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Complaint against the Arcor campaign “Your fair share” before the Ombudsman for Children and Adolescents

Supported by public health organizations from across the region, FUNDEPS files a complaint against the Arcor campaign “Your fair share” with the Ombudsman for Children and Adolescents.

In mid-September of this year, Arcor launched the advertising campaign called “Your fair share” which states that “a healthy life is a balanced life in which to take a liking and take care of health go hand in hand.” In this way, a green front label with the phrase “Your fair share” was stamped on several products of the company, indicating “what is the recommended daily portion of what you like and it does you good”.

These types of messages have been criticized by public health specialists for being deceitful and risky, and for contradicting recommendations of human rights organizations and public health organizations such as the World Health Organization (WHO) and the Pan American Health Organization ( OPS). Commercial strategies of this kind in practice promote products with high concentrations of critical nutrients (sodium, sugar, fats) whose regular consumption has a harmful effect on health. In fact, Argentina leads the rates of childhood obesity in Latin America.

This commercial strategy violates the right to health and food for children and adolescents. That is why we decided to make a complaint to the Ombudsman for the Rights of Children and Adolescents of the Province of Córdoba, as a public body in charge of protecting the rights of these groups. Our presentation asks:

  • that the means to respond to Arcor’s advertising campaign “Your Fair Share” be determined for the impact on the rights to health and food of children and adolescents;
  • that mechanisms be put in place for the dissemination of correct and scientific information on healthy eating and in particular regarding this campaign;
  • that the Executive and Legislative Power of the Province be urged to strengthen the regulatory framework to prevent commercial actions such as this one from being carried out, which violate the right to health and food of children and adolescents.

Argentina’s current regulations related to food labeling and marketing techniques are ineffective in adequately protecting the right to health and food, which leaves room for companies to take advantage of these legal gaps, confuse consumers and consumers, and limit their choices.

In this way, the State fails to comply with its obligation to protect the human right to health, which requires that the actions of third parties not affect the effective enjoyment of the right to health of a group of people. This implies a violation of human rights obligations as long as the State fails to comply with the recommendations of monitoring bodies on how to deal with the obesity epidemic. Different organs and specialized offices such as the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, the Committee on the Rights of the Child or the Rapporteurs for the right to health or the right to food have marked that the epidemic of obesity is definitely a human rights problem.

This situation demonstrates the need to strengthen the existing regulation and the implementation of effective mechanisms aimed at restricting these deceptive marketing practices and preparing a nutritional label that provides the necessary information to ensure the right of consumers and consumers to clear and truthful information, contributing to the choice of healthier options.

Furthermore, considering that this marketing strategy does not facilitate access to information, it directly targets children and generates confusion about critical aspects of these products, since FUNDEPS is investigating a possible violation of the legal framework of consumer protection. This could imply a breach of the company’s duty to provide adequate and accurate information, and the prohibition of misleading advertising, affecting the right to health and healthy eating of consumers, fundamentally in children and adolescents

Beyond these considerations on the need to improve the current regulatory framework and on an eventual violation of consumer protection regulations, the presentation before the Ombudsman’s Office aims to limit a strategy that affects the rights to health and nutrition. boys and girls. In this sense, Juan Carballo, Executive Director of FUNDEPS, argues that this proposal seeks that an agency in charge of looking after the interests of children and adolescents, pay special attention to a campaign that affects their rights. “We hope that Arcor can be aligned with the practices recommended by specialized health agencies. In addition, in this way it would not fall into a double standard depending on the country in which its products are sold ”

While in Argentina the same product is promoted with the label “your fair measure”, in Chile it receives the triple warning of product “high in saturated fats”, “high in calories” and “high in sugars”:

Arguments against the campaign:

  • The campaign promotes ultra-processed foods in the context of health emergency due to the high prevalence of overweight and obesity in NNyA
  • The campaign uses deceptive marketing techniques
  • The campaign puts the health of children and adolescents at risk
  • The campaign emphasizes individual responsibility
  • The campaign violates the right to information of consumers
  • The campaign is presented in products of “small portions” and not for 100 grams
  • The campaign is based only on calories

Adhere:

  • Dirección General de Enfermedades Crónicas No Transmisibles – Ministerio de Salud de la Provincia de Córdoba
  • Coalición Latinoamérica Saludable (CLAS)
  • Fundación Interamericana del Corazón y sus afiliadas en México, Argentina, Bolivia y Caribe
  • CISPAN Centro de Investigaciones Sobre Problemáticas Alimentarias Nutricionales (UBA), Argentina
  • IFMSA (International Federation of Medical Students Associations) y su sede nacional de Argentina, IFMSA-Argentina
  • Consumers International Latinoamérica
  • ACT Promoción de la Salud, Brasil
  • El Poder del Consumidor, México
  • Alianza por la Salud Alimentaria, México
  • Instituto de Investigaciones en Salud y Nutrición (ISYN), Quito, Ecuador
  • Alianza para el Control de ECNT Chile
  • Frente por un Chile Saludable
  • Fundación EPES, Santiago, Chile
  • Guillermo Paraje, Profesor titular de Economía, Escuela de Negocios, Universidad Adolfo Ibáñez, Chile
  • Alianza ENT-Uruguay
  • Centro de Investigación para la Epidemia de Tabaquismo, CIET-Uruguay
  • Asociación Uruguaya de Dietistas y Nutricionistas – Uruguay
  • Instituto Nacional de Cáncer, Uruguay
  • Instituto Brasileiro de Defesa do Consumidor – IDEC, Brasil
  • FEMAMA, Porto Alegre, Brasil
  • Educar Consumidores, Colombia
  • Fundación Colombiana de Obesidad (FUNCOBES))
  • Mesa por las ENT Colombia
  • Corporate Accountability, Colombia
  • Alianza ENT-Perú
  • COLAT (Comisión Nacional Permanente de Lucha Antitabáquica). Perú
  • ESPERANTRA (Asociación de Pacientes y Usuarios de Servicios de Salud de Perú)
  • SLACOM Sociedad Latinoamericana y del Caribe de Oncología Médica
  • Coalición México Salud-Hable, México
  • Salud Crítica, México
  • Contrapeso, México
  • Public Health Institute

Contact:

Juan Martin Carballo – juanmcarballo@fundeps.org

Agustina Mozzoni – agustinamozzoni@fundeps.org

Available?: Complaint to Arriba Córdoba on Channel 12 for media violence

On September 19 during the transmission of Arriba Córdoba, the morning news channel of Canal 12 in Córdoba, its driver, Jorge Cuadrado, showed on screen a picture of the actress and singer Jimena Barón, entitled “Jimena Barón, again available.” The treatment of the theme, in a jocular tone and clearly reifying of the woman, results repudiable.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

“Available”, according to the RAE means: 1. Adj. Said of one thing: That it can be freely available or that it is ready to be used or used.3. Adj. Said of a person: Free from impediment to provide services to someone. In this way, they place a woman as a thing that can be freely disposed of, is ready to be used, and is free from impediment to provide services. Since the term “available” was used to refer to the fact that she is single and since Jimena is heterosexual, it is clear that the subject who can “dispose” is a man.

We consider that it is a clear case of Mediaeval Violence and Symbolic Violence in accordance with the definitions Law 26,485 of Comprehensive Protection to Prevent, Punish and Eradicate Violence against Women, and which are also contemplated in Law 26,522 on Audiovisual Communication Services. It also violates and transgresses all guidelines stipulated in the different Guidelines for the Journalistic Treatment Responsible for Violence against Women cases. Therefore, on September 20, we made the corresponding complaint to the Observatory of Symbolic and Mediatic Violence of INAM (National Institute for Women).

It has not yet responded to our complaint, so it is worrying in relation to the commitments made by the INAM regarding the approach to media violence presented in the National Plan of Action for the Prevention, Assistance and Eradication of Violence Against Women.

We continue asking that the media engage in the promotion and respect of equality, avoiding content that reproduces forms of media violence against women, respecting their integrity and their rights at all times. Their role in the construction of meaning is fundamental and they must comply with the laws and avoid practices that promote discrimination, reification and stereotyping of women.

In a context of changing times and advances to dismantle discriminatory structures based on gender, journalistic treatments of this kind do nothing but subtract in the necessary social evolution and contribute to reinforcing violent patriarchal orderings.

Likewise, we urge all public entities to receive complaints for media violence, to fulfill their institutional role of being at the service of citizens, to respond to such cases in a timely manner, and to seriously commit themselves to this struggle.

Author
Emilia Pioletti

Contact

Virginia Pedraza, vir.pedraza@fundeps.org

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With Integral Sex Education you don’t get involved

Last Thursday, Córdoba awoke with posters of the campaign #ConMisHijosNoTeMetas on public roads and urban collectives. The slogan was born a few weeks ago, when the reform of the Law of Comprehensive Sexual Education was discussed in the plenary session of the National Congress commissions. On that occasion, an opposition group demonstrated to prevent progress with this legislation, arguing that Comprehensive Sexual Education could not become “indoctrination” by ideology, giving rise to the slogan of this campaign.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”

 

A necessary reform

The Law of Integral Sexual Education (ISE) N ° 26,150, in force since 2006, never had an effective national compliance. During the months in which the legalization of the Voluntary Interruption of Pregnancy was debated, Integral Sexual Education was mentioned as an urgent policy both by those who promoted the legalization of abortion and by those who opposed it. In the 2017 Learning tests, 8 out of 10 high school seniors said that sex education and gender violence are issues that the school should address and it does not.

On September 4 (World Sexual Health Day), a majority opinion was reached in the plenary of commissions that dealt with a project to reform the law of ESI. It seeks to strengthen the law to make it clear that it is mandatory in the entire national territory, in institutions of state or private management, beyond the “institutional ideology and the convictions of its members.” In this way, access to a fundamental human right that has been legally recognized for 12 years will be deepened.

