves to damage their links with their families. This is because the status of poor urban children in matrifocal households is strengthened by their capability to bring to their mother vital resources. Demographics and Nutrition of the Children On average, the street kids range between 6 to 17 years of age. Other, perhaps unreliable, statistics on the street children population of Recife and the surrounding communities is that of those who are on the street, perhaps 84% are male and 16% female. Their average ages are: 7-9 years: 10%; 10-14 years: 70%; and, 15-17 years: 20%. In Brazil, poverty, and malnutrition are a normal part of their lives: by the time they reach 18, only 30 percent will have a full set of teeth. “One in four children are likely to suffer malnutrition so severe that it will cause irreversible intellectual and physical damage.”4 4 The results of a study specific to the children of Recife which compared the height and weight of 226 children aged 7 to 17 hailing from the favelas of Recife with a control group o f674 wealthy children in the city 43. Ibid., 83. 44. Sarah Stewart, “Children on the streets: Ronilson Gomes and Marcelo Santos were part of a delegation who recently came to London from Brazil to tell politicians about their experiences as street children,” Child Right, no. 103 (1994): 17. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 118 {concluded that} . . . [t]he mean height of wealthy children was almost identical to the mean height of the American and British children. The poor boys fell below the fifth percentile compared with the control group. In terms of bone growth maturation, 84 percent of poor boys and girls had a delay of over two years.4 5 Child Victimization Statistics Of the 562 reported homicides in the northeastern state o f Pernambuco in the first 8 months of 1995, 10 percent of the victims were under 18 years o f age. It is estimated that every day at least four Brazilian children are homicide victims. “In 1991 the Institute of Legal Medicine in the state of Pernambuco autopsied the remains of 79 youngsters, age ten to seventeen, who had been shot to death on the streets of Recife. About 80 percent of the bodies had been mutilated.”4 6 The U.S. Department of State reports, according to statistics released by the Government in November (1999), homicide remains the leading cause of death among 15- to 19-year-olds. Previous statistics from UNICEF and the IBGE (Inter-American Development Bank) showed that the homicide rate within this age group more than tripled between 1980 and 1997. Among children between the ages of 10 and 14, homicide accounted for 5.1 percent of all deaths in 1998. According to the ISER (Institute for Religious Studies), in Rio de Janeiro the rate of homicides of children ages 10 to 14 rose 34.4 percent and the rate of youths ages 15 to 19 rose 30.6 percent between 1996 and 1998. During the same period, the general rate of homicide decreased. Within a 2-month period in May and June, a total of four youths were killed in public areas in the city of Rio de Janeiro. The CEDECA (Center for the Defense of Children 45. Hecht, 78 citing E. D. R. Linhares, J. M. Round, and D. A. Jones, “Growth, Bone Maturations, and Biochemical Changes in Brazilian Children from Two Different Socio-economic Groups,” American Journal o f Clinical Nutrition 44 (1986): 552-58. 46. Page, 260. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 119 and Adolescents) in Belem reported a 40 percent increase in the incidence of violence against children under the age of 18 in Para state during 1990-97. The majority of the victims were between 15 and 18 years of age.4 7 Federal, state, and local governments devote insufficient resources to street children. NGO’s sponsor a variety of relief efforts, but the demand far exceeds available resources. In addition to this sponsorship, and data collection, verification, and dissemination, NGOs are directly involved in the lives of the people. This involvement, or rather, types of involvement, give rise to differing NGO alignments and foci. Such distinctions can be used definitionally, as indicators of the various types of NGOs. In looking at these varieties (see Table 3.7), we ought to be interested in their propensities and their significance. But before we enter into the lives of the subject NGOs, my inquiry concerns another primary aspect of NGO classification: that of alignment or focus. In considering this final aspect, we will be concerned with the nature of the NGO. How did it come about? What is its constitution, origin, and history? Besides these 47. U.S. Department of State, 1999 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices (Washington, D.C.: Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor, February 25, 2000): Section 5. Table 3.7 — Characteristics for Understanding NGOs ► operational distinctives ► social foci and alignments ► funding / donor sources ► membership / constituency ► geographic distinctiveness ► organizational structure ► social value ► size of organization Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 120 questions, what is its importance, meaning, or significance, now that it is here and operating? With that in mind, a matrix of distinctions emerges for NGOs. Conclusion In this chapter I have identified base human needs and suggested correlated human rights. These specific needs include the physiological, safety, social, ego, and self-actualization. The three levels at which NGOs work to meet these needs and promote human rights were discussed. They center on three specific types of approaches, the local, national, and international and~at times~NGOs’ use of such approaches in combination. Finally, after mentioning the variety of NGOs with whom I had contact and my observing the breadth of orientations in meeting human needs and promoting human rights, I suggested that NGOs be seen as attempts to satisfy needs and promote rights through charitable or philanthropic, community service, empowering or participatory, or developmental orientations. Thus, I constructed a matrix of approaches, orientations, and human needs. Such a construct appears in Figure 3.1. Applying these characteristics of NGOs in such a fashion, we find that there are sixty variants of NGOs. But this is only one method of combination. I proposed this matrix as a useful means of cataloguing NGOs. The purpose of this chapter has been to provide a means whereby the wide diversity of NGOs might be better understood. Using the social aims of the NGOs I found at the local level and by observing their various functions and orientations, I Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 121 am able to suggest a systematic method of thinking about their activities and place this information into a matrix. This Figure 3.1 — NGO Matrix of Social Foci provides a very comprehensive understanding of the role of NGOs. As part of this matrix, I suggest that NGOs can be understood in terms of being need- and rights-based, socially orientated private and mediating organizations. For the purposes of our discussion the next chapter builds on this NGO matrix of social foci. The reader ought to keep in mind that while the needs- and rights-based, orientation, and approach matrix can assist in avoiding some of the ambiguities in NGO references, it does not “solve” all distinctions among NGOs. For example, at the local level some NGOs are registered and others unregistered. Indeed, there will continue to exist a degree of complexity associated with identifying the identities of local NGOs. Another simple confusion surrounding NGOs can be drawn from the fact that some NGOs begin and operate as creches, orphanages, or shelters. But again, using the above matrix, these are simply a variety of NGOs operating from a community service approach attempting to satisfy some basic social needs. Recalling the children’s rights issues discussed in chapter two and the social needs and NGO orientations o f this chapter, we will now Em powering / Participatory Social Needs Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 122 look at the subject local NGOs and how they are organized to both advance the rights of children and to provide for their needs. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 123 Chapter IV LOCAL NGOS AND SOCIAL RELIEF ACTIVITIES FOR CHILDREN IN RECIFE In keeping with the ethnomethodological approach, this section will include narrative and dialogues with local NGO members focusing their social relief activities on children in Recife. As was discussed in the introduction, we rely on this approach to convey, in a way that few other methods are able, social knowledge as a form of public self-awareness with new explanatory possibilities. The recreation of mood and feeling, purpose and mission, and the capacity to disclose issues of context, setting, and landscape makes for a more compelling sense of dimension. The following interviews and site visits not only provide additional categories for understanding NGOs and their work with children, but also demonstrate how some local NGOs strive to provide a meaningful childhood to the children in their care. Charitably Aligned or Philanthropically Focused NGOs for Children Charitably aligned or philanthropically focused NGOs often involve a top-down and at times paternalistic effort with little participation by the “beneficiaries.” NGOs so aligned focus on fulfilling subsistence-type needs. This may include NGOs with activities directed toward meeting the needs o f the poor with distribution of food, clothing and/or medicine, arrangements made for or providing for housing, transportation, and education. It is not uncommon for such NGOs to Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 124 align more closely with those who are perceived to be experiencing the greatest disadvantage. Their rationale for this alignment may stem from a religious-action- guide or a sense of moral obligation stemming from their sense of social justice. And while the rationale for their NGO’s actions lack the sophistication and developed grounding of a Rawlsian social ethic (e.g., “Each person is to have an equal right to the most extensive total system of equal basic liberties compatible with a similar system of liberty for all. Social and economic inequalities are to be arranged so that they are . . . to the greatest benefit of the least advantaged .. .”),1 it is not uncommon to hear articulations along basic religious and moral lines of motivation. It is perhaps the young girls who face the greatest obstacles of all in Brazilian life. According to most of the individuals I encountered during my stay in Brazil, it is a common belief that poor young girls are forced to the bottom of the Brazilian social “dog-pile.” The thesis is, “poor families do not control their children and so produce the street urchins today who are the criminals of tomorrow— and, in the case of girls, today’s prostitutes and the mothers of tomorrow’s street children.”2 Two NGOs that seek to care for poor young girls are Casa de Passagem and Lar Batista Elizabeth Mein. 1. John Rawls, A Theory o f Justice (Cambridge, Massachusetts: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1971): 302. 2. Fulvia Rosemberg, “From Discourse to Reality: A Profile of the Lives and an Estimate of the Number of Street Children and Adolescents in Brazil” in Mickelson, Children on the Streets, 118. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 125 Casa de Passagem (House of Passage) There is an expression heard on the street among the young girls referring to a safe location. It is called “House of Passage.” The name not only signifies a good place to stay for the night but the possibility of entering into a new life by crossing over its threshold. Run by a Brazilian human rights lawyer, Ana Vasconcelos, and located near Conde da Boa Viata downtown, the project is designed for the street girls of Recife. When one sees young boys on the street, the first thought that comes to mind is that they are probably workers. My translator and driver inform me that girls are not seen as workers. They offer that because prostitution is legal in Brazil, “it is typical for most to view the street girls and to treat them as sexual objects.” Indeed, by many of the accounts at the House of Passage, the duress to engage in prostitution3 apparently overwhelms the adolescent and teen-aged girls. For them, the easiest means of obtaining money is to sell themselves; to sell their bodies. But another supposition is that “young girls’ commodification as prostitutes provides ‘protection’ from death squad assassination. As one Recife City street prostitute explained, ‘We have a body to sell; we serve men.’”4 What do the girls get in return? 3. For an accounting of the some of details surrounding this activity, see the story of Maria, who followed her mother into prostitution after her husband ran off with another woman in Debbie Taylor, M y Children, M y Gold: A Journey to the world o f Seven Single Mothers (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1994): 187-222. 4. Martha K. Huggins and Myriam Mesquita, “Civil Invisibility, Marginality, and Moral Exclusion: The Murders of Street Youth in Brazil,” in Roslyn Arlin Mickelson, Children on the Streets . . , p. 261, citing Gilberto Dimenstein, A guerra Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 126 The pimp or brothel owner provides them with somewhere to live. This is perhaps a major factor contributing to the fact that only one out of ten children murdered is a girl. The plight of these girls and the violence against street children was brought to light by Vasconcelos in a broad-sweeping public relations campaign that made her NGO widely known in the US, western Europe, and Brazil. The British Independent published the following letter, Zoe Heller rightly draws attention (5 May) to the horrific murder of street children in Brazil. Violence on this scale, perpetrated against the most vulnerable members of society, is indeed shocking and your readers may well wonder what, if anything, can be done to protect these young people A human rights lawyer in Recife, Ana Vasconcelos, has attempted to address that question by setting up a safe house for street girls. It is known as the Passage House.. . . We hope that your readers will be encouraged to know that, against all odds, someone has had the courage to take a stand against the death squads which are slaughtering Brazil’s children.5 Three of the girls at the House of Passage have died of AIDS. From the perspective of these girls, it appears to be true that exploitation is a part of their everyday lives. Whether the Catholic Church, or the traditions surrounding their upbringing, or perhaps the essence of Brazilian society as a whole, the street girls are not only obstructed from the fulfillment of their needs but are brimming with an dos meninos: assassinatos de menores no Brazil (Sao Paulo: Editora Brasiliense, 1991): 22. 5. Kate Young and Nicolas Fenton, “Hope for Brazil’s Children,” Independent (London) (May 12, 1991): 22 in Hecht, A t Home in the Streets, 164. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 127 extraordinary sense of guilt. At the House of Passage job number one is to try to instill a sense of dignity and self-worth into the girls of Recife. House Ethics. The new life awaiting the street girls at the House of Passage is in reality more a life of refuge. Ana and her co-workers have made great efforts to create a place--a shelter— where the girls can have the maximum degree of freedom (they come and go as they please) and the maximum degree of respect (there is no contempt here). Here they are offered meals, a locker where they can store their meager possessions, and classes providing a rudimentary education and certain job skills (to boost their autonomy). Recalling the continuum of child autonomy and dependency discussed in chapter two, this NGO— compared to the other subject NGOs— sees child autonomy as a primary right of the child. It strives to work against those social forces perpetuating dominant patterns of child dependency, whether drugs, pimps, the Catholic Church,6 or the family. Even the social identity of the girls themselves fosters a dependency on others inasmuch as the girls are predominantly black or mulata, a national symbol of sexuality for many Brazilians, 6. Scheper-Hughes, Death Without Weeping, 118, points out that “The Catholic church also participates in the ethic of paternalist dependencies that so characterizes class relations in the region.” To illustrate this, she gives the example of a nun— Madre Elfriede— who “for the past three decades . . . {as} the founder of the German Colegio, has . . . held ‘open court’ to the poor of the hillside shanty towns of Bom Jesus, to whom she distributes food baskets, powered milk, medications, small amounts of cash, various favors, and a good deal of advice.” Of additional interest relating to the Catholic Church, children, and orphanages, see Scheper-Hughes, “Institutionalized Sex Abuse and the Catholic Church,” in Nancy Scheper-Hughes and Carolyn Sargent, eds., Small Wars: The Cultural Politics o f Childhood (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998):295-317. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 128 and thus these children have found themselves in relations of servility or dependent loyalty to those who exploit them. House of Passage is about empowering children, not sustaining their dependence; they are strong child autonomists. Yet, the NGO’s strength of commitment to child autonomist ideology is realistically possible only to the degree the Brazilian social system will permit, and--currently--it will not tolerate much. Ana’s day is filled with activities ranging from surrogate mom to projects more suited to her juridical skills. She drives the girls around town and intervenes on their behalf when necessary. The prostitutes must also endure violence at the hands of the police and passers-by. Ana is not one to ignore what goes on and when one of the girls she knows is assaulted by a policeman, she goes to the police station to make a formal complaint. They listen to her because she is the daughter of influential local politicians. Not content just to make a complaint, and accompanied by the victim, she searches out the aggressor on the street and gives him a good talking to, ‘I usually say to them: look, you are hitting yourself. This girl could be your daughter or your mother.’7 One of the girls live with her two children and her mother on the sidewalk in front of the downtown Recife Church of Sao Francisco. The girl’s mother has an arrangement with a local beggar: she rents the beggar her grandchildren for 50 percent of the children’s daily take.8 Hopefully, Ana will be able to assist in 7. Gilberto Dimenstein, Brazil: War on Children (London: Latin American Bureau, 1991): 38. 8. Scheper-Hughes found that in “northeastern Brazil, where a strong ethic of patron-client relationship still substitutes for the formal protection of minimum wage and workers’ rights, marginalized poor people accept begging as a ‘moral right.’ See Scheper-Hughes and Daniel Hoffman, “Brazilian Apartheid: Street Kids and the Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 129 convincing the girl’s mother to permit the street girl to raise and care for her third child herself. Hecht explains that when “babies are bom to street children, sometimes a relative will take the infant. But more frequently the mothers keep their babies with them in the streets until caught by the police, who take the infants to the state institution, the Casa de Carolina.9 While the challenges of working with Recife’s street girls are certainly immense, and while the daily problems seem to be ever increasing, the only possible response Ana and her staff believe they can give is to try and help these girls find ways to meet their needs and survive the reality of their daily lives. Ana capably leads a work of charity, aligned to focus on providing food, clothes, adequate shelter, and preventative health care. Thus, this NGO fulfills the subsistence-type needs of adolescent Recife girls. Inasmuch as these girls depend on Ana and her NGO’s resources, she nonetheless strives to lessen their dependence by re-introducing them to the world outside prostitution, all the while fighting for her childrens’ rights, encouraging them and enabling through her skills training programs a maturity about the world and an increased sense of self-determination. Rich Brazilian children, by comparison, must cleave to the traditions and ethics of their class: their class training includes being childlike, spoiled, or helpless. Here we Struggle for Urban Space,” in Scheper-Hughes and Sargent, Small Wars, 365. For other examples of this, see Scheper-Hughes, Death Without Weeping, especially chapter 2. 9. Hecht, A t Home in the Streets, 67. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 130 recall Aries’ idea of the privatization of family life among the rich and the differentiation of the child from the adult and the creation of “coddled” childhood. Poor children, like those in Ana’s care have rarely had such experiences and are childlike, spoiled, or helpless at their own peril. Lar Batista Elizabeth Mein (Elizabeth Mein Baptist Home) Ligia Lima de Pessoa disagrees with the approach of House of Passage but is glad the work is continuing. Her NGO, a religious orphanage for girls, firmly believes in another method and offers that there is more that ought to be done for “the forsaken girls of Recife.” For her NGO, the course of action required in the face of these apparently insurmountable social problems is to reach out to the abandoned street girls and rescue them. She targets young girls living in difficult situations who are apt to be attracted into the streets. Ligia informs me that her organization instills into abandoned and orphaned young girls’ lives “a deep sense of Christian hope, a focus toward living a fruitful and productive future life, and the reality of the power of Christ to make it happen.”1 0 In comparing House of Passage to Elizabeth Mein Baptist Home, the former would be seen as an NGO that advocates child autonomy, the later advocates child protection. In its protection, the Elizabeth Mein Baptist Home works on behalf of children with a mind set more toward a moral and legal recognition of a child’s physical, emotional, and psychological vulnerability, and her need of special care. 10. Ligia Lima de Pessoa, interview with author, Recife, Brazil, 17 December 1997. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 131 The orphanage is a few blocks off a main street in Recife. Driving through the dirt side streets of the neighborhood where the orphanage is located, one is struck by the simplicity of the homes, yards and fences constituting this community. We drive past rows of flat-roofed houses: each not much larger than a garage, each with an oil drum outside, probably waiting for a refill from the water lorries. The small front area of each house is a plot of dirt where smudge-faced toddlers happily play. A few men are lounging in baseball caps, smoking. Teetering power poles, pot holes, and sewage scattered against fences, walls, and curbs, line our way to the home for abandoned young girls. A long beige wall, nine-feet-high, signifies our arrival. My translator and driver exclaim, “here we are!” Introductions are soon made to Ligia Lima de Pessoa, the director of the NGO who has worked here for eight years. She is a short, strong-looking woman, with a contagious smile. Facilities. Walking through the hall ways to a meeting room, I notice all the floors are freshly waxed concrete. Lime green tiles line all the walls, two-thirds the way up. White paint covers the remaining third and the ceilings. Each room we pass has only a single fluorescent light fixture. Before entering the room where we will meet, we pass twenty or so petite Brazilian girls, every one of the girls radiate a smile and wave, they are happy that someone has come to visit. They look healthy. Two aides gather their attention back to the matter at hand. I perceive an austere design and religious routine to the girls’ activities. We are seated at one of the ten or so table-clothed picnic tables for the interview. A few posters are on the walls Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 132 reminding about the need to be lady-like along with a few rules for eating and making too much noise. History. The organization was begun over forty years ago by a group of Baptist women in the United States. Their desire was to found a charitable work for young girls in the poorest part of Brazil; one that would make a difference in the girls’ quality of life as well as offer a means of child protection.1 1 The idea to found the orphanage in Recife was taken to a regional conference for Baptist Women and approved. “They are the ones who planned and actually began this work,” says Ligia. “We are a girls orphanage. Here the girls receive love and care, food and clothing, and a Christian education.” Moving quickly to the main thrust of my inquiries and my focus on her NGO activities, I disclose to her my research interest in her NGO. I am told that one of the main problems in their history occurred three years ago when the Judge of Childrens’ Affairs decided that all institutions such as their’s would be required to register. “The governmental offices are terrible— extremely corrupt,” insinuates Ligia. “Organizations who do not comply are closed by the government.” Even our orphanage was going to be closed unless we completed the NGO paperwork.” Ligia 11. The strong Baptist desire to protect children continues today under the efforts of CHAIN (Christian Homes for Abandoned Infants in Need) which rents and builds homes where up to “ten children (live) with Brazilian couples serving as houseparents will give the children a safe place to live in contrast to the dangerous streets as well as the opportunity to learn Christian values and come to know Christ as Lord and Savior.” See Ken Bayer, “Caring for Street Children in Brazil,” The Baptist Herald 72, no. 7 (September 1994): 18. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 133 stated, “Because of that we too were going to be closed.” She complains that the government changes so many things through the years, every year they have some new requirement, something different, and it is usually very complicated. “But I went to several offices and fortunately worked it out. However, some of the institutions around us— they had to be closed because of the matter of registration. So that was the main problem.” What perplexed Ligia about the requirement was the fact that her NGO had not received any support from the government. Why, then, were they being required to register? Why did they need permission to operate? NGO Objectives. Compared to other NGOs, Ligia considers her organization quite rare and very fortunate. She believes that the children in her care are entitled to a safe and secure living environment, healthy meals, a good education, and quality care. Most importantly, the girls have the right to a worth-while future. For her, every girl is a project, a person who has a future and someone for whom she is responsible to provide all the required means to be successful in life. With these statements, Ligia appears to have an intentionality about her NGO providing for the children’s social connectedness. Yet, while she would affirm her girl’s rights to reasonable pay, suitable working conditions, and right to an education, she does not want the girls to have anywhere near the degree of physical movement like the girls at the House of Passage. There is a very strong matemalistic protectionism prevailing at the Elizabeth Mein Home for girls. The funding for her NGO is primarily from personal donations and a local church. The initial purchase o f land, building the home, and furnishing it, was paid Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 134 by Elizabeth Mein herself. The NGO has operated for forty-one years. Ligia says, “So many institutions that opened with us many years ago, they are closed right now. We’re still open, and we’re reaching our goals, but when we see from the Christian perspective, I believe it’s not enough because we should be doing much more than what we are doing now. There should be many more homes for the young girls like ours.” In the mid-sixties, the military government established the National Foundation for the Well-Being of the Minor (FUNABEM); its state versions were referred to as FEBEMs (State Foundations for the Well-Being of the Minor). Federal funds are directed toward these state agencies who are responsible for the poor, delinquent, or abandoned children. Punishment and other physical mistreatment by officials and guards, overcrowding, and the harshness of such institutional life characterize the most gruesome alternative to the House of Passage and the Elizabeth Mein Home for Girls and other similar charitable NGOs. And while the majority of the young detainees in these government “crime schools” are being “held” for vagrancy or begging and are free to dangerously co-mingle with others who may have committed very weighty crimes, there are a few benefits accruing to them, including: the opportunity to learn rudimentary hygiene, the use of a tooth brush, and the fundamentals of preventative medicine. Ligia’s NGO has seen several thousand young girls pass through its front door in its history, perhaps more than that. And her Board of Directors is very confident in her abilities. Meeting once a month, this group of twelve women make Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 135 the big decisions. Sub-divided into smaller groups, some are responsible for the finances, another for the discipline in the house, and yet another for the educational programs for the girls. “With this arrangement they come to the meeting and give accountability about what they are doing, how things are, what they did during the month, and recommend whatever changes they believe need to be made.” Childhood and Motherhood. The experience of childhood at NGOs like Ligia’s typically involve “a phenomena that could be called child shifting . . . [u]nlike the rich nurtured children who typically grow up in a household presided over by the biological father and mother. . . {these} grow up under a maternal figure other than their biological mother.”1 2 Ligia and some of her staff are referred to as mae, or “mother.” It is common for poor children in Brazil to be shifted among matrifocal relations, be they grandmother, aunt, stepmother, or guardian. In a very real sense, Ligia and the NGO women— the primary care providers— consider the girls to actually be their children. According to Cardoso, informal adoption among the poor functions as a “culturally acceptable means of creating real kinship ties.”1 3 While many of the problems associated with being a child in Recife are for all intents and purposes “solved” for the children at this NGO, and while Ligia and 12. Hecht, At Home in the Streets, 89, citing Claudia Fonseca, “Pais e filhos na famfiia popular (inicio do seculo XX),” in Maria Angela d’Incao, Amor e fam ilia no Brasil (Sao Paulo: Editora Contexto, 1989). 13. Ibid, 90, citing Ruth Cardoso, “Creating Kinship: The Fostering of Children in Favela Families in Brazil,” in Raymon T. Smith, ed. Kinship, Ideology and Practice in Latin America (Chapel Hill, N.C.: University of North Carolina Press, 1984): 202, italics are Cardoso’s. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 136 her associates often possess a legal right and a moral responsibility to direct the upbringing of these children (this NGO often receives as a result of court orders from the Judge of Childrens’ Affairs), there has been a few occasions where the NGO was in the middle of a bitter custody disputes between members of a child’s extended family. Research conducted by Fonseca into the legal disputes surrounding custody cases involving mothers, fathers, grandparents, aunts, third parties, wet-nurses, and legal guardians suggest that in Brazil little regard is paid to “who had the moral right to claim the identity of mother.”1 4 In her description of fictive kinship, Scheper- Hughes’ Brazilian subjects’ experiences closely resemble this NGO’s experience of “childhood” and “motherhood.” {The} patterns extend outward the definition of family, household, and kin obligations by turning distant relations into closer kin and making kin of friends or mere acquaintances. {There is the} stress {of} already limited material and emotional resources, spreading them ever more thinly among a larger network of people. The rescue of vulnerable sick, neglected, or abandoned children by other poor women, sometimes relatives, sometimes strangers, who then raise them for a period of time, is understood as an unremarkable and wholly expected act of kindness and mercy on the Alto do Cruzeiro. It is also very common.1 5 NGO Staffing. To assist in making the experience of motherhood and childhood effectual, it is her staff of eight on whom Ligia places tremendous responsibilities. They help her with the day-to-day activities. Ligia counts out her folks on her fingers: “Five are called discipline assistants— they are like mothers. 14. Ibid., citing Fonseca, 122. 15. Scheper-Hughes, Death Without Weeping, 104. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 137 They need to relate to the girls daily and have to be with them to make sure they are doing well... to teach them.” She counts on her other hand, “And we have another three: one is the cook, the other one is the one who washes clothes, and a person who takes care of the cleaning / grounds.” NGO Partnership. The NGO is part of an informal partnership with other similar charitable NGOs. Their affiliation is rather loose and their contact with other childrens’ NGOs in Recife and throughout the state of Pernambuco is limited to the purpose of receiving girls from outside the immediate area. It is an association of orphanage directors, more relational than professional, and concerns only matters of placing newly found abandoned girls. Ligia elaborates on this and her affiliation with the Judge of Children’s Affairs, The Judge of Children’s Affairs knows exactly what kind of work we are involved in so they know what sort of girl we are able to receive . . . what sort of girls we can help. The Judge’s Court knows the girls’ ages we can receive so when another NGO has a girl or they have problems with one o f their girls, they will give us a call. They know the rules and regulations we abide by and the values we subscribe to. They know most of the time how many places we have available. And some times the girls stay here for up to twelve years because they have no family. Or, if they have a family, sometimes they must stay with us and wait until the Judge decides they can go back to their family or a guardian because sometimes the judge decides that they have to stay here with us until the time the family is able to support them. Our NGO not only receives orphans through the Court, however. Also through other similar organizations. This is what we do: let’s say that another children’s NGO brings a girl here that needs to stay with us. We’re going to find out the situation of this girl from our contacts to make sure that the circumstances are really that she needs to stay. Then we find out that, yes, she needs to stay with us. Then we speak to the Judge o f Childrens’ Affairs and communicate that we have this girl with us and the entire situation of the girl and we usually obtain the permission. That’s how it works. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 138 With her NGO registration complete and properly processed, a valuable link has been established between the Court of Children’s Affairs and her NGO. But, for some reason, this is not obvious to Ligia, even though it is a means by which some of the girls are brought under her care. Perhaps this administrative connection is entirely misunderstood by the non-professional. Many with whom I spoke in Brazil only see paper work and the completion of forms as a nuisance. Such activities do not fit into their scheme of life. For them, it is simply an opportunity to employ jeito. Instructional Opportunities and a Right to an Education. Ligia wants “just to work here and create a modem . . . a model institution for the non-governmental organizations and I know we have the capacity to do that. To convert this place for girls and make it an example for the other O-N-Gs” (Portuguese for NGOs). She has been impressed by a few “young ladies” from a nearby private bible school who have been fulfilling some project requirements by helping with the young girls’ health, hygiene, and supplements to their education. Ligia says, “it was a good agreement we entered into several years ago with that private school.” How does one measure the success of such an NGO? I asked Ligia what criteria she would use to answer such a question. She offers that because her NGO receives educational assistance from the private school, “95% of our girls pass their examinations out o f their high schooling.” That is one indicator of the unprecedented success of her organization. Forty-one years of history and a demonstrated record of successes in such a narrowly defined mission of charity and benevolence is also evidence for her success. Yet, Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 139 that is not sufficient in Ligia’s estimation. She has been inspired to instill the importance of education into her younger girls and to provide job and skill training to her older girls. Both of these ideas have been inspired in her by the private school. Now we need to offer our older girls ‘professional courses’ and another thing, not only for the girls, but courses that we could extend even to the community around us. Some of the girls are going to school to learn how to work with the computer and we obtained one computer also now. We would like to work with clothes, you know like, T-shirts, and silk-screens. This gives the younger girls something to occupy their time. But the dream of my heart is that I would like us to not have any children that need a place like this. But because we have so many orphaned and needful girls, I would like to provide the best to them. Compared to Brazilian educational statistics, the Elizabeth Mein Home’s success rate in fulfilling her girls’ right to an education is truly a remarkable accomplishment. Ligia’s perspective on the value of education for her children and how it can help her girls escape their poverty matches some of the current social concerns on the child (see Table 4.1 on the following page).1 6 For example, Mickelson asks, “What kind of education do poor, homeless, and street children need?” She responds, “The first concerns the role of education in lifting individuals from the mire of their poverty. The second involves the relationship between education and development.”1 7 16. See Roslyn Arlin Mickelson, “Globalization, Childhood Poverty, and Education in the Americas,” in Children on the Streets, 30, citing World Bank, World Development Indicators (1998). 1 in 1989, UNESCO, Statistical Yearbook (1997) b in 1993, UNESCO, Statistical Yearbook (1997) 17. Ibid., 29. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 140 Quite understandably, NGOs that are charitably aligned or philanthropically focused may also undertake relief activities during a natural or man-made disaster. This first categorization of NGOs fits nicely with the idea of subsistence, where, on this level, the need for food, clothing, shelter, and preventative medical services are provided to maintain a tolerable quality of life. What I find interesting about Ligia’s NGO is that she was forced to become an NGO and comply with the guidelines for operating her institution despite her desire or preference to remain unaligned to the government. Also, her NGO affirms the importance of education and skill training as a means to attain and sustain their future. Ligia’s organization represents a loosely assembled collective of private individuals and donors who believe in certain basic social principles. They have structured their activities to bring about charitable assistance and a very modest level of development to the individuals and communities that they are servicing. As such, it can also be considered a Community-based Organization (CBO) with one main supporter and a few local supporters. Table 4.1 — Indicators of Education and Literacy: Brazil and the United States Indicator (circa 1995) Brazil U.S. 1. % Adult illiteracy: males >15 yrs 17 0 2. % Adult illiteracy: females >15 yrs 17 0 3. % Enrolled primary education 90 96 4. % Enrolled secondary education 19 96 5. Mean years education attainment: males S 16 6. Mean years education attainment: females 8 16 7. Pupil teacher ration 23/1 16/1 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 141 Community Service NGOs The difference between this category of NGOs and the previous can be explained thus: inasmuch as the charitable and philanthropically aligned NGOs focus almost exclusively on issues of subsistence, the NGOs in the community service category focus on both subsistence and connectedness issues. And as the needs in these two categories tend at times to overlap, it would be expected that the NGOs sharing this alignment and focus would also tend to overlap in their servicing some of the same segments of their communities. Yet, those NGOs aligning more toward community service include organizations with activities such as the provision of general care and education, health, family planning, or services in which the program is designed by the NGO. It is by design that people are compelled to participate in both its implementation and in receiving its services. It too is a non-profit making, service-oriented organization, tending to be more voluntary in terms of labor resources, but the benefits they bring accrue to their members (in the case of grassroots organizations) or to other target members of the population (as in the case of agencies). Such organizations are established by and for the community with or without little intervention or assistance from the government; they can be a charity organization, but work on primarily on socio-economic-cultural activities. These features characterize the community service NGO. As examples of this type of NGO, two Brazilian organizations I visited in Recife and Camaragibe are characteristic: Creche Communitaria— Vivendo e Apprendendo and Abrigo De Idosos Lar Fraternal. My research and observations Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 142 again focused on capturing, interpreting, and explaining the way in which these organizations live out their commitments to their NGO and its servicing the needs of their communities, particularly those who focus on the needs of children. Of interest are several points: both began as Community-based Organizations (CBOs), which arise out of people’s own initiatives. As part of their evolution, they expanded into NGO status and are devoted to servicing and raising the consciousness of the poor or helping them to understand their rights in gaining access to much-needed services while simultaneously providing such services. We will want to note how these people make sense out of the organizational life and NGO experience, their society and group. Creche Communitaria— Vivendo e Apprendendo The first NGO in this category is an educational organization in Recife, Brazil. It’s name translates: Community Care Center-Living and Learning. It is situated in the hilly rural outskirts of the city and is accessed by a poor excuse for a dirt road. The NGO staff member who granted me an interview and tour of the facility was Elina A. De Souza. She has worked for the organization for six years. According to her, the nearly one hundred such care centers in the city have all experienced similar humble beginnings and are confronted by similar formidable problems. Hopefully, they can all share in a future that meets the needs of the children and youths in their care. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 143 History and Social Setting. In 1984 a group of local parents had the initiative to organize a community care center because they had neither the funds to hire maids or care providers nor a safe location in which to place their children during their work week. In June of 1985 the center was founded and within two months nearly 30 neighborhood children were receiving care and an education. Their ages were from newborn to six years old. This NGO made it possible for single mothers to have the freedom to find work, earn a wage, and improve the quality of their family’s life. The same opportunities became immediately available to married couples where they went from single-income families to two-income families. The entire neighboring area is very depressed economically, consisting mainly of farm land, single and multiple family dwellings, dirt roads, grazing areas, and the favelas (shanty town areas). The shanty town is symptomatic of the urban sprawl that has blighted many of the fast-growing cities of South America. These favelas litter the countryside and are an ever present trait of the developed Brazilian city. This is the dwelling areas of the poor consisting of a maze of narrow walkways flanked by sewage flows. The permanent proximity of chickens, pigs, dogs, and cats intensifies the foulness. But a building was found nearby. It was in serious disrepair. The parents soon discovered that none of them had the necessary experience for such an endeavor. Nevertheless, they began to comprehend what was required to provide community care services to empower families to enter the labor market. All the funds that were needed to start the venture were provided by the families whose children would be cared for. It was agreed that the primary financial Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 144 responsibility for getting the organization running was theirs. Because of their pooling of resources and their commitments to one another, they were able to launch the project. It was soon learned that the next important task after opening the doors to the needy public was the work toward “legalization.” This proved to be one of the most trying times of their founding. In fact, even now they find it is extremely difficult to legalize all aspects of their operation. In 1986 sufficient funds were raised to purchase the building. The funds came from rather diverse sources: World Vision and several wealthy Brazilian businessmen. The land was owned by an family living in Italy. After hearing of the parents’ interest in purchasing the land and to restore and add to the building to create a community care facility, the Italian family hosted a special lunch on behalf of the project. The collected funds were sent to the NGO. With that money they were able to buy the land to rebuild. In addition to this family, there were several businesses, including the U.S.