Brasília, May 18, 2004 (Agência Brasil) - Minister Nilmário Miranda, of the Special Secretariat for Human Rights (SEDH), singled out the Sentinel Program among the government's activities to combat abuse and violence committed against children and adolescents. The Sentinel Program takes care of 17 thousand children in 315 Brazilian municipalities, he told the Agência Brasil.

The Minister also recalled the Ministry of Sports' Second Half Program, as well as efforts that count on the collaboration of entrepreneurs from the hotel, tourism, bar, and restaurant sectors, as well as taxi drivers' unions, to combat sexual tourism in the country's major tourist centers.

Miranda said he believes that Brazilians are still dissatisfied with the amount of work being done in this area, but he pointed out that success depends on the participation of society and the denunciations people make. "One cannot consider this normal and remain passive, because people end up getting used to seeing children on the street at night," he added. The ideal model, in the Minister's opinion, is one that combines repression, prevention, social policies, and treatment, even for the aggressors, who are often victims of social and mental disturbances.

PARTNERSHIPS

Among the partnerships that will be signed today, the Minister referred to the one between Petrobras and the Center of Reference, Studies, and Actions for Children and Adolescents (Cecria), to increase the response capacity of the SEDH's Dial-a-Denunciation (0800 99 0500). This service, according to Miranda, received over 50 thousand calls in the year it has been in operation. "Of this total, 5,647 were really crimes that had been committed, and the denunciations were passed along to the Public Prosecutors Office for solution," the Minister explained.

The Minister also informed that a cooperation agreement with the Metalworkers' Union of the ABC Paulista [3 major industrial suburbs in the city of São Paulo] will assure a joint effort in the formulation and implementation of government policies aimed at the rights and citizenship of children and adolescents. The SEDH and the National Anti-Drug Secretariat intend to disseminate information and develop social awareness among the firms, workers, and society of that region.

Translator: David Silberstein