That confabulation can be seen

However, the opposition sectors did not take long to be heard and began with a campaign on social networks with statements such as “with the children,” “the children are the parents, not the State” and “not the gender ideology in the school”. They define “gender ideology” as that “set of anti-scientific ideas that, for authoritarian political purposes, uproot human sexuality from its nature and monopolize it through culture.” They affirm that “the deconstruction of the human being will lead to chaos and extinction, as we have already done with nature and other species.” And in their documents they present false concepts about what is sex, gender, sexual orientation and identity. gender, with statements such as “there are only two genders”, “no one is born in the wrong body” and that trans people “suffer from gender dysphoria”.

The role of the Municipality in matters of public space advertising

This misleading and malicious campaign not only circulated through social networks. Hundreds of posters with the slogan “#ConMisHijosNoTeMetas – Yes to sex education, not gender ideology” appeared in spaces of municipal public domain in the city of Córdoba, in flagrant violation of articles 1, 15 ° clause a) and 40th paragraph e). of the Ordinance N ° 10378 of “Regulation of advertising carried out through advertising in the City of Córdoba”.

That is why, together with the Córdoba de Todos Foundation, and with the support of more than 50 social organizations, we made a presentation requiring the Municipality to immediately withdraw the advertisements. We argue, on the one hand, that the campaign violates the spirit of the ordinance, which aims to “regulate the advertising carried out by advertising in spaces or places of the Municipal Public Domain or susceptible to be perceived directly from them, with the purpose to safeguard public safety and morality, as well as to preserve and promote the cultural, aesthetic, landscape, urban and historical values ​​within the municipal ejido. ” On the other hand, the ordinance establishes in article 15 that the announcements can not be contrary to the law, affect morality or good customs, or be discriminatory. This applies to public road signs as well as to mobile advertisements, that is, those that were mounted on vehicles of the Public Transport Service (article 40).

Numerous media echoed our claim. Just a day later, we learned that the Coniferal company, concessionaire of the transport service, decided to remove the advertising of the lunette of their cars.

A fundamental human right

Integral Sexual Education is a human right of which the girls, boys and adolescents of our city are inalienable holders. This has been recognized by the Special Rapporteur for the Right to Education, who in his report to the United Nations General Assembly stated “The right to education includes the right to sexual education, which is a human right in itself, which in turn is an indispensable condition to ensure that people enjoy other human rights, such as the right to health, the right to information and sexual and reproductive rights. ”

This is consistent with the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child, adopted by the General Assembly of the United Nations in 1999 and approved by National Law 23,849 in our country a year later, which obliges the States Parties to respect the stated rights and to ensure their application “to every child subject to their jurisdiction, without distinction whatsoever, regardless of race, color, sex, language, religion, political or other opinion, national, ethnic or social status, economic position, physical impediments, the birth or any other condition of the child, his parents or his legal representatives “(article 2). It also orders them to adopt “all administrative, legislative and other measures to give effect to the rights recognized in this Convention, and with respect to economic, social and cultural rights” to the maximum extent possible. dispose … “(article 3).

It is a non-delegable obligation of the State to build the conditions for the fulfillment and active exercise of all rights, and this can not be an exception. The exercise of this right of children and adolescents can not be hampered by a campaign that misinterprets and confuses what should be understood by Comprehensive Sexual Education, except in areas of Municipal Public Domain.

Saying “ConMisHijosNoTeMetas” means reducing the exercise of this right exclusively to the family. It puts children and adolescents in a passive place, contrary to the current paradigm that must respect them as subjects of law. We understand that families are key in the path of education, and their role is unavoidable, but it is also absolutely necessary that there are public policies to guarantee this human right.

And now?

We still await a favorable response from the Municipality of Córdoba, which stated in the media that the issue is under study and will be analyzed in the coming days.

With our claim we do not seek to limit freedom of expression, although we do not share the ideology of those who promote the campaign. We understand that freedom of expression is a fundamental human right, but can we say anything by protecting ourselves in this right? Or is there a limit when words violate other human rights? Advertising, as well as the media, is one of the determining agents in the transmission of cultural patterns, and can collaborate both in the promotion of values ​​respectful of human rights and in the perpetuation of inequalities. The regulation of the content that is promoted in the public space, such as the municipal ordinance on which we base our claim, marks that limit. In addition, as we explained in our presentation to the Municipality, it is not appropriate to use municipal public domain spaces to disseminate messages that “weaken channels of dialogue, describe in a pejorative manner positions endorsed even by official bodies for the protection of human rights, and incite violence and democratic intolerance. ”

We also believe that it is essential that the government promote a campaign strengthening its commitment to the full implementation of the Law of Comprehensive Sexual Education, taking into account that in our city we have municipal public schools where the expressions of the advertising campaign in question can have generated confusion and conflict.

It is important to understand that what is in conflict is the Comprehensive Sexual Education, understood from a human rights approach and respect for sexual and gender diversity, consistent with our current legal framework and international standards that regulate the subject. It is this sexual education, as the fundamental right of our children and adolescents, that we must defend.

