Children's rights as residual social policy in Nicaragua: State priorities and the Code of Childhood and Adolescence

Third World Quarterly

Volumn 24, Issue 4, 2003, Pages 671-689

  Maclure, Richard ^a   Sotelo, Melvin ^b  

^a UNIVERSITY OF OTTAWA   (Canada)

^b Centro de Informacion y Servicios de Asesorio en Salud   (Nicaragua)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

CHILD WELFARE; LEGAL RIGHTS; SOCIAL POLICY;

CENTRAL AMERICA; NICARAGUA;

EID: 1842428232     PISSN: 01436597     EISSN: 13602241     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1080/0143659032000105812     Document Type: Article

References (64)

1. JL Fernando, 'Children's rights: Beyond the impasse', in Fernando (ed), Children's Rights: Special Edition of the Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage, 2001, p 12.
2. In Nicaragua, according to the Code of Childhood and Adolescence, youngsters aged 12 years and under are officially regarded as 'children'; those aged 13 to 18 are officially viewed as 'adolescents'. In contrast, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child uses the term 'children' to define all individuals under 18 years old.
3. A Dewees & S Klees, 'Social movements and the transformation of national policy: Street and working children in Brazil', Comparative Education Review, 39 (1), 1995, pp 76-100; and E Garcí Méndez, Child Rights in Latin America: From 'Irregular Situation' to Full Protection, Florence: UNICEF International Child Development Centre, 1998.
4. García-Méndez, Child Rights in Latin America.
5. Government of Nicaragua, Politico Nacional de Desarrollo Integral de la Juventud, Managua: Ediciones EMCOR, 2001, p 5.
6. Institute Nicaraguense de Estadistica y Censo, Encuesta Nicaraguense de Demografia y Salud, Managua, 2001, p 9.
7. 'Nicaragua disminuye mortalidad infantile', Diario La Prensa (Managua), 31 January 2003.
8. Ministry of Health/Instituto Nicaraguense de Estadistica y Censo, Encuesta Nicaraguense de Demografia y Salud, Managua, 2001, p 9.
9. 'Promueven reduccion de la mortalidad maternal', Diario La Prensa, 27 July 2002.
10. 'Ministre admite dramatica situatión de educatión', Diario La Prensa, 1 February 2003.
11. Coordinadora Nicaraguense de la Niñez (CODENI), Segundo informe de la sociedad civil, sobre la situación de los derechos de la ninez y la adolescencia, Managua, 1999; and T Gómez, Mercado laboral para mujeres adolescentes y jóvenes en el área urbana de Managua, Nicaragua, Managua: Ediciones EMCOR, 1988.
12. Comisión de Prómotion y Defensa de los Derechos del Niño y la Nina/UNlCEF, Estadisticas de Adolescentes de Quienes se alega non Infringido la ley y de Adolescentes Infractores, Managua, 1999, pp 7-8.
13. A Jamrozik, & L Nocella, The Sociology of Social Problems: Theoretical Perspective and Methods of Intervention, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998, p 81.
14. MS Grindle, Challenging the State: Crisis and Innovation in Latin America and Africa, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1996, p 3.
15. K Campbell, M Dufresne & R Maclure, 'Amending youth justice policy in Canada: Discourse, mediation and ambiguity'. The Howard Journal, 40 (3), 2001, pp 272-84; B Jessup, State Theory: Placing Capitalist States in their Place, University Park, PA: Penn State University Press, 1990; L Ratinoff, 'Social policy issues at the end of the 20th century', in D Morales-Gomez (ed), Transnational Social Policies: The New Development Challenges of Globalization, London: Earthscan,1999, pp 43-65.
16. T Clayton, 'Introduction' to the special issue on the theme of 'Rethinking Hegemony', Education and Society, 18 (2), pp 3-9; E Laclau & C Mouffe, Hegemony and Socialist Struggle: Towards a Radical Democratic Politics, London: Verso, 1985; and RE Thoryk & PN Roberts, Hegemony Dismantled or Hegemony Disguised?, New York: Legas, 1998.
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18. G O'Donnell, 'Delegative democracy'. Journal of Democracy, 5(1), 1994, pp 53-69.
19. Grindle, Challenging the State; and Reilly, New Paths to Democratic Development in Latin America.
20. A Escobar & SE Alvarez (eds), The Making of Social Movements in Latin America: Identity, Strategy, and Democracy, Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1992; and Grindle, Challenging the State.
21. FE Babb, 'Negotiating spaces: Gender, economy and cultural politics in post-Sandinista Nicaragua', Identities, 4 (1), 1997, pp 45-69; L Macdonald, 'A mixed blessing: The NGO boom in Latin America', NACLA Report on the Americas, 28 (5), 1995, pp 30-35; and TW Walker, 'Reflections', in Walker (ed), Nicaragua without Illusions: Regime Transition and Structural Adjustment in the 1990s, Wilmington, DE: Scholarly Resources, 1997, pp 297-304.
22. Grindle, Challenging the State; B Rutherford, Civil/ (Dis)Obedience and Social Development in the New Policy Agenda, Ottawa: International Development Research Centre, 1997; and Walker, 'Reflections'.
23. AP Baltodano, 'Social policy and social order in transnational societies', in Morales-Gomez, Transnational Social Policies, pp 19-41; and Grindle, Challenging the State.
24. Laclau & Mouffe, Hegemony and Socialist Struggle; and Thoryk & Roberts, Hegemony Dismantled or Hegemony Disguised?.
25. Reilly, New Paths to Democratic Development in Latin America.
