GENERAL AGREEMENT ON COOPERATION BETWEEN THE SUPREME COURT OF JUSTICE AND THE INTER-AMERICAN CHILDREN’ S INSTITUTE


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The Inter-American Children’s Institute, hereinafter called IIN, represented by its Director General, Alejandro Bonasso Lenguas, and the Supreme Court of Justice (hereinafter called SCJ), a public institution represented by its President, Jorge A. Subero Isa, have signed this general Agreement on Cooperation, which is subject to the following:

CONSIDERING: 

  1. That the IIN is a specialized organization that forms part of the Organization of American States, which has been created by a resolution passed by the 4th Pan-American Child Congress in 1924 and funded in 1927 in order to promote programs of cooperation between the countries of America,-programs which are intended for improving the condition of children, young people and family concerning sanitary, educational, social, legal and cultural aspects.
  1. That it is the IIN’s priority to search for effective solutions for the problems of children, and therefore to safeguard the fulfilment and validity of the Convention on Children’s rights.
  1. That the IIN has, since its foundation, carried out tasks concerning technical cooperation, information, diffusion and training on different subjects related to childhood in this hemisphere, as well as joint activities with other public and private institutions of the Inter-American system.
  1. That the IIN has actively participated in the most important regional political forums concerning childhood, adolescence, family and social policies.
  1. That the IIN has started the implementation of its Strategic Plan for the years 2000-2004, approved by the 75th Session of its Head Board, assembled in Ottawa (Canada) in June 2000, which plans to strengthen cooperation between similar organizations acting in the region, as well as to increase the exchange of knowledge, information and experience, and to develop and promote mechanisms to facilitate replying.
  1. That the Supreme Court of Justice, through its Department of Childhood, Adolescence and Family promotes and spreads the rights of children and provides services to the community that benefit the underage and families, and that it permanently educates and trains the members of the Judiciary-particularly those judges judging Children and Adolescents-, through the National Judiciary School.

 That the Dominican Republic has signed the 1989 Convention on Children’s Rights, as well as the Kingston Consensus derived from the Fifth Ministerial Session on Infancy and Social Policies in the Americas, held in Kingston (Jamaica) from the 9th to 23rd of October of the year 2000, the Declaration Panama, derived from the Second Latin-American Conference of Ministers and High Commissioners in charge of Childhood and Adolescence, held on the 26th and 27th of October of the year 2000 in the city of Panama (Republic of Panama), the Declaration of Quebec as part of the Americas’ Summit Conference, held in Canada in April 2001, and the Declaration of Santo Domingo, derived from the Fourth Latin-American Conference of Ministers and High Commissioners on Childhood and Adolescence held in the city of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, on the 29th, the 30th and the 31st October. 

  1. That both organizations acknowledge the importance of guaranteeing the total protection of children and adolescents against any form of abuse, including bodily harm, violence, neglectful treatment, sexual abuse, commercial exploitation, sale and traffic and hard labour.
  1. That both organizations acknowledge the need for creating and consolidating national and regional information systems that provide data on the situation of children and adolescents, with the purpose of facilitating decision-making, as well as defining and evaluating policies and informing the community.

By virtue of the foregoing, the Parties agree to the following: 

SECTION 1 – OBJECTIVES 

The present agreement provides the general bases for the fulfilment of the following objectives: 

a)   Ensuring the exchange and cooperation between the IIN and the SCJ, in terms of carrying out actions aimed at children, adolescents and families from the Dominican Republic, actions which in each case will correspond to both organizations’ respective fields.

b)   Providing a legal base for future agreements between these 2 organizations, with the purpose of carrying out projects and specific plans - derived from shared interests and the request for cooperation by one of the parties. 

c)    Promote the SCJ’s participation in the Latin-American Network for Information on Childhood.

 SECTION 2 – PLAN OF EXECUTION 

In order to attain the objectives stated in this agreement the Parties commit themselves to the following: 

The execution of specific projects will be carried out through  operational agreements ensuring that everything that has been agreed will adequately function, by detailing the justification of  technical and financial contributions, as well as those of human resources or resources of any other kind.  

a)    The parties will create, if necessary, work teams in order to study the nature, depth and extension of the programs and activities that will be carried out as part of this agreement, or as part of other adequate projects. 

SECTION 3 – FORMS OF COOPERATION

 The area of responsibility in terms of exchange and cooperation, will be determined through the IIN, and the SCJ will work within the IIN’s Strategic Plan. The IIN and the SCJ will have the possibility of establishing other areas of cooperation by common consent. 

SECTION 4- FINAL PROVISIONS 

This agreement will come into force after having been signed by the parties and its duration will be four years, including the possibility of being extended for the same period of time, as well as the possibility of being modified at any time by any of the parties explicitly expressing so. 

It can be rescinded in writing 90 days beforehand, but this measure will not interrupt the fulfilment of the agreements that are being executed, which are regulated by their specific clauses. 

IN WITNESS WHEREOF the representatives of both PARTIES, having been duly authorized, have signed two copies of this agreement of the same content and validity in the city of Santo Domingo de Guzmán (National District, Dominican Republic), on the 24th day of February of the year 2003.

 

 

JORGE A. SUBERO ISA                                                 ALEJANDRO BONASSO
President of the Supreme Court of Justice                        Director General of the  IIN 

  

The Director General has signed `ad referendum’ of the Directing Council of the IIN.