Contacts

Mayca Balaguer, maycabalaguer@fundeps.org

 

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Escazú Agreement: An opportunity to guarantee the application of Principle 10 in LAC

“Regional Agreement on Access to Information, Public Participation and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters in Latin America and the Caribbean” was approved in Escazú, Costa Rica, on March 4, 2018, officially opens to the signature of the 33 countries of Latin America and the Caribbean. It requires that 11 countries sign and ratify it to enter into force.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

On the day of the date, the Escazú Agreement is opened for signature at the 73rd General Assembly of the United Nations, in New York. The agreement adopted by 24 countries of the region on March 4, will be open for signature by the 33 countries of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC) until September 26, 2020 and will need the ratification of 11 countries to enter into force.

The treaty seeks to guarantee the full and effective application of Principle 10, embodied in the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development of 1992, in Latin America and the Caribbean. For its part, Principle 10 seeks to ensure that everyone has access to information, participates in decision-making and accesses justice in environmental matters, in order to guarantee the right to a healthy and sustainable environment of present generations and future.

The importance of the Escazú Agreement is that it is the first of its kind in the world that includes specific binding provisions for the protection of individuals, groups and organizations that promote and defend human rights in environmental matters. Likewise, it is the only binding treaty issued by the UN Conference on Sustainable Development (Rio + 20).

In particular, for Argentina, which is characterized by having the highest deforestation rates in the world, as well as the lack of access to environmental information and the lack of participatory public policies, the entry into force of this binding regional agreement will allow the strengthening of access rights in environmental matters.

In the same sense, it will allow preventing the environmental costs of the decisions that have to do with the economic development and to improve the management of the multiple socio-environmental conflicts existing in the territory.

For these reasons, we present a letter to the former Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development and another to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship, urging the signature and adhesion of the Argentine government to the Escazú Agreement.

Also, through a press release, UN human rights experts urge the States in Latin America and the Caribbean to sign and ratify, as soon as possible, a pioneering environmental treaty for the region.

The experts added that States should adopt, in their strategies to achieve the UN Sustainable Development Goals, an approach that encompasses society as a whole. They also noted that an essential aspect of States’ international human rights obligations is to ensure the protection, respect and support of individuals who raise concerns about the negative impact on human rights, including in the context of the development of human rights. projects that involve companies

“By signing and promptly ratifying this innovative treaty, the Latin American and Caribbean States will reinforce their firm commitment to environmental protection and human rights, and above all, they will send an unequivocal message in favor of multilateralism, solidarity, equality and regional integration, while promoting collaboration with other regions, “they said.

We believe that the entry into force of the regional agreement will be a fundamental step towards achieving a true environmental democracy. Therefore, we urge Argentina and other countries of Latin America and the Caribbean to sign and ratify, as soon as possible, this historic treaty for the region.

 

More information

Contact

María Pérez Alsina – mariaperezalsina@fundeps.org

Agustina Palencia – agustinapalencia@fundeps.org

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Discussion on “Transparency and Accountability”

On Wednesday, October 3, the “Transparency and Accountability” Conversation will be held at The Tech Pub located at Velez Sarfield 576 – 5th floor, City of Córdoba.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”

Admission is free and with limited requirements, to attend you must complete the form by clicking here

The conversation has two panels in which there are several topics, among them:

  • Access to information and environmental justice
  • Public-private partnerships
  • Transparency in the penitentiary system
  • Open Government

The people who will speak will be:

  • Leandro Gómez – Environment and Natural Resources Foundation (FARN)
  • Valeria Enderle – Environmental Culture Foundation Causa Ecologista (CAUCE)
  • Fabiola Cantú – Latin American Center for Human Rights (CLADH)
  • María Gabriela Larrauri – Civil Association for the Construction of an Open Government (AGA)
  • Melisa Gorondy – Federal Institute of Government (IFG)

We will wait for you!

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We urge the accession of Argentina to the Escazú Agreement

Through a letter addressed to the former Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development and another to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Worship, we request the signature and adhesion of the Argentine government to the Escazú Agreement. The agreement will be open for signature from September 27, 2018 and needs 11 countries in the region to sign and ratify to enter into force.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”

The Escazú Agreement is the “Regional Agreement on Access to Information, Public Participation and Access to Justice in Environmental Matters in Latin America and the Caribbean,” adopted in Escazú, Costa Rica, on March 4, 2018 , by 24 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, including Argentina. After a negotiation process that formally began in 2012 at the Rio +20 Conference with the Declaration on the Application of Principle 10 of the Rio Declaration on Environment and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean, it was adopted an agreement that seeks to guarantee the effective implementation of access rights: access to information, public participation and access to justice in environmental matters. It will be open for signature by the 33 countries of Latin America and the Caribbean at the United Nations headquarters in New York, from September 27, 2018 to September 26, 2020, and will be subject to subsequent ratification, acceptance or approval of the States that have signed it. At least 11 countries must sign and ratify it so that it can enter into force. In order to achieve the entry into force of the Escazú Agreement, we presented a letter addressed to the former Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development, Rabbi Sergio Bergman, and another letter to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Worship, Jorge Marcelo Faurie, requesting the signature and adhesion of the Argentine government to the regional agreement. At the same time, we urge you to support the efforts of the governments and civil society organizations of Latin America and the Caribbean to invite the other governments of the region to sign this important treaty. In the letter addressed to the national authorities we highlighted the importance of the regional agreement since it is the first treaty on environmental issues in Latin America and the Caribbean, as well as the first in the world to guarantee the protection and safety of people, groups and organizations defending human rights in environmental matters. We hope that Argentina, as well as the other countries of the region, will sign and ratify the regional agreement on Principle 10. In this way we will have an international instrument to reaffirm the right of all people to a healthy environment and sustainable development, the fight against inequality and discrimination, as well as ensuring the participation of citizens in decisions that affect their lives and environment.