26. RM Moroney & J Krysik, Social Policy and Social Work: Critical Essays on the Welfare State, New York: Walter de Gruyter, 1998; and D Schugurensky, 'Syncretic discourse, hegemony building, and educational reform'. Education and Society, 18 (2), 2000, pp 75-94.
27. E Avendana, Perfil Economico de Nicaragua 2002, Managua: Friedrich Ebert Foundation, 2002.
28. UNESCO, Education for All in the Americas: Regional Framework of Action, Paris: UNESCO, 2001.
29. A Carcamo, El Presupuesto General de la Republica y su relacion con la Education, Managua: Coordinadora Civil, 2001, pp 19-20.
30. Ministry of Education, Revista El Maestro (Managua), August-September, 1999, p 9; and S Santamaria, El Costa de Ajuste, Managua: Ediciones Imprimatur, 1998, p 17.
31. Secretaria de Acción Social (SAS), Evaluacion del Sector Social, 2001, p19.
32. 'Mas estudiantes en las aulas', Diana La Prensa, 17 January 2002.
33. 'Presupuesto social se encoge', Diario La Prensa, 2 December 2002.
34. AI Gershberg, 'Education "decentralization" processes in Mexico and Nicaragua: Legislative versus Ministry-led reform strategies'. Comparative Education, 35(1), 1999, pp 63-80.
35. Ministry of Education, Revista El Maestro, August-September, 1999, p 7.
36. 'Pobreza propicia deserción escolar', Diario La Prensa, 9 October 1998.
37. SAS, Evaluation del Sector Social, p 20.
38. '860 mil sin classes', El Nuevo Diario (Managua), 4 February 2003.
39. 'La brecha del atraso', Diario La Prensa, 2 December 2002.
40. RF Amove, 'Education as contested terrain in Nicaragua', Comparative Education Review, 39 (1), 1995, pp 28-53; Gershberg, 'Education "decentralization" processes; and SAS, Evaluation del Sector Social.
41. Interview with the Director of the Institute for Youth and Sport, February 2001.
42. In 1999 the budget of the Ministry of the Family fell by one-sixth, the result of a deep cut in allocations from government-sponsored national lottery earnings. Further cuts have continued, the most recent being a reduction of around US$2 million to its operating budget of 2000 from that of 2001. Asamblea Nacional, Ley de Modificatión a Ia Ley Anual del Presupuesto General de la Republica, 2002, Managua, 2002.
43. Ibid.
44. Interview with the Director of the National Inspectorate of Children and Adolescence within the Ministry of Labour, February 2001.
45. Ministry of Health, Analisis del Sector Salud, Manauga: Ediciones Imprimatur, 2000, pp 126-129. An estimated 55% of total aid during this period took the form of grants; much of the remainder was disbursed as low interest loans (ibid). In 2000, 78.3% of capital expenditures in all social sectors in Nicaragua (of which education received the largest proportion) originated as loans and grants from international donors. SAS, Evaluation del Sector Social, p 6.
46. 'Barrida en el sector publico', El Nuevo Diario, 4 February 2003.
47. SAS, Evaluatión del Sector Social, p 6. For the fiscal year 2002, in the educational sector an estimated 95% of capital expenditures and 13% of recurrent expenditures were to be financed through international co-operation. Carcamo, El Presupuesto General de la Republica, p 24.
48. Ministry of Health, Analisis del Sector Salud, p 126.
49. Interview with Director of Ministry of Health, Department of Adolescence, March 2001.
50. SAS, Evaluatión del Sector Social.
51. M Arena 'General economic policy', in Walker, Nicaragua without Illusions.
52. Coordinadora Nicaraguense de la Niñez (CODENI), Segundo informe de la sociedad civil; and Sistema Local de Asistencia en Salud, 'Managua', unpublished document, Managua, 2001.
53. Interview with the former Chief of Police of Managua's District VI, June 2001.
54. Government of Nicaragua, Plan de Desarrollo Integral para Ia Prevention de la Violencia Juvenil, Managua, 1999, p 1.
55. 'Disminuye actividad delictiva en Distrito Seis', Diario La Prensa, 10 December 2002.
56. At the time the Gang Plan was introduced, the municipality of Managua was divided into six large districts that functioned as semi-autonomous zones of public administration.
57. Government of Nicaragua, Plan de Desarrollo, p 4.
58. Ibid, p 2.
59. Interview with the Director of the Centro de Informacion y Asesoria en Salud (CISAS), May 2001.
60. Interview with former Chief of Police of Managua's District VI, June 2001. He indicated that the numbers of identifiable youth gangs in the district had risen from 12 to 18 within the period of a little over a year.
61. The government under Arnoldo Aleman was not averse to using the Prevention Commissions for political propaganda purposes. In the graduation ceremony in August 2000 for 63 youth in District VI who received training certificates, the President's wife was the keynote speaker and used the occasion to campaign on behalf of the government's candidate for Mayor of Managua. Similar political speeches marked the inauguration of a basketball court in District VI for which the Prevention Commission took credit. The position of the District VI Commission co-ordinator has likewise been considered a political asset. The current (third) co-ordinator was a candidate for the Assembly in the national elections of November 2001.
62. Arnove, 'Education as contested terrain in Nicaragua'.
63. Grindle, Challenging the State; Dewees & Klees, 'Social movements and the transformation of national policy'; and Rutherford, Civil (Dis)Obedience and Social Development in the New Policy Agenda.
64. Reilly, New Paths to Democratic Development in Latin America; and Walker, 'Reflections'.