-based NGO World Vision, who joined in the project with their financial support. Collectively, this non-Brazilian group made it possible to develop the site. The majority of the finances came from outside of Brazil. Any funds that were raised from the local community and within interested Brazilian groups, were used to buy food, clothes, furniture, teaching supplies, and educational equipment for the organization. Com m unity Involvement. Fundraising for such a social assistance activity is best accomplished via networking. The key to success is through com m unication Elina states, “We began to have a meeting with other centers and NGOs who do Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 145 work like us. Before too long, we began to make friendships and we were being asked, ‘how can we raise money for our projects like you have?”’1 8 People used to give us a lead and say, “if you go to such and such a place to see so and so, they will give you a donation.” So the parents, through their own efforts and some donations, raised the needed funds. While Elina may run the day-to-day operation, it is the parents’ who remain in charge of the entire organization, including its direction and major decision-making. Meeting once a week, every week, they oversee the activities and receive reports from Elina. They are her employers. But working with 125 children (see Table 4.2) and youths requires adequate staffing. The NGO staff consists of thirteen: five educators, two cooks, two secretaries, a housekeeper, and a guard (a security man who spends the night). The Creche Communitaria mission statement is written long-hand on five sheets of green craft paper and is prominently posted on the wall o f the eating/meeting area (for the students, parents, and workers to be reminded of their commitments to one another). It is of particular interest. Excerpts from these documents include their purposes of providing a firm foundation for the development of education and work, to provide recreation for the children and teenagers, helping 18. Elina A. De Souza, interview with author, Recife, Brazil, 16 December 1997. Table 4.2 - Age Ranges, Time of Care, and Number of Children & Youth at Creche Communitaria Age Time a m -p m Total 0-6 7 to 5 50 7-10 11 to 5 25 11-15 11 to 5 50 125 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 146 them to reach their objectives and to help them form a conscience, “a serious conscience as well as a great sense of generosity.” Creche Communitaria operates to support and multiply their work with the families and other organizations who also work in serving the community interests. Ideological Matters. This NGO employs various creative, teleological approaches to meet their objectives. A whatever-it-takes method or whatever- resources-we-can-find scheme undergirds much of what they do according to Elina. She says, “whatever it takes to make us able to reach our objectives.” Striving to give me examples, she mentions her administrative and other meetings, the NGO’s gathering of all parts of the community together to participate in their projects and resource mobilization, and what she refers to as “intercombue." Wanting to support the community by providing services, she speaks ideologically about how her NGO works and teaches educational games, recreation, and therapy. She fervently believes that the community services of planning supportive community events, evaluating the available social services, her NGO’s visiting the local families and having parties for them all help them reach their NGO goals. But one of the NGO’s primary goals continues to be out of reach. Problems Confronting the NGO. The main problem confronting them is their legalization as a bona fid e NGO. Elina says, “We are certain we are in compliance with all of the NGO requirements, we have completed all o f the necessary forms, but each time I go to the government office of registration, I am told that I need yet another form or that something was either found to be inaccurate on an old form I Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 147 submitted and that I must resubmit it.” According to her, the bureaucracy is overwhelming, “it is too big.” She is exasperated, “There is no help for us from the government. Nothing is convenient for us.” There is absolutely no way that it might be possible for them to receive the government money or for them to receive the financial help they are told exists for them and their students. Finally, while she seems to assent to her NGO’s plight with the confession, “The main difficulty right here in Recife is that the state is trying to close their eyes to the work,” she is quick to add, “but we will not let them close their eyes.” Elina expects that the government NGO office ought to explain the NGO registration process more clearly. A government worker visiting her NGO with status reports on her forms and other government expectations would also be a help. In a very real sense, Elina not only wants direction and tangible assistance from the government, she desperately wants their legitimation. For them to acknowledge her and her NGO’s work in their community would confirm the government’s awareness of the community needs. Elina is convinced that the help to which her organization is entitled is long overdue. On the day it arrives, she believes it will be very limited. And the only chance it has of arriving will be if, and only if, it is bureaucratically extracted. That is to say that someone in the government must side with her NGO or be bribed “or something,” if they are going to receive any assistance. Her immediate need is for payment of her staff and personnel. “We have no definite, or consistent, resources to pay the devoted people who work right here with us,” says Elina. This breeds what she calls “insecurity.” This work situation is insecure for them— to all of the teachers Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 148 and workers here. And because of that her workers tend be an endless rotation of short-term helpers. Yet, some of the workers have been here since the beginning. But she is self-assured, “The people in the positions here change often, nobody is permanent. Therefore, we do not attract any professionals nor does our situation entice us to become professional.” While I sense this phase of the interview may be drifting into a labor relations complaint of sorts about poor work force retention, I am reminded that I have discussed the professional / non-professional distinction among North and South NGOs with others. Elina continues, “Because of this we have had legal conflicts with the workers. We don’t have a lot of workers to do lots o f work and to do our kind of work makes for a very long work day, with no place to rest.” At this point, I am convinced that Elina’s candor is a sign of her comfort with the interview. She belabors the fact that there is not a lot of occupational participation from the parents who might donate some of their abilities to the life of the care center. Perhaps this is more because of the location, as they are rather distant from everything and everywhere else, especially the commercial and industrial side of Recife. The NGO workers lack transportation and the freedom to leave the gated and barred facility. Most importantly, Elina bemoans an apparent lack of a basic understanding and commitment from the families who benefit from the NGO. “We don’t believe that the families, those whose children and teens we provide care for, really value the work that we do and the place we have in this community,” she says. After nearly fourteen years of providing a consistent quality o f community services, Elina offers, “it is as if we have now become taken for Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 149 granted. We do not receive just treatment from these families even though we take care of their children at this place!” After requesting her to expand on what it means for her and the workers to be treated unjustly, she elaborates: The treatment that the children receive at their home with their families is of a lesser quality than what we provide. This is unjust to the children and to us. For example, a good number of the children used to come here with marks on their bodies and some serious wounds. That was hard for the children and the workers. We found that there is a serious lack of respect for the children in the family. For example, there is no concept of hygiene. No respect. The children live without any limits placed upon them. And the parents have no limits with the children. We are led to believe from our observations that our parents and the single parents are so busy that they have no time to spend with their children. Children’s Needs and Rights. The interview shifts into a discussion about her NGO’s moral obligations to the children in such a situation and the children’s rights. In Hecht’s study of Brazilian street children it is indicated that, When asked why they have left home, the girls frequently cite sexual abuse.. .. {The} boys typically reveal other facts such as beatings, fear of the favelas, or a sense of rejection or simply boredom at home. What they are least likely to cite, at least initially, is maternal rejection.1 9 Elina makes no comment about the nature of abuses she has witnessed. She will only disclose that the quality of her child care is better than in her children’s homes, that their situation is often unjust, that they are often mistreated, and what is primarily missing in their home life is respect for them as a child. Our discussion brings me to ask, if Elina has a child who comes in the morning with fresh wounds, is she morally obligated to report that to a federal bureau to protect the child? In the past they have taken children to a government office, similar to our Child Protective 19. Hecht, A t Home in the Streets, 55. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 150 Services in the U.S. Elina states that “those offices then become responsible and are supposed to provide the necessary security and protection for the child.” But this too, apparently is a difficulty experienced by all of the community care centers. Elina continues, The state, again, even in this regard, is trying to close their eyes to the need. It is not believed that children have rights. They are trying to give a hard time to their own needs. You know? The social problem of {street} children, those for whom care is provided and those for whom no care is being provided is becoming quite large. Believe me, there is no governmental structure in place to meet either of these very important needs. And then that is why the people need to get together and do something concretely to work in this important area. The process of legalization is very hard, very confused and confusing also. NGO vs. Government. My hostess gives me the impression that it is as if the bureaucracy is very efficient in one very important regard: it makes sure that nothing works at all. There are many governmental departments that are initiated to work for the children and teenagers, but little work is truly being accomplished and there are few--if any~results. Offices are being opened by the government but they do not do a lot. It is a common impression among the community care center workers, over one hundred in the Recife and Camaragibe communities, that the government workers are shuffled around or that the government customarily changes its workers’ responsibilities. “They close down this office, and open that office.” Elina suggests, “sometimes, when a leader gets elected or appointed, he may open an office or instigate a program or project on which he politicked, but when he moves or transfers to another area of government or his term expires, the program or office dies.” Any benefit given by the government, they have learned, is usually very short-lived. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 151 Even if a community care office does not close down, the department workers who remain are unmotivated to assist. Their new leader may not have the passion required to sustain the program or he may do whatever he can to sabotage the program because it was not his idea. To kill the program is to kill the credibility of the one who initiated it: the impression the bureaucrats are trying to create is that it was an idea that was destined to fail, and fail miserably. Sometimes this strategy is used to make way for the new leader’s idea or to redirect funds toward something in which the government is more interested. Elina opines, “and thus continues the cycle of the community needs going unmet because it is more important to play politics. There is a serious lack of social capacity in the government offices. That’s what we’re talking about.” She avers, Because of this overall lack of capacity, the power is only in the hands of a few. And these are probably the ones who have the capacity and ability to make the needed changes. So they do not respond to the social needs. So we have what we call in Recife, ‘the Black Box.’ You know, like an airplane that has a black box. This is where all the important information is kept. This is where a record is kept of all the decisions made on a flight. Nobody knows what’s inside, or how it works, only a select few. Only those who have the power of information, power for knowing things, can really make quick changes that will help our kids. And sometimes the person in the position doesn’t know enough to help those in need. This is the case of our community care NGOs, we have not found the right person to help us in the bureaucracy yet. And like I said, when some of us tried to make a new agreement to get their help several years ago, the bureaucracy was still so confused that many community care centers closed; they simply gave up. But in spite of so many of these difficulties, some of us are that much more dedicated to making sure that others will have a way to succeed. Because the local charitable NGOs are confronted with a veritable barrage of laws and regulations, many of which do not make sense or are counterproductive to Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 152 reaching their goals, it was said rather matter-of-factly that they typically “forget about the subject of rights or the legal area.” They are faced with the alternative of the status quo: the unregistered NGOs live with the stress that they may never obtain legal legitimacy and/or governmental assistance. They are forced to survive on their own and find their legitimacy in providing their services in the absence of official endorsement. Using Maslow’s analogy, while there may exist little hope for legalized or sanctioned organizational self-actualization, fortunately this does not equate with structural death. These organizations, thriving because of their optimism and determination, have arrived at or near the top of Maslow’s hierarchy. They reside in an open-ended realm. It is open-ended because it relates to the need “to become more and more what one is, to become everything that one is capable of becoming.”2 0 The community care center, like other organizations who are increasingly responsible for the children and youth of Recife and Camaragibe, stand in between an unresponsive government bureaucracy and a social group of needy families. Like many others, Elina’s NGO is firmly situated in the middle. They have been forced to become increasingly self-reliant and more resourceful. The reason they chose to discontinue some of the outside, foreign support several years ago was because of a shared observation between Elina and the parents. They agreed to discontinue support from World Vision because the gifts some of the children received resulted 20. Abraham Maslow, “A Theory of Human Motivation,” Psychological Review 50 (July 1943): 382. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 153 in discrimination against those children for whom the gifts were not intended. Those children who were participating with World Vision would receive small tokens and gifts from the U.S. and this generated bad feelings in the children who were not recipients. Furthermore, when the children who were part of the World Vision program would send letters and cards explaining their situation to the Northern donors, World Vision seemed to step in and want to censor the real-life description of the kids’ existence. It was as if the reality here in the Northeast of Brazil was too harsh or desolate. Elina suggests that the plight of the children was too depressing a reality. Measures of Future Success. But has her organization otherwise been a success? “I wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t a success,” she retorts. So why is she here? She says, “I have worked seven days a week studying in the university to be a teacher. Hard work and I are not strangers. My being here has to do also with the group working here. We are like a family and whenever a person leaves to work elsewhere it is a great loss for us.” For Elina, working at her NGO is more than merely a job, it is about the present and the future. We would like to open up a course for hairdressing for teenagers from 14 years old up. Because we work from little to 14 years old but we don’t have anything to offer them after 14 years old. When they become 14 it is very dangerous for them to stay outside of our organization. We need to begin giving courses, especially for the older girls. Everyone who works at the NGO does so because she likes it. While there are a few complaints, it is better than the alternative. Without any security in their future and “without a retirement plan,” without sufficient finances, many of the NGO Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 154 workers end up being volunteers as paychecks are few and far between. They do not know what their future holds. But they do the work out of enjoyment and because they know they are making a difference in the lives of those for whom they care. They joke that one day they will “build a house on the top of this place and just keep working until they die.” They dream together about the day their NGO becomes legal, “then we will have our rights.” Little do they know of the growing power of NGOs and the rights they already possess. For them, legalization has become a panacea. They console one another with the idea that at least the parents will support the needs of the community care center because they have a self-interest here with other children on the way or they see that the workers are preparing their children for their futures. “At least they want us to keep going.” Abrigo De Idosos Lar Fraternal Thus far, this chapter has considered children and NGOs providing social relief activities for children. For the purposes of describing more of the social setting in Recife, and to depict the plight of poor children who survive the streets and live into their final years, I illustrate the social relief activities and rights concerns of Abrigo De Idosos Lar Fraternal. This community service NGO also focuses on both subsistence and connectedness concerns, but targets aged, senior adults. Absent major social improvements for the poor children, this NGO typifies their destination in their twilight years. In her discussion of the ethics of reciprocity and dependency, Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 155 Scheper-Hughes describes the “vicious cycle and relationship” in which people “can feel themselves ill-served and exploited, for what is being hidden in this ‘bad-faith’ economy is the true nature of the relations governing the transactions where desperation can be called loyalty and exploitation can masquerade as care and nurturance.”2 1 This will be described more in this section. Social Setting. On the outermost Northern rim of Camaragibe is a small town called Aldeia, consisting mainly of very elaborate ranchos. This is where the very wealthy of Recife maintain their primary residences; far away from the favelas and all things offensive and wretched in their culture. They are large, sprawling Spanish- styled homes amid vast acreages, with tennis courts, pools, stables of horses, riding rinks, guest houses, and servants’ quarters. Each rancho has its perimeter marked and enclosed by twelve-foot high walls topped with razor wire or spiked barbs. All but for location, these homes are similar to those described by Anthropologist Scheper-Hughes who discusses “urban mansions,” the homes of those wanting to set themselves apart from “the street”: {the} large mansions in town with enclosed gardens surrounded by high walls menacingly decorated with shards of broken Coca-Cola bottles to discourage the curious ‘public.’ The urban mansion remains a closed and total world in which the raa {street} exists for the rich only as a path between the houses of the wealthy, or even worse, as a place to discard one’s garbage and drain one’s dirty water and other sewage. They seem to enjoy a law unto themselves, the ultimate privilege of the dying gasps of a feudal patriarchy, a personalistic social order in which ‘who’ a person is— one’s 21. Scheper-Hughes, Death Without Weeping, 111-12, citing Pierre Bourdieu, Outline o f a Theory o f Practice (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1977): 176. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 156 name— determines power, esteem, and moral worth.. . . [T]he tensions involved in the ‘double ethic’ of a modem individualism versus a feudal and familistic personalism in Brazil have not really been resolved. Instead, the ethics and the rules of democracy and hierarchy coexist in perpetual conflict and contradiction, lending themselves to the common perception of Brazilian social life as chaotic, disorderly, divided, anarchistic— as anything other than the ‘order and progress’ of its national standard.2 2 These homes and the quality of life conferred upon the children therein are invisible from the winding roadway of Estrada De Aldeia into the jungle. “Childhood” is protected here.2 3 The only visible sign of human life from along the highway lined by walls is a random sighting of an armed sentry or vigia (hired guard or night watchman) stepping out from behind a large iron gate entry into a rancho. An occasional farm or low-lying area punctuates the continuous sequence of walls. The rich have taken over all of the high and dry places through the years and have almost completely pushed out the poor squatters or have left them to inhabit a few mud-ridden shanties. As Brazilian social historian Freyre indicates, some are set right in the slime, the inhabitants living in an unhealthy intimacy with the damp and decay, like the shanties of Joaneiro in the area o f Recife itself. The problem is an ecological one, of uneven distribution, the rich monopolizing the good and dry sites, the poor— comprising, as a rule, the half-breeds, mulattoes, or Negroes— packed like sardines in the mud. At times in their struggle with the mud the poor eventually make the place healthfully habitable. But a dry and healthful site becomes a desirable one; 22. Scheper-Hughes, Death Without Weeping, 87. 23. Donna M. Goldstein argues that inside the “city of walls,” the “childhood of the rich, developed on one side of the wall, is overprotected and far from the life of the street On the other side o f the wall, poor youth are literally claiming the street as their own.” See Goldstein, “Nothing Bad Intended: Child Discipline, Punishment, and Survival in a Shantytown in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil,” in Scheper-Hughes and Sargent, Small Wars, 397. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 157 the shanty dweller is ousted, and the rich come to put up their houses of stone and mortar. Valuable houses. The shanties spring up again, in other mudflats, in other swamps.2 4 A sign for the Escola Intemacional De Aldeia and its entrance also interrupt the series of fortified existences. It is a top-flight preparatory school founded and run by an American, Michael Fryer, who sees to the educational needs o f these prosperous families. There is also a well-stocked and very tidy convenience store and adjoining gas station at the Northern border of Camaragibe. Stopping for gas and refreshments, one discovers the existence of Chateauneuf-du-Pape and a good variety of sparkling wines and a few imported beers (even though Brazilian beer rates among the world’s finest with some brands almost indistinguishable from the Pilsner or Mtinchen varieties!) These and other items on the shelves confirm my curiosity about the affluence and the quality of cultured life behind the walls. The store’s primary patrons appear on the weekend. For some, the work week demands the convenience of an apartment near the office and the business center of Recife. The hour drive through traffic over a meager system of roads to and from the family home undoubtedly proves too taxing. For others, the entire family stays at the downtown apartment during the week attending school and going to work. But by the weekend, they are at the North end of Camaragibe. Another confirmation of the stark contrast between the poor life and the rich life will come a few days later— on 24. Gilberto Freyre, The Mansions and the Shanties: The M aking o f M odem Brazil, trans. and ed. by Harriet De Onfs (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1963): 406. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 158 the weekend— when I am invited by my hosts to “the brunch restaurant.” It is only open for business on the weekends; the days when everyone is at his rancho. The restaurant occupies the bottom floor of a lone-standing building on Estrada De Aldeia. It bears no sign signifying its location. Accommodating up to forty or fifty of the locals at one time with its fifteen or so tables— tables with fresh flowers, with proper cutlery and proper chairs— its interior is decorated in a jungle motif complete with an eight-foot-high mound of stones in a comer over which water cascades down into a small pool, giving the patrons the sense of being in an Amazon rain forest. Portions of the ceiling are open to the sunlight and allow a breeze to waft through. Fans, hanging plants in baskets, and creeping vines obscure the ceiling. Behind a rustic bar is the egg preparation area where the patrons stop and give their egg-dish requests on the way to their seats. The ambiance and the cuisine are all prepared for a most appreciative audience. A buffet table with crisp white cloth is literally strewn with fresh-baked breads, tempting pastries and cakes, piping-hot couscous, hearts-of-palm, and a large selection of chilled fruits: breadfruit, custard apples, and tamarind, as well as several varieties without English or American equivalents— the guarana and carambola (each slice in the shape of a five-point star), jaca (about the size of a large watermelon), and perhaps several bushels of others. Recipes of bacalhau, the dried codfish for which Brazilians are so fond, xarque (an air-dried meat), canja (chicken and rice cream) are some of the readily-served dishes being heated in a lengthy buffet warmer. The fresh juice stand nearby awaits with ice buckets, pincers, and large glass tumblers— eight varieties of flavors, each pitcher Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 159 clearly labeled with its own little placard. We begin our feast with cafe com leite, (coffee with hot milk), accompanied by crisp rolls and butter plus marmelada (quince paste). One plate I constructed consisted of a slice of beef, a few small pork ribs, a couple of small link sausages, a fried egg, and several fried bananas. Remembering some of the starved street people and children I met during my stay and the frugal meal to which I have become accustomed— the national dish Feijoada, made with black beans and a small portion of spiced meat varieties— I found it self consciously cumbersome to continue, especially after hearing one of the patrons comment, “You’ll never go hungry in Brazil!” Two thoughts capture my attention as I depart from the restaurant and am welcomed back by the dark-skinned maitre d 'hotel who self-aggrandizingly informs me, “.4 mas preta a cozinheira, o melhor a comida," which translates as, “The darker the cook, the better the food.” One thought has to do with the gastronomical evidence for the vast disparity between the children of the “haves” and the “have- nots.” The other is of Ludwig Feuerbach and his anthropocentrically foundational philosophy. If he were a nutritionist and Brazil his patient, what would his diagnosis, prognosis, and prescription be? Would he pull the plug or could he apply his dictum? Are the Brazilians really what they eat?2 5 I conclude that certainly his 25. He stated, “The doctrine of foods is of great ethical and political significance. Food becomes blood, blood becomes heart and brain, thought and mind-stuff. Human fare is the foundation of human culture and thought. Would you improve a nation? Give it, instead of declamations against sin, better food. Man is what he eats.” See Harald Hoffding, History ofM odem Philosophy: A Sketch o f the History o f Philosophy from the Close o f the Renaissance to Our Own Day, Vol. II, trans. by Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 160 aphorism, “Der Mensch ist was er isst,” has a Brazilian application beyond the crass dietary connotation in which it is usually taken. Not wanting to terminate his patient, Feuerbach would encourage the encountering of this humanity in its various situations and celebrate its powerful essence as being contained in both communitarian more liberal differences. This too is part of the essence of Recife and Camaragibe. Turning off Estrada De Aldeia near the kilometer 10 sign onto another street — if it could be so classified— consisting of a muddy roadway with holes deep enough to swallow a cow, the forest becomes noticeably thicker. A rancho enclosure continues with us down this road on one side; forest, an outcropping of rock, and a seemingly ceaseless mound of assorted refuse line the other. At an intersection of dirt roads we briefly pause because our view is obscured by the wall. We proceed cautiously, not wanting to collide with wandering cattle. In a grassy clearing on the other side of the road opposite the enormous barricade of a rancho in this rural town of Aldeia there is situated another NGO which serves as an example of the category of Community Service Organizations. Profile of the NGO. Abrigo De Idosos Lar Fraternal is a fraternal home for seniors. As a unique initiative, this local NGO is also a CBO, especially since it is devoted to raising the consciousness of the urban and rural poor or helping them to B.E. Meyer (London: MacMillan and Co. Ltd., 1900): 281. Note the rem arkable diary entry, a prophetic challenge, by Carolina Maria de Jesus, Child o f the Dark, 33, “Brazil needs to be led by a person who has known hunger. Hunger is also a teacher. Who has gone hungry learns to think of the future and of the children.” Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 161 understand their rights in gaining access to needed services while simultaneously providing such services. Its activities include the provision of general care and health maintenance, a sense of community, and final stage family planning. While its name gives the impression that its members are organized to work together— in brotherly union— for the pursuit of these common ends, in reality, all organization, effort, and direction emanates matemalistically from the person of Eronita De Farias. After my introduction to Eronita— a rangy woman attired in a simple, loose- fitting, gingham house dress— we follow her a few steps from where we parked to the small patio at the entrance of the main house. A folding table and a few folding chairs occupy this small space and the late afternoon sun shines directly upon it. It is hot there and it cannot accommodate all of us. So we are invited to sit in the folding chairs in the hallway near the entrance where a slow moving breeze can be felt. When Eronita was a young girl, the Seventh Day Adventist church members where she was attending made regular visits to seniors in their homes as part of their community outreach program in the city. She explains, “we visited the shut-ins, or people who could not get around too easily, or sometimes we would visit people who we knew had no surviving family members and needed help around the house.”2 6 Her NGO, she says, “is a result of her childhood experiences, her business experience, and— most recently— out of her community visitations with her church. “I finally realized that instead of going all over the city, it might be better if I began a 26. Eronita De Farias, interview with the author, Aldia, Brazil, 18 December 1997. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 162 work here in this place where we could keep all of the people together.” Now in her forties, her husband Eremar and two twenty-something sons live with her on the “mini-rancho” and lend a hand whenever they can. Her husband is a musician who performs in a downtown Recife hotel; her sons spend their time with friends and growing up. History of the NGO Project. Her earliest recollections of desiring to start an organization for seniors was soon after her marriage. “It was a dream that I had. I used to sleep and wake up dreaming about taking care of two hundred older people. So that was a dream that I had, and it was my own idea. I saw myself taking the older people that lived on the street, older people that had no houses, I would to take them to live with us in our house with Eremar.” During her experience as a hair dressing salon owner, she catered to seniors. She would regularly invite them into her home. Soon she was taking in the homeless seniors on a short-term basis. One day she decided to close her business and sell everything to acquire the necessary funds to purchase a stove and other equipment and appliances to cook and prepare the greater number of meals for the visiting seniors. But caring for the elderly was also part of her up-bringing. I asked Eronita, “Was there anything in your life as a little girl that perhaps created an emotional burden for these older people who needed help? Where did you get the original idea to do this work?” She confesses, I began to work with my mother at a very early age. It was my mother who instilled in me the desire to work. Then I became a hairdresser. I always used to like be around older people when I was growing up. And, as a hair Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 163 dresser, I would be able to take care of the older folks’ hair who would come into my work. I guess I always had an idea of being around older people, but the idea to bring them to live with me was impossible, because I was 16 years old. Then I got married and had my two children and did not work for a while. My children grew and went to school. I used to feel very alone in my house. Then my desire to take care of older people became even bigger in my heart. The only motivation I can think of is from the fact that I liked to work and be around older folks. No one ever thought it could reach the level that it is today, not even my parents. No one ever thought that I would reach the level I am at today. My friends and family thought that I was still dreaming very high because I had no university degree, I had no college training. I didn’t know how to administrate an institution like this. Our work began with one older woman who was abandoned on the streets. Our church group began taking care of her. When it was my turn, I felt a deep desire to take care of this woman. And now here I am. I was told that it would take courage to do this kind of work. I guess I had courage to do that. Facilities and Residents. The mxax-rancho consists of the main house and a half dozen smaller shed-like dwellings. It is a rancho in name only. The larger residence has twelve rooms, six on each side of a main hallway with the majority of the rooms containing beds and bunkers for as many as five or six. The eating area, kitchen, and restrooms are at the end of the hallway. The smell of urine permeates many of the rooms. Some fifty men and women call this place home. The youngest is 76 years of age, the oldest 102 years. Currently there are 13.5 million Brazilians over the age of 60, or 8.7 percent of the country’s population. In 2020, the total will double.2 7 27. According to a report by Inter Press Services, the national statistics institute estimates that in 2025, Brazil will rank sixth among nations with the greatest number of elderly with 32 million. Referencing the WHO, this report was posted on the Internet July 12,1999. <http://www.oneworld.org/ips2/july99>. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 164 Some of the men who threaten the others with belligerent tendencies live and take their meals in the smaller dwellings. These lodgings are tiny, scarcely more than eight by eight, without doors, and are all within 50 feet of the main house. Each is adorned with a rickety shelf unit for displaying a few cherished, personal possessions: a picture, a glass bottle, papers, and--occasionally~dirty dishes. All the residences are constructed of white-washed cinder block with tin roofs and concrete floors. Eronita fights for the rights of her “patients.” Her friends know that if the government hospital happens to mistreat their elderly loved one, Eronita will be there to challenge the system. If matters are not corrected, she will bring the patient to her home until the matter is settled or the person dies. The first resident, an abandoned senior street woman, was brought into her former home. Eronita conveys that the woman was essentially brought back to life: she only needed a special home where people could take care, treat her illnesses, and provide some therapy so she could have a normal life again.” She operated without any funding, originally, but had sufficient help with her first resident. Eronita’s sister and mother were soon enlisted into the community cause for the elderly. Eronita says, “After our first senior, seven more seemed to appear on our doorstep needing care.” It paid off to be affiliated with the church group’s tradition of community activity. She found that this connection made it possible for her work to be registered with the federal government. They met with the necessary officials, completed all of the paper work, and her organization was Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 165 eventually registered. “We began with five people who devoted their lives to the work, and from this group of five, three still work with us in the group,” Eronita says. Today, the institution has no involvements with the Seventh Day Adventist, or any church. It is entirely autonomous and unfailing in its commitment to seniors. We are here to take care of older people that have family or those who don’t have family; we give them the protection and the help that they need. One thing you will notice about our organization compared to most other places for older folks is that they do not provide this family-style environment to their residents. The older people in our culture crave this sort of setting. Here they have a life. They have care. They have love. They have dignity. Most of them do not have medical problems. They simply don’t have a place to live. Our government hospitals are loaded with people whose families have placed them there. That is probably the most popular place to abandon an older person. Once they are situated there, the family may never go back to visit, or may only go to add to what bit of care they may receive there. Only on very rare occasions do they take them back home if and when they get better. So when they {the families of some of the elderly} heard about our NGO, they caLled us and asked if we would go to their homes and bring their relative to stay here with us. I have been helping people like this for eight years now and I have been learning every day a little bit by little bit. I did some work in the nursery {health care} area but I have been learning a little bit every day. NGO Administration and Funding. The presence of a very new looking Chevy Suburban parked in front of the main house prompted my inquiry into fiscal matters. I asked, “Does the financial assistance for this place come through the federal government as a result of your registration as an NGO? Do you receive federal assistance?” Eronita’s immediate response was, “No! Every one of our seniors are retired and they receive per month one minimal salary which is equal to about SI 15 U.S.” In May 1995, President Cardoso raised the minimum wage to Sill dollars (100 reais) per month, and, in May 1996, raised it again to $115 (112 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 166 reais). The minimum wage is not only insufficient to provide a decent standard of living for a worker and family, it is also an amount nearly incapable o f providing truly adequate retirement living according to Eronita. At this point one grows curious about the financial arrangements.2 8 Are there ‘bad-faith’ economics involved at the root of this NGO, an economic abuse of the elderly, or do they receive benefits equal or greater than the cost of their stay at this NGO? Nodding toward the large vehicle— not more than twenty feet from where we are sitting— Eremar adds, “But the car is . . . we are the ones who work like you work and we give the money for such things . . . and the rest of the money we buy our clothes (Eremar chuckles). But most of the money we use to send in the car because the car works like an ambulance to them also.”2 9 The 112 reais per month is used to buy food. But it is not enough. It is claimed that Eronita’s “personal money is sometimes required to take care o f the car or things they need for the NGO.” After a deep breath Eronita explains their greatest fiscal hurdle confronting the NGO. Even though they do not have a donor base on which they can rely for continuous, regular support, when they are the recipient of an occasional sizeable donation, receipting with a tax-deductible charitable statement has caused problems 28. My translator, Demares, informs me that for many older people she knows, the means of respect gained in the family if often at the expense of their social pension and sometimes this is the family’s only financial support. It is also said that the elderly are sometimes victims of fraud and robbery by their own relatives. 29. Eremar De Farias, interview with the author, Aldia, Brazil, 18 December 1997 Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 167 for a few donors. Apparently NGO donors are having real problems in Brazil. Eronita explains, You talk about the money~the deduction; one of the men last year gave his money but there is a big question because of the deduction he wants. We want to help him get his deduction so that he can help us pay the electricity bill. For eight months we have had no money to pay this utility bill. The electric company has come here to disconnect the service many, many times because the bill goes unpaid. But as soon as they cut off the service, we have a way to put it on again. So our electricity might be considered ‘illegal.’ But it is the only way we can survive. We cannot stay here without electricity, you know? So whenever it gets cut, Eremar will go to the connection at the road and put it on again. But it is illegal, we know that. Thankfully, it is in the court’s hands. They have to decide what to do. We have several thousands of dollars of bills to be paid, but we have no money to pay because we have other, more needy priorities. We see the problem in hospital terms; our NGO is like a hospital. We can’t stay without electricity and what little money we do receive must go for other, more pressing needs o f the people, not the utilities.3 0 In this careful balancing of interests, Eronita’s moral calculus determines that it is the people for whom she is responsible, not the power company. Even if being responsible means operating extra- or even illegally, she is prepared to do this. This is her ethic, not jeito. It is not a strategy to recast the impossible into the possible or that which is illegal in to a situation which is legal, it is a carefully considered moral analysis, not a rationalization. The electricity provides the water as their well operates with an electric pump. “We need the water. We need the refrigerator. But the problem is that we have to pay about $1,000.00 a month.” Additionally, there is 30. Similarly, note the observation of Scheper-Hughes, Death Without Weeping, 9, “Municipal street lamps were provided along the two main roads, front and back of the hill, and those moradores (inhabitants, residents, squatters) living close enough to them to do so ‘pirated’ electricity to their homes.” Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 168 the concern of being able to purchase and dispense the required medicines for her seniors. “And at the same time I have to buy medicine. It costs me more than the amount of the electricity bill. So the priority here is to buy medicine, to buy their food, and so the bills for the utility naturally comes in second place.” Eronita runs her NGO in a constant state of conflict- management. In the final analysis, her daily activities, her existence, is about providing some small measure of improvement to the quality of life of those in her care. Nevertheless, her daily life is filled with tension. She is annoyed with her government representative. She has been fighting with the government office for NGO registration a lot recently. She is aggravated by their absence of help. With her monthly deficit budget she hopes to “obtain some new promises.” Her worst fear is that the electric company will complain to the federal government’s office overseeing the NGOs and she will have a repeat of what happened five years ago. Prior to their current NGO, Eronita and Eremar were renting a house not far from where they are now, in Camaragibe. Eronita says, “We rented that place for 35 older people. But when they (the government) realized it was a house for older people, they decided to put us away and we had no house.” Eronita says that a court decided they had to vacate the premises. “We are so pleased that now we have a place for these fifty-five folks. And, hopefully, we will soon be able to get rid of all our current problems so we can better focus on our people and their needs. But even with our problems, staying here is much preferred in comparison to living in a government institution or in the favelas.” Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 169 Child Empowering and Participatory NGOs An empowering focus among certain other NGOs asserts the objective of helping poor people develop a clearer understanding of the social, political and economic factors affecting their lives, and to strengthen their awareness o f their own potential power to control their lives. Sometimes, these groups develop spontaneously around a problem or an issue; at other times outside workers from NGOs play a facilitating role in their development. In any case, there is maximum involvement of the people with the social relief activities of NGOs acting as facilitators at this level. Those NGOs focusing on participatory activities are characterized by self-help projects where local people are involved particularly in the implementation of a project by contributing cash, tools, land, materials, labor etc. In the classical community development project, participation begins with the need definition and continues into the planning and implementation stages. Cooperatives often have a participatory orientation. The NGO known as YWAM (Youth with a Mission), itself both a national and an international NGO— with branches reaching down into the local arena— is known in Brazil as JOCUM (Jovens Com Uma Missao). It is an organization committed to aiding people, especially youth, who suffer the brunt of social problems. This local NGO operates in the poorest areas of Brazil. It makes a strong effort to improve the quality of life of the poor, the oppressed, the m arginalized in both urban and rural areas and thus serves as an example of an empowering and Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 170 participatory NGO. JOCUM Camaragibe and Recife operates on a number of levels as both a CBO and as part of an international NGO. Jovens com uma Missslo (JOCUM) The story of Igiosao typifies the empowerment experienced by the pre-teen and teen aged boys at JOCUM. Igiosao was with the NGO in the beginning. He had been horribly abused by his step father and soon discovered it was a comparatively easier existence living on the street. He remained there for eight years. When a JOCUM worker befriended him in the mid-eighties, he decided to visit the JOCUM compound and found several others who seemed to be interested in having him around more often. Quickly accepted as a needy youth with a willingness to learn, Igiosao acclimated smoothly to the daily routine of activities at JOCUM where he soon learned to cook and to speak English. It was not too long thereafter that he developed the ability to prepare flavorful provisions for the entire base personnel of thirty. This continued for a couple of years to the point the base leaders felt they ought to pay him for his work. At 19 years of age he left JOCUM to try and live again with his family. After a short time with them, he moved to Sao Paulo where he is now the concierge at a large hotel. He started working in the hotel’s kitchen but was soon promoted to work with the tourists because he could speak English. JOCUM intends that all their protegees become well-adjusted, career-oriented young men, able to properly conduct their lives in accordance with the principles of Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 171 Christianity. And just as important, this NGO expects that the young men whom they serve will apply their observed (and hopefully learned) “family-life skills” into their own life and perpetuate them with their own future families. In addition to its empowerment thrust, it emphasizes a participative component in its operation. This NGO embodies the strong belief that a “healthy” family is an institution that makes it possible for children to realize themselves (a la Maslow) and develop into autonomous and productive adults in ways not entirely possible otherwise. It affirms the human need for love and to belong to a “wholesome” family and thus strives to “minister the love of God amid the slums, the hunger, and the sickness.” This NGO’s primary target are the thousands of homeless boys who live in abject poverty. Theirs is the story of meeting human needs and alleviating human suffering through an upbringing among loving, Christian, pseudo-foster parents in a near-idyllic setting; one infinitely preferable, economically and psychologically to their being consigned to children’s homes on the institutional pattern or continuing to live in danger on the streets. It tries to guarantee the childrens’ most fundamental human rights: “life, love, dignity, educational progress and whole development.” This type of NGO works with children in their environments providing friendship as well as programs that include health care, basic education, income-generating opportunities, skills training, shelter and— what they consider most important— reintegration with their families and their communities. The JOCUM base fully intends to expand and continue to thrive in giving children a meaningful childhood. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 172 Setting and History of the Project. The history of the JOCUM effort in Recife has all the makings of an ethnographic odyssey in itself. Occupying the top of a hill in a small section of Camaragibe known as Santa Monica, its recently purchased compound consists of 15 hectares of property (or 37 acres— 1 hectare equals 2.47 acres) abounding with palm trees, parana pine (or “monkey puzzle tree”), and caatinga, a low and bushy scrub. Looking out over the surrounding community and jungle toward the coastline of Recife, the light of dusk turns the jungle to a dark burnished green. Wildlife is abundant here; parrots and monkeys are plentiful. While some of the NGO staff refer to JOCUM as “the base” or as a “farm,” it is lateritic soil that dominates much of this Brazilian countryside. Thick, coarse, and reddish, it is rather deficient in the necessary nutrients for growing many crops. The more fertile, dark-colored terra roxa soils of southern Brazil— excellent for growing coffee— are envied here. Despite their frustrated efforts to grow anything here, the idea of being a “farm” is what is important. The blend of this rural setting with “family” is reminiscent of the social work with “dependent children” in the United States. It was the “Allendale Farm, a home for dependent boys (which was} predicated on the belief that placing a city waif in a rural environment, and raising him in a setting that contained a sense of family and community, would make it possible to ‘recreate this boy.’”3 1 31. Leroy Ashby, Saving the Waifs: Reformers and Dependent Children, 1890-1917, (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1984): 3. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 173 Six families maintain separate residences here. Hailing from Canada, Samoa, Switzerland, Brazil, Puerto Rico, Germany, and the U.S., these husbands and wives, together with their staff, do the bulk of the work of the NGO. Other structures on the premises are two dormitories for male and female NGO staff members, a main house (for guests and communal meals), offices, as well as a swimming pool, volleyball pit, and fUtbol area. Friday evening is sports night: the NGO leaders, staff, short-term students, and street boys all engage in competitive recreation after dinner. While the JOCUM focus and alignment on empowerment and participation is certainly different from the charitable and philanthropic NGO Lar Batista Elizabeth Mein, the JOCUM NGO’s primary focus is similar: the street kids of Recife, particularly impoverished young boys. Leadership and Philosophy of Rights. The NGO leadership (Bob and Magda Emberly, Mati and Julie Gali) is firmly committed to the idea that the street kids’ best chance of succeeding in life will result from their exposure to and participation in “healthy” family relations and living. A careful distinction must be made here. Their interest is not that the street boys should be passive observers of healthy family living, but active participants. Without a formal adoption proceeding supervised by the court, or an agreement with their families to become informal foster parents for a time,3 2 the leaders actually invite the street boys to enter the NGO program, a 32. Informal fosterage is a norm among the poor in the Brazilian Northeast, at times, however— especially when taken at a very early age— Scheper-Hughes discovered that the foster parents “often try to register the child in their own names or to ‘clean up’ (limpar) an old birth certificate by substituting their names for those o f the birth Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 174 program that includes living with a family and becoming an equal among other siblings in the household. The erstwhile street boys are given their own bed, their own place at the table, clothes, personal belongings, and a special place to keep their modest keepsakes, just like their fictive parents’ children. They are shown every respect and encouragement like the other children at home. Despite a difference in skin color, any passers-by in the street would detect no indication that the boy did not “belong” to the JOCUM worker, but would probably only have the fleeting thought, “that Anglo must have adopted that boy.” Yet what is so unique about this NGO initiative is the adults encouragement of the children’s participation in family decision making, including the “adopted” boys. Thus, while protecting his best interests, they nonetheless provide multiple occasions for these boys to leam what it is to be a contributor, to have a say, to be heard and understood, to be given freedoms, and to be prepared for one day starting their own families. Not only that, but these boys are given the experience of childhood, something comparatively and characteristically unavailable in the favela and on the street. This constitutes the thrust of their “philosophy of ministry” or NGO mission statement: “We believe that each and every street kid deserves— and in fact, has the right— to have a family and to know Christ. Everyone is to have this opportunity.” mother and father.” See Scheper-Hughes, Death Without Weeping, 105. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 175 This is our mission,” says Julie Gali.3 3 “In general, we follow the motto ‘to know God and to make Him known.’” In other words, for the most part this religious NGO, by its engagements in the world, sees itself as helping prepare the world for Christ (praeparatio evangelicum), believing that in Christ it will not only enhance human rights, but it finds, finally and fully, what is truly human and what is most right. Others within this NGO see their defense of the rights of, and caring for the needs of street children strictly in terms of divine command theory and stemming from a specific biblical passage, Proverbs 31:8-9.3 4 The work at JOCUM Camaragibe is built on this foundation and uses the motto as a program-action-guide directing their organizational activities toward the street kids. This NGO articulates the human right of life, the rights of the child, as well as the right of security. Indirectly, they affirm, protect, and promote the right of the children to grow into mature adults and exercise the right to marry and found a proper family themselves. Thus, this NGO synthesizes the moral theory of human rights with the moral- or religious-action-guides of their practical, personal Christianity. Failure of the State to Care for Children. Another motivation to begin the project came via the realization that the state reformatories were not helping street children. Feeling that they had to work outside the institutions and meet the children 33. Julie Gali, interview with the author, Camargibe and Recife, Brazil, 18 December 1997. 34. “Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves, for the rights of all who are destitute. Speak up and judge fairly; defend the rights of the poor and needy.” Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 176 in the street, the leaders based their actions on what they called “ministry to and sharing with children,” something that begins as what has now come to be known as “street education.” This NGO’s observation was similar to de Carvalho where she reports, It became clearer and clearer to us that the street children needed to be taken out of their city environment and given a new environment where they could become children again. I had seen . . . that restoration homes in the city centres [sic] produced slow results. Part of the problem was that the ‘rescued’ street child or teenager often found the transition from being a ‘free roamer’ to being enclosed in a building difficult to handle. It was easy, too, when the rescue house was in his familiar city territory, to slip away and back to the streets.3 5 Foremost in this education are issues of trust. If an NGO worker visits a street kid in the favela and he begins sniffing glue, the worker will not take the glue away. While she may suggest that the glue be put away, nonmalevolence takes a back seat to building confidences and trust in a long-term relation in which benevolence will be fostered ending in the autonomy of the street children. In a climate of trust where the relationships can grow, the street educators— or agents of empowerment— provide a structured environment where education and life’s problems are faced and met. Support is provided at a variety of levels or stages; the final of which enables the children to be reintegrated into their families or placed in alternative homes sponsored by similar NGOs. Furthermore, they apply their newly- acquired job skills and become veritable “profit-centers” for themselves and/or their families. After speaking with the street educators at length, many have firsthand 35. de Carvalho, The Street Children o f Brazil, 107. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 177 knowledge of children overcoming poor health, violent, criminal tendencies, and drug dependence, which is typical o f children of favela families. It is clear that these educators serve as very important role models in the lives of these children. Religious Motivations for founding an NGO. Was there a base motivation in the founding of such a grass-roots NGO? The leaders observed the inadequacies inherent to the existing institution-type settings. “The governmental response is to warehouse and mistreat the kids altogether in one building,” says Mati Gali.3 6 Such a predicament is hardly conducive to empowerment— much less enablement— to developing a meaningful existence. Even prior to this observation, a friend of the leaders’ mailed a video cassette copy of a CBS 60 Minutes broadcast reporting on the conditions of the street children in South America, specifically those in Brazil and Columbia. As missionaries then serving in Grenada, the leaders were sensitized to the plight of the “Third World” children and were “suddenly burdened” for the kids who were sniffing glue, involved in prostitution, even being assassinated by the death squads operating in various parts of Brazil. Each of the leaders expressed in one fashion or another the idea that they felt “God was saying to us, ‘I want you to provide families, because the reason they are on the streets is that there has been a problem in the family. I want you to give them a new family. Those who don’t have conditions where they can return to their own family, I want you to provide a family for them.’” These leaders affirm the 36. Mati Gali, interview with the author, Camaragibe and Recife, Brazil, 18 and 19 December 1997. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 178 theological concept of “calling” and say that they “received a call from God to go to Brazil.” But, there also appears to be another reason, perhaps the core reason, only occasionally alluded to in their responses to the query, “why are you here?” Invariably, a leader will remark that it is the church that has not done enough to promote human rights. In fact, they say, the church has tolerated abuses for centuries.3 7 Therefore, in light of the church’s failure to foster human rights and in their role as missionaries, they feel a personal responsibility for the plight of the street boys. Coupled with this is the idea that the defense of the human life of the “nihitos” (“little boys”) ought to be the content and meaning of the church’s concern for human rights. It is apparently within a complex set of their personal and collective sentiments that they have crafted an indigenous human rights theology for their NGO. A religio-ethical-action-guide to provide for and protect the street children is combined with a sense of “calling” as street educators. And as observers of institutional inadequacies, these NGO leaders see themselves as consciously3 8 responsible to meet the needs of the street boys in light of the evident unwillingness and uncooperativeness o f the governmental bureaucracy. Thus, they see themselves 37. On this historically unfortunate ecclesiastical propensity, see Jean-Marie Aubert, “Human Rights: Challenges to the Churches,” Theology Digest 33, no. 1 (1986): 139-44. 38. Donald L. Berry, “The Rhetoric of Conscience,” Christian Century 85, no. 36 (1968): 1102-03, discusses this “conscience captive to God” and how it will contribute to the building o f a community of justice and openness, how it cannot require the sacrifice of the human rights of any person, how it cannot isolate such a person possessed by such a conscience irrevocably from the world of others and how it will make the captive available and responsive to all others who encounter her. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 179 standing in between the abandoning family and the failing government. They can be referred to as a mediating institution.3 9 Earlv Goals of the Street Project: Knowing the Children. Bob Emberly says that he and his wife spent six months visiting the Recife area and once the necessary financial support was raised in the US, they were able to make the permanent move in November of 1992. The couple soon began going to the streets in Boa Viagem, the beach front, downtown area of Recife. Their interest was to get to know the kids, to be where they “hang out,” and to build friendships with them. They went usually with food and bread, milk, hot chocolate or juice. They played games and told bible stories. What was the original goal of the groups’ leadership? “In the beginning, our goal was to just get to know them, building trust and building friendships, letting them know what we were doing there. The goal was to minister to the kids so that they would get off the streets,” says Bob.4 0 In that first year ten boys were received into the first house where Bob and Madga lived. Working for the Children. Eventually a much larger location was found, a developed piece of property where many homes with couples could live who share the same mission of the NGO and are willing to take in or adopt the kids who come 39. See James M. Childs, “The Church and Human Rights: Reflections on Morality and Mission,” Currents in Theology and Mission 7, no. 1 (1980): 15-23, where the purpose of the church’s ethics are discussed: to anticipate, in the midst of alienation and suffering, the promised kingdom of human fulfillment by seeking in the here and now for all people, those values implicit and explicit in the kingdom promise. 40. Bob Emberly, interview with the author, Camaragibe, Brazil, 19 December 1997. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 180 from the streets and raise them in a Christian family setting. The hope was for a location situated near the favelas where the families of kids could also be visited. Here is where the boys will also receive showers and clothing, meals and snacks, first aid (if required), addiction counseling, recreational activities, and pastoral care. The estate was previously owned by a wealthy Recife business man by the name of Senor Emeas and was used as his weekend getaway and vacation home. The NGO’s unconventional negotiations began with a selling price for the property of a quarter of a million dollars. In the end, the NGO paid $180,000 U.S. There has been a lot of work and red tape over the last two years. Getting the property registered and recognized by the government, even getting the project recognized by the government as an effort on behalf of the children of Recife (as a Youth With A Mission base), all these things have to be in order to properly receipt the donors for their charitable deductions as JOCUM— Camaragibe. Bob says, “When the farm was purchased, we became a new ministry here on the outskirts of Recife (in Camaragibe} and we need to be able to send our donors the new federal receipt.” It has been a long process. And there are so many other competing needs between the remaining debt and our operational needs. Now, after two years of operation at this new location, more homes and buildings are needed. Bob says, “We are in a needy community where we can serve the boys. Fortunately we also have a bank, grocery store, and we have a lot of room where we can expand.” The plan is to build other buildings for youth and more workers with the same vision of taking in the kids to their homes and working in the streets with the kids. To date, several thousand kids Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 181 have had contact with the JOCUM families and staff. The JOCUM staff has been going to the streets regularly for seven years now. From Family to Street to “Foster-Family” to Street. The leaders at this NGO report that the street boys often come from a single-parent family setting. Again and again, I hear the recurring story of children becoming displaced from their homes due to a step father who comes into the picture. He has generally rejected one, several, or all of the children of the mother, has beaten them or abused them physically or sexually one way or another and they go to the streets. Or they come from a poor family, perhaps a single mom with six, seven, or eight, children in a very small dwelling space. Magda Emberly says, “The kids are sent out to beg and the kids invariably find they can do better for themselves on the street than in a little house with seven or eight brothers and sisters and not very much food. Through this kind of experience, they end up staying on the street.”4 1 Carlinhos and Caesar are two boys who were on the street when JOCUM arrived in Recife, when the project started. The boys were sniffing glue and were part of a street kid gang— prone to fighting. Carlinhos, enjoyed the care of Bob and Magda and actually lived with them in their apartment in Ibuia (another nearby town on the fringe of Recife) for several months. A tough reality with the street children is that they may come to a home for a while and leave to be on their own again. It is a big adjustment from being on the street where no one tells them what to do, where 41. Magda Emberly, interview with the author, Camaragibe, Brazil, 19 December 1997. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 182 they are without any significant responsibility, just to do what they want. Bob and Magda have seen first hand with many street boys over the years that coming from the rua where they do not have anyone telling them what to do into a family setting where there is an expected standard of behavior is often difficult. For many such a radical change is an adjustment which is not easy. Sometimes they leave and come back or never come back at all. On occasion, a boy may leave and come back many, many times. “It is difficult to know if and when to close the door,” says Magda. Nevertheless, this NGO makes every best effort to be a suitable substitute for a matrifocal preference and to provide a way off the streets. As Hecht argues, In Recife and urban Northeast Brazil more generally, the street is not an acceptable alternative to the home, it is a resource for nurturing the home. And, in any case, the street is a resource used with considerable trepidation. Looked at from the perspective of children in Northeast Brazil, living in the street is not an affirmation of matrifocality but a betrayal o f it.4 2 The Program and Impact of JOCUM. The NGO takes the street boys through several stages of development. At the end of their affiliation with the NGO and their participation in the program, the young men are empowered to face their realities and the uncertainties on their horizons. The estate is actually “the final developmental phase of the kids’ involvement with the NGO,” says Julie. When a boy comes here they are somewhat “recuperated” where the chances of them running away again are perhaps 1%. This is where they are placed into families. Prior to living in homes with families, there are four steps through which the boys must progress. First, is 42. Hecht, At Home in the Street, 107. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 183 obviously the work on the street. Team members go out twice a week and make contact with the boys. “They are given food and hot chocolate and first aid, if needed,” according to Julie Gali. It is common for the team to do a drama or skit to get their attention. This is designed to build contact and trust with the boys and for the team to get to know them. Julie says, “through this we can see who is ready and the most needing to leave the street.” Probably 70% of the kids are not serious about leaving the streets, they may be “living it up” so to speak, she says. Those boys who come to visit the NGO to take advantage of the sports facilities or be fed, or to simply “hang out,” are also potential candidates for entry into the program. The second phase is what is called “triagem” in Portuguese— it is a “trial” time. One of the leaders is looking for another house nearby where boys more easily “fit” coming directly off the street. If the boys were to come to the farm from the street they would be a bad influence on the boys who are already here. The boys spend about six months in such a home. Bob Emberly explains, “There we can work through some of their problems or habits and get to know them better. This is an intense time for them. Here is also where we can deal with their sniffing glue, or smoking, or doing drugs— general substance and behavioral problems.” And after that, if a boy is successful, he moves on and spends another year in a restoration phase. This is the third phase. Magda says, “They would begin having bible studies and meditation or prayer times, a bit more in depth.” The NGO’s orientation at this point is to more fully consider the boys’ development. Throughout these successive phases the NGO staff members “try to discover if there are things Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 184 needing to be worked through in their {the boys’} lives.” And then, finally, a boy moves into this stage at the farm where he can actually live with a Christian family for an extended time. Bob says, at this point, we are working along side a few other Christian ministries apart from our own at the first phase; these too are set up to take boys right from the streets. We will continue in this fashion until we set up our own first phase houses. Part of the teaming with other similar ministries benefits the boys. For example, next week, says Bob, we will be receiving two boys into Uli and Maria’s home from another ministry. These boys are ready to be with a family and we are the only ministry set up to receive them. Magda and I will receive one boy. The goal is to see the boys restored to their own families and to use the skills they leam at JOCUM to become income earners for their families and contributors to their society. The presupposition is that each boy has a right to a healthy and developmentally oriented home environment. Time and time again, however, this is not possible because the mother and/or father are not capable of having their kids at home. Bob states, when they begin working with a boy, they try to find out as much as they possibly can about where he lives and his living conditions, what is his family situation, why is he on the streets. Thus, we make contact and maintain contact with the family in an attempt to even minister to the family. We have even sent some boys back to their families who have been restored and have gone through our program. If this could happen with all of them, that would be wonderful. But there are several who are with us who are orphans and we are wondering for ourselves what are we supposed to do with them when they reach an age at which they cannot stay here. We believe that teaching some kind of skills for these boys will help them. We have a garden Table 4.3 — NGO Stages — From Subsistence to Empowerment ► Street Outreach / Open House ► Shelter and Trial Time ► Restoration in Transition Homes ► Live in Family Homes at NGO Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 185 where some of the boys are learning about farming. Uli has some woodworking tools and is teaching some basic carpentry skills to a few boys. The Child’s Place within the NGO. On cleanup days, a number of the local kids assist the NGO staffers with the chores. Part of the focus is to keep the boys’ days filled with activities. Without a full schedule they will revert to mischievousness. They are required to participate in quiet-time, work-time, study time, school-time, play-time~a full schedule, which is not always fun— until it is time to go to bed. “They really lovefutbol-time {soccer},” says Bob Emberly. Noticing a young boy working with the base cook in the kitchen, I inquire of Bob and Magda if he too is learning to be a cook? Magda responds, “Eduardo is a poor boy from the neighborhood. He comes up here a lot, but he is not one of our ministry {target} kids. His family situation is not desperate enough for us to take him in and place him in our rescue and restoration process.” I inquire about the last “ministry kid” to be taken in: Natallia, a young girl of nine years, is another interesting story. Some of the staffers became involved with her family and found that her mother was bed ridden and paralyzed for many years. Natallia lived with her Mom and five other brothers and sisters in the nearby favela just down the road. As the mom could not do anything, many times the little ones would try to take care of her. She was urinating in the bed and covered in bed sores. The staffers began taking limited care of her and her children who were utterly neglected. The kids would not go to school and spent all day and some of the evening on the street, going home only to sleep. Then the staffers would bring the kids to the farm to give them a nutritious meal and show them some compassion. This also presented an alternative to going to the streets. About two weeks ago the mother went into the government hospital and died. Before Natallia’s mother died, she requested that Natallia and her younger sister would be looked after and cared for by the {NGO} staffers. Some of the other family members didn’t want much to do with the younger children. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 186 However, Natallia’s older sister of fifteen years was taken by one of her aunts or uncles to take care of their home, like a maid {or “slave” says Magda}. She too does not go to school, but only works in their home. Natallia and her sister are now living with Uli and Maria at the base. Within a month if the older brother {20 years old} gives permission as guardian, Uli and Maria will go to court to become the guardia {foster parents} for Natallia and her younger sister for a year at a time. The stories continue. I am told about Andre, another eleven year old boy who lived with Bob and Magda for a while. His mother was a prostitute and basically rejected him at birth. His history of giving problems to his teachers and school-mates, perpetual stealing, incessant lying and rebelliousness eventually gave way to a complete reversal. As a result of this NGO’s intervention, Andre is a different child. “He went back to his family and is making “straight A’s in school!” Magda exclaims. But not all the children progress through the developmental stages as planned. Perhaps the most difficult time for the NGO leaders is when a boy leaves for an extended period of time back to the streets. This happened to one boy for an entire year. When he left he would see the staffers in the street and would avoid eye contact. Soon he became touched by the care and concern the staffers all had for the kids and himself. He wanted to return to the NGO. Unfortunately, however, there was no more space for him . . . his bed had become occupied by another street kid. So he had to wait an entire year before he could return. Finally, a space was made and he returned and stayed for several years before returning to his own family. While residents in the community have relatively free access to the farm, staffers and families rarely travel alone into the surrounding community and favelas. During my Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 187 stay I noticed several of the staff children playing with some of the community kids who visit the farm. The threat of danger is a very real occurrence in Camaragibe. It is reportedly the worst crime area having the highest murder rate among the surrounding towns of Recife. “One of the staff singles was abducted, raped, and murdered two months ago,” says Mati Gali. Conclusion. The empowering and participatory organization is committed to bringing much-needed relief to the root causes of their local social problems. In large part, doing this involves not the removal of the children from the environs of the favelas, but in taking the favela from their identity; the adversity, soft- mindedness, myopic idea of the world, chronic base self-esteem, tangled attitudes, and a highly distorted view of their personal value. The local NGOs are making many attempts to see to the protection of their rights and to provide services. They are committed to improving the quality of life, especially for the poor children, the oppressed, and the marginalized in urban and rural areas. Final Observations on Local Brazilian NGOs and Orientations Harking back to the discussion of child autonomy versus child dependency, the first observation standing prominently before us is that no matter what the NGO orientation— charitably aligned or philanthropically focused NGOs for children, community service NGOs for children at the beginning of their development and at the end of their life, or child empowering and participatory NGOs— from each of these organizations’ standpoints, they make a tremendous contribution of their time, Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 188 talent, and resources into the life of a child; one which inevitably results in an “enhanced life” and an increased self-dependency. On a much deeper level, hitting the very notion of childhood, these local childrens’ NGOs provide a childhood for their children to a greater degree than otherwise possible. Thus to varying degrees, each NGO enables child dependency. Indeed, amid the varying natures of Brazilian childhood— that of childhood for the rich and childhood of the poor— the latter is typically unattainable by the poor; so often it remains a privilege of the rich. Nonetheless, it is debatable how many children in the care of NGOs fully comprehend that their survival is made possible by an NGO, or even that their life might be spared due to the NGOs efforts. Perhaps some fully understand what it means to enjoy personal development as opposed to being exposed to exploitive or dangerous work or degrading treatment. Be that as it may, the NGOs act in the best interests of the child, educating him, and providing for his needs as well as recognizing most of his rights, even fighting for them on occasion. For the child recipients, however, they arrive at a much different conclusion. The NGO-recipient relation is not unlike Scheper-Hughes’ Brazilian class relationship. From the point of view of the dependent, the benefactor is almost never generous enough, has never provided sufficient help, moral support, material goods, or protection. Each class behaves, in its own realm, as a group to whom things are entitled: service, homage, loyalty, on the one hand, and the basic necessities of life, on the other. Each can appear insatiable to the other.4 3 43. Scheper-Hughes, Death Without Weeping, 117. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 189 It must be understood that there exists a clear distinction between local NGOs in general and those whose focus is more on human rights or the fulfillment of human needs. What demarcates a human rights NGO from other NGOs is that the former, customarily, strives to protect the rights or provide for the most needy of all members in all segments of society. Referring back to my matrix, such a broad scope of concern makes such NGOs more national or international in their approaches. Local NGOs seek to promote and protect the rights and provide for the needs of their members and constituents exclusively. Our focus has been on these and their occasionally strained relationships with their service recipients. An additional distinction the reader may see implied here concerns that of “secular” and “religious” NGOs in terms of the former encouraging economic individualism and the latter responding with the need for salvation of the sinning poor.4 4 This “clear” distinction does not always apply. I would argue that inasmuch as both “types” o f NGOs share the same orientations, approaches and seek to fulfill the same social needs, any significant descriptive usefulness in employing secular or religious distinctions is minimal. In fact, such a distinction may only serve to understand an NGOs genesis, its organizational values, or some of its personal action-guides. Hecht’s “religious” distinction unreasonably limits the focus upon the role of religion as a teleological substructure of the NGOs’ activities. Indeed, NGOs with a religious interest may affirm that all religion is for an end, but these NGOs 44. Hecht, At Home in the Street, 165. He argues that efforts to remove children from the street are often guided by such motifs, cf. pages 23, 173-75. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 190 also realize the dynamics of human needs and are committed to inculcating and developing the necessary skills that will enable economic individualism. Recall that the NGOs Lar Batista Elizabeth Mein and JOCUM, for example, encourage both salvation and economic “fruitfulness.” Both clearly provide job training, skills enhancement, familial reinforcement, and reorientation in order that the children they serve will become fully developed, gainful members in their society. Finally, in all of their efforts to support and empower their children, these NGOs incur noticeable expenses, institutionally and individually. The economic and ethical tradeoffs will be discussed in the next chapter. But on the heels of my ethnographic interviews one final unifying description is in order. The conditions in which most of these NGOs operate are extremely difficult. Their earnings are in some seasons less than minimum wage. In fact, by U.S. standards, many live below the poverty level. While interviewing street workers in Recife, Hecht reported that “[C]onditions are precarious enough. . . in some groups to experience hunger in the middle of the day because they cannot afford to buy lunch.”4 5 After eating among the NGOs, I can attest that my appetite was usually unfulfilled by North American standards. While there were experiences of hunger and skimpy provisions, there usually seemed to be sufficient amount offeijoada for the children. In addition to the usual price one pays while living in a foreign land, some of the personal tolls from working at a local NGO worth mentioning include: stress w ithin some of the 45. Hecht, A t Home in the Street, 153. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 191 marriages, tensions due to cultural identities or incompetencies (which may be alleviated over time) and often result in interpersonal struggles with adult locals, and either awkward or altogether untenable relations with Brazilian authorities. The ethics associated with some of these phenomena will be discussed more fully in the next chapter. Yet, these local charitable or philanthropic, community service, or child empowering and participatory NGOs continue to emerge, organize, and flourish in response to what Scheper-Hughes refers to as “the horror, the horror.” For her, “the horror” was “the routinization of human suffering in so much of impoverished Northeast Brazil and the ‘normal’ violence of everyday life.”4 6 For my subject local NGOs in Northeast Brazil and their children, “the horror” continues to be the sustained social and familial indifference toward childhood in general and children in particular. They stand as mediating institutions between their children and the fierce social assault on childhood. 46. Ibid., 16. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 192 Chapter V CHILDREN AND THEIR ETHICAL SPHERES: STREET AND HOME, SHELTER, AND NGO While the evidence of diverse ethics or systems of thought in Brazil is more apparent in the more well-documented and familiar fields of politics (patrimonialism versus democracy; hierarchy versus equality) or religion (Protestantism versus Catholicism; Pentecostalism versus Spiritism), it is no less real and formidable in the world of social meanings. Like the contemporary social world more generally, the social universe of relations in Recife is segregated, fragmented, and cross-cut by diverse competing ethics, by distinct standpoints or multiple frames of reference, that are definite yet complementary, that are, at one level, checked by one another, while at a different level, make sense only through their relations with one another. Together these perspectives and references shape the experience of social life in contemporary Brazil and Recife for the NGOs and street children, not only by creating a unified whole, but by opening up any number of diverse possibilities. And it is within the terms of the following possibilities that the social experiences and realities of children, or even groups of children, can be constituted in the ongoing process of social life. This chapter draws together the moral issues of local Brazilian street children. But not only their moral issues, we will look at the children’s contexts: those of Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. street, shelter, home, and NGO. And inasmuch as each of these contested terrains possesses its own set of proscribing values, norms, principles, and ethics, these too will be analyzed. For instance, what are the ethical issues confronting street children in their involvements with the various social actors in these contexts? What are the unique problems associated with a child’s living on one or more of these terrains? And, finally, while some may focus on either the existence of street children or on their removal from the street, I argue that through the assistance of local NGOs, children can not only be prepared to work and survive on the street, but remain on the street. Brazilian Ethical Spheres and Children Ethics of the Street: Rebellion and Remorse In Recife, a city of 1.3 million inhabitants, consisting mainly of surrounding communities on the edges of a large developed and developing metropolitan area, the communities are made up of very modest homes owned or rented by working class people, a vast number of peasants and other poor folks living in numerous favelas or urban shanty towns, and perhaps some 20,000 children on the street. They work as windshield washers, or sell fruits, or candies in lines of heavy traffic waiting at traffic lights. They sleep in market places or on doorsteps unprotected from all kinds of possible abuses. Whether they are involved in legal or illegal activities, their interests are at stake when they use the streets. The coastal “downtown” business district has grown up as something o f a hodgepodge of service business complexes, Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 194 high-rise apartments, restaurants, hotels, slum areas, and beautiful colonial architecture dating from the 1800s. Writing in 1968, the Recife-bom Brazilian social historian Freyre eerily characterized his native city in the following terms: The Recife of crimes and revolutions and ghosts, with its corpses of priestly ideologues rolling on the ground, its phantasmagorical naked women appearing before the eyes of dissolute monks, its child-snatching bogeymen and jealous wife-stabbing husbands, its serenades sung by young men on moonlit nights on the banks of the Capibaribe. Of this romantic, dramatic, dream-haunted Recife the tourist catches not a glimpse. Not that most tourists, whether foreign or Brazilian, would not be interested in these things, which could so enormously enrich their impression of the city; but how can they leam about them except by reading historical compendiums and scholarly publications— those weighty, solemn tomes which every traveler worthy of the name avoids, preferring to fill his suitcases with objects of daily use, bottles of salts, and light novels?1 Today, the visitor to Recife makes an observation similar to that of Roman satirist Juvenal who somewhere observed that “all things vile find their way to Rome.” It is a sad fact that the poor people and children of the street are considered to be contemptible and draw much criticism and abuse from the wealthy downtown residents and business owners. Along these same lines, yet another parallel exists between Juvenal and Rome and between the NGO researcher and Recife. Juvenal considered Roman society to be that which was the slow-dying governing caste of earlier Rome, the nobles who had overpowered the world, who had long asserted their preeminence by absorbing into their fold every person of vigor and power to the 1. Gilberto Freyre, “Historico e Sentimental da Cidade do Recife” in Guia Pratico, 4th ed (Rio: N.P. 1968) reprinted as “Recife: The City’s Character” in The Gilberto Freyre Reader: Varied Writings by the Author o f the Brazilian Classics, trans. Barbara Shelby (New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1974): 22. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 195 extent he or she was able to raise above the level of the lower class, these are the ones who finally seemed to pay the penalty that every privileged class seems always to pay: extreme corruption and a leisurely demise. Juvenal paints the picture of the deathbed of pagan Rome. Unfortunately he did not have the lenses available to him to see the emergence of a new Rome with its universal citizenship, its universal Christian church, and its “alimentations”2: its care for the orphan and the foundling, and its final recognition of the duty of the State to see that every one of its members is fed. In a sense, what the new Christianized Rome was to its citizens is what NGOs are to the needy citizens of Recife, though less a conscious spiritual movement than a movement bent on social reform. So the social researcher in Recife ought to be socially-sawy to the NGO movement afoot and cautiously astute to juvenilia social blindness and misunderstanding. If he is without certain social lenses, he will be incognizant of the emergence o f a variety of socially-minded NGOs striving to enhance the lives of the needy people and their throngs of children who find their way to the city. 2. There is little doubt concerning such social support phenomena. The etymological aATfio^(banishing hunger) and aXifievot;(shelterless, inhospitable) appear to have given way to terms like alimenta and alere. Such terms were primarily used with regard to food, to maintain, or to give aliment to, but they were extended to designate every thing necessary for the sustaining of life together. Other terms, like alimonia (nourishment)— the basis for our contemporary word “alimony”- -were also used. Present day use of the word continues primarily in French. During World War I the German occupation of Belgium lasted from August 1914 to November 1918. Numerous social relief movements were instituted; among them, the National Committee for Relief and Food (Comite National de Secours et d ’ Alimentation) headquartered in Brussels, which— along with U.S. aid— organized the feeding of the Belgian population. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 196 The city, and more particularly— the street or rua— is where a unique child identity is created. All street children are poor children. But not all poor children are street children. Hecht, after considering the various adult conceptualizations of street children— those of researchers, activists, and bureaucrats, et al.— argues that “maloqueiros,3 as children living in the streets of Recife area tend to refer to themselves, forge their own sense of identity based on their interpretation of how they differ from other poor children who nurture the home.”4 Hecht’s argument is that these children are street children, “not merely because they inhabit the physical space called the street, but because they have betrayed motherdom, the moral and economic logic of the matrifocal home.”5 For the children who sleep in the street in Recife, an essential element that distinguishes them from poor, home-bound children is their relationship to a mother figure, be it their biological mother, be it another woman who raises them — grandmother, stepmother, godmother, aunt, or unrelated foster mother. Home and the street are not concepts attached primarily to physical spaces; they are notions revolving largely around the children’s relationship to their mothers and the concomitant implications of this relationship. Being at home is being with one’s mother, even if the physical space called ‘home’ is nothing more than a few makeshift walls under a bridge, the same type of physical space where children might sleep on their own without their mothers.6 3. See Hecht, At Home in the Street, 236, “in general usage, a rascal, or a naughty or dirty child; a slum dweller, among street children in Recife the term is used to refer to themselves, especially to the older ones who have been in the street for some time.” 4. Ibid., 93-94. 5. Ibid., 94. 6. Ibid., 108. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 197 But what of the ethics embedded in this context? While Hecht juxtaposes the street and the home with an ethic of matemalism and a child’s relationship to his mother, he detects a “strong ethic among poor children who seek to nurture the household and. . . their success at bringing in resources {which} relates to their status within the household.”7 Beyond a Brazilian matemalism protectionist and nurturing ethic there also exists a pragmatic morality amongfavela mothers.8 But of the ethics imbedded in the sphere of the street, Hecht at only one point steps out of his connection of street to home and says that life in the street is characterized by a double ethic, one of rebellion and remorse. He observes, One the one hand, street children tend to be haughty and defiant: they are dismissive of those who seek to instill discipline in them; they perpetrate violence; they reject schools and other aspects of home life; and they defy the rules of spatial segregation that dictate where poor children should and should not be. But they are also tom by a moral conflict over who they are and what they do. Their violence is projected not only outward but inward.. . . Despite their tendency to blame themselves for the violence they suffer, street children also often say ‘We are sufferers’ (A gente e muito so/redo). And it would be misleading to suggest that they believe their suffering is simply a merited consequence of their immersion in that life? The most grievous dimension of street children’s moral existence on the street involves their unwitting participation in a “silent war.” In 1990 the acclaimed 7. Ibid., 88. 8. See Scheper-Hughes, Death Without Weeping, 340-99, where she discusses at length the moral thinking of favela mothers toward their babies who are perceived as “wanting” to die or like “Christ, needs to die, so that others may live.” 9. Ibid., 146-47. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 198 Brazilian journalist Gilberto Dimenstein published a book entitled A guerra dos meninos wherein he argued, In the back streets of the country’s big cities, a silent war of extermination is being waged against young petty criminals. The war involves the use of beatings and torture. Although the exclusively police death squads of the 1970s have practically ceased to exist, this latest war is promoted and organized by members of the police force. The groups involved are often given names such as ‘death squads’ and justiceiros (‘avengers’), and the police encourage their activities on the grounds that the children are dangerous and will never mend their ways. The police and death squads do not target children for the sake of it, but because they see them as criminals. Children are increasingly to be found among their victims because growing numbers are forced on to the street to make a living, to contribute to the family income or because there is no school for them.1 0 Thus, while viewing street children in the context of the street, we are driven to be concerned primarily with their rights. But for the most part, even while in the street, the children are conscious of a strong matrifocal ethic: they know that mothers want “more than anything else . . . to be a good mother for her children.”1 1 The matrifocal home is a dominating metaphor where the mother encourages her children to be more like the poor children of the favelas who contribute to the family by being in the street for the sake of the family. What may not be apparent to us (nor to the street children), argues Hecht, is that “street children lack this thing called childhood. . . . I would argue that such children are presented as the obverse of childhood 10. Gilberto Dimenstein, Brazil: War on Children (London: Latin American Bureau, 1991): 20 11. Robert M. Levine and Jose Carlos Sebe Bom Meihy, The Life and Death o f Carolina Maria de Jesus (Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1995): 20. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 199 itself.”1 2 If this perspective is accurate, and if we were to remove any residual ethical components of “home” from the ethics of the street, the issues of child dependency and autonomy with which we began disintegrate. As such, the street is a barrier to what it means to be a child. What remains, for the most part, is an ethic of survival. Amid all the harms, potential and real which face them, a social Darwinism permeates the street children’s lives, only the stronger among them survive on the street. Ethics of the Home: Matrifocality and Nurturing The notion of “home,” for a poor child in Recife, is not understood in terms of “living with,” or having “physical proximity to one’s mother: it implies first and foremost ‘helping’ one’s mother, doing things in the home that she wants done, accepting her advice and discipline, and augmenting the family income, or sometimes supplying it entirely.”1 3 In the local vernacular of poor children, this is the vida boa, the life they lead at home when they help their mothers and do “good” things such as working. The ethics of the home, of poor Brazilian motherdom, encompasses such a moral and economic sense. But it also requires “a certain moral 12. Hecht, At Home in the Street, 71. 13. Ibid., 109. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 200 resolve.”1 4 During Hecht’s interviewing of some of Recife’s street children, they conveyed other moral contents of their households. Frequently, children will discuss the beatings they suffer and then lament how difficult they are for their mothers. Although it would be a mistake to overlook the ways in which nurturing children protest this violence and the fact that many children swear their mothers never ‘laid a finger on me,’ it would also be a mistake to forget the assessment ‘she hits me because she’s a mother.’1 5 In contrast to the street and its ethic of governing impersonal and public behavior in the street, it is the ethic of the home that governs private behavior and morality. In the latter, one has a name, one lives in a fully social way . . . {with} an instrumental network of personal bonds.”1 6 In this same vein, Scheper-Hughes adds, Whereas one is a person, a ‘somebody,’ at home, where one is embedded in ongoing and inalienable relationships, rights, and duties based on birth and family, as these are mediated by the ‘natural’ hierarchies of age and gender, one is an individual, but really an ‘anybody,’ in the street, where, technically speaking at least, all men are equal before the law and in commercial transactions. At home one is a ‘super’-citizen; in the street one is a ‘universal’ and quite ordinary citizen;1 7 Thus, “[t]hrowing a person out of the house is synonymous with depriving him or her of any social position.”1 8 Middle-class and rich children would not suffer such 14. Ibid., 112. 15. Ibid., 87. 16. Ibid., 172, citing Roberto DaMatta, A casa e a rua (Rio de Janeiro: Guanabara Koogan, 1990): 100. 17. Scheper-Hughes, Death Without Weeping, 86. 18. Nancy Scheper-Hughes and Daniel Hoffman, “Brazilian Apartheid: Street Kids and the Struggle for Urban Space,” in Nancy Scheper-Hughes and Carolyn Sargent, Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 201 ejection in Brazil. These have few responsibilities in the home. The ethics of the affluent home do not require children to work or provide household resources. Using Hecht’s designations, these “nurtured children” are sustained by their parents over an extended period of time. In contrast, the “nurturing children” are “poor children in matrifocal households who from a young age are expected to assume many responsibilities within the home.”1 9 The Local Shelter: Selfishness Another sphere of existence for many street children is the local government shelter. It too has its own ethic. Overseen and haphazardly managed by government workers, local shelters provide an improvement in safety conditions compared to the street for those who will spend the night.2 0 Children here are usually with a parent. Street children staying the night are rarely captured as most of them give the appearance of being with a “family.” In working this charade, a street child has carried out a jeito-in other words, a quick solution to his problem. The shelter is yet another social sphere; one more cautiously navigated by street children and one that provides a space, an opportunity to prey on those weaker than himself, and a break Small Wars: The Cultural Politics o f Childhood (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1998): 361. 