 

More Information:

Writer: Ananda Lavayen

Coctact:

María Pérez Alsina: mariaperezalsina@fundeps.org

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Reporting to the DESC Committee

In collaboration with other civil society organizations, we made several reports to the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (DESC) for its session No. 64. Through them we intend to bring critical observations and recommendations on issues related to DESC that have been part of the work agenda of our organization, and so give an update of the report presented at the instance of sessions of the Preparatory Working Group, in 2017.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”

Argentina has ratified the International Covenant on Economic and Cultural Rights (PIDESC), committing itself to comply with the obligations derived from this pact. The ICESCR, like other human rights treaties, establishes a set for monitoring its level of compliance: the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR). In this sense, the Supreme Court has recognized this committee as an “authorized interpreter” of the Covenant, which sometimes has a constitutional hierarchy.
The monitoring mechanism established in the same includes, in turn, the possibility of participating in civil society in different stages, through the presentation of reports: the Committee receives reports from the State as well as from civil society and evaluates them, for Then issue your Final observations. The importance of these observations is that they are used as tools to demand compliance with human rights standards in the matter of ESCR.
In this context, we have presented several reports that warn about the situations of rights being affected in different areas.

Health:

  • Situation of chronic noncommunicable diseases in Argentina:

We recommend urging the State to adopt some measures to reduce the consumption of tobacco products and unhealthy foods.

Among them, the limitation of advertising aimed at children, the adoption of a more simple and understandable nutrition labeling, the raising of taxes, the ratification by the Argentine State of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control and the adoption of measures that protect especially vulnerable groups.

  • Current situation regarding marketing practices of milk formulas:

In this regard, we recommend urge the Argentine government to regulate and restrict the marketing strategies of formulas of breast milk, to continue to promote breastfeeding beyond awareness campaigns, to prevent interference from industry processes related to the field of public health and to promote transparency in the sponsorship of academic events and research.

  • Situation of the regulations of geriatric residences:

We recommend the enactment of a national law that establishes minimum budgets to be guaranteed in all nursing homes in the country, in accordance with the rights and paradigm established in the Inter-American Convention for the Protection of Older Persons, as well as local laws that accept this paradigm. Likewise, it is recommended to urge the Argentine State to publicize the data related to the authorizations and controls of said residences.

  • Lack of access to sexual and reproductive rights:

The situation of low access to contraceptives and abortion practices is worrisome in cases allowed by law. We recommend then to urge the State to provide the necessary supplies to comply with sexual and reproductive rights, as well as to ensure that conscientious objection does not impede access to them. Finally, we recommend urging the State to train health professionals, in accordance with the international standards set by WHO for access to safe abortion, and the promotion of legislative discussion for the legalization of abortion.

Democracy

  • Current situation of the Ombudsman’s Office:

This institution continues to abide by it for 11 years, which is configured as a weakening of the DESC protection system. In this regard, we have recommended, among other things, to designate as soon as possible a person in charge of the Office of the Ombudsman of the Nation and to reformulate the procedures for selecting it.

  • Access to public information on environmental matters:

We recommend that the Committee urge the State to guarantee access to public information on environmental matters in view of the progress of major infrastructure projects, extractive industries and Chinese investments; promoting the creation of instances and / or mechanisms of citizen participation. In addition to promoting the protection of those who defend their rights and oppose the advancement of large infrastructure projects.

  • Draft Bill of Collective Proceedings:

We recommend that the State abstain from promoting the Draft Bill of collective actions before the National Congress and promote a regulation that conforms to current international and constitutional standards in terms of access to justice and effective judicial protection of groups in vulnerable situations.

Ambient

  • Use and application of agrochemicals:

We warn about the effects on the right to health derived from the use of agrochemicals; recommending the adoption of a national regulation that regulates the use and application of agrochemicals and requesting the revision and adaptation of national and provincial regulations to the new categories established by the WHO regarding the classification of phytosanitary products. In addition, the adoption of measures to minimize the impact of the use of agrochemicals and periodic epidemiological evaluations is recommended.

More Information

Contacts

Agustina Mozzoni: agustinamozzoni@fundeps.org

Carolina Tamagnini: carotamagnini@fundeps.org

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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In the interior of Córdoba there is also talk of communication

From September 3 to 5, the XXth Congress of REDCOM and the First Latin American Communication Congress of the UNVM took place at the National University of Villa María. “Communications, powers and technologies: from local territories to global territories”. From FUNDEPS we present a paper giving an account of the data obtained in our research on the participation of women in the media in their areas of work.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

The 20th REDCOM Congress is a space built to integrate the Latin American perspective into academic, social and political debates on communication, promote the dialogue of the different spaces in the construction of the human right to communication, and deepen each dimension thematic through the diversification of means for their expression, among others.

