In advance of the 21st Pan American Child and Adolescent Congress, the United Nations General Assembly, the Government of Brazil, together with the Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights, the Latin American and Caribbean Chapter of the Global Movement for Children, and the NGO Group on Children without Parental Care based in New York, convened an international consultation on the elimination of violence against children in alternative care. Experts in government and civil society gathered together to discuss promising practices and strategic actions for the implementation of the provisions of the Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children, as well as the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights' recent report on "The Right of Boys and Girls to a Family. Alternative Care. Ending Institutionalization in the Americas."
The group of experts issued a position statement urging the Inter-American Children's Institute to take a stand on its commitment to de-institutionalisation of children and children’s right to grow up in a violence-free environment and to to take a work approach to implementing the Guidelines for the Alternative Care of Children. The position statement also includes recommendations for states, including ensuring a de-institutionalisation process for children under three years of age.