19. Hecht, 237. 20. Several types of shelters-missions exist in Brazil: public shelters, church- affiliated centers, and those supported by some combination of church, public and private funds. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 202 from his routine of survival practices. My experience of a Recife shelter where children and street people will be locked up for the night was made possible by the JOCUM leaders. On a Friday night— after dinner and competitive sports— the JOCUM leaders, several staff, and the students, embark on their regular late night visit to the homeless at a shelter in downtown Recife forty five minutes away. It is the Friday before Christmas and they had planned a Christmas party for the street children. The mood is exuberant in the rusted, dilapidated NGO van, with the NGO workers wondering how receptive the authorities will be to their plans. Approaching our destination, the little van winds through the narrow streets by the water front and its large warehouses, four storey industrial buildings, customs offices, docks, and countless stacked, sea-faring containers. Pulling up to a guard shack and a large, barb-wired gate through which we will drive, the setting is dismal and heart-wenching. Hundreds of people, of all ages, are here for the night. While they have freedom to mingle inside the guarded compound, they cannot leave. They are allowed to enter at 7 PM and will be locked inside until 7 AM when they are ejected. Some are huddled together on the pavement listening to a radio. A fire bums nearby, perhaps to keep the mosquitos in check for another group of folks on bed rolls not far from the flames. Exiting the van, the smell of smoke, sewage, rotten fruit and litter is now more prominent. A young mother approaches me holding an infant whose hands are mitten-clad to prevent the almost uncontrollable self-mutilation of hand-naughing, Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 203 possibly evidence of Lesch-Nyhan disease; suffering from mental retardation and unyielding seizures, the child will suffer an early death. I am informed that scabies and tuberculosis, diseases not common in the general population, are endemic among the street people.2 1 This is an extremely harsh locality made only worse by the rat- and mosquito-infested living conditions combined with a lack of sanitary facilities. Within a few minutes we are surrounded by nearly fifty of the street people, curious about our visit. Food is not served here. If it were, I am told it would be served either raw or spoiled food, like in the prisons. The thought arises that quite possibly the denial of first aid and other medical care for these people is perhaps intentional as a form of punishment. Be that as it may, a couple of adolescents are sprawled out under a piece of canvas, either sleeping or unconscious from the glue2 2 they sniffed or the effects of another substance they ingested earlier in the day (substances of choice are typically varnish, gasoline, stain removers, or fire-extinguishing sprays). Many of the young women are pregnant. Twenty or so young boys congregate for a fight between colegas (peers) in the distance under a flickering light pole. 21. Scheper-Hughes, Death Without Weeping, 31, remarks that during the 1980s, “diseases once thought to be safely under control in Brazil-typhoid, dengue, malaria, Changas’ disease, polio, tuberculosis, leprosy, and bubonic plague— resurfaced to claim new victims, many of them children, especially in the Northeast.” 22. Toluene is what is usually sniffed from a small hand-sized jar. It is a highly toxic substance used in shoe manufacturing which causes severe damage to the cerebellum and brain stem. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 204 I am invited into one of the large warehouses by a young woman who wants to show me her child. The stench of urine and defecation permeate the air inside the warehouse. The ceiling is very high. The surroundings are poorly lit. The child’s bed, like all the beds, is constructed with raw lumber— two-by-fours cut for the legs and frame with chicken wire nailed in place on which to lie— there is no mattress, bed rolls lie on some of the chicken-wired frames. Fruit crates line some of the walls near the “beds” which serve as storage for personal items. Some contain unkempt clothes and undiscemables. These sleeping areas are bedecked with graffiti and atypical paraphernalia: a cracked mirror, a crooked picture of Madonna, a nail with an empty hanger hanging on it. Breathing only through my mouth helps abate the stench of excreta and the intermittent urge to throw up. After mingling outside among the people for an hour and a half, the Christmas party for the younger street children (ages 3 to 9 years) is ready to start. An adjacent customs holding room which has been opened by one o f the guards was prepped by a couple of the NGO workers without the children knowing. The room is brightly lit with ceiling mounted flourescent lights. There are no windows, but decorative cinder blocks with openings to the outside permit the odious air to circulate in the room by four ceiling fans. A large customs platform scale standing in a comer is the only furnishing in the room. But, at least for tonight, the NGO workers have outfitted the room with a small folding table on which they have placed the refreshments. Colorful streamers, balloons, and a pile of small presents adom Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 205 another folding table. About twenty children cue in front of the door and wait to get in. Several young street mothers are part of the procession into the room. The children are enthralled, uncontrollable, and happy. One of the NGO staff members, Dan— a American in his early twenties— has spent the entire evening with the four-year-old son of a young prostitute. He has visited the child regularly for the last six months, every Friday evening. This scabby cherub— either from his excitement with being lovingly tossed in the air and ridden around the complex “on horse back”2 3 or from not wanting to lose the attention of this fregues (the street children’s name for a person who helps them on a consistent basis by giving them food, gifts, or clothing)— cannot hold the contents of his bladder and urinates on Dan who resignedly leaves his wet t-shirt on the entire evening. After an hour of gifts, partying, and playing with toys, an armed guard lurches into the room. He inspects the goings-on and announces that the party must end and everyone is to leave. He remains for the few minutes it takes to gather the empty bottles of soda and the scraps of wrapping paper. He questions a few of the street mothers about the occasion. He is drunk. As we follow him between the buildings back to the parking area, I notice his brown paper bag from which he erratically drinks with one hand while occasionally fingering his holstered pistol with the other. At first blush, it seems as if all pride is abandoned in this public shelter. Not so. We are approached by some of the people with their hand extended. Begging, 23. Street children would refer to this in Portuguese as bigu, the term used for riding on the back bumper of a bus, as in pegar bigu, or “to catch a ride.” Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 206 asking for a bigu, asking if I want to hold a child, even soliciting sex, we are targets in this public shelter. Prostitutes ask that I take a picture while they strike suggestive poses, there is no shame here. “[M]arginalized poor people accept begging as a ‘moral right.’ One young mother, forced to beg in the open-air marketplace ..., put it directly: ‘Shame is for those who steal, not for those who must beg to feed their children.’”2 4 In this same vein, Carolina Maria de Jesus groused about the disdainful response of a Brazilian prostitute— ostensibly on moral holiday while accused of stealing clothes— who is forced to wash them after being pulled from the bottom of a cesspool and likewise morally devalues those who steal, “It wasn’t me who took these clothes. I’m a whore, but I’m not a thief.”2 5 The moral climate of life in the public shelter is neither a consolation for the sad, a security for the anxious, nor a safe harbor for the fearful. It embodies a persistent challenge for the moments of life at night just as the challenge of the street during the day. And as a government is responsible for the administration of such facilities, it characterizes the quality of its care for the street people of Recife.2 6 Unlike skid-row “derelicts” once typifying “street people” for most North American 24. Scheper-Hughes and Hoffman, “Brazilian Apartheid,” in Scheper-Hughes and Sargent, Small Wars, 365. 25. de Jesus, Child o f the Dark, 57. 26. The argument here is that those who fail to prevent such suffering are moral agents of it. I grant that such harms may be associated (even motivated out of a desire to prevent other, more serious harms). On the difficulties related to assessing and comparing various sorts of harm, see Joel Feinberg, Harm to Others (New York: Oxford University Press, 1984): 187-217. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 207 observers, the street people at these public Brazilian shelters embrace the whole gamut of humanity: prostitutes evading a pimp, the “new poor,” mentally disabled, evicted families, elderly, transients, alcoholics, drug addicts, abused spouses, abused young people, and cast-off children. Their stories are never simple. Rarely does a single cause account for a street person’s situation. Life in the shelter is compounded of fear, frustration and boredom. These experiences follow the street children and street people into the shelter. The ethic of the shelter demands a certain selfishness that pits individuals against each other and that rewards those who take advantage of those even weaker. NGOs’ Ethical Spheres: Teleology and Protection The presuppositions of what constitutes childhood often propel the design of an NGO’s program and ethic toward the child. Recalling the experience of one of my subject local NGOs, Creche Communitaria— Vivendo e Apprendendo and their decision to discontinue support from World Vision, it is true as Hecht observed that international NGOs seem to favor a refashioning of street children in the model of protected, rich childhood. I would further argue that such support radically engenders a dependent childhood. Local NGOs are focused more on enabling a child’s successful employment. The Work Ethic. During his stays in the northeast of Brazil, Hecht noted that, “[tjeaching street children to work is one aim of nearly every agency in Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 208 Recife.”2 7 One of his examples is drawn from Padre Ramiro, a Catholic priest. His farm on the outskirts of Recife receives boys from FEBEM by orders of a judge. His philosophy of ministry is driven by a “therapy of sweat.” The boys work long hours tending goats and tilling the soil. They plant and harvest. During Hecht’s interview, Padre Ramiro handed him a book that described the objectives of his work with children. On the cover, a bony, barefoot boy with threadbare clothing and untamed hair saunters down the street, eating a piece of fruit and carrying a bucket of food, probably culled from rubbish bins. A dog attempts to remove scraps from the bucket. ‘This is the street child,’ Padre Ramiro said. Print number two shows two children, a dog, and a grown woman in a narrow path between shacks. ‘This is the neighborhood of the street child where he must return.’ The final print shows a young man, thin and angular but kempt, carrying a small case. Like the boy on the front cover, he is barefoot. ‘This is what we return to society,’ Padre Ramiro told me, ‘a working child.’2 8 Such an approach involves a transformation of the child. Yet it does not necessarily include any religious overtones. Padre Ramiro does not appear to push his religious beliefs according to Hecht. The remolding to “change lives” is an end in itself. Thus his NGO follows a teleological social ethic for children. Other local NGOs similarly provide both subsistence and connectedness enhancing vocational courses: silk-screening, printing, or woodworking, “the types of employment that ‘successful’ nurturing children in the favelas might look forward to having.”2 9 The 27. Hecht, 159. 28. Ibid., 158. 29. Ibid., 159. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 209 same teleological purpose is behind such efforts: enabling a child to work and earn money. The Protectionist Ethic. Another local NGO leader interviewed by Hecht does not embrace the telos of a child’s vocation. “Demetrio describes his methodology as ‘body to body’ (corpo a corpo). ‘We work on the self first.’”3 0 First you must work on the child, reconstruct the universe that the child lost.. .. (You can’t forget) that the child has the right to be a child.’ Demetrio seems to imply that being a child is something unattainable in the street. I do not believe it would be reading too much into his words to suggest that ‘the universe that the (street) child lost’ is childhood itself. The idea, in other words, is to restore to children a childhood they allegedly lacked in the street.3 1 Amid the child autonomy and protectionist continuum it is no surprise that the ethic of child protection and of promoting childhood interests dominates many of the NGOs’ program design. A study examined by Rosemberg involved the “Open Shelters,” the first Brazilian government initiative implemented in Sao Paulo to serve street children in a more open environment (as opposed to the government child institutions). The findings of the Sao Paulo study are beyond our concern, but worthy of mention is their provision of a neutral territory for children where police were forbidden to enter. The primary objective of the program was to make it possible for children and adolescents to access the available community resources, especially education, health care, basic documentation, safety, and emotional and psychological support. The program called for providing occupational 30. Ibid., 160. 31. Ibid. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 210 guidance to young people older than 14. Another goal of the Open Houses was to try to reestablish the link between the child and his or her family when it had been broken. It is not always possible to accomplish this, given the desires/needs on both sides.3 2 Not only do NGOs protect the interests of the street children, in some instances, there are occasions when they must decide to either protect themselves or to simply suffer the consequences of their educating, supporting, and working with street children. One terrifying ordeal suffered by an NGO leader was that of Mati Gali who recalls his unlawful detainment and utterly unjustified and brutalizing police interrogation. He says, “The Brazilian Federal Police beat me and threatened my life because of my working for the NGO and ministering to the children in the favelas.” He is a strikingly husky, tall, and rugged looking Samoan man, an educador (the term used to refer to a street educator who works in the street with street children), one who attempts to fulfill the subsistence needs of children and enhance their connectedness to society. One wonders how anyone could possibly subdue him. For the NGO staff, the incident stands as an example of yet another example of the Brazilian bureaucracy running amok. For Gali, his family and his close friends, it is an example of persecution for his belief and continued NGO operations. Apparently my love and fondness for these kids in the favelas and out in the Plaza was mistaken by the authorities for being their ‘ring-leader.’ The police truly thought that because I was like a magnet for the kids— they’re 32. Fulvia Rosemberg, “From Discourse to Reality: A Profile of the Lives and an Estimate of the Number of Street Children and Adolescents in Brazil,” in Mickelson, Children on the Streets, 125. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 211 always coming to me when I am out in the city, they’re showing me the little trinkets they try to sell— that I must be doing something wrong with these kids. Maybe they were bringing me money from the drugs I gave them to sell. They thought that maybe I was their organizer or their leader who told them what crimes to commit and to bring me the things they stole. As the street kids are a big problem in Brazil, the police probably thought to target me— a guy who may be one o f the sources of the problem. Whatever their motivation, one evening while in the streets a couple of plain-clothes guys take me at gun point into a car. I am driven to a bus station. In the back of the bus station is a small room. There I was forced to confess my criminal involvement with the street kids. I was beaten, some of my bones were broken. But I told them about the ministry I was called to by God. Then they placed me on my knees and put a gun in my mouth and one at the side of my head and told me to divulge my true involvement with the kids. I told them I was ready to die for the sake of the kids. Then they tried several other torture techniques to get me to admit I was causing the kids to do wrong things. I thought I would die. Finally, they left me in the room alone. Someone called my wife Julie who came and took me to the hospital where I was for several weeks.3 3 'While this incident does not typify government reactions to some of the local, less visible NGOs, it does characterize an uncooperativeness and thwarting of NGO progress. Yet it was the government that saw to the logistics of the Open Shelters. Perhaps it is the symbolic Brazilian theme of a protected childhood, an appropriate childhood and an appealing childhood, that is favored by the Brazilian media and politicos, where the condition of children is indicative of the well-being of the Brazilian nation that is behind such initiatives and helps us to resolve these social antinomies. NGO staff are struck by the hardships endured the street life o f the kids who are in constant risk of physical harm: harm from drugs harm from the police, harm 33. Mati Gali, interview with the author, Recife, Brazil, 19 December 1997. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 212 from their families, or from those who encourage them to steal by purchasing stolen goods from them. I hear a recurring theme among JOCUM’s staff, “Despite the hostilities and persecution we witness and experience, our hope endures.”3 4 Indeed, the NGO’s hope in the perseverance of the street children facing interminable harm is lived out in a noteworthy observation: at the end of my visiting, observing, and interviewing local Brazilian NGOs, I find that one sense o f social Darwinism is true- -the stronger street kids will survive. The same can be said for the local NGOs, organizational Darwinism is also true: government regulation, incompetence, and strong-arm tactics will continue, but the stronger local NGOs will survive. Uncooperative local officials, corrupt bureaucrats, and brutal police will come and go, but the local NGO will abide. What may assist the local NGOs are examples of how they may operate more effectively in such a hostile and unwelcome climate. This will be addressed in the final chapter. At this point the hostile “moral climate” of the street in which the children and NGOs thrive poses a constant challenge. As NGOs act as social buffers for children, as they argue for and protect the rights of the street children, and as these organizations make it possible for children to be nurturing children, their tasks are far from uncomplicated as they work in their society’s moral mazes. 34. Steven Moore, interview with the author, Camargibe and Recife, Brazil, 17 and 18 December 1997. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 213 Brazilian Children and Social Ethics The preceding section of this chapter was an attempt to view the moral spheres of children from their standpoint and with their interests in mind. Our having noted that some of these social ethical spheres enable the child to remain on the street, I now shift our attention to the standpoint of other social actors and their perception of children on the street. Viewing the street as a contested terrain, what are the ethical issues confronting street children in their involvements with other social actors in the street? The remainder of this chapter strives to view street children from the standpoint of other social actors’ social ethics. The visitor to Recife hears from any taxi driver, concierge, or restaurateur that the city has been bombarded with complaints from business and apartment owners about the presence of street kids, the wandering and incoherent elderly pan handlers, and loiterers.3 5 The city has responded to such complaints and allegations about these negative influences on the community’s image. Of deepest concern is the message being sent to tourists. The city has initiated only meager campaigns to help the homeless. The urban residents, on the other hand, endorse and promote covert actions against the street people, including and in particular the street children. Indeed, the citizens have demanded that the government take charge and remove the objectionable elements from the community. “Street children,” it is charged, is a 35. Aside from personal observations, my interviews and excursions around Recife, Brazil— between the dates of December 15-20 with Mati Gali, Demares Silveria, and Steve Moore— confirm the current state of affairs on the street people and children. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 214 euphemism for crime that demeans and exploits civil society and puts both tourists and the unsuspecting at risk. The intensity of demands has been increasing. The street people and favela dwellers, conversely, have been increasingly vociferous in their demands for improved and increased social services~a request that has basically gone unheeded. Added to this mix of local interests are the international relief efforts pressuring the Brazilian government on the need for social reforms. Their effort and pressure are quite understandable given the statistic that on average, four children are murdered every day in Brazil. The International Child Resource Institute (ICRI), headquartered in Berkeley, California, is but one example of a recently launched international effort to bring a stop to the killings of street kids in Brazil. They report that in 1994, more than 1,220 children were killed in Rio de Janeiro alone.3 6 More than 320 kids killed are less than 11 years of age. The vast majority of the kids targeted by the police and death-squads are of African descent. The ICRI Brazil Project is working to increase international pressure on the Brazilian government to end the persistent posture of impunity which is broadly conferred to death-squads and police officers. Hundreds of nonprofit organizations, religious groups, and 36. Human Rights Watch reports that in 1992, “the Sao Paulo military police, according to their own statistics, killed 1,470 civilians.” This number is compared to “the Los Angeles police department {that} killed 69 people in 1992.” See their publication Final Justice: Police and Death Squad Homicides o f Adolescents in Brazil (New York: Human Rights Watch, 1994): 49. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 215 universities throughout the world have already endorsed the “Brazil Project’s Petition,” addressed to Brazil’s president, Fernando Henrique Cardoso. The magnitude of the problem is evidenced by recent human rights violations, namely, the Candelaria massacre. It is a thoroughly discussed case among human rights NGOs3 7 that received global visibility and generated enraged headlines in the media.3 8 It is the irrefutable example of Brazilian street children’s victimization. The Jubilee Campaign, an international children’s rights NGO effort,3 9 reports that just after midnight on the 23rd of July 1993, street children--who were sound asleep on cardboard mats near the entrance of the well-known, floodlit Candelaria cathedral in the center of Rio de Janeiro--were awoken as six men drove up in unmarked cars to question them. An argument developed. The members of the so-called “death squad” drew their weapons and took aim at the heads of the sleepy 37. See, for example, Amnesty International’s reports, viz., Brazil: The Candelaria Trial: A Small Wedge in the Fortress o f Impunity, AI Index AMR 19/20/96, July 1996. The case of Wagner dos Santos is detailed in Brazil: The Candelaria Massacre and Wagner dos Santos, AI Index: AMR 19/11/95, July 1995, and Brazil: Witness Protection: Wagner dos Santos, AI Index: AMR 19/24/95, October 1995. 38. Jean Diana Schemo, “Rio ex-officer is convicted in massacre of children. (Marcus Vinicius Borges Emanuel convicted of participating in 1993 Candelaria massacre in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil),” The New York Times, 1 May 1996, sec. A, p. 5. CNN also reported the incident. 39. With offices in the Netherlands, the United Kingdom and the United States, the Jubilee Foundation promotes human rights and religious liberty and specializes in protecting “the freedom and safety of children abandoned, orphaned, homeless, otherwise referred to as street children, from bodily harm and sexual exploitation.” It was formed in 1986 by Mr. Danny Smith and launched in British Parliament in 1987 to work on behalf of the oppressed. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 216 street boys. They fired. Four o f the children died of the precise, execution-styled shooting. Several escaped. One was tracked down a mile away and was gunned down by the same assailants. Two more were shot dead in the nearby gardens. Another boy, Antonio Alves da Silva died of his wounds four days later, bringing the total killed to eight, with an unknown number of the nearly 50 boys present injured. The Jubilee Campaign report continues, An investigation was launched immediately due to the bold and brutal nature of the killings and 3 military policemen were charged with the murders. The trial continues to this day. The children who witnessed the massacre have been repeatedly threatened and intimidated, allegedly by members of the military police. To date, there is only one of the massacre’s survivors who has been prepared to testify against the accused policemen and has borne the consequences of such a courageous stance. The survivor’s name is Wagner dos Santos. Wagner’s story is roughly typical of any Brazilian boy’s. Although bom in Rio, Wagner lived in state boarding schools until he was 19 years old because he had no family. After leaving the school he went to start a job as a baker, but he had no home so he slept on the streets. Unfortunately, he lost his job but had got to know some of the Street Children, including another boy who’d been in the state institution with him and they all hung around Candelaria. At around 2pm on 23 July 1993, the children were in the streets when an older man stole a bag of glue from one of the children and a fight broke out. The man was arrested by police and beaten up on a bus and the children got angry and started to shout and throw stones. One policeman was hurt and another warned the children to go because there could be trouble. Following the incident a police car with 4 policemen in had been cruising in the area. A short while later, Wagner and two of the children were snatched by the police and asked questions about the man who’d stolen the glue. They were forced into the car and Wagner was laid down between the seats. A policeman sat on him and shot him twice saying “you’re going to die.” The other boys panicked and the police said they’d take Wagner to hospital. He then blacked out. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 217 When he awoke, he was in the gardens of a park and the 2 other children were dead beside him. He managed to get to a petrol station and was taken to hospital where he learned of the other killings at Candelaria, carried out in revenge for the glue incident. Through the help of one Brazilian NGO, Wagner was found a job in a club in Bahia state but he found himself a girlfriend who lived in Rio and he returned to the city. He was then put into the witness protection house with 16 other children who were waiting to go to court as witnesses of different crimes. On 9 December 1994, Wagner left the witness protection house and went to a dance. On his way home, 6 plain clothes police came up to him and started to beat him. He was handcuffed to metal bars in a park and repeatedly beaten by 3 of the policemen. People saw but no-one did anything. Wagner called out to someone he knew but the friend was also threatened. Handcuffed and bleeding, water was thrown in Wagner’s face. He was then taken to a dark road where he was shot three times. Wagner says that the police involved in the December incident were different from those involved in the Candelaria one. However, they asked who had arranged for him to work in Bahia state and did say he was on a death list. Wagner was taken to hospital where he was given security, but even there he was not safe. The security guard made death threats to him and one of the policemen who had beaten him turned up at the hospital. Wagner has only recently been released from hospital and still has a bullet in his spine. He has not been treated because of security problems but needs physiotherapy because of the partial paralysis caused by his injuries. Wagner has nothing in the witness protection house and what few possessions he had he believes were stolen by the police who are supposed to protect him. He feels locked up like a criminal and a prisoner and says that if the police involved in the Candelaria massacre walk free, they can go back and claim their salaries, but he can do nothing. Social Actors and Children At this point it would be useful to unpack and synthesize the actors’ contentions, concerns, and reasons for actions in the Candelaria Gardens incident Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 218 The Federal Police of Rio, like those in Recife,4 0 are typically considered to be the primary suspects in such violent incidents4 1 against the street children.4 2 Similarly, the incidents typically evoke an unbelievably favorable response from a great number of Rio and Recife residents. The tableau on the following page is presented as a model to isolate the proponents and their related issues. It is a thinly developed approach aimed at understanding public policy issues and is a useful tool for the evaluator to better understand the propounded view(s) and the specific base(s) being held. My use of the model will be limited to its ability to provide definitional and conceptual clarity in a competing interest context. Consider the subject proponents’ characteristic core arguments arranged in Table 5.1. 40. See Final Justice, 107. Human Rights Watch reports that it “found substantial evidence of death squad activity in the state of Pernambuco, particularly in the capital city of Recife and the neighboring city of Olinda. One particularly brutal death squad was notorious in the Peixinhos favela, in Olinda, and until the arrest of some of its members operated with the support of many members of the community. 41. See Ibid., 22-23, where an extension to the police violence industry is discussed: beatings and harassment. “In addition to homicides committed by police officers,.. . Americas Watch received repeated and disturbing testimony about harassment, beating and illegal imprisonment of street children by on-duty police officers. Policemen frequently extort money from street children and harass, beat and threaten to kill them if they refuse to pay.. . . Police also beat and harass minors who they perceive to be criminals or simply nuisances, hoping to scare them away from the areas that they patrol. Human rights activists told Americas Watch that it is even common for the police to confiscate drugs and attempt to sell them back, or for the police to keep part of the money that they apprehended from a child who has committed a petty theft.” 42. The Vagrancy Act can potentially be invoked against the majority of the population at any time and thus represents a police power of arbitrary arrest. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 219 Table 5.1 — Recife Social Actors Urban Residents Civil Authorities NGOs Street Children Empirical Assumptions street children are wild animals institutionalize street children4 3 abusive people likely repeat Federal Police are dangerous Quasi- Philosophical Beliefs children require parental restraint “authoritarian” paternalism4 4 egalitarianism coercion kills our freedom Moral Reasoning or Arguments in the absence of adequate adult control, these children ought to be dominated by any means necessary parens patriae * s need to maintain public civility, thus a primary obligation to Enforcement and the law nonmaleficence of marginalized individuals and peoples is best course of action --need to reform the institutions great reduction of freedoms, we are silenced into submission, frightened Loyalties the tourist trade and community image conducive to tourists few; authorities are intensely autonomous and self-directing rights of the dispossessed and groups (basic fair treatment) those who will protect us and offer us care 43. FUNABEM (National Foundation for the Well-Being of the Minor) and FEB EM (the state version of the same) are the primary social solutions for the street children problem. The majority of the young detainees in these so-called government “crime schools” are “held” for vagrancy or begging. 44. In my terminology, this is a more repressive version and unjustified detrimental claim for social coercion than that which is traditionally acknowledged; accordingly, see Bernard Gert, Morality: A New Justification o f the Moral Rules (New York: Oxford University Press, 1988): 287-88, “One is acting patemalistically toward a person if and only if (one’s behavior correctly indicates that one believes that): 1. one’s action benefits that person, 2. one’s action involves violating a moral rule with regard to that person, 3. one’s action does not have that person’s past, present, or immediately forth-coming consent, and 4. that person is competent to give consent (simple or valid) to the violation.” Gert points out that “it is necessary. . . that the moral rule violation prevent. . . more evil for the person than the evil, if any, caused by it, that it would be irrational for him not to choose having the rule violated with regard to himself.” 45. Literally, “parent of the country” and my use refers to the idea that the police, as representatives of the Federal government, see themselves as surrogate parents and are imputed sovereignty over the street children standing in loco parentis to them. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 220 In the Candelaria Church and Gardens incident, residents called in to police headquarters and radio talk-shows to express their deep appreciation and to extol praise on the work of the justiceiros (vigilantes). These commonly known groups of death squads are in reality off-duty or retired policemen who are commissioned to “take care o f’ the street children social problem which amounts to what some have referred to as an “extermination industry.” What claims are made by the Police acting against children in Pernambuco? The military police claim to be responding to crimes in progress and say that they are shot at by adolescent criminals. However, in several cases detailed testimony shows that the police often open fire on adolescents, particularly poor adolescents, with little provocation and certainly not in legitimate self- defense. One example is the shooting of Ednaldo Paulo da Silva. On April 16,1993, Ednaldo, seventeen-years-old, was chased by traffic police in central Recife, near the Hospital Portugues, and was subsequently shot and killed. His body was found the following day, in the Coque canal. According to statements given by his brother and mother to the human rights group Cendhec, Ednaldo was chased by two traffic police who accused him of stealing a watch. Trying to flee from the police, one of whom was on a motorcycle, Ednaldo jumped off a bridge into a canal. The traffic police, then joined by a military police car, began shooting at Ednaldo while he was trying to swim away. He eventually became tired and decided to surrender. He swam back to the wall o f the canal, and one of the traffic cops told him to come out of the canal or he would be shot. One of the policemen asked Ednaldo, ‘are you going to give yourself up or do you want me to shoot you?’ In response Ednaldo lifted his arms up, out of the water, and began approaching the wall, when one of the policemen shot him two times. Ednaldo’s body sank into the water and was not recovered until the following day.4 6 46. Final Justice, 63. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 221 These efforts are specifically designed to efficiently minimize the growing number of youths suspected of engaging in criminal activity. But that is its extreme manifestation. The official violence of uniformed police, while it may pale in comparison to that of the justiceiros, nevertheless continues to keep the street children and adolescent elements in check with harassment, provocation, and varying degrees of physical, bodily harm. “In recent years, Pernambuco authorities have taken steps to address the problem of pervasive police criminality. Most significant among these measures has been the state-sponsored witness protection program. Yet, one uncorroborated report alleges that a poll was published shortly after the Candelaria incident and that nearly 20 percent of the residents and business owners were in support of the executions/killings. Policia Militar. Some believe the military police are simply out of control. A hardened tradition exists among some elements of the Federal Police, so much to the degree that it is socially perceived that tendencies toward violence are more the custom than the exception. But this is not to imply that there exists an official, concerted social repression o f street children; their elimination or concerted prevention through a mandated unified effort. It is, however, the social perception that any official change is resisted even though other forms of social control (via NGOs or other such institutions) would minimize the necessity for such a heightened degree of quasi-official social control. Others believe the street people, especially the children, are out of control. And then there are the extremists who continue to use the issue of children and police violence as a social wedge. In the eyes of the Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. casual observer, the perception arises that there is a general lack of official sanction against such rampant behavior at both ends. The observer is lead to believe that there exists an institutionalized ossification relative to the Federal Police and a radically recalcitrant element of street people. The street people believe that the police simply will never change their behavior toward the street children. This perception is so heightened that the witty question among the Recife street children to police officers is, “when did you ever stop beating us?” In real life, the sad fact is that they have not stopped. This is an amusing attempt to intellectually box-in the authorities with a question that tacitly takes for granted a false or at least a disputatious answer to their query. The question is put to an officer with the idea being that he has engaged in beating street children but has not stopped, or else he has not started yet, but will eventually. It is true that throughout much of Brazil’s history, the country’s social elite has looked to the police to control discontent among the lower classes. This brought on the results of seeing the police as the private army of the upper class-willing to do the bidding of the rich— and the denigration of the police by the members of the very groups they were expected to keep in line. It is said that as an institution, the police have lost all respect. To them are delegated all of the unwanted, contemptuous jobs. As a result, this institution is seen as corrupt, repressive and extremely authoritarian. To add to the pressures of a dishonored and disrespected job, the morale sag experienced by today’s police officer is potently augmented with the added pressure of low pay. The average salary for a Rio and Recife police officer Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 223 is said to be around $300 a month, an amount that justifies the decision of many officers to hold down second jobs in order to meet their needs.4 7 We can begin to comprehend that perhaps the allegation is true that downtown businesses and tourist promoting concerns adversely affected by the presence of street people and children-- those income producing concerns whose profits have waned because of the rate of crime— are the likely candidates underwriting the justiceiros. Given these assortments of social actors and their concerns, what general conclusions can be drawn with regard to the interests of the Brazilian street child? Conclusion Synthesizing the observations about the moral spheres in which poor Brazilian children find themselves, it is immediately evident that they navigate social conditions not only inopportune for them, but for which they are especially unfit. While in the street, children experience rebellion and remorse and are defiant yet unwitting combatants in a “silent war” of death, prostitution and pornography.4 8 In 47. See Police Brutality in Urban Brazil (New York: Human Rights Watch, 1997): 39, and the table of military police monthly earnings . 48. While Parker comments that the results of a relative impersonality of Brazilian urban life coupled with diminished importance of the family, traditional morality, and religious authority within Brazil’s urbanization serves to create “new spaces in the fabric of society for the reorganization of sexual values and the reconstruction of sexual practices,” a feminist standpoint can raise the question of whether Brazilian girls have a right to be sex workers. See Richard G. Parker, Bodies, Pleasures, and Passions: Sexual Culture in Contemporary Brazil (Boston: Beacon Press, 1991): 86. The report by Jo Bindman and Jo Doezema, “Redefining Prostitution as Sex Work on the International Agenda,” Anti-Slavery International, London, England, 1997, frames an appropriate response, “Under the current penal code prostitution itself, and Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 224 this moral sphere they cannot afford to be dependent children and survive. This is where they eschew most of what it means for a child to have a childhood. In reality, a child’s ability to endure the street will be possible only to the extent he exercises greater degrees of autonomy. Such being the case, the street is— for all intents and purposes— a barrier to childhood. Poor children of matrifocal homes encounter the tremendous responsibility to nurture the home. This is accomplished by going to the street, and the use they make of the street puts them in danger. Thus, the spheres of street and home, for poor Brazilian children, intersect. This convergence presents a combined burden upon children: to be both loyal to and dependent upon motherdom, while at the same time resourcefully and successfully maneuvering the streets. Shelters may provide a temporary recess from the street or the home during the night, but they demand an egocentrism that pits one against another and which rewards those who take advantage of the weak. Inasmuch as children find themselves forced into the Procrustean bed of these ethical spheres along with their hostile social antagonists— urban residents and business owners, police, and those who seek to exploit them (sexually and unusually, soliciting, are not illegal in Brazil. Brazil is a signatory to the 1949 Convention and its Abolitionist model is apparent in legislation designed to outlaw commercial sex-based businesses: procuring and trafficking in women are prohibited, as is benefitting from the proceeds of prostitution, and maintaining premises used for sexual liaisons. The involvement of minors in the sex industry is prohibited under the 1990 Estatuto da Crianca e do Adolsecente based on the Convention on the Rights o f the Child.” Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 225 economically)— it is the local NGOs who are found to either assist the children’s navigating through these spheres or who act as social buffering agents for them. Local NGOs work to meet subsistence type needs as well as to provide a suitable dependent childhood like Lar Elizabeth Mein, the Creche Communitaria, JOCUM, and Demetrio’s NGO; some become a surrogate family for a child. Sometimes the NGO benefits afforded children come at great personal sacrifice to local NGO workers as we saw with Mati Gali. Other local NGOs, like House of Passage, the Open Houses, and Padre Ramiro’s farm, enable a child’s autonomy first and foremost; employment of the child is a primary goal with basic children’s connectedness concerns being part of the program design. For instance, all local NGOs are involved in some degree of educating poor children. But where the former group curbs physical movement when possible, the later enables physical movement. Yet, many of the local NGOs, both those that foster dependency and autonomy, try to reconnect broken relations between the child and his family. NGOs working at the developmental phase, focusing on economic, social, cultural, and political progress, will be indispensable for childrens’ efforts to become more autonomous. This chapter has drawn together the moral issues of local Brazilian NGOs and emphasizes the ethical issues surrounding the plight of street children. So far, I have dealt with the role of local NGOs as fulfilling some of the basic social needs of children and in either sustaining or reestablishing a child’s childhood or enabling an increased degree of autonomy by virtue of enabling their preparation or entry into the Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 226 work force. Working with these special children’s problems has made it possible to more easily understand some o f the roles of local NGOs serving children. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 227 Chapter VI BRAVING THE STREETS OF BRAZIL: NGOS AND THE AUTONOMY ENHANCEMENT OF STREET CHILDREN If street children see essa vida, that life they lead in the street, as a betrayal of motherdom ..., it is not surprising that they tend not only to blame themselves for their predicament but also to place the onus of responsibility for leaving the street on their own shoulders. The implications o f this for institutions are far-reaching.1 At the end of his study of street children in Recife, Hecht alludes to the enormous significance of street children for institutions. If Hecht’s reflections are correct, attempts to remove children from the street will prove unsuccessful and even more burdensome for NGOs. This chapter discusses such challenges. Having appraised local NGOs’ roles, this chapter proposes fresh initiatives for new NGOs, some of which will reinforce the bases of NGO activities, but most of which may have a chance at making a difference in the lives of children with the greatest need: those who will continue to brave the streets of Brazil. New initiatives are important because they have a view toward sustaining, connecting, and developing children while in the street. In Hecht’s view, adult motifs of ‘salvation’ from an outside benefactor are irrelevant, that street children believe themselves unlikely to become working children, and that discussions of citizenship and rights fail to resonate. What is left for street children when they view institutions is an opportunity within the street. 1. Hecht, 187. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 228 Although the institutions may say they are offering a new life, the kids may merely seek a pair of rubber sandals. Acts of assistencialismo, the short-term paternalistic handouts shunned by most activist organizations, are cherished by the kids. Although street children speak of living in the street as a vice, for most the fantasy of leaving street life, essa vida de malandragem {this life of living by one’s wits}, remains just that, a flicker of a dream within an everyday life of drugs, crime, and violence. Rejected in their own homes and in the favelas, street children find a solidarity among their peers that otherwise eludes them. In a world where they are the ultimate outcasts, it is this shared sense of difference and of glaring ostracism that offers street children a sense of belonging. While many agencies wish to uproot children from the street, the kids are busy ungluing what is immediately useful to them within street life; while benefactors speak of giving the children a new life, the latter plead for a pair of shoes, money, and a snack. Street kids view the resources of the institutions as there for the taking, though one must be cunning and persistent to extract them. And when one has no need for them, why hang around?2 While Hecht’s outlook may represent a narrow view of what local NGOs provide and a view that focuses primarily on children’s acquisitiveness more than anything else, the observations contained in this study of local NGOs indicate that children are, for the most part, being sustained, reconnected to society and developed as a result of NGO initiatives. There is, however, a contingent liability facing local NGOs to which Hecht refers. If children remain in the street, what will this portend for local NGOs? What social situations may arise requiring ameliorative treatment? And what additional services might be required of local NGOs in the future to meet the challenges associated with children remaining on the street? Why will a continued lack of ability to protect the street children require more of NGOs? As 2. Ibid., 186-87. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 229 was discussed in chapter three, the primary social feature of NGOs is inescapable: as the nation states of today curtail budgets, trim regulations and abandon protective social programs, local NGO groups will continue to appear and provide for social needs and will become increasingly indispensable. With children continuing to live on the streets, local NGOs will be required to be better acquainted with the laws prohibiting their abuse. This chapter deals with some of the current laws relating to Brazilian children. Greater familiarity with these and children’s human rights in particular will prove helpful in local NGO programming and goal setting to help children incur more autonomy. Without going into great detail, it should be pointed out that my construal of street children’s latent requirement of autonomy is demonstrated in a child’s disregarding convention when he deems it necessary, his being or striving to be economically self-sufficient, and his refusal of being socialized into victimhood. Without arguing whether street children may be consciously choosing to act autonomously, or even whether they have a developed a capacity to comprehend autonomy per se— and inasmuch as some are not presently exercising it, or, they may be bom with a potential for it but it forever remains latent— I will argue that NGOs are more helpful in this process than many other social actors. Moreover, street children who acknowledge the responsibility for leaving the street and place it on their own shoulders are not merely free to reinvent their childhoods. They are obligated to do so, especially if they are to survive. And toward that end, again, are the local NGOs. Therefore, this chapter suggests various new local NGO initiatives to assure the subsistence, connectedness, and development Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 230 of the street children. These are designed to enhance children’s lives, to enable greater degrees of autonomy to brave the streets. Plight of the Street Children: Legal and Human Rights Analysis A review of the applicable laws regarding street children as reflected in Brazilian law and international human rights law is helpful at this point. Are there human rights measures that may prove successful if invoked at the local level? Might these have a chance at making a difference of the lives of those with the greatest need? As in other countries, a study of the relevant laws in Brazil does not provide an accurate picture of the status of indigents. Local police practice varies enormously across this vast and diverse country. The legal structures which have most impact on the street children and street people include the use of the Vagrancy Act by the police. There is a growing threat from the police and citizens who pay the police to “control” the street people. Recife is on the brink of criminalizing homelessness and uninvited “squatters.”3 Rumors have been heard that there are attempts to outlaw sleeping in public, panhandling to tourists, eating near fountains and leaving personal property on public property. A beggar may be charged with loitering or blocking pedestrian traffic. A street person caught sleeping-off his intoxications in a park may be charged with public drunkenness. A homeless man relieving himself in an alley may result in his being charged with public exposure. The absence of specific legal penalties for mistreatment and violation of the street 3. As heard from Steven Moore and Damaras Silveria, interview with author, Recife, Brazil, on 17 of December 1998. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 231 people and children’s human rights in no way protects them from the social exclusion they experience and the stigma attached to their existence. Despite the laws against “private incarceration”4 or “bodily injury,”5 the police are not restrained in their outbursts against the street people and children. In the less accessible areas of the country, the problem is characterized by the absence of the rule of law. The clash in northeastern Brazil was the latest in a nationwide struggle between landless peasants and rich landowners. Over half of Brazil’s arable land, much of it uncultivated, is owned by only 2 percent of the population. In March, hundreds of squatters occupied government buildings in 10 state capitals to press their demands for reform. While a 1993 law allows expropriation of idle land, powerful barons frequently defend their territory with armed security guards. The authorities found that nine of the military policemen involved in the latest shooting also had participated in a 1996 massacre of 19 squatters 40 miles away.6 Human rights NGOs ought to continue their pressures upon the appropriate Brazilian authorities to ensure that international human rights standards are respected in the State of Pernambuco. With regard to the more serious human rights infractions a number of human rights instruments serve to protect persons including children from discrimination, slavery and prostitution.7 For the most serious violations— those, for 4. Penal code, article 148. 5. Penal code, article 129. 6. Linda Robinson, “Brazil’s Bloody Clashes over Land Reform,” U.S. News and World Report, (13 April, 1998): 13. 7. Instruments drafted for these purposes include the UN Convention on the Elimination of all Forms o f Discrimination against Women, The Slavery Convention of 1926 and the Supplementary Convention on the Abolition of Slavery, and the Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. example, perpetrated against Wagner dos Santos, whose story was mentioned in the previous chapter— the UN Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-Legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions, the UN Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials, and the United Nations Basic Principles on the Use of Force or Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials exist. These are of particular relevance in the instance of children suffering abuse at the hands of police while braving the street. Extra-Legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions In 1989 the UN Economic and Social Council urged what is referred to as “Principles on the Effective Prevention and Investigation of Extra-Legal, Arbitrary and Summary Executions.”8 Important among the measures recommended in this document are the signatory governments’ responsibilities to prohibit the type of treatment meted out upon young Brazilian child-of-the-street Wagner dos Santos and NGO leader Mati Gali. It states, “In order to prevent extra-legal, arbitrary and summary executions, Governments shall ensure strict control, including a clear chain of command over all officials responsible for apprehension, arrest, detention, custody and imprisonment, as well as those officials authorized by law to use force and Convention for the Suppression of the Traffic in Persons and of the Exploitation of the Prostitution of Others. 8. ECOSOC Resolution 1989/65. See Appendix II. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 233 firearms.”9 Furthermore, governments are to “prohibit orders from superior officers or public authorities authorizing or inciting other persons to carry out such . . . executions.”1 0 It calls for governments to properly train their enforcement officials,1 1 and to take up other measures to ensure the prevention of executions such as, “diplomatic intercession, improved access of complainants to intergovernmental and judicial bodies, and public denunciation.”1 2 Finally, Governments shall ensure that persons identified by the investigation as having participated in extra-legal, arbitrary or summary executions in any territory under their jurisdiction are brought to justice. Governments shall either bring such persons to justice or cooperate to extradite any such persons to other countries wishing to exercise jurisdiction. This principle shall apply irrespective of who and where the perpetrators or the victims are, their nationalities or where the offence was committed.1 3 A Code of Conduct The General Assembly of the United Nations also adopted a code emphasizing the “human performance of law enforcement functions.” Adopted in 1979 and holding itself out as an international standard applicable to all law enforcement officials, the UN Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials1 4 9. E/RES/1989/65, Article 2. 10. E/RES/1989/65, Article 3 and 19. 11. E/RES/1989/65, Article 3. 12. E/RES/1989/65, Article 8. 13. E/RES/1989/65, Article 18. 14. A/RES/34/169. See Appendix HI. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 234 recognizes that “like all agencies of the criminal justice system, every law enforcement agency should be representative of and responsive and accountable to the community as a whole.” Furthermore, the Assembly was aware that “the effective maintenance of ethical standards among law enforcement officials depends on the existence of a well-conceived, popularly accepted and humane system of laws.” Finally, it was aware that “every law enforcement official is part of the criminal justice system, the aim of which is to prevent and control crime, and that the conduct of every functionary within the system has an impact on the entire system.” Basic Principles on the Use of Force or Firearms Perhaps the most instructive UN document applicable directly to the excessive use of force by the Brazilian law enforcement officials is the eleventh session (1990) Commission report on crime prevention and control. The annex contained therein addresses “Basic Principles on the Use of Force or Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials.1 5 Of particular interest is the request that the Secretary- General, take steps, as appropriate, to bring this resolution to the attention of Governments and all United Nations bodies concerned, and to provide for the widest possible dissemination of the Basic Principles;. . . {And} to provide Governments, at their request, with the services of experts and regional and interregional advisers to assist in implementing the Basic Principles and to 15. Commission on Crime Prevention and Control: Report on the Eleventh Session (Vienna, 5-16 Feb. 1990). Economic and Social Council, Official Records, 1990, Supplement No. 10. See Appendix IV. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 235 report to the Ninth Congress on the technical assistance and training actually provided;1 6 Rights of the Child While street children may already enjoy protection by existing human rights treaties, these are too general to adequately protect the special needs o f children. Thus, the applicability of international law standards was enhanced by their reiteration in the UN Declaration of the Rights of the Child which was mentioned in chapter 2.1 7 Important among the issues addressed here are the relationship between the individual child, the family and the state1 8 and the extent to which other civil and political rights belong to children.1 9 O f particular interest is article 19 which places an obligation on states to take all appropriate legislative, administrative, social and educational measures to protect the child from all forms of physical or mental violence, injury or abuse, neglect or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation, in the care of parent(s), legal guardian(s) or any other person who has the care of the child. Furthermore, it provides for the provision of preventive and treatment programs in this regard. But unless the Convention leads to improvement in the way the world treats its children, it will be worthless. The world community of governments are 16. Ibid., 58. 17. A/RES/44/25 and UN Dept, of Public Information, DPI/ 1016-41219, Dec. 1989. 18. See, for example, A/RES/44/25, Articles 5, 9,10,11,18-21. 19. See A/RES/44/25, Articles 2, 6,12-15, 25, 37, and 40. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 236 required to take the steps necessary to achieve every article in Part I of the Convention. Here is where NGOs are faced with the all important task in ensuring that they do so. They must note that, The Convention on the Rights of the Child is the only human rights treaty which specifically gives NGOs a role in the monitoring procedures. As ‘other competent bodies’ they can be invited by the Committee on the Rights of the Child to give ‘expert advice’. In fact, the Committee has given NGOs an important place in its procedures. It is clear that NGO input will be important for the Committee proceedings.2 0 Persevering in the Streets: New Perspectives on Local NGOs Working with Children At this point, keeping in mind the competing assertions of the community that the presence of street children is synonymous with placing innocent individuals (including tourists) at risk and that severe crime is often associated with street children, and the NGOs’ assertion that the rights of street children are unacknowledged and unprotected, what is a possible perspective that meets the needs of both? One alternative that is supportive of the community and permissive toward the needs and interests of the street children needs to be unpacked and fully understood. The idea is to balance the competing interests. On the one hand, how would it be possible to meet the needs of all members of society? Can an understanding be reached on the one hand between the childrens’ hostile antagonists, 20. Radda Bamen, “NGO Work for the Implementation of the Rights of the Child,” booklet cited by Michael Longford, “NGOs and the Rights of the Child,” in Peter Willetts, ed., The Conscience o f the World: The Influence o f Non-Governmental Organisations in the U.N. System (Washington, D.C.: The Brookings Institution, 1996): 235. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 237 the revenue making interests with the tourists, and infrastructure development, and, on the other hand— and at the same time— the needs of the street children? The Mainstreet Perspective In the interests of finding a social balance of interests in Recife, it is first necessary to draw together a combination of the social members. By a mainstreet perspective I am suggesting there exists a major avenue toward organizing a system of relations among persons and groups within the social setting. It is natural for any group to be suspicious of gathering together with their social counterparts, the obvious fear is that the power of one point or a personality or segment of the group will dominate the others. With this perspective I am not implying homogeneity. I am simply building on an observation I have made during my travels. In almost every city or town I have visited, irrespective of its size, the main street offers the surrounding residents the choices of a wide variety of foods, furniture, clothes, jewelry, and other culturally distinctive artifacts. On a single main street perhaps anywhere in the world, one can find evidences of such multiculturalism: French, Mexican, Arabic, Oriental, and Thai food; Italian furniture and Scandinavian accessories; Japanese electronics, brand-name American clothes, and jewelry and other adornments from the U.S., Switzerland, or Brazil. Such main street multiculturalism is not limited to cuisine, furnishings, or other accouterments. In this, Recife is just like any other city. And given so many various forms of accepted diversity living in such proximity, a mainstreet perspective Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 238 is a similar form of social synthesis. It is useful for disrupted weak societies in that it draws together social members into a more organized system of relations. It is a “town hall” meeting which has on its agenda the action item of giving meaning, of giving and expecting recognition and support to and from one another. The expected outcome of such a meeting is an increase in mutual understanding, reciprocal service, and contravention. The term “contravention” is typically used in a “bad” sense, as an act of contravening or transgression. For example, the French word contravention connotes a minor offence or infraction.2 1 In a moral sense, “contravention” can describe a process of broad social interactions midway between competition and conflict. It consists of a wide range of activities from mere withholding of cooperation to reproaching, disparaging, thwarting, betraying or conniving against another, but always falling short of the use of violence or the threat of violence. Therefore, with the building of a consensus on how to balance the competing interests of the social actors, with considerable debate, combined with the hauling back and forth of ideas and opposing perspectives, giving and taking, there will arise a substantial measure of agreement on matters of moral conduct— on what makes conduct right or wrong, a person good or bad-all contributing toward a stabilization 21. In the French penal code, violations are divided into crimes, delits and contraventions in the order of their diminishing seriousness. In comparison, this classification does not correspond exactly with that of the English common law— treason, felony and misdemeanor. Under French law contraventions are violations of police regulations. Such infractions of the law are punished by a fine which does not exceed a nominal amount and by a length of imprisonment not exceeding a few days. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 239 of society. Contraventional morality, with sufficient management of social conflict, gives way to a conventional morality. For example, and this is a trivial instance, after exclusive attention to the conventional aspect of morality, a use of moral words can grow up in which their “action-guiding” force is lost; in calling a man a “good” man we are no longer holding him up for imitation, but merely attributing to him certain properties. It would be expected in such a situation, that the Recife NGOs and other international NGOs would act as moral reformers of sorts. They would attack the dead morality of convention (recall Christ’s attack on the Pharisees, and the Communists’ on “bourgeois morality”), and would attempt to restore the action-guiding function of the moral words while altering their descriptive content. The very fact that the opposing moral elements in society understand the NGO language of moral reformation indicates either their assent or their realization. This is but one avenue of bringing together the social members. The assumption here is that applied ethics, brittle as they are, can provide a measure of usefulness in establishing sound social standards or toward finding ethical norms for the evaluation of positive law in general. Their utility as a lens on society becomes apparent when we see total societies whose legal and ethical values operate at a group’s peril. Bad laws, unfortunately, encompass much that is false and immoral. My point, however, is that the dignity o f a free people cannot yield to the state the issues of conscience that are each person’s inalienable responsibility to defend and vindicate. The street children and their NGOs and their hostile antagonists can Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 240 mutually co-exist with the other social members of the Recife community. It is possible. The required technique, so to speak, is how to formulate a policy that will curb the intrusion of the more crime inducing social members into the lives o f people and tourists who do not want the encroachment while simultaneously maintaining and respecting the rights of those who are the encroachment. In my opinion, the issues of regulating crime inducing elements as well as issues relative to diminished standards of community in general can be seen as analogous to product-marketing regulatory issues. In those quarters, regulation seeks to protect consumers from harmful results. Part of the “middle-of-the-road” alternative available to the City of Recife distills down to consumer protection which emphasizes preventing harm through regulation and limitation of some choices, or, choice enhancement, with a focus on increased consumer choice and the exercise of individual responsibility. The former, supply-side remedies, targets marketers, and often leads to the equivalent of bad social engineering. Similarly, the Federal Police and citizens have targeted the street children and street people. The better policy seems to be the free market because less coercive policies are more consistent with a free society. Thus, the latter, demand-side remedies, aim at consumers, often through providing them with educational and/or informational decision-making tools. These are a less invasive policy measure compared to restricting the freedom of expression. The most important non-invasive consumer-related remedies able to provide mutual co-existence among street children and other social actors are education and segment management. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 241 NGOs can propose, for example, that the City of Recife adopt a school-based program, aimed mainly at youth in their formative years, when they are developing their social identities. I would strongly suggest a program that includes role playing, documentary films, and TV programs designed to immunize the youth in the community against violent and degrading treatment of street people and hate media in general. And, in addition to this, segment management methods such as building more Open Houses like those in Sao Paulo would serve to isolate segments. I will discuss other methods in a moment. But to get back to the perspective of the mainstreet and to apply the idea to the plight of street children, it must be understood that this approach to social issues does not rely on throwing money at social problems. As a process of community development, it simply builds on what is already there. And by utilizing a community development approach, it is believed that local people can contribute themselves to the improvement of services. To begin such a process, what is first needed is an NGO/City partnership to bring together opposing community voices and to hear the voice of the heretofore voiceless street children. The focus needs to be placed on creating a healthy, vibrant community; a counterweight to the perpetual negative media coverage so often brought to the street children’s issues. Such a partnership is vital to the Brazilian community as growing numbers of people move into the area, family structures are in flux, employment patterns are evolving, and with these social realities of change stresses and tensions are inevitable. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 242 Second, it would be important for NGOs to demonstrate that the media picture of the Brazilian society as crime ridden, tom by deep social tensions, and atomized is partial and superficial. The Brazilian media can help educate and heighten social awareness on the plight of street children. Visual, written, and aural media cues will help to change the perspective on poor children and accentuate the fact that the victims are children. The visions of cloistered, sanitized childhood as seen on the Brazilian television production Xuxa, is out of touch with Brazilian reality. The disjunction between the real Brazil and the one Xuxa stands for-- patterned on disembodied television models of culture and global media production values, and informed by attitudes about gender and race more and more difficult to reconcile with genuine social needs— {is now} . . . more tangible {than ever}.2 2 My point is that ultimately, Brazilian childhood itself is at issue. The current Brazilian Code of Ethics for the media is included in the appendix. Third, the local Recife government, along with social commentators and NGOs, need to discover new avenues to assess the elusive concept of ‘the quality of life’ in ways which reflect the richness and variety of children’s experience. Many people are looking for indicators of progress and socio-personal improvement beyond the economic.2 3 It almost goes without saying-social relief efforts ought to 22. Amelia Simpson, Xuxa: The Mega-Marketing o f Gender, Race, and Modernity (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1993): 192. 23. As discussed with Steven Moore and Damaras Silveria, conversation with author, Recife, Brazil, on 16 of December 1998. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 243 devote many of its resources to enabling people to live lives of the highest quality possible. Such efforts, however, ought to make low-quality lives high quality, not low quality lives perish in order that higher-quality lives are preserved. Fourth, through the perspective of the mainstreet, programs designed for community development can be discussed and initiated. Much like those designed by the local Recife NGOs, such programs will undoubtedly succeed and flourish. It must be remembered, however, that in order to prosper they need community support. Programs designed to improve health or diet, even those intended to reduce crime, must be owned by, not imposed on, local communities. There appears to be broad agreement among the NGO constituents that while there ought to be government involvements in support of such programs, there ought to be a limit as well. These proposals to change the perspective on children remaining on the street do not constitute a panacea for the existing social problems relating to children. If the community perspective of the mainstreet intends anything, it means helping people to help themselves. Yet, governmental discretion and sensitivity, whether local or central, is essential with regard to assisting the members of the community to successfully work together. And the local NGOs, most of which rely on volunteers and small staffs, are vital to this. NGOs operating community centers, village and church halls, or local schools and the people who run them all have a part to play in the mainstreet effort. All involved may benefit from mutual help and advice. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 244 In sum, good faith negotiations and efforts are needed. Fairness and balance ought to govern the mainstreet proceedings and discussions. Perhaps there ought to even exist the possibility of disciplinary action on those who are uncooperative. Still, everyone needs to receive the signal that a social truce has begun. Official indications emphasizing the wide range of heretofore impermissible or altogether thwarted NGO operations are certainly in order. The question is not if there is a place for proliferating NGOs but how to best utilize these socially advantageous organizations, support their efforts, and create a climate in which mutual respect and understanding will prevail in the social order with regard to these mediating institutions. This also will requires a change in the social perspective toward local NGOs. Without a change in perspective, Recife and other local NGO settings will continue as a world without moral meaning. Indeed, morality has been turned into obedience to rules. The rules are discovered to have no moral force as they are imposed by one social group upon another. The social majority has become subjected to a hedonistic imperative to strive for more and more fulfillment at the expense of what lies beyond the sway of any ideal, and increasingly I believe they are finding that this striving is destroying both those ideals and themselves. It is time to either design or affirm new community cohering ideals, new metaphors, new perspectives on street children. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 245 An Applied Ethics Perspective The term “applied ethics” refers to an application of ethics to a particular problem or situation. Admittedly, there is an inherent danger that this ethical “activity” may take on the character of problem-solving. It need not. Instead, it can create a practical consideration context whereby a problem is cast against a backdrop for closer ethical inspection and analysis. For example, near the beginning of the previous chapter the story of Wagner dos Santos was told. We recall that while on his way home he was attacked by six plain clothes police that he was handcuffed to metal bars in a park and repeatedly beaten by three of the policemen. The unsettling factor in the case is that there were witnesses at the scene, watching the incident, but none of them reacted. Wagner even called out to someone he knew, but the friend was also threatened. The possibility cannot be ruled out that if sufficient protest to the police action would have occurred, either the reprisal would have ceased, been diminished, or others would have been targeted in the victimization if they came to Wagner’s rescue. We may never know if, at most, one’s intercession, or at least, a group distraction, would have foiled Wagner’s transport to a dark road where he was shot three times. From the standpoint of applied social ethics, this story bears a remarkable resemblance to that of Miss Catherine Genovese. Her assailant, however, was not a civil authority, but her victimization— like Wagner’s— was in open public, and in the presence of those who may have been able to deter the aggressors. My interest at this point is to unpack both stories and place them against the backdrop of a set of Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 246 practical ethics that are typically embedded in such circumstances. This procedure is not intended to operate as a sort of conceptual imperialism, but to discuss a social problem existing within a framework of moral dimensions. Striving to adhere to an ethic of objectivity and the methods used in the practice o f applied ethics, I am concerned primarily with the similarity of circumstances of both victims and their “knowers” and what they “know.” I am separating from this discussion for the moment their interests, “biases,” and so forth. Until now our discussion and analysis of the social ethics of local NGOs has been, of necessity, rather abstract. Perhaps it would be well to focus on their prospects by means of a concrete example and how ethics can provide a change in perspective. The story of Kitty Genovese has been told and retold many times.2 4 On March 14, 1964 the young woman was stabbed to death outside her apartment house in Kew Gardens, Queens, New York. This is what the police say happened beginning at 3:20 A.M.: twenty-eight-year-old Genovese was returning home from her job. Parking her car in the same spot as always, she began walking the 100 feet to the entrance of her home and noticed a man at the far end of the block. Stopping for a nervous moment, she decided to head toward a police call box. She only got as far as the street light and the man grabbed her. She screamed. Lights in a nearby apartment went on. She yelled, “Oh, my God, he stabbed me I Please help me! Please help me!” Someone yelled out their window, “Let her alone!” The assailant 24. Abraham M. Rosenthal, Thirty-Eight Witnesses (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1964). Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 247 fled. The lights went out. But the attacker returned and stabbed Kitty again. She screamed again, “I’m dying!” Lights went on again in several apartments, but no one came forward. Again, her assailant left but for a moment only to return a third time to fatally stab her. The ethicist naturally raises the queries, why did her neighbors turn their backs? Why did they refuse to bear witness? If any one of the witnesses (thirty-eight of them) would have called the police at the first point of attack, the authorities would have arrived and been able to save Miss Genovese. In fact, when it was over and Kitty was dead and the murderer long gone, one person finally did place a call to the police— but only after consulting with a friend about what was the appropriate response and from whose apartment the call ought to be placed. The police arrived in only two minutes. While the problems associated with crafting a “Good Samaritan law” are significant, the best chance of winning public sympathies is to craft a criminal witness law as a child protective law.2 5 Thus, the proposed “Sherrice Iverson 25. A more recent example of the duty to assist occurred in June 1997. At 3:47 in the morning at the Primadonna Resort casino on the Califomia-Nevada border, seven-year-old Sherrice Iverson was struggling with her soon-to-be murderer, Jeremy Strohmeyer, age 18, in a locked toilet stall. Peering over the top of the stall was Strohmeyer’s best friend, David Cash, who was able to stop the course of events. Instead, Cash decides to take a walk. He walks past security guards without warning them. He could have made an anonymous telephone call. He decides against it. Nearly an hour later, Strohmeyer emerges from the restroom and discloses to Cash that he has molested and murdered the child. Strohmeyer received a life sentence for his wrong-doing. Cash is free but suffering the interminable rancor of more morally aware classmates who say he bears a great measure of responsibility for his lack of action. Cash incessantly argues he did nothing wrong. See Los Angeles Times, “Protecting Children Always A Good Cause; Iverson Case: A Law that Makes it Illegal to Fail to Report a Crime Against a Child is Narrow Enough to Win Support,” Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 248 Memorial Bill” may receive the same political favor as “Megan’s Law,” based on the case of raped and murdered seven-year-old Megan Kanka of New Jersey.2 6 The Iverson bill may be destined to become a federal law. It would require the immediate notification of the authorities. Indeed, few matters outweigh the greater social need to protect children and others in peril. And these vignettes argue that the duty to assist or report is not an attempt to legislate morality, but to legislate accountability. As was stated in the introduction, in the severe moral crises of some societies, the situation may have been grave, in others— indeed, in these— it has been lethal. In their vision to revitalize a sense of civic mission and social order, local NGOs typically embrace the approval of such measures as it signals an alternate Sunday, 6 Sept. 1998, sec. M, p. 5, Ventura County Edition. See also, Los Angeles Times, “Iverson Killing and Samaritan Law,” Friday, 25, Sept. 1998, sec. B, p. 8, Home Edition. 26. Maura Dolan, ‘“Good Samaritan’ Laws are hard to enact, experts say; Aid: Outrage over Inaction of Strohmeyer Friend Sparks Calls for Bills. But Existing Legislation Has Limited Success,” Los Angeles Times, Wednesday, 9 Sept. 1998, sec. A, p. 1, Home Edition, states, “A few states have passed laws to require citizen intervention when someone faces great harm. But those statutes have had only limited success, according to legal experts, who say the effort shows the difficulty of legislating moral behavior. The experts differ somewhat on how many states have so-called Good Samaritan laws. Only four appear to have broad statutes establishing a legal duty to help those in danger. In Vermont, one of those states, such a law has been on the books since 1967, but officials say they know of no instance in which it has been employed. ‘I have been in this state 20 years, and I can’t recall a case where we used this statute,’ said John T. Quinn, chairman of the executive board for Vermont’s county prosecutors. The law says a person who sees another in grave danger must help to the extent he can without putting himself in danger. Violating the law carries a SI00 fine. Laws that require citizens to report crimes are ‘difficult to word because you need to be able to show that the person knew almost to a certainty that a crime was occurring,’ Quinn said. Many European countries require citizens to assist others in peril.” Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 249 discourse and a change in perspective. In this instance, it would signal the strengthening o f a discourse of child empowerment, that children need not be viewed as socialized into victimhood, but they can escape it. The NGOs’ concern is pure and simple, their call is for a renewed sense of social responsibility toward children and an enhancement of their autonomy. An Ethical Paradigm: “The Candelaria Gardens Postulate”. Both stories of what happened in Candelaria Gardens and Kew Gardens give rise to the notion that only under certain conditions and in response to only specific circumstances will individuals come to the assistance of someone in desperate need. But, often, many people will not even make a minimal effort to lend aid or even contact someone who may be able to help and meet the need. The thirty-eight witnesses were the only mediators available for Kitty Genovese. The neighbors and bystanders were the only ones who might be able to distract or agitate to a satisfactory degree to dissuade Wagner’s hostile aggressors. Turning to the bystanders / informants in both situations, their dispositions are very similar in that they were the only hope for their victimized neighbors. The qualities of their circumstances are also strikingly similar. Both groups are faced with the responsibility to act because someone cries out for help as a result of critical harm from a third party. Both groups know that there exists a desperate need, a need to survive. Both groups are in sufficient proximity to provide some degree o f assistance, whether rescue or dissuasion of the attackers is moot at this point. Certainly, both groups are physically capable of providing a Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 250 deterrent of sorts. And, finally, both groups are in the troublesome position of being the last resort, the only actors who have the option and ability to act. The pursuit, apprehension, and infliction of bodily harm are conducted in the same manner in Brazil and in the United States. In the moral dimensions of experience, malevolence can move in various directions, but it knows no differentiations. The administration of human suffering is, unfortunately, a universal phenomenon. The degrading and debasing of individuals are as malicious to those in Brazil as it is to those in the U.S. So too with regard to an increasingly universal unwillingness to act on behalf of others. In both stories it is possible to lift out some of the characteristics of the events with which we may choose to judge the moral decisions of the bystanders and their decisions not to engage in moral actions. A lawyer may console the conscience by advising, “there is no legal responsibility, with few minor exceptions, for any citizen to report a crime.” A philosopher may explain how each acted in a purely self- interested manner. The witnesses and bystanders, reflecting such sentiments, may be possessed with thoughts ranging from, ‘1 do not want to become involved,” to “I was afraid to do anything.” “Surely, someone else will contact the police,” is the notion, according to sociologists, that explains such inactivity in terms of alienation of the individual from the group. Or the social psychologist may discuss the various forms of apathy, antipathy, or other social pathology jargon which tend toward excusing the pangs of conscience instead of tending toward accusing the conscience with such immobility toward action. Some would also offer that due to the interminable Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 251 climate produced by the contemporary moral debate on how autonomous moral agents are unable to provide an account of their moral rules possessing any independent and objective authority, ethicists are compromised to offer sufficient direction in such circumstances. I remind, however, that while society is remarkably resilient, applied ethics are rather brittle and in the discipline of applied ethics— theory safely aside for the moment— no one gets off the hook so easily, everyone shares in the responsibility to do something. And although a dreadful “law of silence”2 7 may exist, the responsibility of anyone present in such situations emanates from a social ethic embedded in the circumstances. According to the human rights organization, IBASE, the death squads in Pernambuco are responsible for 57 percent of the murders of children, an even higher proportion than in Rio de Janeiro. Desperate parents have painted protests such as ‘Don’t kill my children’ on Pernambuco’s street walls.2 8 To simply unpack the reasons why action is demanded, and to postulate a moral- action-guide applicable in similar situations in the future, the applied ethicist asserts that given the circumstances o f need, proximity, capability, and last resort, all bystanders have a responsibility to act, at least in some modest fashion in an effort to at least minimize or modify the direction of malevolence. We could term the 27. Gilberto Dimenstein, Brazil: War on Children, 71. 28. Ibid. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 252 requirement to act based upon the presence of these four components the Candelaria Gardens postulate. A Social Ethics Lens. From the standpoint of ethics, it may be said that the bystanders were guilty of contributory negligence. The blameworthiness extends from the fact that there was a lack of ordinary or reasonable precaution to provide a defense to a hostile action, or to prevent, or respond in some manner to an injury by another. This is of a different magnitude to the sort of contributory negligence which exists in a legal sense where the defense is able to show in a court action that failure to exercise reasonable care on the part of the injured person (or another to whom negligence may be imputed) contributed to the injury. It is of a different order in that it is not a res ipsa situation; a specific kind of negligence referred to res ipsa loquitur retaining its Latin meaning of “the thing speaks for itself.” In such situations, a given set of facts is so supportive of the defendant’s negligence, that the burden of proof shifts to the defendant and it is he who must prove that his negligence did not result in the plaintiffs injury. The interaction between the actors (victims and assailants) was alterable. The sequence of interactions was not inexorable; it was not fated. Indeed, at various points in the sequence of events human agency could have been exercised in accordance with moral purposes to alter the course. Various persons could exercise capacities and powers available to them as means of intervention, and the media of such powers were several. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 253 In the face of Brazilian hostilities and in the absence of adequate social buffers for the threatened people— especially the children of the streets— the local NGOs act as a social prophylaxis by preventing and guarding against moral ambivalencies. In addition to enhancing child autonomy, these social organizations strive to shield them from social hostilities and similar detrimental social forces and consequent social deterioration. They perceive themselves in terms of protection: they affirm the critical requirements of their constituents, they are proximate to the needs, they have made themselves capable, and there are no other social actors who are in a position to fulfill the need. But as pervasive as local NGOs may be, they are not omnipresent. And in their absence to shield their constituents from harm, NGOs are forced instead to create new strategies that will result in the greater protection of those who rely on them and their services. Along these lines, I made a series of observations in Recife, especially with regard to the street children. First, there exists a clear network of relationships between the local NGOs and the street children they seek to aid. The forms of assistance and aid are describable and all can agree that the NGOs’ service to its constituents are more active in their welfare than passive. Second, the core of the relationship between the local NGOs and the street children is clearly one of reliance upon former by the latter. To be specific, the local scene in Recife constitutes a vast web of interdependencies. Whether food, shelter, education, basic medical services, or skill training, the children come to a point of realization that the NGOs are there for them. The local individuals Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 254 rely upon NGOs and other institutions. They expect them to be highly dependable, in other words, they are expected to fulfill their role(s). In the interactions described above, what did occur was in part dependent upon a preceding sequence of events, and upon the sorts or types of persons who participated in these occasions. For Wagner’s, Miss Genovese’s, and Sherrice Iverson’s assailants, their characters were a necessary condition for the actions they undertook and for the course of events that followed. It goes almost without saying that if they had not been the “sort of people” they were, the course of events would have been different. Yet, instead of peering into the personality and motivations of the assailants, my interest is to better understand the “sort of people” and motivations of the local NGOs. The reason for my separating the bystanders’ interests and “biases” from the discussion is to focus instead on those of the subject NGOs’. What are their action-guides? These incidents may appear inconsequential and our discussion of them so removed, yet they approximate the normal sorts of experiences in which individuals have to make moral decisions every day; it becomes a touchstone to investigate the logical, social, and religious elements in their moral decision-making. Mati Gali ably serves as a case study within my study. He discovered early on in his Recife NGO experience that organizing local groups amounts to putting into practice the slogan “organize the unorganized.” The JOCUM leaders and staff are intimately involved in their neighborhood “education” groups, yet the locals know them as com m on neighbors, familiar people, and always accessible. They are Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 255 never identified as “members of an organization.” And one who sees the need for child dependency but fosters child autonomy, what is the perspective with which he approaches street children? The Social Entrepreneurial Perspective An NGO or an NGO leader who assumes the risk and management of the social affairs for which the NGO is organized, I refer to as being engaged in social entrepreneurialism. Recall, Gali’s baptism as an NGO leader and social entrepreneur was one of fire. As was discussed in chapter 5, he was beaten, his life threatened, and hospitalized by the Brazilian Federal Police because of his NGO involvement and attempts to organizationally and personally meet the needs of the children in the favelas and city streets. Nevertheless, his consistent work and unwavering commitment to the children of Recife continues unhindered. He surpasses the threshold for a person of moral integrity. According to Halfon, [P]ersons of integrity must minimally be willing to maintain their commitments in the face of adversity. This should not be interpreted to mean that any actual danger or threat must exist, but that if adversity should arise, persons of integrity would continue to pursue their commitments.2 9 His is an excellent example of NGO commitments to serve the street children and his actions serve as a basis for why local NGOs that focus on empowering street children ought to be supported by the community and civil authorities. 29. Mark S. Halfon, Integrity: A Philosophical Inquiry (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1989): 46-47. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 256 Some derive their reasons for action from legal-action-guides, others from moral-action-guides. Still others rely on religious-action-guides to inform their reasons to act. Of course, it goes without saying, many follow a amalgamation of these and others will say it depends on the circumstances to determine how and why they will respond in the way they do. For Gali, he is the “sort of person” who— in the final analysis— tries to always operate from a foundation of religious-action-guides. When in the presence of another person there wells up within him a sense of moral responsibility. Being face to face with that person, “I feel as if I am directly and fully responsible for that person.”3 0 Such an impulse constitutes the moral space of Gali’s relations to others (often including moral strangers) and in so doing, Gali constitutes himself as a moral self. It is perhaps beyond the scope of my endeavors here to opine whether or not this constitution makes him a genuine “self.” Be that as it may, Gali does not see his social involvements or relations in terms of being “for” one person or another. Nor does he contrive his social intercourse in terms of being “with” one person or with others. Instead, his view is that he gives himself “to” a person. As a conservative Protestant missionary, his firm beliefs constitute his religious-action-guides. Gali is a true Mensch, un homme de caeur, a great-hearted man, a man of tremendous moral capital and resources. Perhaps he is an example of someone who attempts to be an example of a moral virtuoso. Given the unfathomable absence of 30. Mati Gali, interview with author, Recife, Brazil, 19 December 1997. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 257 other superior social models of virtuosity, he certainly intends to be someone who strives to model for others, especially those less morally inclined in his community, the power of his convictions. A view of the basis of his religious-action-guides will help us to better understand his social ethics as well as those practiced by his NGO for the street children. Reli gious-Action-Guides. During my conversations with Gali, he mentioned his affinity with the person of Moses in the Hebrew bible. He said he felt a sense of “calling” to the work in Recife with the street children and people. In a figurative sense, he believed he and his NGO were leading people “out of a life of bondage.” He stated emphatically, “God wants men and women to be free citizens in the world in which he has placed them. We are here out of a sense of responsibility to these people . . . to bring them freedom.” Interestingly, after meeting and getting to know him, Gali possesses some of the reported characteristics of Moses. He is impetuous and vulnerable. Even when summoned by God to lead the Israelites, Moses is a singularly unwilling and docile leader. And, like Moses, because of what is accomplished through him, he assumes a genuinely heroic stature. Being identified more by his ethics than his theology, in order to better understand his NGO’s social involvement in general and Gali personal commitment or the “sort of person” Gali is in particular, H. Richard Niebuhr’s typology of responsibility is helpful. Niebuhr offers his “responsible self’ as an alternative to both teleology and deontology. He sees responsibility as normative. Two great models have dominated the ethical understanding of humanity: man as maker {homo faber) and man as Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 258 citizen (homo politicus). Today, Niebuhr advances the notion that a third image is emerging: man as engaged in a dialogue {homo dialogicus) , a conversation in which nature, society, and fellow humans pose questions to which the responsible person (moral types like Gali) must respond fittingly. Accordingly, in his notion of responsibility, Niebuhr asserts that a particular question arises in every moment of decision and choice to inquire: “What is going on?” The three responsible responses or approaches are designated by the terms, the good, the right, and the fitting; For teleology is concerned always with the highest good to which it subordinates the right; consistent deontology is concerned with the right, no matter what may happen to our goods; but for the ethics of responsibility the fitting action, the one that fits into a total interaction as response and as anticipation of further response, is alone conducive to the good and alone is right.3 1 Along these same lines, Gali affirms that his actions, and those of his NGO are part and parcel a response to God. This aligns with Niebuhr’s “first element” in his theory of responsibility, namely, we respond as we interpret the meaning of actions upon us. His second element is the idea that our responsive action is held within a context of our interpretation of the personalized question, “What shall I do?” But this question is only answered by raising a prior question which is neither teleological (“What is my end?”) nor deontological (“What is my ultimate law?”). 31. H. Richard Niebuhr, The Responsible Self: An Essay in Christian M oral Philosophy (New York: Harper & Row, 1963): 60-61. It is the image of man the maker which gives rise to the teleological theory of norms; that of man the citizen to the deontological theory of norms; and that of man the responder to what Niebuhr once (and only once) called Cathekontic (“fitting”) theory of norms. Herein Niebuhr investigates the meaning of responsibility, first, as a general human phenomenon, then as interpreted by the Christian faith. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 259 Instead the responsible individual asks, “What is going on?” or “What is being done to me?” The third element is accountability. “Our actions are responsible not only insofar as they are reactions to our interpreted actions upon us but also insofar as they are made in anticipation of answers to our answers.”3 2 Finally, the fourth element-social solidarity— says our action is responsible when it is response to action upon us in a continuing discourse or interaction among beings forming a continuing society. To outline, the idea or pattern of responsibility, then, may summarily and abstractly be defined as the idea of an agent's action as response to an action upon him in accordance with his interpretation of the latter action and with his expectation of response to his response; and all of this is in a continuing community of agents.3 3 The elements of the idea of responsibility— response, interpretation, accountability, and social solidarity are descriptive of Gali and his NGO’s moral action. The response which is demanded from man is a “universal response.”3 4 But humans tend to give into midtiplicity by the establishment of multi-centers of loyalty 32. Ibid., 64. 33. Ibid., 65. 34. It is not, in fact, universal, but rather a defensive, limiting response in keeping with Niebuhr’s overarching theology in his Radical Monotheism and Western Culture (New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1960). His argument is that there resides in humanity a suspicion that his limited interpretations are not enough and humanity has an innate tendency to transcend them. We draw back into our closed centers and hold tenaciously. But God breaks into this security and fear with revelation. This revelation, made concrete in Christ enters our worldly and personal history; it is the starting point for an interpretation which can convert our ethics of defense into the ethic of responsibility. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 260 or they seek to unite all loyalties in one finite, and hence ultimately dissatisfying, center of value. Niebuhr has been seeking an ethic for monotheism and he finds it in the ethic of responsibility. “Responsibility” suggests the ethical connotations of the response of faith. The response must be an ethical one. While such a theory of moral action is more developed than Gali and his associates may be able to articulate, it is--nevertheless--a very close approximation to their organizational reasons for actions in their society and their bases for their personal actions. As those who are self-avowed ‘responsible selves,’ “they are driven as it were by the movement of the social process to respond and be accountable in nothing less than a universal community.”3 5 As such, Gali has an ease and finesse with which he acts. While his acts would lend support to a traditional doctrine of virtue, there is a ‘perfection’ of an ‘operative power’ so that his ordered actions seem to flow from the sort of person he is. Indeed, and again following Niebuhr, Gali seeks to make a fitting response not only to that which acts upon him, but also to a “third.” This third, according to Niebuhr, may be a cause to which we give our loyalty, an understanding of inanimate nature, or a particular reference group within our society, which defines and makes possible our interaction. His personal ethic and his NGO’s social ethic of servicing the community and providing for the needs of the street children reflect a moral maturity. Again, says Niebuhr, 35. Niebuhr, The Responsible Self, 88. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 261 “Moral maturity comes when individual self-will gives way to a loyalty that, freely choosing a larger cause, unifies self and world in its service.”3 6 Religion, however, is not a social panacea. In Brazil, religion corresponds to the needs and aspiration of its subcultures, it is not a response to an entire society as Emile Durkheim envisioned. Among the marginalized masses, for example, a currently exuberant Pentecostalism and transdenominational Charismatic movement provide a new identity within the Recife community where even street people are respected as individuals and given hope and a reason to live. Perfectly fitted for the Latin temperament and developed in a particularly Brazilian fashion, its emphasis on the supernatural together with its rigorist ethics proves to be a haven of protection from the horrors and acidic effects of modernism and a bewildering secularization.3 7 Yet, while Gali and his NGO are more easily identified by their ethics than theology, there is still a hidden strength in their religion which informs their social entrepreneurialism. In their rejection of their own self-sufficiency and in their dependence upon and quest to find the will of God, they are insulated from disillusionment with the government and all other human institutions that stand in their way of assisting the street children to persevere in the streets. 36. Niebuhr, Radical Monotheism and Western Culture, 21. 37. See, for example, John P. Medcraft, “The Roots and Fruits of Brazilian Pentecostal-ism,” Vox Evangelica, 17 (1987): 67-94 and Cecilia Loreto Mariz, Coping with Poverty: Pentecostals and Christian Base Communities in Brazil (Philadelphia, Penn.: Temple University Press, 1994), who concludes that religion is a survival strategy for the Brazilian poor. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 262 Summary. Wanting all the benefits of modem society, poor people, and their children especially, find themselves in a setting where they are true aliens. Many of them have migrated from the interior or from the Amazon areas where their societies were generally homogenous. It was a common part of their experience to share the same basic problems and solutions. Most of them participated in the same institutions. However, in modem society-according to Berger— with the increased division of labor and specialization, institutions have become more specialized. And now, a plurality of answers develops to address modem society’s problems.3 8 But are today’s ethics motivated by a natural compassion and socially constructed as part of the fabric of democracy? Loewy would say, “Yes.”3 9 In Brazil, the answer is still no. Nonetheless, my sampling of Brazilian NGOs exemplify a fresh and active social entrepreneurialism. The influence they wield upsets basic social and political values and bring to the center of the social stage the social ethics of individual human rights and fundamental freedoms. With the paucity of other social ordering efforts, NGOs work for peoples’ subsistence, connectedness, and their development of an economic, cultural, social and political life. NGOs accomplish this in ways that create an atmosphere in which liberty, justice, truth and love can thrive. The local 38. Peter L. Berger and Thomas Luckmann, The Social Construction o f Reality (New York: Doubleday & Company, 1966): 81. 39. Erich H. Loewy, Moral Strangers, Moral Acquaintance, and Moral Friends: Connectedness and Its Conditions (Albany, N.Y.: SUNY Press, 1997). Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 263 NGOs painfully understand that those who define how a contest is to be played will have the advantageous upper hand of shaping its final outcome. They are tired of public acquiescence, passivity, and innate vulnerability. They are tired of the rampant claim that there is no meaning to life except that which the individual chooses to bestow upon it. They are tired of the claim that no justice exists except the justice that exists in the realization of particular individual interests. They are tired that virtue is wholly personal and perspectival. To them, this is tantamount to denying that there exists an egalitarian public realm to which everyone belongs. To them, the metaphor of human rights possesses an empowering action guide that defines their activities and it is also a set of real rights to which their constituents are entitled and toward which they will strive. But what is it that would motivate a change of perspective and behavior toward the street children on the part of the Recife social elite and the local government? What power exists to exert their inquiry into the ethics we have been discussing and, most importantly, to bring the existing social structures to not only embrace but support the work of NGOs and the freedoms needed by children? The obvious hope is that the social entrepreneurial call of NGOs for basic human rights and the provision for basic human needs for children would be heeded. On this, social elites must realized that it is in the best interest of the City of Recife to be reflexive. The alternative to Recife— like other developmentally burgeoning cities— will be to face embarrassing boycotts, disgraced administrative and civic images and a profusion of constraining new laws that make some of today’s benevolent activities Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 264 less than voluntary. Adopting an improved stance on social services and a near eleemosynary position in terms of NGO services, charity, and philanthropy— perhaps a partnership of sorts with NGOs— would be in the best interests of the local government and the social elites. Cities must come to the same awareness as that awareness dawning in the mind of “Big Business” who are coming around to the idea “that if you do things right from the start, it will save you a lot of money and a lot of grief in the long run.”4 0 In the language of corporate and civic accounting, it is all to often the bottom line of a cost-benefit analysis that drives the decision-making. Communities choosing to avoid bringing other ethical considerations into their decision-making calculus and instead adopt a “show of force” by their use o f power, influence, and unilateral plans, do so at their peril and loss of valuable social good will. Irrespective of the origins of today’s social problems with respect to the street children, it needs to be understood that they are here to stay. In my opinion, any attempt at a universalized social suppression will only serve to force these people underground and instill a vengeance toward society in them. Picture, if you will, a large U-shaped pipe, half filled with liquid. Pushing a plunger into one end of the pipe forces the liquid to rise on the other end. Likewise, I believe, with street children and homelessness. While urban Brazil may strive to remove the street children and the homeless from its midst, they are in reality, still there. 40. Jonathan Friedland, “Oil Companies Strive to Turn a New Leaf To Save Rain Forest,” The Wall Street Journal, cxxxvii, no. 12 (July 17, 1997): A l. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 265 Local NGOs: New Initiatives for Working with Children While the following initiatives can be implemented at either the national or international levels, their ultimate design is to enhance prototypical local projects. Typical aid to the homeless poor includes subsidies, sites, or services, or some combination thereof. In the City of Recife, apart from the support of NGOs, little is offered to the children. Were it not for those services provided by NGOs, the situation of the street children would be unconscionable. What follows are new adaptations for street children to persevere on the street. NGOs: A Shield for Street Children. In chapter two the Brazilian government’s despondent view of the child was mentioned. With Article 227 of the Brazilian Constitution (1989) finally established protection for children, putting the constitutional principles into action remains undone. It was not until July 14, 1990 that the new, progressive legislation for the Child and Adolescent Statue was signed into law. With it [t]he minor, an individual with proscribed rights, has been replaced by child and adolescent, terms that emphasize a particular stage in all human life. While the minor has limited rights, a child or adolescent is, by birth, endowed with basic human rights and entitled to special protection.4 1 This statute, comprised o f267 articles, calls for a change in decision making relative 41. Steven J. Klees, Irene Rizzini, and Anthony Dewees, “A New Paradigm for Social Change: Social Movements and the Transformation of Policy for Street and Working Children in Brazil,” in Roslyn Mickelson, Children on the Streets o f the Americas, 87. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 266 to children. This is a primary method whereby local NGOs can serve as a social shield for children. The radical changes advanced in the statute call for a more decentralized decision making paradigm. Child welfare, their rights, and their protection are no longer the primary responsibility of the federal government. The statute shifts it to the states and ultimately the local municipalities. Each municipality is required to write a municipal child rights law within guidelines established by the national legislation The Municipal Children’s Rights Council is composed of elected municipal officials and representatives of NGOs that work with children and is charged with coordinating children’s policy and funding at the municipal level.4 2 The required inclusion of local NGOs in the planned process of protecting and providing for children is a major advancement toward shielding the street children. Working with Guardianship Councils, municipal councils “responding to individual cases of children in need and for ensuring that children receive the best possible assistance,”4 3 will direct families and children toward the protective NGO service system. It is reported, however, {that in} 1997, only about 55 percent of Brazil’s approximately 5,500 municipalities had created a Municipal Children’s Rights Council, and many of these are only partially implemented. Guardianship Councils, the direct links to children and youth, have even further to go; in 1997, there were only about 2,050 initiated. Moreover, even when these newer institutions are established, they still face the same ‘inheritance’ problem . . . at the local 42. Ibid., 88. 43. Ibid. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 267 level, often it is the same people and infrastructure that are responsible for dealing with children.4 4 In their participative status, NGOs can aid in the design of new legal frameworks for children and craft new institutional structures for issues related to children and youth. Local NGOs, now more than ever, are in a position to press for the implementation of children’s rights,4 5 a new dimension NGO protection. In their defense of children’s rights and enabling of increased child autonomy, NGOs can assure— perhaps as few others can or will-the provision and protections afforded children in the CRC. NGOs, as we have seen, are one of the primary child-shielding institutions organized to protection and care, safeguard a child’s life, and help him survive. Indeed, they have the child’s best interest foremost in their considerations. Additionally, these measures will curb the onslaught of violence against the child. NGOs ought to encourage and hold morally responsible the authorities at municipal, state, and federal levels to fulfill their part of the statute. It is true that the varieties of violence prevalent in urban Brazil represent a strategic control of human interaction that must be broken. “The main shadow that is cast over the lives of street children today is their fear of the police and of the FEBEM children’s asylums in Bom Jesus and in nearby Recife.”4 6 While in the past it may have been seen and 44. Ibid., 89. 45. See Irene Rizzini, et al., “Brazil: A New Concept of Childhood,” in Urban Children in Distress, 83. 46. Scheper-Hughes, Death Without Weeping, 241. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 268 limited to the interpretation of being a link of sorts between modernity and the marginalized, in reality, violence now is better perceived as a unique symbolic vehicle for self-expression.4 7 Local NGOs serve as a protective social shield against the vicious assault on children. More Child Advocacy Focused NGOs Local NGOs ought to more closely monitor Brazilian compliance with the provisions of the Rights of the Child convention and actively press for implementations of the provisions of the Child and Adolescent Statue. In the absence of improved compliance, NGOs ought to become more focused on appropriate responses to the myriad of problems identified and promote awareness of children’s rights at the local and national levels. Linked to an idea previously discussed, the need for a more active NGO focus on issues such as child sexual exploitation and the need to disseminate information on this subject to children is crucial. To be more socially effective in this area, NGOs must be made aware of the means to curb child pornography and child sexual exploitation.4 8 Therefore, NGOs desirous of focusing on the appropriate responses to these matters can promote at both the local and national levels educational workshops, seminars, public 47. On the theme of violence and how it is experienced and interpreted on a daily basis in Scheper-Hughes’ Brazilian community, see especially her Death Without Weeping, chapter 6. 48. See Article 34, Convention on the Rights of the Child. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 269 campaigns, and encourage the adoption of a school-based program, aimed mainly at youth in their formative years, when they are developing their sexual identities. Children’s access to4 9 and the creation of programs that includes role playing, documentary films, and TV programing designed to immunize the youth in the Brazilian communities against prostitution and pornography and sexist media in general. Furthermore, an educational program directed at street and working children, one which focuses on making them aware of their human rights5 0 and advancing their autonomy is of the utmost importance. “In a good human rights program, human rights concepts will become those ideas that Bruno Bettelheim suggests help the child to get ‘his inner house into order, and on that basis be able to create order in his life.’”5 1 NGOs Armed with Video While a degree of governmental protection exists for witnesses to police brutality in the State of Pernambuco,5 2 NGOs can make use of readily available video 49. See Article 17, Convention on the Rights of the Child. 50. See Article 32, Convention on the Rights of the Child. 51. Tracey Holland, “Human Rights Education for Street and Working Children: Principles and Practice,” Human Rights Quarterly, 20 (1998): 192 citing Bruno Bettelhiem, The Uses o f Enchantment 6 (1989) [sic]. 52. See Police Brutality in Urban Brazil, 105, were it is stated that, “In recent years, Pemabuco authorities have taken steps to address the problem of pervasive police criminality. Most significant among these measures has been the state-sponsored witness protection program.” The Protection and Support Program for Witnesses, Victims, and Families of Violence was created in January 1996. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 270 technology to aid both the witnesses and provide evidence of officials’ violations. The idea here is two-fold. First, it is imperative to better capture the story of a witness to police violation. Second, and related, the repeated, systematic abuses directed toward the street children and the homeless are more apt to be captured on video. The use of video technology to capture abuses, if reported by responsible Brazilian journalists, can serve to reverse the current media discourse that “routinely links negative images about poor youth to urban criminality.”5 3 A more responsible media ethic can assist the reinvention of poor, dark-skinned, male street children from “‘symbolic assailants,’ {which} renders them ‘dangerous’ outsiders who do not deserve the consideration applied to a society’s moral community.”5 4 Children’s Identification Program Hecht mentions a necklace type badge worn by “normal” children while traveling, usually in a school group, to distinguish them from street children. “Normal,” kids and their parents strive to differentiate “rich childhood” from that of the poor in the street. He recalls a “wealthy mother” telling him, “‘I don’t let my son go out without a shirt and wearing rubber thongs; he might be mistaken for a criminal.’ Poor children usually go barefoot or wear only open rubber slippers.”5 5 53. Martha K. Huggins and Myriam Mesquita, “Civic Invisibility, Marginality, and Moral Exclusion: The Murder of Street Youth in Brazil,” in Mickelson, Children on the Streets o f the Americas, 265. 54. Ibid., 264. 55. Hecht, 78. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 271 Identification is important, but the type of identification to which I am referring is more than a crude class affiliation. Local and State NGOs can provide a much needed community service by initiating a program whereby children are identified and educated in basic public safety. With such significant numbers of children braving the street, or reported lost, missing, or separated from their parents, an identification program would enable NGOs, parents and guardians, and the Court of Children’s Affairs to more easily identify and track the children. Hecht recounts being told by some of his child interviewees that the reason they do not work is because they do not have their documents. The children and adolescents refer to “six or seven legal papers ranging from birth certificates to military registration, from voter registration to work permits. Typically, street kids lack all of these.”5 6 This NGO initiative would have children photographed and their parents/guardian receive a identification card bearing the picture and other important information on the child: his name, fingerprint, date of birth, height, weight, and color of hair and eyes. The name(s) of the parent(s) and/or guardian and address would also be included. Children and parents could also be better educated on the appropriate steps to take if they find themselves or another person in harm’s way or are threatened with abduction. NGOs ought to adopt a pro-active approach educating their young constituents to better endure the streets. Furthermore, they ought to 56. Hecht, 171. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 272 engage in public awareness programs that child protection is the responsibility of everyone. NGO Sponsored New Community Ideals Debates After decades of public shouting and an international outcry against police violence, NGOs are perhaps the prime candidates to sponsor both local and national debates on how their efforts can be combined with those of businesses and other institutions to work more effectively with the government. The goal? To help communities grow in self-confidence, civic pride and public enjoyment of their locales. But the structured debate ought not be designed to be simply a change of venue for the continuation of the public shouting in yet other fora; the debates ought to culminate in a consultation conference of sorts. Undoubtedly such discussions will temporarily unleash even more rancor, but the local, state, and federal governments and related agencies ought to support it for a variety of reasons. The right to such community development is important for community self- determination. While many Brazilian local NGO leaders are wary of entrusting their operations and destiny to bureaucrats, much less disclosing their strategies and social objectives, perhaps efforts at a renewed partnership is timely and will serve to address the social issues needing attention. On-Line Town Hall for NGOs and their Voices The City of Recife boasts a “Citizen’s Network” with its “Rede Cidadao” project (the Portuguese name for the local FreeNet). As the first Latin American Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 273 FreeNet, implemented in 1993, the City of Recife possesses the means by which all the Brazilian NGOs can learn from one another’s advancements as well as mistakes, share strategies, network, create new coalitions and reinforce old ones. NGOs can now be on-line and in real-time with the issues, information dissemination advantages, and add their voice into the social mix. The Citizens’ Network is a noncommercial cooperative service o f social, cultural, political and economic information on Recife and the state of Pernambuco. It works through coordinated and decentralized initiatives, both private and public. The City Hall or citizens’ interest groups take care of discussion lists, home pages on our Web site or special data bases on our gopher server. We welcome partnerships in these terms.5 7 The meetings described above, whether seasonally or regularly scheduled, along with the community ideals discussions, ought to be placed on the city web pages. While two of the local NGOs I visited possessed high-speed computers with the ability to get online, neither had made nor were planning to use the Internet. In fact, they were unaware of Recife’s FreeNet project and were unacquainted with the technological advantages and the potential such accessibility would provide to their organizations and their constituents. The “Guardian Angels” of Recife What charismatic personality Curtis Silwa provided New York City when he founded the Guardian Angels was a social role, a public responsibility and, 57. “The Citizens’ Network of the Municipality of Recife, Brazil: Lessons from the Experience with the First Latin American FreeNet.” Online Posting. June 17,1997. <http://www.isoc.org/isoc/whatis/conferences/inet/97/proceedings/E2/E2_2.HTM> Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 274 admittedly~at times— the risk of social upset with local gangs and law enforcement officials cynical toward their methods. Rigorously self-disciplined, unpaid and imaginatively trained, these rag-tag groups of young men and women with grandiose ‘crime-busting’ noms de guerre such as ‘Dogfight’ and ‘Scorpio’ are visibly succeeding not only in New York, but in other cities, and are often invited into areas by the cities’ mayors. Whatever the governments’ apprehensions about this group may be, they have had a salutary effect on the authorities who have been shamed into placing more police on duty, patrolling crime-intensive areas, subway and underground systems, and escorting potential victims as a result. An NGO opportunity exists in considering a Guardian Angels type scheme, Brazilian in design. In the absence of such a presence on the streets of Recife, NGOs could band together to provide the City of Recife a similar social buffer. The idea is to provide much-needed clearly identifiable mediating services to the civil authorities and the populace. An NGO identification of their vehicles or, at minimum, such socially active NGOs may want to consider wearing distinctive apparel (like the characteristic berets worn by the Guardian Angels of New York City). Conclusions In this chapter the applicable laws and several human rights mechanisms were discussed that protect street children. The appropriate laws that have been written and which have brought a much-needed spirit of equity and humanity to the social programs required by the Children’s and Adolescents’ Act were also Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 275 discussed. Their complete implementation remains unfinished. At least a clear direction is evident. And once momentum is gained, a real difference will be made in the lives of the most needy children in Brazil. Thus, one ought to remain hopeful. Nevertheless, in my opinion, the long range view on the Brazilian ability to protect the children is bleak, there is such a long way to go toward full implementation. To bring some perspective, if one were to appraise the advances made in these areas to date on an effectiveness scale with one hundred percent as the highest measurement, the intended goal, the obvious conclusion would be a scandalous failure. If, on the other hand, we were to appraise the advances made for street children on a scale of zero percent, we ought to be encouraged by the progress to date and the many advances on their behalf. In this context, NGOs— those institutions uniquely suited to subsist, and connect, and socially develop children— will be looked to more than ever. This will especially be so if the Convention on the Rights of the Child, the Child and Adolescent Statue, Municipal Children’s Rights Council and Guardianship Councils are to bring about any real and lasting improvement in the appalling street conditions in which too many of the Brazil’s poor children are now living, and dying. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 276 Chapter VII CONCLUSION Summary of the Study It was the purpose of this study to describe the systematic segregation poor street children in Brazil face and the variety of abuses they encounter. In the worst of cases these include police extermination and arbitrary detention, and other violations of their human rights. Furthermore, this study offered a depiction of what roles the non-governmental organizations have played in the effort to assist Brazilian street children. The addition of NGOs to the field of social aid for children and child rights advocacy has cast these new actors in the role of mediating institutions. While there has been a growing body of literature in this area, we still did not know much about these new performers at the local level. And with the theoretical uncertainty of how to approach these actors, this study has attempted to view this problem by suggesting a descriptive framework using Maslow, and then using the development of this framework to understand the roles of NGOs with children who either live on the street or use the street as a resource for nurturing their families. Using such a descriptive framework was not intended to advance a particular Maslowian interpretation. Nor was a particularly Anglo-centrist viewpoint advanced in this study. The data and findings of this study serve to present a more systematic, Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 277 detailed picture of the various functions and orientations o f local NGOs than has been offered or described before. In this study, I conceptualized the visions of street “childhood” in terms of “dependency” and “autonomy” viewpoints. The basic dependent viewpoint characterizes the historical vision and much of the current thinking about childhood. The main proposition of this study was that with children being forced to brave the streets of Brazil, local NGOs will play a significant participant role in the increasing compulsion for children to be self-determining. The research process revealed that, absent local NGOs, viable social platforms for poor children to socially advance are practically non-existent. The findings of this research indicate that local NGOs do play an important role in subsistence and social connectedness type involvements with children. This study observes the quest for the human rights of street children and the local organizations that strive to achieve those rights. For these local NGOs, human rights translate more into supporting a child’s self-sufficiency. And in the Brazilian setting NGOs pave the way for children to stay on the street and stay alive. It not only proposes an understanding of the children, the long debate about the appropriate balance between their rights and those who control and direct their behavior, but how NGOs perceive the reality of the street children and how they are organized for and helping to transform that reality. With the long range view on Brazilian society’s ability to protect its street children continuing to deteriorate, NGOs and their abilities to protect and serve the children are coming to the fore. There is more hope for Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 278 children with NGOs than there is with their absence. Thus, the picture of Brazilian street children is not complete if the roles of NGOs are ignored or treated as peripheral. NGOs’ roles will increase significantly through the street children’s more dependent subsistence and connectedness phases and will be paramount in the more autonomous developmental phase. Finally, this study has examined the broad social construction of childhood using Aries and de Mause. With the viewpoints of Scheper-Hughes’ discovery of adult “giving up” on a child, Hecht’s contexts of nurtured childhood and nurturing childhood, and Goldstein’s “extreme and paradoxical expression of ‘holding on’” to a child, and other observations, our viewpoint on poor northeastern Brazilian childhood was narrowed. Of particular importance was Scheper-Hughes’ finding that a highly dependent child, one either disabled, frail, or chronically inactive, received maternal neglect. It was also unnamed and unchristened, until such time as it could walk or talk and the risk of death had passed. This selective pattern of maternal behavior, in response to the conditions of favela living indicates a thoroughly unique conception of childhood among impoverished Brazilians. So too with Hecht’s findings where he discovers a significant group of six to 15 year olds who are principal breadwinners in their matrifocal homes, sometimes even the prime nurturer and sole person in charge of the care of younger siblings. All of this would indicate that the Brazilian manner of transition to adulthood or an increased level of autonomy differs radically from more typically understood contexts of childhood. These observations confirmed that dependence as a street survival trait is perpetuated Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 279 in the favela context. Inasmuch as poor Brazilian street children lack a childhood, NGOs strive to assure that their children brave the streets of Brazil by being possessed of the necessary, employable skills to escape the firm entrapment in the poorest class. Beyond assessing the NGOs’ efforts to enable children’s survival on the streets of urban Brazil, this study proposes new initiatives for new NGOs and some that will reinforce the bases of NGO activities with children who will remain on the street. If it is true that the children cannot be removed from the street, the implications for local NGOs to protect, sustain, connect, and develop street children are sweeping. Thus, a series of general recommendations emerge from this study surrounding local NGO activities, which— in intent or in practice-will result in placing children in a more autonomist position socially. The study also reviews some of the applicable laws and several protective human rights mechanisms for street children. Like Graija, the matriarchal subject of Goldstein’s1 survivalist study who dreams of her children existing beyond “serving the wealthy or joining the favela gang,” the local NGOs are repeatedly one of the final hopes for street children and their families’ advancement. The tale of Kelsey’s little Maria Rosa— the child crowned Queen of Carnival who is told by the King that she is wiser that he— does not typify Brazilian childhood in general. It instantly symbolizes the parallel universes of the indulged rich 1. Goldstein, “Nothing Bad Intended” in Scheper-Hughes and Sargent, Small Wars. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 280 Brazilian child and the unfathomable poverty of the street and favela child. Speaking of the present middle and upper-class Brazilian households, Calligaris declares, “The child is king”2 (“a crianga e reC'). This child is pampered in excess. But the poor children, many of whom experience no significant childhood, have the responsibility to nurture their families by braving the streets where they work in support of their families. In those cases where children are prohibited to work in non-exploitive businesses, it is a violation of their right to work and a limitation upon their right to self-determination. As was discussed in the study, it is the goal of various children’s NGOs to enable child labor and thus, their autonomy. Maria Rosa is also a paradox in the Brazilian world of contradictions. She, like the street children, knows better than anyone else what are her best interests. She is wise. She sees that the patemalismo of the King is slowly being counterbalanced by new actors’ benevolent actions. Her interest, like those of the street children, is to experience a childhood and to receive an opportunity to realize her rights and to exercise self-determination. Unfortunately, in the Brazil of today, a universe of poor families has created a subculture of displaced and dispossessed children without a childhood. Fortunately, the new actors— local NGOs— are veritable rafts in a rising river of need that has roared through Brazil without most of the world taking notice. The growing numbers of these Brazilian organizations will make it 2. Contardo Calligaris, Hello Brasil/ Notas de um psicanalista europeu viajando ao Brasil (Sao Paulo: Escuta, 1991), cited by Goldstein, “Nothing Bad Intended,” in Scheper-Hughes and Sargent, Small Wars, 396. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 281 possible for the poor to not only have a chance at experiencing childhood, but to having a more productive and successful adulthood. Limitations The findings of this study have some limitations, however. Understanding the influence exerted by NGOs on the rearing of children will be a crucial yet difficult issue of social analysis. Some of the characterizations of poor Brazilian children, of violent, gang related behavior and o f drug dependency are also balanced and checked by a wider induction: that of child loneliness and alienation. This study indicates that while many social actors may fail children, an increasing number of ever-present local NGOs are there to supply varying degrees of love and understanding. This is not to imply, however, that NGOs represent a model of social deliverance for poor children from the uncertain future that most of them face. This is to say, in a multi-causal world affecting the upbringing of children, including the rights of some to have “control” over their lives, the varying elements of relations, identity, self-growth, as well as their own insights into their past dependence on the parental bond, these all influence the motivations and cognition of children, we cannot absolutely account for the activities of local NGOs and their factors in bringing about a child’s social choices. Children do not know the degree to which their definitions of self are formed in response to these and other bonds. They do, however, penetrate this mysterious hold by becoming conscious of it in what is considered to be a first step toward self-conscious exploration. By Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 2 8 2 implication, the insight supposedly leads to weakened dependence on, and autonomy from, parents. Children do not or cannot always inform us about what “causes” their behavior. The problem in analyzing NGO influence is that rarely does an NGO completely “turn around” a child. It is obvious that NGOs try to work with willing children. Thus, there is usually a convergence between an NGO’s influence and a child’s need. What can be said, in terms of limitations, is that NGO influence is constrained by other factors in a child’s life and its influence cannot exist independently but is merged with other factors. In addition to NGOs’ personal impacts, its social impacts, in terms of community policy-making involvements and— the much broader— human rights politics, frustrate the confirmation of a single definitive measure of policy influence. In fact, one must be compelled to draw qualitative evaluations regarding cause and effect relationships with respect to changes in the NGO and policy making as well as NGO and human rights politics relations and processes. The researcher must rely on a multi-method approach in which most data will be qualitative.3 In reality, it cannot really be quantified. All of these issues relate to the challenge to define “success.” As one must make a judgement about “success” in order to evaluate influence, there is a clear limitation in the ability to analyze how much local NGOs 3. Laurie S. Wiseberg and Harry M. Scoble, “Human Rights Organizations,” in W. M. Evan, ed., Knowledge and Power in a Global Society (Beverly Hills: Sage, 1981): 285-86. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 283 have accomplished without a coherent notion about achievement. One is also confounded by the fact that some of the important work of local NGOs is behind the social scenes. Suggestions for Future Research Future research could further analyze the more “invisible” aspects of NGOs’ roles in their more sustained interactions with street children. Despite the identified limitations, it is hoped that the findings of this study will contribute to improving our understandings of local NGOs in the fight to further the rights and enhance the lives of street children, as well as stimulating further research interest in the analysis on this subject. This study hopes to attract more detailed examinations of local NGOs in various settings so that both our knowledge about the NGO phenomenon, and the ability to contribute to street children’s local NGO efforts may be significantly advanced. Moreover, it should be noted that NGOs are not perfect organizations. In spite of their many beneficial contributions, as demonstrated in the study’s findings, there are some negative ones and disappointments, even failures where some local NGOs have closed their doors and ceased to exist, as well. Local Brazilian NGOs are especially effective if they can maintain their focus without interference from local authorities or other social actors. Their independence is often crucial for the achievement of their goals. While some local NGOs’ effectiveness has been noted in this study, future research could assess NGOs’ interactions with other social actors, Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 284 and what is most important, the degree to which local NGOs either coordinate their efforts or rigidly maintain their independence and the effects of these constructs upon their effectiveness would be a meaningful inquiry. With particular regard to the Brazilian street children, further study of their lives and experiences of prisons or institutions, their unsuccessful attempts to become reestablished in their own family’s home, or other substitute homes, or involvements with local NGOs, will enable a greater understanding of the situations in which poor children find themselves. Studies similar to Boyden’s demonstration of how the globalization of Western ideas about childhood, as free of culture and timeless, takes little account of the conditions of existence of children in poor communities where the applicability of such concepts is wholly incompatible4 would benefit our understanding of Brazilian childhood. If the primary argument about childhood is that it is “a shifting social and historical construction and the corollary of this position is that all accounts of childhood must be carefully placed in their proper temporal and spatial context,”5 what is needed is an entirely sufficient account of Brazilian childhood. Tracking these childrens’ trajectories and NGOs’ abilities to monitor a general lack of stability among such children will enable not only a fuller 4. See Jo Boyden, “Childhood and the Policy Makers: A Comparative Perspective on the Globalization of Childhood,” in Allison James and Alan Prout, eds., Constructing and Reconstructing Childhood: Contemporary Issues in the Sociological Study o f Childhood (London: The Falmer Press, 1990): 184-215. 5. Allison James and Alan Prout, “Re-Presenting Childhood: Time and Transition in the Study of Childhood,” in James and Prout, Constructing and Reconstructing Childhood, 231. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 285 understanding of their lives but create a lack of defense by the government to the obligations to which they are bound internationally. The evidence from this study is clear that where local NGOs are willing and able to commit scarce resources to improve the conditions of poor Brazilian children, they are able to make effective contributions. It is to be hoped that such organizations will not only continue to recruit educators and care providers for street children and that they will invest their moral capital and apprenticeship or working skills into the lives of these children, but that they will— in the process— protect and promote the childhood of these children as they attempt to brave the streets of Brazil. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 286 BIBLIOGRAPHY Articles Abbott, Amy Beth. “Child Soldiers: The Use of Children as Instruments of War.” Suffolk Transnational Law Review 23 (Summer, 2000): 498-537. Aldunate, J. “Human Rights as the Rights of the Poor: The Perspective from Libera tion Theology.” Journal o f Moral Education 23, no. 3 (1994): 297-303. Bayer, Ken. “Caring for Street Children in Brazil.” The Baptist Herald 72, no. 7 (September 1994): 18. 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Chapel Hill: The University of North Carolina Press, 1984. Cassese, Antonio. Human Rights in a Changing World. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1990. Claude, Richard, and Bums Weston. Human Rights in the World Community: Issues and Action. 2ded. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1992. Cohen, Howard. Equal Rights for Children. Totowa, N.J.: Littlefield, Adams & Co., 1980. Coulton, G. G. Medieval Village, Manor, and Monastery. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1960. Cranston, Maurice. John Locke: A Biography. London: Longmans, Green and Co., Ltd., 1968. de Carvalho, Sarah. The Street Children o f Brazil: One Woman's Remarkable Story. London: Hodder & Stoughton, 1996. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 292 de Jesus, Carolina Maria. Child o f the Dark: The Diary o f Carolina Maria de Jesus. Translated from the Portuguese by David St. Clair. New York: E. P. Dutton & Co., Inc, 1962. deMause, Lloyd, ed. The History o f Childhood. Northvale, N.J.: Jason Aronson Inc., 1995. de Vaux, Roland. Ancient Israel: Social Institutions. Volume I. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1965; originally published in France under the title Les Institutions de L ’ Ancien Testament, 1961. Dimenstein, Gilberto. Brazil: War on Children. Translated from the Portuguese by Chris Whitehouse. London: Latin American Bureau, 1991; originally published in Brazil under the title A guerra dos meninos, 1990. Eakin, Marshall C. Brazil: The Once and Future Country. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1997. Ermacora, F. “Non-Govemmental Organizations as Promoters of Human Rights.” In Protecting Human Rights: The European Dimension. Edited by Franz Matscher and Herbert Petzold. Koln: Carl Heymanns Verlag KG, 1988. Feinberg, Joel. Harm to Others. New York: Oxford University Press, 1984. Foldvary, Fred E. The Soul ofLiberty: The Universal Ethic o f Freedom and Human Rights. Calgary: Gutenberg, 1980. Freyre, Gilberto. “Historico e Sentimental da Cidade do Recife” in Guia Pratico, 4th ed. (Rio: N.P. 1968) reprinted as “Recife: The City’s Character.” In The Gilberto Freyre Reader: Varied Writings by the Author o f the Brazilian Classics. Translated from the Portuguese by Barbara Shelby. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1974. . The Mansions and the Shanties: The Making o f Modem Brazil. Translated from the Portuguese and edited by Harriet De Oms. New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 1963. Gert, Bernard. Morality: A New Justification o f the Moral Rules. New York: Oxford University Press, 1988. Gerwing, Alphonse. The Philosopher and the Coconut Thief: the Life Stories o f Two Brazilian Street children. Muenster: St. Peter’s Press, 1994. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 293 Glauser, Benno. “Street Children: Deconstructing a Construct.” In Constructing and Reconstructing Childhood: Contemporary Issues in the Sociological Study o f Childhood. Edited by Allison James and Alan Prout. London: The Falmer Press, 1990. Gorecki, Jan. Justifying Ethics: Human Rights and Human Nature. New Bruns wick: Transaction Publishers, 1996. Halfon, Mark S. Integrity: A Philosophical Inquiry. Philadelphia: Temple Univer sity Press, 1989. Harrelson, Walter J. The Ten Commandments and Human Rights. 2d ed. Macon, Georgia: Mercer University Press, 1997. Hecht, Tobias. At Home In The Street: Street Children o f Northeast Brazil. Cam bridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998. Hoffding, Harald. History o f Modem Philosophy: A Sketch o f the History o f Philos ophy from the Close o f the Renaissance to Our Own Day. Vol. II. Translated from the German by B. E. Meyer. London: MacMillan and Co. Ltd., 1900. Huggins, Martha K. and Myriam Mesquita. “Civic Invisibility, Marginality, and Moral Exclusion: The Murders of Street Youth in Brazil.” In Children on the Streets o f the Americas: Globalization, Homelessness and Education in the United States, Brazil and Cuba. Edited by Roslyn Arlin Mickelson. New York: Routledge, 2000. Human Rights Watch. Behind Bars in Brazil. New York: Human Rights Watch, 1998. . Final Justice: Police and Death Squad Homicides o f Adolescents in Brazil. New York: Human Rights Watch, 1994. . Police Brutality in Urban Brazil. New York: Human Rights Watch, 1997. James, Allison and Alan Prout. “Re-Presenting Childhood: Time and Transition in the Study of Childhood.” In Constructing and Reconstructing Childhood: Contemporary Issues in the Sociological Study o f Childhood. Edited by Allison James and Alan Prout. London: The Falmer Press, 1990. Kelly, Donald R. The Human Measure: Social Thought in the Western Legal Tradition. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1990. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 294 Kelsey, Vera and Candido Portinari. Maria Rosa: Everyday Fun and Carnival Frolic With Children In Brazil. Garden City: Doubleday, Doran & Co., 1942. Kielburger, Craig. Free the Children: A Young Man ’ s Personal Crusade Against Child Labor. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1998. King, Michael. A Better World for Children: Explorations in Morality and Author ity. New York: Routledge, 1997. Klees, Steven J., Irene Rizzini, and Anthony Dewees. “A New Paradigm for Social Change: Social Movements and the Transformation of Policy for Street and Working Children in Brazil.” In Children on the Streets o f the Americas: Globalization, Homelessness and Education in the United States, Brazil and Cuba. Edited by Roslyn Arlin Mickelson. New York: Routledge, 2000. Levine, Robert M., ed. Bitita’ s Diary: The Childhood Memoirs o f Carolina Maria de Jesus. Translated from the Portuguese by Emanuelle Oliveira and Beth Joan Vinkler. Armonk, New York: M. E. Sharpe, 1998. . Pernambuco in the Brazilian Federation, 1889-1937. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1978. and Jose Carlos Sebe Bom Meihy. The Life and Death o f Carolina Maria de Jesus. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1995. Lillich, Richard B., and Frank C. Newman. International Human Rights: Problems o f Law and Policy. Boston: Little, Brown and Company, 1979. , and Sumner B. Twiss. Comparative Religious Ethics. New York: Harper & Row, 1978. Longford, Michael. “NGOs and the Rights of the Child.” In The Conscience o f the World: The Influence o f Non-Govemmental Organizations in the U.N. System., edited by Peter Willetts. Washington, D. C.: Brookings Institution, 1996. Locke, John. Two Treatises o f Government. Edited by Peter Laslett. 1960. Reprint, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994. Loewy, Erich H. Moral Strangers, Moral Acquaintance, and Moral Friends: Connectedness and Its Conditions. Albany, N.Y.: SUNY Press, 1997. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 295 MacMullen, Ramsey. Christianizing the Roman Empire, A.D. 100-400. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1984. Maslow, Abraham H. Motivation and Personality. 3d ed. New York: Harper & Brothers, 1954. McLaughlin, R. Emmet. The Freedom o f Spirit, Social Privilege, and Religious Dissent: Caspar Schwenckfeld and the Schwenckfelders. Baden-Baden: V. Koemer, 1996. Mariz, Cecilia Loreto. Coping with Poverty: Pentecostals and Christian Base Communities in Brazil. Philadelphia, Penn.: Temple University Press, 1994. Meron, Theodor, ed. Human Rights in International Law: Legal and Policy Issues. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1984. Mill, John Stuart. On Liberty: Annotated Text, Sources and Background Criticism. Edited by David Spitz. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, 1975. . Utilitarianism. Edited by George Sher. 1861. Reprint. Indianapolis, Indi ana: Hackett Publishing Company, 1988. Migne, J. P. V., ed. Patrologiae Cursus Completus. Series Graeca. 176vols. Paris: Gamier, 1857-1912. Moulin, Nelly and Vilma Pereia. ‘Tamilies, Schools, and the Socialization of Brazilian Children: Contemporary Dilemmas that Create Street Children.” In Children on the Streets o f the Americas: Globalization, Homelessness and Education in the United States, Brazil, and Cuba. Edited by Roslyn A. Mickelson. London: Routledge, 2000. Nanda, Ved P., James Scarrit, R., and George W. Shepherd, Jr. Global Human Rights: Public Policies, Comparative Measures, and NGO Strategies. Boulder, Colo.: Westview, 1981. Niebuhr, H. Richard. Christ and Culture. New York: Harper & Row, 1951. . Radical Monotheism and Western Culture. New York: Harper & Row, Publishers, 1960. . The Responsible Self: An Essay in Christian Moral Philosophy. New York: Harper & Row, 1963. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 296 Nozick, Robert. Anarchy, State, and Utopia. New York: Basic Books, Inc., 1974. Owen, John. The Works o f John Owen. Vol. 11, Continuing in the Faith. London: Banner of Truth Trust, 1976. Page, Joseph A. The Brazilians. Reading, Massachusetts: Addison-Wesley Publish ing Company, Inc., 1995. Pais, Marta Santos. “Rights of Children and the Family.” In Human Rights: An Agenda fo r the Next Century. Edited by Louis Henkin and John Lawrence Hargrove. Studies In Transnational Legal Policy, No. 26. Washington, D.C.: The American Society of International Law, 1994. Parker, Richard G. Bodies, Pleasures, and Passions: Sexual Culture in Contempo rary Brazil. Boston: Beacon Press, 1991. Plato. The Republic. Platt, Anthony M. The Child Savers: The Invention o f Delinquency. Chicago: Chicago University Press, 1969. Pliny the Younger. Epistles. Pollis, Adamantia. “Liberal, Socialist, and Third Word Perspectives of Human Rights.” In Toward a Human Rights Framework, edited by Peter Schwab and Adamantia Pollis. New York: Praeger, 1982. Pope John XXIII, Pacem in Terris. Pope Leo XIII, Rerum Novarum. Pope Pius XI, Quadragesimo Anno. Power, Jonathan. Amnesty International: The Human Rights Story. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Company. Rawls, John. A Theory o f Justice. Cambridge, Mass.: The Belknap Press, 1971. Richards, David A. J. A Theory o f Reasons for Action. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1971. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 297 Rizzini, Irene, Irma Rizzini, Monica Munoz-Vargas and Lidia Galeano. “Brazil: A New Concept of Childhood.” In Urban Children in Distress: Global Predica ments and Innovative Strategies. Switzerland: Gordon and Breach, 1994. et al. Childhood and Urban Poverty in Brazil: Street and Working Children and Their Families. New York: UNICEF, 1992. Roberts, Melinda. A Child versus Childmaker: Future Persons and Present Duties in Ethics and the Law. Lanham, Md.: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, 1998. Robertson, A. H. Editor. Human Rights in National and International Law. Dobbs Ferry, N. Y.: Oceana Publications, Inc., 1970. . Human Rights in the World: An Introduction to the Study o f the International Protection o f Human Rights. 2d ed. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1982. Rodley, Nigel. “Monitoring Human Rights by the U.N. System and Nongovernment al Organizations.” In Human Rights and American Foreign Policy. Edited by Donald Kommers and G. D. Loescher. Notre Dame, Ind.: Notre Dame University Press, 1979. Rodrigues, Jose Honorio. The Brazilians: The Character and Aspirations. Trans lated by Ralph Edward Dimmick. The Texas Pan American Series. Austin and London: University o f Texas Press, 1967. Rosemberg, Fulvia. “From Discourse to Reality: A Profile of the Lives and an Estimate o f the Number of Street Children and Adolescents in Brazil.” In Children on the Streets o f the Americas: Globalization, Homelessness and Education in the United States, Brazil and Cuba. Edited by Roslyn Arlin Mickelson. New York: Routledge, 2000. Rosenthal, Abraham M. Thirty-Eight Witnesses. New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1964. Rousseau, Jean Jacques. The Social Contract and Discourses. Translated by G. D. H. Cole. 1973. Reprint, London: Dent, 1983. . Political Writings. Edited by Frederick Watkins. Madison: The University of Wisconsin Press, 1986. . Religious Writings. Edited by Ronald Grimsley. New York: Oxford Univer sity Press, 1970. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 298 Scheper-Hughes, Nancy. Death Without Weeping: The Violence o f Everyday Life in Brazil. Berekley: University of California Press, 1998. and Carolyn Sargent. Small Wars: The Cultural Politics o f Childhood. Berekley: University of California Press, 1998. Sieghart, Paul. The International Law o f Human Rights. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1983. Simpson, Amelia. Xuxa: The Mega-Marketing o f Gender, Race, and Modernity. Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1993. Skidmore, Thomas E. Brazil: Five Centuries o f Change. New York: Oxford Uni versity Press, 1999. Sohn, Louis B. “A Short History of United Nations Documents on Human Rights.” In The United Nations and Human Rights, Eighteenth Report o f the Commis sion to Study the Organisation o f Peace (New York, 1968). Sutherland, Zena and May Hill Arbuthnot. Children and Books. New York: Harper- Collins Publishers, Inc., 1991. Strossen, Nadine. Defending Pornography: Free Speech, Sex, and the Fight for Women s Rights. New York: Scribner, 1995. Swift, Anthony. Children for Social Change: Education fo r Citizenship o f Street and Working Children in Brazil. Nottingham, Educational Heretics Press, 1997. Taylor, Charles. Sources o f the Self: The Making o f the Modem Identity. Cam bridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1989. Taylor, Debbie. My Children, My Gold: A Journey to the World o f Seven Single Mothers. Berkely: University of California Press, 1994. Tolley, Howard B. Jr. The International Commission o f Jurists: Global Advocates fo r Human Rights. Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1994. Union of International Associations. Yearbook o f International Organizations. Vol. 2, Geographic Volume. 13th ed. Munchen: K. G. Saur, 1995/96. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 299 Whiting, Beatrice B. and Carolyn P. Edwards. Children o f Different Worlds: The Formation o f Social Behavior. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1988. Whiting, John W. M. and Beatrice B. Whiting. Children o f Six Cultures: A Psycho- Cultural Analysis. Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1975. Willetts, Peter, ed. The Conscience o f the World: The Influence o f Non-Governmen tal Organizations in the U.N. System. Washington, D. C.: Brookings Institu tion, 1996. Winfield, Richard Dien. The Just Family. Albany, N.Y.: SUNY Press, 1998. Wiseberg, Laurie S. and Harry M. Scoble. “Human Rights Organizations.” In W. M. Evan, ed. Knowledge and Power in a Global Society. Beverly Hills: Sage, 1981. Yearbook o f International Organizations. Volume 2: Geographic Volume. Edited by Union of International Associations, 13 th ed. Miinchen: K. G. Saur, 1995/96. Newspapers, Periodicals, and Reports Bindman, Jo and Jo Doezema. “Redefining Prostitution as Sex Work on the Interna tional Agenda.” Anti-Slavery International (1997). “Brazil: Slumming Is Hot in Rio,” Newsweek (April 17, 2000): 74. “Brazil: The Candelaria Massacre and Wagner dos Santos,” Amnesty International [AI Index: AMR 19/11/95] (July 1995). “Brazil: Witness Protection: Wagner dos Santos,” Amnesty International [AI Index: AMR 19/24/95] (October 1995). “Brazil: The Candelaria Trial: A Small Wedge in the Fortress o f Impunity,” Amnesty International [AI Index: AMR 19/20/96] (July 1996). Dolan, Maura. “‘Good Samaritan’ Laws are hard to enact, experts say; Aid: Outrage over Inaction o f Strohmeyer Friend Sparks Calls for Bills. But Existing Legislation Has Limited Success,” Los Angeles Times (Wednesday, 9 Sept. 1998): sec. AI, Home Edition. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 300 Friedland, Jonathan. “Oil Companies Strive to Turn a New Leaf To Save Rain Forest,” The Wall Street Journal cxxxvii, no. 12 (July 17, 1997): AI. “Iverson Killing and Samaritan Law,” Los Angeles Times (Friday, 25 Sept. 1998): sec. B8, Home Edition. Kraul, Chris. “Brazil Slowdown Means Shake-Up in United States,” Los Angeles Times (November 21,1997): D l, D16 “No Bombshells on the Radar,” Business Week, no. 3549 [Business Outlook Section on Brazil] (October 20,1997): 32. “Protecting Children Always A Good Cause; Iverson Case: A Law that Makes it Illegal to Fail to Report a Crime Against a Child is Narrow Enough to Win Support,” Los Angeles Times (Sunday, 6 Sept. 1998): sec. M5, Ventura County Edition. Robinson, Linda. “Brazil’s Bloody Clashes over Land Reform.” U.S. News and World Report (April 13, 1998): 13. Schemo, Jean Diana. “Rio ex-officer is convicted in massacre of children. (Marcus Vinicius Borges Emanuel convicted of participating in 1993 Candelaria massacre in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil),” The New York Times (May 1, 1996): A5. “Sem Terra,” Jomal dos Trabalhadores Rurais (March, 2000): 14-15. The World Bank. “How the World Bank works with Non-Govemmental Organiza tions.” N.P.: The World Bank, 1990. Veja, No. 1326 (February 9, 1994): 70. “Working with Companies to Prevent the Exploitation o f Child Labour.” Guidelines produced by the NGO Group for the convention on the Rights of the Child, Sub-Group on Child Labour. Anti Slavery International (1997). United Nations Documents UN doc. Economic and Social Council Resolution 1989/65 (May 24, 1989). Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 301 UN doc. Economic and Social Council Report, Session XI, 1990, Supplement No. 10. UN doc. E/CN.4/1999/64 Annex H Persons Interviewed DE FARIAS, Eronita. Tape recording. Aldia, Brazil. 18 December 1997. DE FARIAS, Eremar. Tape recording. Aldia, Brazil. 18 December 1997. DE SOUZA, Elina A. Tape recording and author’s notes. Recife, Brazil. 16 December 1997. DOTTRIDGE, Mike. Tape recording and author’s notes. London, England. 10 August 1998. EMBERLY, Bob. Tape recording. Camaragibe, Brazil. 19 December 1997. EMBERLY, Magda. Tape recording. Camaragibe, Brazil. 19 December 1997. FRYER, Michael. Author’s notes. Aldia, Brazil. 18 December 1997. GALI, Mati. Tape recording and author’s notes. Camaragibe and Recife, Brazil. 18 and 19 December 1997. GALI, Julie. Tape recording and author’s notes. Camargibe and Recife, Brazil. 18 December 1997. LIMA de PESSOA, Ligia. Tape recording and author’s notes. Recife, Brazil. 17 December 1997. MOORE, Steven. Tape recording and author’s notes. Camargibe and Recife, Brazil. 17 and 18 December 1997. SILVERIA, Demares. Tape recordings and author’s notes. Camaragibe, Recife, and Aldia, Brazil. 16, 17, 18, and 19 December 1998. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 302 Appendix A PRINCIPLES ON THE EFFECTIVE PREVENTION AND INVESTIGATION OF EXTRA-LEG AL, ARBITRARY AND SUMMARY EXECUTIONS Prevention 1. Governments shall prohibit by law all extra-legal, arbitrary and summary executions and shall ensure that any such executions are recognized as offences under their criminal laws, and are punishable by appropriate penalties which take into account the seriousness of such offences. Exceptional circumstances including a state of war or threat of war, internal political instability or any other public emergency may not be invoked as a justification of such executions. Such executions shall not be carried out under any circumstances including, but not limited to, situations of internal armed conflict, excessive or illegal use of force by a public official or other person acting in an official capacity or by a person acting at the instigation, or with the consent or acquiescence of such person, and situations in which deaths occur in custody. This prohibition shall prevail over decrees issued by governmental authority. 2. In order to prevent extra-legal, arbitrary and summary executions, Governments shall ensure strict control, including a clear chain of command over all officials responsible for apprehension, arrest, detention, custody and imprisonment, as well as those officials authorized by law to use force and firearms. 3. Governments shall prohibit orders from superior officers or public authorities authorizing or inciting other persons to carry out any such extra-legal, arbitrary or summary executions. All persons shall have the right and the duty to defy such orders. Training of law enforcement officials shall emphasize the above provisions. 4. Effective protection through judicial or other means shall be guaranteed to individuals and groups who are in danger of extra-legal, arbitrary or summary executions, including those who receive death threats. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 303 5. No one shall be involuntarily returned or extradited to a country where there are substantial grounds for believing that he or she may become a victim of extra-legal, arbitrary or summary execution in that country. 6. Governments shall ensure that persons deprived of their liberty are held in officially recognized places of custody, and that accurate information on their custody and whereabouts, including transfers, is made promptly available to their relatives and lawyer or other persons of confidence. 7. Qualified inspectors, including medical personnel, or an equivalent independent authority, shall conduct inspections in places of custody on a regular basis, and be empowered to undertake unannounced inspections on their own initiative, with full guarantees of independence in the exercise of this function. The inspectors shall have unrestricted access to all persons in such places of custody, as well as to all their records. 8. Governments shall make every effort to prevent extra-legal, arbitrary and summary executions through measures such as diplomatic intercession, improved access of complainants to intergovernmental and judicial bodies, and public denunciation. Intergovernmental mechanisms shall be used to investigate reports of any such executions and to take effective action against such practices. Governments, including those of countries where extra-legal, arbitrary and summary executions are reasonably suspected to occur, shall cooperation fully in international investigations on the subject. Investigation 9. There shall be thorough, prompt and impartial investigation of all suspected cases of extra-legal, arbitrary and summary executions, including cases where complaints by relatives or other reliable reports suggest unnatural death in the above circumstances. Governments shall maintain investigative offices and procedures to undertake such inquiries. The purpose of the investigation shall be to determine the cause, manner and time of death, die person responsible, and any pattern or practice which may have brought about that death. It shall include an adequate autopsy, collection and analysis of all physical and documentary evidence and statements from witnesses. The investigation shall distinguish between natural death, accidental death, suicide and homicide. 10. The investigative authority shall have the power to obtain all the information necessary to the inquiry. Those persons conducting the investigation shall have at their disposal all the necessary budgetary and technical resources for effective investigation. They shall also have the authority to oblige officials Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 304 allegedly involved in any such executions to appear and testify. The same shall apply to any witness. To this end, they shall be entitled to issue summonses to witnesses, including the officials allegedly involved and to demand the production of evidence. 11. In cases in which the established investigative procedures are inadequate because of lack of expertise or impartiality, because of the importance of the matter or because of the apparent existence of a pattern of abuse, and in cases where there are complaints from the family of the victim about these inadequacies or other substantial reasons, Governments shall pursue investigations through an independent commission of inquiry or similar procedure. Members of such a commission shall be chosen for their recognized impartiality, competence and independence as individuals. In particular, they shall be independent of any institution, agency or person that may be the subject of the inquiry. The commission shall have the authority to obtain all information necessary to the inquiry and shall conduct the inquiry as provided for under these Principles. 12. The body of the deceased person shall not be disposed of until an adequate autopsy is conducted by a physician, who shall, if possible, be an expert in forensic pathology. Those conducting the autopsy shall have the right of access to all investigative data, to the place where the body was discovered and to the place where the death is thought to have occurred. If the body has been buried and it later appears that an investigation is required, the body shall be promptly and competently exhumed for an autopsy. If skeletal remains are discovered, they should be carefully exhumed and studied according to systematic anthropological techniques. 13. The body of the deceased shall be available to those conducting the autopsy for a sufficient amount of time to enable a thorough investigation to be carried out. The autopsy shall, at a minimum, attempt to establish the identity of the deceased and the cause and manner of death. The time and place of death shall also be determined to the extent possible. Detailed color photographs of the deceased shall be included in the autopsy report in order to document and support the finding of the investigation. The autopsy report must describe any and all injuries to the deceased including any evidence of torture. 14. In order to ensure objective results, those conducting the autopsy must be able to function impartially and independently of any potentially implicated persons or organization or entities. 15. Complainants, witnesses, those conducting the investigation and their families shall be protected from violence, threats of violence or any other form of intimidation. Those potentially implicated in extra-legal, arbitrary or summary executions shall be removed from any position of control or power, whether direct or Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 305 indirect, over complainants, witnesses and their families, as well as over those conducting investigations. 16. Families of the deceased and their legal representatives shall be informed of, and have access to, any hearing as well as to all information relevant to the investigation, and shall be entitled to present other evidence. The family of the deceased shall have the right to insist that a medical or other qualified representative be present at the autopsy. When the identity of the deceased person has been determined, a notification of death shall be posted, and the family or relatives of the deceased shall be informed immediately. The body of the deceased shall be returned to them upon completion of the investigation. 17. A written report shall be made within a reasonable period of time on the methods and findings of such investigations. The report shall be made public immediately and shall include the scope of the inquiry, procedures and methods used to evaluate evidence as well as conclusions and recommendations based on findings of fact and on applicable law. The report shall also describe in detail specific events that were found to have occurred and the evidence upon which such findings were based, and list the names of witnesses who testified, with the exception of those whose identities have been withheld for their own protection. The Government shall, within a reasonable period of time, either reply to the report of the investigation, or indicate the steps to be taken in response to it. Legal Proceedings 18. Governments shall ensure that persons identified by the investigation as having participated in extra-legal, arbitrary or summary executions in any territory under their jurisdiction are brought to justice. Governments shall either bring such persons to justice or cooperate to extradite any such persons to other countries wishing to exercise jurisdiction. This principle shall apply irrespective of who and where the perpetrators or the victims are, their nationalities or where the offence was committed. 19. Without prejudice to principle 3 above, an order from a superior officer or a public authority may not be invoked as a justification for extra-legal, arbitrary or summary executions. Superiors, officers or other public officials may be held responsible for acts committed by officials under their authority if they had a reasonable opportunity to prevent such acts. In no circumstances, including a state of war, siege or other public emergency, shall blanket immunity for prosection be granted to any person allegedly involved in extra-legal, arbitrary or summary executions. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 306 20. The families and dependents of victims of extra-legal, arbitrary or summary executions shall be entitled to fair and adequate compensation within a reasonable period of time. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 307 Appendix B CODE OF CONDUCT FOR LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS Article 1 Law enforcement officials shall at all times fulfill the duty imposed upon them by law, by serving the community and by protecting all persons against illegal acts, consistent with the high degree of responsibility required by their profession. Commentary (a) The term “law enforcement officials” includes all officers of the law, whether appointed or elected, who exercise police powers, especially the powers of arrest or detention. (b) In countries where police powers are exercised by military authorities, whether uniformed or not, or by state security forces, the definition o f law enforcement officials shall be regarded as including officers of such services. (c) Service to the community is intended to include particularly the rendition of services of assistance to those members of the community who by reason of personal, economic, social ore other emergencies are in need of immediate aid. (d) This provision is intended to cover not only all violent, predatory and harmful acts, but extends to the full range of prohibitions under penal statutes. It extends to conduct by persons not capable of incurring criminal liability. Article 2 In the performance of their duty, law enforcement officials shall respect and protect human dignity and maintain and uphold the human rights of all persons. Commentary (a) The human rights in question are identified and protected by national and international law. Among the relevant international instruments are the Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 308 Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Being Subjected to Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the United Nations Declaration on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination, the International Convention on the Suppression and Punishment of the Crime of Apartheid, the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners and the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations. (b) National commentaries to this provision should indicate regional or national provisions identifying and protecting these rights. Article 3 Law enforcement officials may use force only when strictly necessary and to the extent required for the performance of their duty. Commentary (a) This provision emphasizes that the use of force by law enforcement officials should be exceptional; while it implies that law enforcement officials may be authorized to use force as is reasonably necessary under the circumstances for the prevention of crime or in effecting or assisting in the lawful arrest of offenders or suspected offenders, no force going beyond that may be used. (b) National law ordinarily restricts the use of force by law enforcement officials in accordance with a principle of proportionality. It is to be understood that such national principles of proportionality are to be respected in the interpretation of this provision. In no case should this provision be interpreted to authorize the use of force which is disproportionate to the legitimate objective to be achieved. (c) The use of firearms is considered an extreme measure. Every effort should be made to exclude the use of firearms, especially against children. In general, firearms should not be used except when a suspected offender offers armed resistance or otherwise jeopardizes the lives of others and less extreme measures are not sufficient to restrain or apprehend the suspected offender. In every instance in which a firearm is discharged, a report should be made promptly to the competent authorities. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 309 Article 4 Matters of a confidential nature in the possession of law enforcement officials shall be kept confidential, unless the performance of duty, or the needs o f justice, strictly require otherwise. Commentary By the nature of their duties, law enforcement officials obtain information which may relate to private lives or be potentially harmful to the interests, and especially the reputation, of others. Great care should be exercised in safeguarding and using such information, which should be disclosed only in the performance of duty or to serve the needs of justice. Any disclosure o f such information for other purposes is wholly improper. Article 5 No law enforcement official may inflict, instigate or tolerate any act of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, nor may any law enforcement official invoke superior orders or exceptional circumstances such as a state of war or a threat of war, a threat to national security, internal political instability or any other public emergency as a justification of torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Commentary (a) This prohibition derives from the Declaration on the Protection of All Persons from Being Subjected to Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, adopted by the General Assembly, according to which: Such an act is “an offence to human dignity and shall be condemned as a denial of the purposes of the Charter of the United Nations and as a violation of the human rights and fundamental freedoms proclaimed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights”9 4 and other international human rights instruments. (b) The Declaration defines torture as follows: “... torture means any act by which severe pain or suffering, whether 94. Article 2 of the Declaration. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 310 physical or mental, is intentionally inflected by or at the instigation of a public official on a person for such purposes as obtaining from him or a third person information or confession, punishing him for an act he has committed or is suspected of having committed, or intimidating him or other persons. It does not include pain or suffering arising only from, inherent in or incidental to, lawful sanctions to the extent consistent with the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners.”9 5 (c) The term “cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment” has not been defined by the General Assembly, but should be interpreted so as to extend the widest possible protection against abuses, whether physical or mental. Article 6 Law enforcement officials shall ensure the full protection of the health of persons in their custody and, in particular, take immediate action to secure medical attention whenever required. Commentary (a) “Medical attention,” which refers to services rendered by any medical personnel, including certified medical practitioners and paramedics, shall be secured when needed or requested. (b) While the medical personnel are likely to be attached to the law enforcement operation, law enforcement officials must take into account the judgement of such personnel when they recommend providing the person in custody with appropriate treatment through, or in consultation with, medical personnel from outside the law enforcement operation. (c) It is understood that law enforcement officials shall also secure medical attention for victims of violations of law or of accidents occurring in the course of violations of law. 95. Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Offenders: First United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders: report by the Secretariat (United National publication, Sales No. 1956JV.4), annex I.A. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 311 Article 7 Law enforcement officials shall not commit any act of corruption. They shall also rigorously oppose and combat all such acts. Commentary (a) Any act of corruption, in the same way as any other abuse of authority, is incompatible with the profession of law enforcement officials. The law must be enforced folly with respect to any law enforcement official who commits an act of corruption, as governments cannot expect to enforce the law among their citizens if they cannot, or will not, enforce the law against their own agents and within their own agencies. (b) While the definition of corruption must be subject to national law, it should be understood to encompass the commission or omission of an act in the performance of or in connection with one’s duties, in response to gifts, promises or incentives demanded or accepted, or the wrongful receipt of these once the act has been committed or omitted. (c) The expression “act of corruption” referred to above should be understood to encompass attempted corruption. Article 8 Law enforcement officials shall respect the law and the present Code. They shall also, to the best of their capability, prevent and rigorously oppose any violations of them. Law enforcement officials who have reason to believe that a violation of this Code has occurred or is about to occur shall report the matter to their superior authorities and, where necessary, to other appropriate authorities or organs vested with reviewing or remedial power. Commentary (a) This Code shall be observed whenever it has been incorporated into national legislation or practice. If legislation or practice contains stricter provisions than those of the present Code, those stricter provisions shall be observed. (b) The Article seeks to preserve the balance between the need for internal discipline of the agency on which public safety is largely dependent, on the Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 312 one hand, and the need for dealing with violations of basic human rights, on the other. Law enforcement officials shall report violations within the chain of command and take other lawful action outside the chain of command only when no other remedies are available or effective. It is understood that law enforcement officials shall not suffer administrative or other penalties because they have reported that a violation of this Code has occurred or is about to occur. (c) The terms “appropriate authorities or organs vested with reviewing or remedial power” refer to any authority or organ existing under national law, whether internal to the law enforcement agency, or independent thereof, with statutory, customary or other power to review grievances and complaints arising out of violations within the purview of this Code. (d) In some countries, the mass media may be regarded as performing complaint review functions similar to those described in commentary (c). Law enforcement officials may, therefore, be justified if, as a last resort and in accordance with the law and customs of their own countries and with the provisions of Article 4 of the present Code, they bring violations to the attention of public opinion through the mass media. (e) Law enforcement officials who comply with the provisions of this Code deserve the respect, the full support and the cooperation of the community and of the law enforcement agency in which they serve, as well as of the law enforcement profession. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. Appendix C BASIC PRINCIPLES ON THE USE OF FORCE AND FIREARMS BY LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICIALS ‘‘Whereas the work of law enforcement officials0 is a social service of great importance and there is, therefore, a need to maintain and, whenever necessary, to improve the working conditions and status of these officials, “Whereas threat to the life and safety of law enforcement officials must be seen as a threat to the stability of society as a whole, “Whereas law enforcement officials have a vital role in the protection of the right to life, liberty and security of the person, as guaranteed in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights7 4 and reaffirmed in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights,7 5 “Whereas the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners7 6 provide for the circumstances in which prison officials may use force in the course of their duties, 73. In accordance with the commentary to Article 1 of the Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials, the term “law enforcement officials” includes all officers of the law, whether appointed or elected, who exercise police powers, especially the powers of arrest or detention. In countries where police powers are exercised by military authorities, whether uniformed or not, or by State security forces, the definition of law enforcement officials shall be regarded as including officers of such services. 74. General Assembly Resolution 217 A (HI). 75. General Assembly Resolution 2200 A (XXI), annex. 76. See Human Rights: A Compilation of International Instruments. (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.88JGV.1), sect. G. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 314 “Whereas Article 3 of the Code o f Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials7 6 / provides that law enforcement officials may use force only when strictly necessary and to the extent required for the performance of their duty, “Whereas the preparatory meeting for the Seventh United Nations Congress on the Prevention of Crime and the Treatment of Offenders, held at Varenna, Italy, agreed on elements to be considered in the course of further work on restraints on the use of force and firearms by law enforcement officials,7 7 “Whereas the Seventh Congress, in its Resolution 14,7 8 inter alia, emphasizes that the use of force and firearms by law enforcement officials should be commensurate with due respect for human rights, “Whereas the Economic and Social Council, in its Resolution 1986/10, Section IX, of 21 May 1986, invited Member States to pay particular attention in the implementation of the Code to the use of force and firearms by law enforcement officials, and the General Assembly, in its Resolution 41/149 of 4 December 1986, inter alia, welcomed this recommendation made by the Council, “Whereas it is appropriate that, with due regard to their personal safety, consideration be given to the role of law enforcement officials in relation to the administration of justice, to the protection of the right to life, liberty and security of the person, to their responsibility to maintain public safety and social peace and to the importance of their qualifications, training and conduct, “The basic principles set forth below, which have been formulated to assist Member States in their task of ensuring and promoting the proper role of law enforcement officials, should be taken into account and respected by Governments within the framework of their national legislation and practice, and be brought to the attention of law enforcement officials as well as other persons, such as judges, prosecutors, lawyers, members of the executive branch and the legislature, and the public. General Provisions 1. Governments and law enforcement agencies shall adopt and implement rules and regulations on the use of force and firearms against persons by law enforcement officials. In developing such rules and regulations, Governments and law 77. A/CONF.121/IPM.3, pare. 34. 78. See Seventh United Nations Congress . . . chap. I, sect. E. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 315 enforcement agencies shall keep the ethical issues associated with the use of force and firearms constantly under review. 2. Governments and law enforcement agencies should develop a range of means as broad as possible and equip law enforcement officials with various types of weapons and ammunition that would allow for a differentiated use of force and firearms. These should include the development of non-lethal incapacitating weapons for use in appropriate situations, with a view to increasingly restraining the application of means capable of causing death or injury to persons. For the same purpose, law enforcement officials should also be equipped with self-defensive equipment such as shields, helmets or bullet-proof vests in order to decrease the need to use weapons of any kind. 3. The development and deployment of-non-lethal incapacitating weapons should be carefully evaluated in order to minimize the risk of endangering uninvolved persons, and the use of such weapons should be carefully controlled. 4. Law enforcement officials, in carrying out their duty, shall, as far as possible, apply non-violent means before resorting to the use o f force and firearms. They may use force and firearms only if other means remain ineffective or without any promise of achieving the intended result. 5. Whenever the lawful use of force and firearms is unavoidable, law enforcement officials shall: (a) Exercise restraint in such use and act in proportion to the seriousness of the offence and the legitimate objective to be achieved; (b) Minimize damage and respect and preserve human life; (c) Ensure that assistance and medical aid are rendered to any injured or affected persons at the earliest possible moment; (d) Ensure that relatives or close friends of the injured or affected person are notified at the earliest possible moment. 6. Where injury or death is caused by the use of force and firearms by law enforcement officials, they shall report the incident promptly to their superiors, in accordance with Principle 22. 7. Governments shall ensure that arbitrary or abusive use o f force and firearms by law enforcement officials is punished as a criminal offence under their law. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 316 8. Exceptional circumstances such as internal political instability or any other public emergency may not be invoked to justify any departure from these basic principles. Special Provisions 9. Law enforcement officials shall not use firearms against persons except in self- defense or defense of others against the imminent threat of death or serious injury, to prevent the perpetration of a particularly serious crime involving grave threat to life and public safety, to arrest a person presenting such a danger and resisting or attacking their authority, or to prevent his or her escape, and only when less extreme means are insufficient to achieve these objectives. In any event, intentional lethal use of firearms may only be made when strictly unavoidable in order to protect life. 10. In the circumstances provided for under Principle 9, law enforcement officials shall identify themselves as such and give a clear warning of their intent to use firearms, with sufficient time for the warning to be observed, unless to do so would unduly place the law enforcement officials at risk or would create a risk of death or serious harm to other persons, or would be clearly inappropriate or pointless in the circumstances of the incident. 11. Rules and regulations on the use of firearms by law enforcement officials should include guidelines that: (a) Specify the circumstances under which law enforcement officials are authorized to carry firearms and prescribe the types of firearms and ammunition permitted; (b) Ensure that firearms are used only in appropriate circumstances and in a manner likely to decrease the risk of unnecessary harm; (c) Prohibit the use of those firearms and ammunition that cause unwarranted injury or present an unwarranted risk; (d) Regulate the control, storage and issuing of firearms, including procedures for ensuring that law enforcement officials are accountable for the firearms and ammunition issued to them; (e) Provide for warnings to be given, if appropriate, when firearms are to be discharged; (f) Provide for a system of reporting whenever law enforcement officials use firearms in the performance of their duty. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 317 Policing Unlawful Assemblies 12. As everyone is allowed to participate in lawful and peaceful assemblies, in accordance with the principles embodied in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, governments and law enforcement agencies and officials shall recognize that force and firearms may be used only in accordance with principles 13 and 14. 13. In the dispersal of assemblies that are unlawful but non-violent, law enforcement officials shall avoid the use of force or, where that is not practicable, shall restrict such force to the minimum extent necessary. 14. In the dispersal of violent assemblies, law enforcement officials may use firearms only when less dangerous means are not practicable and only to the minimum extent necessary. The use of such means shall be strictly regulated in national legislation and restricted solely to particularly dangerous violent assemblies. Law enforcement officials shall not use firearms in such cases, except under the conditions stipulated in Principle 9. Policing Persons in Custody or Detention 15. Law enforcement officials, in their relations with persons in custody or detention, shall not use force, except when strictly necessary for the maintenance of security and order within the institution, or when personal safety is threatened. 16. Law enforcement officials, in their relations with persons in custody or detention, shall not use firearms, except in self-defence or in the defence of others against the immediate threat of death or serious injury, or when strictly necessary to prevent the escape of a person in custody or detention presenting the danger referred to in Principle 9. 17. The preceding principles are without prejudice to the rights, duties and responsibilities of prison officials, as set out in the Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners, particularly rules 33, 34 and 54. Qualifications. Training and Counseling 18. Governments and law enforcement agencies shall ensure that all law enforcement officials are selected by proper screening procedures, have appropriate moral, psychological and physical qualities for the effective exercise o f their functions and receive continuous and thorough professional training. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 31S 19. Governments and law enforcement agencies shall ensure that all law enforcement officials are provided with training and are tested in accordance with appropriate proficiency standards in the use of force. Those law enforcement officials who are required to carry firearms should be authorized to do so only upon completion of special training in their use. 20. In the training of law enforcement officials, governments and law enforcement agencies shall give special attention to issues of police ethics and human rights, especially in the investigative process, to alternatives to the use o f force and firearms, including the peaceful settlement of conflicts, the understanding of crowd behaviour, and the methods of persuasion, negotiation and mediation, as well as to technical means, with a view to limiting the use of force and firearms. Law enforcement agencies should review their training programs and operational procedures in the light of particular incidents. 21. Governments and law enforcement agencies shall make stress counseling available to law enforcement officials who are involved in situations where force and firearms are used. Reporting and Review Procedures 22. Governments and law enforcement agencies shall establish effective reporting and review procedures for all incidents referred to in principles 6 and 11(f). For incidents reported pursuant to these principles, governments and law enforcement agencies shall ensure that an effective review process is available and that independent administrative and prosecutorial authorities are in a position to exercise jurisdiction in appropriate circumstances. In cases of death and serious injury or other grave consequences, a detailed report shall be sent promptly to the competent authorities responsible for administrative review and judicial control. 23. Persons affected by the use of force and firearms or their legal representatives shall have access to an independent review process, including the judiciary. In the event of the death of such persons, this provision shall apply to their dependents accordingly. 24. Governments and law enforcement agencies shall ensure that superior officers are held responsible if they know, or could reasonably be expected to know, that law enforcement officials under their command are resorting, or have resorted, to the unlawful use of force and firearms, and they did not take all measures in their power to prevent, suppress or report such use. 25. Governments and law enforcement agencies shall ensure that no crim inal or disciplinary sanction is imposed on law enforcement officials who, in compliance Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 319 with the Code of Conduct for Law Enforcement Officials and these basic principles, refuse to carry out an order to use force and firearms, or who report such use by other officials. 