In this framework, we present the results obtained in the research carried out together with the Civil Association Communication for Equality, “Media and gender organizations: Equality of opportunities for women and LGTTBIQ + people in companies, unions and universities.” The main objective of this report was to investigate access to equal opportunities for women and the LGTTBIQ + community in the work environments of the media.

Inequalities in access to employment opportunities, from a gender perspective, have multiple causes, and require the implementation of social, cultural and political change mechanisms for their real prevention and eradication.

But in certain areas, inequality also has other consequences, such as in the field of communication. If we understand the media as opinion and socio-cultural values ​​educators, the lack or little representation of the various groups of our society, also leads to such unequal representation is reflected in the media content, reproducing the same values ​​that give place to discrimination.

In this sense, in order to achieve a real and democratic representation of the voices of the whole society in the media (recognizing them as agents of opinion) it is necessary to begin to combat inequalities in access to job opportunities and professional development of all people, with a focus on women, the LGBTTIQ + community, and on historically violated groups. We celebrate the space granted by UNVM and REDCOM, to the academic community and to civil society organizations, to discuss and make visible the needs of building communication in our country from an inclusive perspective, gender and human rights.-

Contact

Virginia Pedraza

vir.pedraza@fundeps.org

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Health and law: internship at the O’Neill Institute of Georgetown University

FUNDEPS, in collaboration with the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University and the Faculty of Law of the National University of Córdoba, announces renewal of the internship program.

Internship rented in the months of January, February and March 2018 at the O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University in Washington DC.

Calling institutions:

– O’Neill Institute for National and Global Health Law at Georgetown University Law Center

– Facultad de Derecho y Ciencias Sociales de la Universidad Nacional de Córdoba

– FUNDEPS – Fundación para el Desarrollo de Políticas Sustentables

Requirements for the presentation:

– Be enrolled as a regular student of the career of Advocacy in the Faculty of Law and Social Sciences of the National University of Córdoba.

– Have passed or are pursuing International Public Law.

– Have a general average, with postponements, of 7 or more points.

– Have an excellent command of the written and oral English language.

Selection mechanism:

– Deadline for submission of applications: September 26, 2018.

– A Selection Committee of the UNC will choose a list of between five and seven pre-selected people, who will be called to an interview to be developed in English on September 28, 2018, instead of confirming.

– On October 1, 2018, the UNC Selection Committee will send a list of three to five people to the O’Neill Institute for National, whose team will decide the person selected for the internship.

– The selected person must participate, during the months of October, November and December, in activities related to the human right to health, in the FUNDEPS team.

Documentation to present:
– Letter of motivation in English justifying the application to the internship program of the O’Neill Institute
– Curriculum vitae detailed in English, in no more than 3 pages
– Scanned copy of the analytical certificate (not electronic version)
* The materials must be sent in digital format in a single file in Acrobat Reader format (.pdf) to the address: info@fundeps.org, indicating in the subject: Call O’Neill – “Name of the candidate”.

Selection criteria:
– Average.
– Interest in the area of ​​right to health or human rights.
– Academic research experience.
– Work experience in civil society organizations.
– English level.

Financing:
– The compensation granted by the O’Neill Institute during the months of the rented internship (January, February and March) allows to cover accommodation and living expenses during those months as well as the tickets from Cordoba to Washington, DC.
– FUNDEPS offers a credit of honor for those who need support to face the anticipated cost of the air ticket payment, in conditions to be determined.

Queries:

info@fundeps.org

More information:

Instituto O´Neill: http://www.law.georgetown.edu/oneillinstitute

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We participate in the Public Consultation on the review of the Access to Information Policy of the IDB Invest in Buenos Aires

On August 10, IDB Invest carried out in Buenos Aires a public face-to-face consultation on the draft for its new Access to Public Information policy. This event is part of the virtual consultation currently open that BID Invest began in May of this year. The day was carried out in order to receive comments from civil society organizations.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

In May of this year, IDB Invest, the private investment arm of the IDB Group, opened an instance of public consultation to evaluate the draft document of what will be its new Access to Information Policy. In this framework, the institution decided to hold some face-to-face meetings to receive comments and to hear the opinion of civil society organizations.

On August 10, BID Invest called a face-to-face consultation in Argentina, in the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires; and FUNDEPS participated. The day lasted a couple of hours and the central axes of discussion rested on: the information to be published before the approval of a project, the information to be published during the execution of a project and the list of exceptions to the policy. From the institution, the comments made were received and it was made explicit that after the consultation process was finished, a new document would be created taking into account both the virtual consultation and the face-to-face instance. Likewise, it was pointed out that if any of the comments are not incorporated, the reason for said decision will be justified.

Regarding the call to this meeting, there are some doubts about the selection process of the organizations that were invited. 12 organizations participated and FUNDEPS was the only one from the interior of the country. In this line, the low call makes us think that the information was not circulated with the necessary precedence and it was not foreseen that several organizations and communities could not attend being that they are very far from Buenos Aires.

From FUNDEPS we recognize in a positive way the implementation of face-to-face instances for the consultation. This allows us to clarify doubts and comments about the draft in real time, while at the same time it allowed us to know the intention of the institution when it comes to re-thinking its policy. In this regard, BID Invest explained that considering the relevance of the private investment portfolio of the IDB Group, it was necessary to modernize the Access to Information policy.

In general terms the draft in question has advanced positively on the previous policy. It has improved in key instances but there are still elements to polish. Special emphasis was placed on them by civil society and comments are expected to be incorporated. In addition to the suggestions and comments we made in the framework of the face-to-face consultation, from FUNDEPS, and together with other organizations in the country and the region, we will be sending a document with written comments to contribute to the process of reviewing the Policy.

More information:

Actual Política de Disponibilidad de Información (vigente desde el 2005)

Contact:

Gonzalo Roza – gon.roza@fundeps.org

Agustina Palencia – agustinapalencia@fundeps.org

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The right to Public Education in the crosshairs

Faculties taken, others closed, others suspending their activities, mass marches, assemblies and students organizing. What is happening in the National Universities? What happens at the National University of Córdoba?

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

Since 2016, the teaching conflict continues to escalate. At that time the budget and salaries did not go hand in hand with inflation and the entire academic community rose up against this situation. Also students, being affected by these measures, joined the fight and took the Argentine Pavilion through a decision that was debated and with the approval of the majority of the Interfaculty Assembly. He was denied admission to the Rector Hugo Juri, who sits down to debate the budget of public education at the negotiating table, and many times his political decisions have repercussions throughout the UNC.

Today the situation is much more critical. They are taken: the Faculty of Psychology, the Faculty of Philosophy and Humanities (Casa Verde), the Fac. Of Arts (CePIA Pavilion), the Faculty of Communication, the Faculty of Social Sciences and a few days ago the decision was taken. Faculty of Architecture, Urbanism and Design after an Assembly attended by more than 1500 students (results: for raising the vote 905 votes, for keeping the vote 849 votes).

In all faculties, assemblies are being held in which not only a strategy is sought in conjunction with the teaching struggle, but also to claim the positioning of the student body, demanding the guarantee of their rights such as effective compliance with the systems of scholarships, payment for ad honorem posts (assistantships and paid assignments), among others. The common denominator of the claims: the right to Public Education.

Why this conflict

What is happening: the generalized economic crisis is reflected in education policies, and it feels even stronger in Public Universities. It is that, “in short, today we are more in front of a delay in the fulfillment of the budget than in the face of a genuine cut. But the magnitude of this delay is such that Universities are forced to function with about half of their resources, in a particularly difficult year due to the devaluation and the substantial increase in rates. ”

According to data from CONADU (National Federation of University Teachers), at the end of the first semester of 2018, only 25% of the annual budget had been executed. In an inflationary context and with a strong growth in the costs of services, this delay has a direct impact on the sustainability of university activities.

Why is education a right that must be fulfilled?

Education is a human right recognized by the international human rights law, particularly and expressly by the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, approved by our country by law No. 23,313.

This is of vital importance since it is an essential precondition for the exercise of the other human rights. It is a right of a “transversal” nature in relation to other human rights and its dissatisfaction puts at stake the ability to complain about the latter. Its content has been greatly expanded, since it is the budget for the full exercise of individual liberties, the strengthening and development of the human person and the dissemination, respect, and enjoyment of human rights. It is a fundamental tool given that it enables progress to the detriment of economic inequality and collaborates in the processes of emancipation and struggle of those disadvantaged and oppressed sectors.

The Argentine Constitution, since the reform of 1994, has strengthened the protection of the right to education.

The art. 75, inc. 19 orders Congress “to provide research and scientific and technological development, its dissemination and use.” In addition, the article imposes the sanction of laws that “consolidate the national unity respecting the provincial particularities; to ensure the non-delegable responsibility of the state, the participation of the family and society, the promotion of democratic values, equality of opportunities and possibilities without any discrimination; and that guarantee the principles of free and fair public state education; and the autonomy and autarky of national universities. ” Likewise, it must dictate laws that “protect the identity and cultural plurality, the free creation and circulation of the author’s works; the artistic heritage and the cultural and audiovisual spaces “.

It should again be stressed that the educational issue is a non-delegable responsibility of the State, understood in its entirety, that is to say that it covers not only the enactment of laws by the legislative branch in order to guarantee the right to education, but also the implementation of measures taken by the administration (read executive power) to that end, including those measures or positive actions aimed at achieving real equality of opportunities in access.