26. Obedience to superior orders shall be no defense if law enforcement officials knew that an order to use force and firearms resulting in the death or serious injury of a person was manifestly unlawful and had a reasonable opportunity to refuse to follow it. In any case, responsibility should also, rest on the superiors who gave, the unlawful orders. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 320 Appendix D UNITED NATIONAL CONVENTION ON THE RIGHTS OF THE CHILD Preamble The States Parties to the Present Convention, Considering that, in accordance with the principles proclaimed in the Charter of the United Stations, recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation o f freedom, justice and peace in the world, Bearing in mind that the peoples of the United Nations have, in the Charter, reaffirmed their faith in fundamental human rights and in the dignity and worth of the human person, and have determined to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom, Recognizing that the United Nations has, in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and in the International Covenants on Human Rights, proclaimed and agreed that everyone is entitled to all the rights and freedoms set forth therein, without distinction of any kind, such as race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status, Recalling that, in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the United Nations has proclaimed that childhood is entitled to special care and assistance, Convinced that the family, as the fundamental group of society and the natural environment for the growth and well-being of all its members and particularly children, should be afforded the necessary protection and assistance so that it can be afforded the necessary protection and assistance so that it can fully assume its responsibilities within the community, Recognizing that the child, for the full and harmonious development of his or her personality, should grow up in a family environment, in an atmosphere of happiness, love and understanding, Considering that the child should be fully prepared to live an individual life in society, and brought up in the spirit of the ideals proclaimed in the Charter of the United Nations, and in particular in the spirit of peace, dignity, tolerance, freedom, equality and solidarity, Bearing in mind that the need to extend particular care to the child has been stated in the Geneva Declaration of the Rights of the Child of 1924 and in the Declaration of the Rights of the Child adopted by the General Assembly on 20 November 1959 and recognized in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in the Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 321 International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (in particular in articles 23 and 24), in the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (in particular in article 10) and in the statutes and relevant instruments of specialized agencies and international organizations concerned with the welfare of children, Bearing in mind that, as indicated in the Declaration of the Rights of the Child, ‘the child, by reason of his physical and mental immaturity, needs special safeguards and care, including appropriate legal protection, before as well as after birth’, Recalling the provisions of the Declaration on Social and Legal Principles relating to the Protection and Welfare of Children, with Special Reference to Foster Placement and Adoption Nationally and Internationally; the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Administration of Juvenile Justice (The Beijing Rules); and the Declaration on the Protection of Women and Children in Emergency and Armed Conflict, Recognizing that, in all countries in the world, there are children living in exceptionally difficult conditions, and that such children need special consideration, Taking due account of the importance of the traditions and cultural values of each people for the protection and harmonious development of the child, Recognizing the importance of international co-operation for improving the living conditions of children in every country, in particular in the developing countries, Have agreed as follows: PARTI Article 1 For the purposes of the present Convention, a child means every human being below the age of eighteen years unless, under the law applicable to the child, majority is attained earlier. Article 2 1. States Parties shall respect and ensure the rights set forth in the present Convention to each child within their jurisdiction without discrimination of any kind, irrespective of the child’s or his or her parent’s or legal guardian’s race, colour, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, natural, ethnic or social origin, property, disability, birth or other status. 2. States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that the child is protected against all forms of discrimination or punishment on the basis of the status, activities, expressed opinions, or beliefs of the child’s parents, legal guardians, or family members. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 322 Article 3 1. In all actions concerning children, whether undertaken by public or private social welfare institutions, courts of law, administrative authorities, or legislative bodies, the best interests of the child shall be a primary consideration. 2. States Parties undertake to ensure the child such protection and care as is necessary for his or her well-being, taking into account the rights and duties of his or her parents, legal guardians, or other individuals legally responsible for him or her, and, to this end, shall take all appropriate legislative and administrative measures. 3. States Parties shall ensure that the institutions, services and facilities responsible for the care or protection of children shall conform with the standards established by competent authorities, particularly in the areas of safety, health, in the number and suitability of their staff, as well as competent supervision. Article 4 States Parties shall undertake all appropriate legislative, administrative, and other measures for the implementation of the rights recognized in the present Convention. With regard to economic, social and cultural rights, States Parties shall undertake such measures to the maximum extent of their available resources and, where needed, within the framework of international co-operations. Article 5 States Parties shall respect the responsibilities, rights and duties of parents or, where applicable, the members of the extended family or community as provided for by local custom, legal guardians or other persons legally responsible for the child, to provide in a manner consistent with the evolving capacities of the child, appropriate direction and guidance in the exercise by the child of the rights recognized in die present Convention. Article 6 1. States Parties recognize that every child has the inherent right to life. 2. States Parties shall ensure to the maximum extent possible the survival and development of the child. Article 7 1. The child shall be registered immediately after birth and shall have the right from Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 323 birth to a name, the right to acquire a nationality and, as far as possible, the right to know and to be cared for bv his or her parents. 2. States Parties shall ensure the implementation of these rights in accordance with their national law and their obligations under the relevant international instruments in this field, in particular where the child would otherwise be stateless. Article 8 1. States Parties undertake to respect the right of the child to preserve his or her identify, including nationality, name and family relations as recognized by law without unlawful interference. 2. Where a child is illegally deprived of some or all of the elements of his or her identify, States Parties shall provide appropriate assistance and protection, with a view to speedily re-establishing his or her identify. Article 9 1. States Parties shall ensure that a child shall not be separated from his or her parents against their will, except when competent authorities subject to judicial review determine, in accordance with applicable law and procedures, that such separation is necessary for the best interest of the child. Such determination may be necessary in a particular case such as one involving abuse or neglect of the child by the parents, or one where the parents are living separately and a decision must be made as to the child’s place of residence. 2. In any proceedings pursuant to paragraph 1 of the present article, all interested parties shall be given an opportunity to participate in the proceedings and make their views known. 3. States Parties shall respect the right of the child who is separated from one or both parents to maintain personal relations and direct contact with both parents on a regular basis, except if it is contrary to the child’s best interests. 4. Where such separation results from any action initiated by a State Party, such as the detention, imprisonment, exile, deportation or death (including death arising from any cause while die person is in the custody of the State) of one or both parents or of the child, that State Party shall, upon request, provide the parents, the child or, if appropriate, another member of the family with the essential information concerning the whereabouts of the absent members) o f the family unless the provision of the information would be detrimental to the well-being of the child. States Parties shall Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 324 further ensure that the submission of such a request shall of itself entail no adverse consequences for the person(s) concerned. Article 10 1. In accordance with the obligation of States Parties under article 9, paragraph 1, applications by a child or his or her parents to enter or leave a State Party for the purpose of family reunification shall be dealt with by States Parties in a positive, humane and expeditious manner. States Parties shall further ensure that the submission of such a request shall entail no adverse consequences for the applicants and for the members of their family. 2. A child whose parents reside in different States shall have the right to maintain on a regular basis, save in exceptional circumstances, personal relations and direct contacts with both parents. Towards that end and in accordance with the obligation of States Parties under article 9, paragraph 1, States Parties shall respect the right of the child and his or her parents to leave any country, including their own, and to enter their own country. The right to leave any country shall be subject only to such restrictions as are prescribed by law and which are necessary to protect the national security, public order (ordre public1 . public health or morals or the rights and freedoms of others and are consistent with the other rights recognized in the present Convention. Article 11 1. States Parties shall take measure to combat the illicit transfer and non-retum of children abroad. 2. To this end, States Parties shall promote the conclusion of bilateral or multilateral agreements or accession to existing agreements. Article 12 1. States Parties shall assure to the child who is capable of forming his or her own views the right to express those views freely in all matters affecting the child, the views of the child being given due weight in accordance with the age and maturity of the child. 2. For this purpose, the child shall in particular by provided the opportunity to be heard in any judicial and administrative proceedings affecting the child, either directly or through a representative or an appropriate body, in a manner consistent with the procedural rules of national law. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 325 Article 13 1. The child shall have the right to freedom of expression: this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media of the child’s choice. 2. The exercise of this right may be subject to certain restrictions, but these shall only be such as are provided by law and are necessary: (a) For respect of the rights or reputation of others; or (b) For the protection of national security or of public order (ordre public), or of public health or morals. Article 14 1. States Parties shall respect the right of the child to freedom of thought, conscience and religion. 2. States Parties shall respect the rights and duties of the parents and, when applicable, legal guardians, to provide direction to the child in the exercise of his or her right in a manner consistent with the evolving capacities of the child. 3. Freedom to manifest one’s religion or beliefs may be subject only to such limitation as are prescribed by law and are necessary to protect public safety, order, health or morals, or the fundamental rights and freedom of others. Article 15 1. States Parties recognize the rights of the child to freedom of association and to freedom of peaceful assembly. 2. No restrictions may be placed on the exercise of these rights other than those imposed in conformity with the law and which are necessary in a democratic society in the interests of national security or public safety, public order (ordre publick the protection of public health or morals or the protection of the rights and freedoms of others. Article 16 1. No child shall be subjected to arbitrary or unlawful interference with his or her privacy, family, home or correspondence, nor to unlawful attacks on his or her honour and reputation. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 326 2. The child has the right to the protection of the law against such interference or attacks. Article 17 States Parties recognize the important function performed bv the mass media and shall ensure that the child has access to information and material from a diversity of national and international sources, especially those aimed at the promotion of his or her social, spiritual and moral well-being and physical and mental health. To this end, States Parties shall: (a) Encourage the mass media to disseminate information and material of social and cultural benefit to the child and in accordance with the spirit of article 29; (b) Encourage international co-operation in the production, exchange and dissemination of such information and material from a diversity of cultural, national and international sources; (c) Encourage the production and dissemination of children’s books; (d) Encourage the mass media to have particular regard to the linguistic needs of the child who belongs to a minority group or who is indigenous; (e) Encourage the development of appropriate guidelines for the protection of the child from information and material injurious to his or her well-being, bearing in mind the provisions of articles 13 and 18. Article 18 1. States Parties shall use their best efforts to ensure recognition of the principle that both parents have common responsibilities for the upbringing and development of the child. Parents or, as the case may be, legal guardians, have the primary responsibility for the upbringing and development of the child. The best interests of the child will be their basic concern. 2. For the purpose of guaranteeing and promoting the rights set forth in the present Convention, States Parties shall render appropriate assistance to parents and legal guardians in the performance of their child-rearing responsibilities and shall ensure the development of institutions, facilities and services for the care of children. 3. States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that children of working parents have the right to benefit from child-care services and facilities for which they are eligible. Article 19 1. States Parties shall take all appropriate legislative, administrative, social and educational measures to protect the child from all forms of physical or mental Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 327 violence, injury or abuse or negligent treatment, maltreatment or exploitation, including sexual abuse, while in die care of parent(s), legal guardian(s) or any other person who has the care of the child. 2. Such protective measures should, as appropriate, include effective procedures for the establishment of social programmes to provide necessary support for the child and for those who have the care of the child, as well as for the other forms of prevention and for identification, reporting, referral, investigation, treatment and follow-up of instances of child maltreatment described heretofore, and, as appropriate, for judicial involvement. Article 20 1. A child temporarily or permanendy deprived of his or her family environment, or in whose own best interests cannot be allowed to remain in that environment, shall be entided to special protection and assistance provided by the State. 2. States Parties shall in accordance with their national laws ensure alternative care for such a child. 3. Such care could include, inter alia, foster placement, kafalah of Islamic law, adoption or if necessary placement in suitable institutions for the care of children. When considering solutions, due regard shall be paid to the desirability of continuity in a child’s upbringing and to the child’s ethnic, religious, cultural and linguistic background. Article 21 States Parties that recognize and/or permit the system of adoption shall ensure that the best interests of the child shall be the paramount consideration and they shall: (a) Ensure that the adoption of a child is authorized only by competent authorities who determine, in accordance with applicable law and procedures and on the basis of all pertinent and reliable information, that the adoption is permissible in view of the child’s status concerning parents, relatives and legal guardians and that, if required, the persons concerned have given their informed consent to the adoption on the basis of such counseling as may be necessary; (b) Recognize that inter-country adoption may be considered as an alternative means of child’s care, if the child cannot be placed in a foster or an adoptive family or cannot in any suitable manner be cared for in the child’s country o f origin; (c) Ensure that the child concerned by inter-country adoption enjoys safeguards and standards equivalent to those existing in the case of national adoption; (d) Take all appropriate measures to ensure that, in inter-country adoption, the placement does not result in improper financial gain for those involved in it; Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 328 (e) Promote, where appropriate, the objectives of the present article by concluding bilateral or multilateral arrangements or agreements, and endeavour, within this framework, to ensure that the placement of the child in another country is carried out by competent authorities or organs. Article 22 1. States Parties shall take appropriate measures to ensure that a child who is seeking refugee status or who is considered a refugee in accordance with applicable international or domestic law and procedures shall, whether unaccompanied or accompanied by his or her parents or by any other person, receive appropriate protection and humanitarian assistance in the enjoyment of applicable rights set forth in the present Convention and in other international human rights or humanitarian instruments to which the said States are Parties. 2. For this purpose, States, Parties shall provide, as they consider appropriate, co operation in any efforts by the United Nations and other competent inter governmental organizations or non-governmental organizations co-operating with the United Nations to protect and assist such a child and to trace the parents or other members of the family of any refugee child in order to obtain information necessary for reunification with his or her family. In cases where no parents or other members of the family can be found, the child shall be accorded the same protection as any other child permanently or temporarily deprived of his or her family environment for any reason, as set forth in the present Convention. Article 23 1. States Parties recognize that a mentally or physically disabled child should enjoy a full and decent life, in conditions which ensure dignity, promote self-reliance and facilitate the child’s active participation in the community. 2. States Parties recognize the right of the disabled child to special care and shall encourage and ensure the extension, subject to available resources, to the eligible child and those responsible for his or her care, of assistance for which application is made and which is appropriate to the child’s condition and to the circumstances of the parents or others caring for the child. 3. Recognizing the special needs of a disabled child, assistance extended in accordance with paragraph 2 of the present article shall be provided free of charge, whenever possible, taking into account the financial resources of the parents or others caring for the child, and shall be designed to ensure that the disabled child has effective access to and receives education, training, health care services, rehabilitation services, preparation for employment and recreation opportunities in a Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 329 manner conducive to the child’s achieving the fullest possible social integration and individual development, including his or her cultural and spiritual development. 4. States Parties shall promote, in the spirit of international co-operation, the exchange of appropriate information in the field of preventive health care and of medical, psychological and functional treatment of disabled children, including dissemination of and access to information concerning methods of rehabilitation, education and vocational services, with the aim of enabling enabling States Parties to improve their capabilities and skills and to widen their experience in these areas. In this regard, particular account shall be taken of the needs of developing countries. Article 24 1. States Parties recognize the right of the child to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health and to facilities for the treatment o f illness and rehabilitation of health. States Parties shall strive to ensure that no child is deprived of his or her right of access to such health care services. 2. States Parties shall pursue full implementation of this right and, in particular, shall take appropriate measures: (a) To diminish infant and child mortality: (b) To ensure the provision of necessary medical assistance and health care to all children with emphasis on the development of primary health care; (c) To combat disease and malnutrition, including within the framework of primary health care, through, inter alia, the application of readily available technology and through the provision of adequate nutritious foods and clean drinking-water, taking into consideration the dangers and risks of environmental pollution; (d) To ensure appropriate pre-natal and post-natal health care for mothers; (e) To ensure all segments of society, in particular parents and children, are informed, have access to education and are supported in the use of basic knowledge of child health and nutrition, the advantages of breast-feeding, hygiene and environmental sanitation and the prevention of accidents; (f) To develop preventive health care, guidance for parents and family planning education and services. 3. States Parties shall take all effective and appropriate measures with a view to abolishing traditional practices prejudicial to the health of children. 4. States Parties undertake to promote and encourage international co-operation with a view to achieving progressively the full realization o f the right recognized in the Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 330 present article. In this regard, particular account shall be taken of the needs of developing countries. Article 25 States Parties recognize the right of a child who has been placed by the competent authorities for the purposes of care, protection or treatment of his or her physical or mental health, to a periodic review of the treatment provided to the child and all other circumstances relevant to his or her placement. Article 26 1. States shall recognize for every child the right to benefit from social security. including social insurance, and shall take the necessary measures to achieve the full realization if this right in accordance with their national law. 2. The benefits should, where appropriate, be granted, taking into account the resources and the circumstances of the child and persons having responsibility for the maintenance of the child, as well as any other consideration relevant to an application for benefits made by or on behalf of the child. Article 27 1. States Parties recognize the right of every child to a standard of living adequate for the child’s physical, mental, spiritual, moral and social development. 2. The parent(s) or others responsible for the child have the primary responsibility to secure, within their abilities and financial capacities, the conditions of living necessary for the child’s development. 3. States Parties, in accordance with national conditions and within their means, shall take appropriate measures to assist parents and others responsible for the child to implement this right and shall in case of need provide material assistance and support programmes, particularly with regard to nutrition, clothing and housing. 4. States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to secure the recovery of maintenance for the child from the parents or other persons having responsibility for the child, both within the State Party and from abroad. In particular, where the person having financial responsibility for the child lives in a State different from that of the child, States Parties shall promote the accession to international agreements or the conclusion of such agreements, as well as the making of other appropriate arrangements. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 331 Article 28 1. States Parties recognize the right of the child to education, and with a view to achieving this right progressively and on the basis of equal opportunity, they shall, in particular: (a) Make primary education compulsory and available free to all; (b) Encourage the development of different forms of secondary education, including general and vocational education, make them available and accessible to every child, and take appropriate measures such as the introduction of free education and offering financial assistance in case of need; (c) Make higher education accessible to all on the basis of capacity by every appropriate means; (d) Make educational and vocational information and guidance available and accessible to all children; (e) Take measures to encourage regular attendance at schools and the reduction of drop-out rates. 2. States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to ensure that school discipline is administered in a manner consistent with the child’s human dignity and in conformity with the present Convention. 3. States Parties shall promote and encourage international co-operation in matters relating to education, in particular with a view to contributing to the elimination of ignorance and illiteracy throughout the world and facilitating access to scientific and technical knowledge and modem teaching methods. In this regard, particular account shall be taken of the needs of developing countries. Article 29 1. States Parties agree that the education of the child shall be directed to: (a) The development of the child’s personality, talents and mental and physical abilities to their fullest potential; (b) The development of respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms, and for the principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations; (c) The development of respect for the child’s parents, his or her own cultural identity, language and values, for the national values of the country in which the child is living, the country from which he or she may originate and for civilizations different from his or her own; (d) The preparation of the child for responsible life in a free society, in the spirit of understanding, peace, tolerance, equality of sexes, and friendship among all peoples, ethnic, national and religious groups and persons of indigenous origin; (e) The development of respect for the natural environment. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 332 2. No part of the present article or article 28 shall be construed so as to interfere with the liberty of individuals and bodies to establish and direct educational institutions, subject always to the observance of the principles set forth in paragraph 1 o f the present article and to the requirements that the education given in such institutions shall conform to such minimum standards as may be laid down by the State. Article 30 In those States in which ethnic, religious or linguistic minorities or persons of indigenous origin exist, a child belonging to such a minority or who is indigenous shall not be denied the right, in community with other members of his or her group, to enjoy his or her own culture, to profess and practice his or her own religion, or to use his or her own language. Article 31 1. States Parties recognize the right of the child to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities appropriate to the age of the child and to participate freely in cultural life and the arts. 2. States Parties shall respect and promote the right of the child to participate fully in cultural and artistic life and shall encourage the provision of appropriate and equal opportunities for cultural, artistic, recreational and leisure activity. Article 32 1. States Parties recognize the right of the child to be protected from economic exploitation and from performing any work that is likely to be hazardous or to interfere with the child’s education, or to be harmful to the child’s health or physical, mental, spiritual, moral or social development. 2. States Parties shall take legislative, administrative, social and educational measures to ensure the implementation of the present article. To this end, and having regard to the relevant provisions of other international instruments, States Parties shall in particular: (a) Provide for a minimum age or minimum ages for admission to employment; (b) Provide for appropriate regulation of the hours and conditions of employment; (c) Provide for appropriate penalties or other sanctions to ensure the effective enforcement of the present article. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 333 Article 33 States Parties shall take all appropriate measures, including legislative, administrative, social and educational measures, to protect children from the illicit use of narcotic drugs and psychotropic substances as defined in the relevant international treaties, and to prevent the use of children in the illicit production and trafficking of such substances. Article 34 States Parties undertake to protect the child from all forms of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse. For these purposes, States Parties shall in particular take all appropriate national, bilateral and multilateral measures to prevent: (a) The inducement of coercion of a child to engage in any unlawful sexual activity; (b) The exploitative use of children in prostitution or other unlawful sexual practices; (c) The exploitative use of children in pornographic performances and materials. Article 35 States Parties shall take all appropriate national, bilateral and multilateral measures to prevent the abduction of, the sale of or traffic in children for any purpose or in any form. Article 36 States Parties shall protect the child against all other forms of exploitation prejudicial to any aspects of the child’s welfare. Article 3 7 1. States Parties shall ensure that: (a) No child shall be subjected to torture or other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. Neither capital punishment nor life imprisonment without possibility of release shall be imposed for offences committed by persons below eighteen years of age; (b) No child shall be deprived of his or her liberty unlawfully or arbitrarily. The arrest, detention or imprisonment of a child shall be in conformity with the law and shall be used only as a measure of last resort and for the shortest appropriate period of time. (c) Every child deprived of liberty shall be treated with humanity and respect for the inherent dignity of the human person, and in a m anner which takes into account Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 334 the needs of persons of his or her age. In particular, every child deprived of liberty shall be separated from adults unless it is considered in the child’s best interest not to do so and shall have the right to maintain contact with his or her family through correspondence and visits, save in exceptional circumstances; (d) Every child deprived of his or her liberty shall have the right to prompt access to legal and other appropriate assistance, as well as the right to challenge the legality of the deprivation of his or her liberty before a court or other competent, independent and impartial authority, and to a prompt decision on any such action. Article 38 1. States Parties undertake to respect and to ensure respect for rules of international humanitarian law applicable to them in armed conflicts which are relevant to the child. 2. States Parties shall take all feasible measures to ensure that persons who have not attained the age of fifteen years do not take a direct part in hostilities. 3. States Parties shall refrain from recruiting any person who has not attained the age of fifteen years into their armed forces. In recruiting among those persons who have attained the age of fifteen years but who have not attained the age of eighteen years, States Parties shall endeavour to give priority to those who are oldest. 4. In accordance with their obligations under international humanitarian law to protect the civilian population in armed conflicts, States Parties shall take all feasible measures to ensure protection and care of children who are affected by an armed conflict. Article 39 States Parties shall take all appropriate measures to promote physical and psychological recovery and social reintegration of a child victim of: any form of neglect, exploitation or abuse, torture or anv form of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, or armed conflicts. Such recovery and reintegration shall take place in the environment which fosters the health, self-respect and dignity of the child. Article 40 1. States Parties recognize the right of every child alleged as, accused of, or recognized as having infringed the penal law to be treated in a manner consistent with the promotion of the child’s sense of dignity and worth, which reinforces the child’s respect for the human rights and fundamental freedoms of others and which Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 335 takes into account the child’s age and the desirability of promoting the child’s reintegration and the child’s assuming a constructive role in society. 2. To this end, and having regard to the relevant provisions of international instruments, States Parties shall, in particular, ensure that: (a) No child shall be alleged as, be accused of, or recognized as having infringed the penal law by reason of acts or omissions that were not prohibited by national or international law at the time they were committed; (b) Every child alleged as or accused of having infringed the penal law has at least the following guarantees; (i) To be presumed innocent until proven guilty according to law; (ii) To be informed promptly and directly of the charges against him or her, and, if appropriate, through his or her parents or legal guardians, and to have legal or other appropriate assistance in the preparation and presentation of his or her defense; (iii) To have the matter determined without delay by a competent, independent and impartial authority or judicial body in a fair hearing according to law, in the presence of legal or other appropriate assistance and, unless it is considered not to be in the best interest of the child, in particular, taking into account his or her age or situation, his or her parents or legal guardians; (iv) Not to be compelled to give testimony or to confess guilt; to examine or have examined adverse witnesses and to obtain the participation and examination ofwitnesses on his or her behalf under conditions of equality; (v) If considered to have infringed the penal law, to have this decision and any measures imposed in consequence thereof reviewed by a higher competent, independent and impartial authority or judicial body according to law; (vi) To have the free assistance of an interpreter if the child cannot understand or speak the language used; (vii) To have his or her privacy fully respected at all stages of the proceedings. 3. States Parties shall seek to promote the establishment of laws, procedures, authorities and institutions specifically applicable to children alleged as, accused of, or recognized as having infringed the penal law, and, in particular: (a) The establishment of a minimum age below which children shall be presumed not to have the capacity to infringe the penal law; (b) Whenever appropriate and desirable, measures for dealing with such children without resorting to judicial proceedings, providing that human rights and legal safeguards are fully respected. 4. A variety of disposition, such as care, guidance and supervision orders; Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 336 counseling; probation; foster care; education and vocational training programmes and other alternatives to institutional care shall be available to ensure that children are dealt with in a manner appropriate to their well-being and proportionate both to circumstances and the offence. Article 41 Nothing in the present Convention shall affect any provisions which are more conducive to the realization of the rights of the child and which may be contained in: (a) The law of a State Party; or (b) International law in force for that State. P ARTII Article 42 States Parties undertake to make the principles and provisions of the Convention widely known, by appropriate and active means, to adults and children alike. Article 43 1. For the purpose of examining the progress made by States Parties in achieving the realization of the obligations undertaken in the present Convention there shall be established a Committee on the Rights of the Child, which shall carry out the functions hereinafter provided. 2. The Committee shall consist of ten experts of high moral standing and recognized competence in the field covered by this Convention. The members of the Committee shall be elected by States Parties from among their nationals and shall serve in their personal capacity, consideration being given to equitable geographical distribution, as well as to the principal legal systems. 3. The members of the Committee shall be elected by secret ballot from a list of persons nominated by States Parties. Each Party may nominate one person from among its own nationals. 4. The initial election to the Committee shall be held no later than six months after the date of the entry into force of the present Convention and thereafter every second year. At least four months before the date of each election, the Secretary-General of the United Nations shall address a letter to States Parties inviting them to submit their nominations within two months. The Secretary-General shall subsequently prepare a list in alphabetical order of all persons thus nominated, indicating States Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 337 Parties which have nominated them, and shall submit it to the States Parties to the present Convention. 5. The elections shall be held at meetings of States Parties convened by the Secretary-General at United Nations Headquarters. At those meetings, for which two thirds of States Parties shall constitute a quorum, the persons elected to the Committee shall be those who obtain the largest number of votes and an absolute majority of the votes o f the representatives of States Parties present and voting. 6. The members of the Committee shall be elected for a term of four years. They shall be eligible for re-election if re-nominated. The term of five of the members elected at the first election shall expire at the end of two years; immediately after the first election, the names o f these five members shall be chosen by lot by the Chairman of the meeting. 7. If a member of the Committee dies or resigns or declares that for any other cause he or she can no longer perform the duties of the Committee, the State Party which nominated the member shall appoint another expert from among its nationals to serve for the remainder of the term, subject to the approval of the Committee. 8. The Committee shall establish its own rules of procedure. 9. The Committee shall elect its officers for a period of two years. 10. The meetings of the Committee shall normally be held at United Nations Headquarters or at any other convenient place as determined by the Committee. The Committee shall normally meet annually. The duration of the meetings of the Committee shall be determined, and reviewed, if necessary, by a meeting of the States Parties to the present Convention, subject to the approval of the General Assembly. 11. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall provide the necessary staff and facilities for the effective performance of the functions o f the Committee under the present Convention. 12. With the approval of the General Assembly, the members of the Committee established under the present Convention shall receive emoluments from United Nations resources on such terms and conditions as the Assembly may decide. Article 44 1. States Parties undertake to submit to the Committee, through the Secretary- General of the United Nations, reports on the measures they have adopted which give Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 338 effect to the rights recognized herein and on the progress made on the enjoyment of those rights: (a) Within two years of the entry into force of the Convention for the State Party concerned; (b) Thereafter every five years. 2. Reports made under the present article shall indicate factors and difficulties, if any, affecting the degree of fulfilment of the obligations under the present Convention. Reports shall also contain sufficient information to provide the Committee with a comprehensive understanding o f implementation of the Convention in the country concerned. 3. A State Party which has submitted a comprehensive initial report to the Committee need not, in its subsequent reports submitted in accordance with paragraph 1 (b) of the present article, repeat basic information previously provided. 4. The Committee may request from States Parties further information relevant to the implementation of the Convention. 5. The Committee shall submit to the General Assembly, through the Economic and Social Council, every two years, reports on its activities. 6. States Parties shall make their reports widely available to the public in their own countries. Article 45 In order to foster the effective implementation of the Convention and to encourage international co-operation in the field covered by the Convention: (a) The specialized agencies, the United Nations Children’s Fund, and other United Nations organs shall be entitled to be represented at the consideration of the implementation of such provisions of the present Convention as fall within the scope of their mandate. The Committee may invite the specialized agencies, the United Nations Children’s Fund and other competent bodies as it may consider appropriate to provide expert advice on the implementation of the Convention in areas falling within the scope of their respective mandates. The Committee may invite the specialized agencies, the United Nations Children’s Fund, and other United Nations organs to submit reports on the implementation of the Convention in areas falling within the scope of their activities; (b) The Committee shall transmit, as it may consider appropriate, to the specialized agencies, the United Nations Children’s Fund and other competent bodies, any reports from States Parties that contain a request, or indicate a need, for technical Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 339 advice or assistance, along with the Committee’s observations and suggestions, if any, on these requests or indications; (c) The Committee may recommend to the General Assembly to request the Secretary-General to undertake on its behalf studies on specific issues relating to the rights of the child. (d) The Committee may make suggestions and general recommendations based on information received pursuant to articles 44 and 45 of the present Convention. Such suggestions and general recommendations shall be transmitted to any State Party concerned and reported to the General Assembly, together with comments, if any, from States Parties. P A R T in Article 46 The present Convention shall be open for signature by all States. Article 47 The present Convention is subject to ratification. Instruments of ratification shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations. Article 48 The present Convention shall remain open for accession by any State. The instruments of accession shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations. Article 49 1. The present Convention shall enter into force on the thirtieth day following the date of deposit with the Secretary-General of the United Nations of the twentieth instrument of ratification or accession. 2. For each State ratifying or acceding to the Convention after the deposit of the twentieth instrument of ratification or accession, the Convention shall enter into force on the thirtieth day after the deposit by such State of its instrument of ratification or accession. Article 50 1. Any State Party may propose an amendment and file it with the Secretary-General Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 340 of the United Nations. The Secretary-General shall thereupon communicate the proposed amendment to States Parties, with a request that they indicate whether they favour a conference of States Parties for the purpose of considering and voting upon the proposals. In the event that, within four months from the date of such communication, at least one third of the States Parties favour such a conference, the Secretary-General shall convene the conference under the auspices of the United Nations. Any amendment adopted by a majority of States Parties present and voting at the conference shall be submitted to the General-Assembly for approval. 2. An amendment adopted in accordance with paragraph 1 of the present article shall enter into force when it has been approved by the General Assembly o f the United Nations and accepted by a two-thirds majority of States Parties. 3. When an amendment enters into force, it shall be binding on those States Parties which have accepted it, other States Parties still being bound by the provisions of the present Convention and any earlier amendments which they have accepted. Article 51 1. The Secretary-General of the United Nations shall receive and circulate to all States the text of reservations made by States at the time of ratification or accession. 2. A reservation incompatible with the object and purpose of the present Convention shall not be permitted. 3. Reservations may be withdrawn at any time by notification to that effect addressed to the Secretary-General of the United Nations, who shall then inform all States. Such notification shall take effect on the date on which it is received by the Secretary-General. Article 52 A State Party may denounce the present Convention by written notification to the Secretary-General of the United Nations. Denunciation becomes effective one year after the date of receipt of the notification by the Secretary-General. Article 53 The Secretary-General of the United Nations is designated as the depositary of the present Convention. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission. 341 Article 54 The original of the present Convention, of which the Arabic, Chinese, English, French, Russian and Spanish texts are equally authentic, shall be deposited with the Secretary-General of the United Nations. In witness thereof the undersigned plenipotentiaries, being duly authorized thereto by their respective Governments, have signed the present Convention. Reproduced with permission of the copyright owner. Further reproduction prohibited without permission.

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Asset Metadata

Creator Cubillos, Robert Hernan (author)

Core Title Braving the streets of Brazil: Children, their rights, and the roles of local NGOs in northeast Brazil

School Graduate School

Degree Doctor of Philosophy

Degree Program Religion

Publisher University of Southern California (original), University of Southern California. Libraries (digital)

Tag OAI-PMH Harvest,religion, general,sociology, individual and family studies,sociology, public and social welfare

Language English

Contributor Digitized by ProQuest (provenance)

Advisor Toulmin, Stephen (committee chair), Orr, John B, (committee member), Renteln, Alison Dundes (committee member)

Permanent Link (DOI) https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c16-215625

Unique identifier UC11334732

Identifier 3073764.pdf (filename),usctheses-c16-215625 (legacy record id)

Legacy Identifier 3073764.pdf

Dmrecord 215625

Document Type Dissertation

Rights Cubillos, Robert Hernan

Type texts

Source University of Southern California (contributing entity), University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses (collection)

Access Conditions The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the au...

Repository Name University of Southern California Digital Library

Repository Location USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus, Los Angeles, California 90089, USA