Now, with regard to public education, this right has as its guidelines gratuity and equity, tending to reinforce equality in a material sense of those marginal, disadvantaged and vulnerable sectors, through contributions, scholarships, subsidies and material aid of the most varied nature. The State is obliged to guarantee and not prevent every person from being educated; to facilitate and promote free access and equal opportunities and possibilities for all to receive and impart education, without any discrimination; to create their official educational establishments, guaranteeing the principles of equality, equity and gratuity; and to encourage and respect pluralistic teaching.

Intimately linked to the right to education, is the right to culture. This right implies an expansive area in which literacy is not enough either through secondary or higher levels. Thus, for the purposes of access to the benefits of culture and participation in cultural life, the State must give impetus to scientific, technological, artistic, literary, etc. progress; of research in all fields, the dissemination of its results and the use of its progress. The State can not exercise regressive policies and retreat as regards its obligation to promote cultural development.

Our Constitution establishes the incorporation of international human rights treaties to our legal system, granting them constitutional hierarchy. The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, which contains the rights to education and culture, is one of them, so it must be applied with the same force as the constitution itself.

Regarding this treaty, it is important to highlight some observations of the Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) as its official interpreter. These citations highlight the key importance of the right to education, the State’s obligation to provide funds to guarantee it and ensure its availability and accessibility. Likewise, they highlight the obligation to progressively progress towards greater effectiveness of this right and the impossibility of taking retrogressive measures regarding the level of protection of this right.

The mobilization to demand rights

Thousands of students, teachers, scientific graduates and non-teaching workers were present at a massive mobilization in Plaza de Mayo that was echoed throughout the country last Thursday. In Córdoba, the day included a sit-down, a march and a festival for the UNC. “The university is in danger. Defend the salary and the budget” were the slogans taken to the streets to demand that no further progress be made against higher education. This week it was decided to continue with work stoppage until Friday, September 7.

From FUNDEPS, we accompany the claim for measures that guarantee the effective use of economic, social and cultural rights such as the right to education.

Contact

Juan Carballo – juanmcarballo@fundeps.org

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We present observations to the “good practices” of agrochemical application

The Final Report of the Interministerial Working Group on Good Practices in the Field of Phytosanitary Applications was submitted to public consultation from July 20 to August 20. From FUNDEPS we present our observations and objections to it.

“Below, we offer a google translate version of the original article in Spanish. This translation may not be accurate but serves as a general presentation of the article. For more accurate information, please switch to the Spanish version of the website. In addition, feel free to directly contact in English the person mentioned at the bottom of this article with regards to this topic”.

Through Joint Resolution No. 1/2018, the Ministries of Agribusiness and Environment and Sustainable Development of the Nation created an Interministerial Working Group on Good Practices in the Field of Phytosanitary Applications.
The objectives of the working group were:
• Elaborate the principles for ordering national public policies on phytosanitary applications, especially in buffer zones, and
• Make recommendations regarding how to improve the adoption, control and monitoring of good practices in the application of phytosanitary products.

The Working Group is made up of representatives of both ministries, the National Service of Agrifood Health and Quality (SENASA) and the National Institute of Agricultural Technology (INTA), who had two representatives each. In addition, the Ministry of Health, the Ministry of Science, Technology and Productive Innovation, the Federal Council of the Environment (COFEMA) and the Federal Agricultural Council (CFA), who participated with only one representative, formed a part. He met six times between April 5 and July 5, 2018.

The final result was a document that proposes 12 principles and 23 recommendations, which was open to public consultation for a month through a web platform with consultative status. The participation of the society was very low, only 180 people left settled their contributions, which accounts for the little publicity that was given to the report and the public consultation carried out by both ministries.

From FUNDEPS we make some considerations and objections to the document, including:
– The Interministerial Working Group is composed mostly of representatives of agriculture;
– Absence of participation in the work process of qualified technical professionals, universities, NGOs and civil society in general.
– The need for a law as a public health issue is not analyzed;

– It is not taken into account that sprays can not be controlled. No matter how much “good agricultural practices” are adopted and climatic conditions are taken into account, the chemical products that are used have persistence in the environment and are mobilized through water and air even after the application is made;
– There is no clarity regarding the technical criteria that would be used to delimit the “buffer zones”, nor how they would be respected;
– The carrying out of epidemiological surveys from the Ministry of Health is not effectively ensured in order to know the situation of the populations near cultivation areas;
– It does not consider the principles of the General Environmental Law No. 25,675 that governs any national environmental policy, in particular the principles of prevention and precaution;
– It does not contemplate an inescindible sanctioning regime to the control and monitoring of “good agricultural practices”, among others.
One of the proposals presented in the report is to promote a national law on the application of phytosanitary products, complementary to the regulation on product registration and the law on empty pesticide containers. From FUNDEPS we support the enactment of a national law of minimum budgets referred to the application of agrochemicals guided by the precautionary principle and to establish a reference framework that protects the fundamental rights to the environment, health and quality of life of people .

More information:

Observaciones al informe sobre buenas prácticas en aplicaciones de Fitosanitarios

Grupo_Interministerial_Fitosanitarios

Authors:

Lourdes Aparicio, Juan Bautista López y María Pérez Alsina

Contact:

María Pérez Alsina – mariaperezalsina@fundeps.org