The purpose of this research is to look for a legal basis which a parent whose child has been abducted can retrieve his child. The Hague Convention deals with the question of parents who abduct their own children and take them to foreign countries. Discusses to what extent the African Human Rights System can complement the mechanism provided by the Hague Convention. The significance of this study is that it captures a seemingly harmless act for what it truly is. / Thesis (LLM (Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa)) -- University of Pretoria, 2007. / Dissertation submitted to the Faculty of Law University of Pretoria, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree Masters of Law (LLM in Human Rights and Democratisation in Africa). Prepared under the supervision of Associate Professor John-Jean Barya of the Faculty of Law, University of Makerere, Uganda. / http://www.chr.up.ac.za/ / Centre for Human Rights / LLM

O presente estudo teve como objetivo examinar eventuais diferenças das práticas educativas parentais com relação a filhos únicos e primogênitos de famílias com dois filhos. Participaram do estudo 22 famílias, das quais 12 com filhos únicos e 10 com dois filhos. As famílias foram emparelhadas conforme o nível sócio-econômico e pela idade e sexo dos filhos únicos e primogênitos. A idade dos filhos únicos variou entre 4,6 e 6,1 anos (M=5,5; dp=0,51) e a dos primogênitos entre 4,3 e 6,3 anos (M=5,1; dp=0,78). As mães e pais dos dois grupos responderam a uma entrevista sobre práticas educativas parentais. As entrevistas foram submetidas à análise de conteúdo. Contrariando a hipótese inicial do estudo, o teste do qui-quadrado somente revelou diferença marginalmente significativa nas práticas de mães e pais com relação ao filho único. De maneira geral, verificou-se semelhança nas práticas educativas entre mães e pais em ambos os grupos de famílias. Os resultados são discutidos à luz da literatura, com vistas a entender os fatores que podem estar contribuindo para explicar as semelhanças das práticas educativas utilizadas para filhos únicos e primogênitos. / The aim of this study was to examine eventual differences in parental child-rearing practices related to only child and first born of two children families. Twenty two families participated in this study, 12 only-child families and 10 two-children families. Families were matched according to socioeconomic level, age and sex of only child and first born. Only children’s age ranged from 4,6 to 6,1 years (M=5,5; sd=0,51) and first borns were aged from 4,3 to 6,3 years (M=5,1; sd=0,78). Mothers and fathers of both groups were interviewed about parental child-rearing practices. Answers were content-analyzed. The hypothesis of the study was not supported. According to chi-square test marginally significant differences were obtained in maternal and paternal child-rearing practices related to only child. Results indicated agreement between mother’s and father’s childrearing practices in both groups. Issues described as determinants of childrearing practices are discussed considering the role of the family in child development.

O presente estudo teve como objetivo examinar eventuais diferenças das práticas educativas parentais com relação a filhos únicos e primogênitos de famílias com dois filhos. Participaram do estudo 22 famílias, das quais 12 com filhos únicos e 10 com dois filhos. As famílias foram emparelhadas conforme o nível sócio-econômico e pela idade e sexo dos filhos únicos e primogênitos. A idade dos filhos únicos variou entre 4,6 e 6,1 anos (M=5,5; dp=0,51) e a dos primogênitos entre 4,3 e 6,3 anos (M=5,1; dp=0,78). As mães e pais dos dois grupos responderam a uma entrevista sobre práticas educativas parentais. As entrevistas foram submetidas à análise de conteúdo. Contrariando a hipótese inicial do estudo, o teste do qui-quadrado somente revelou diferença marginalmente significativa nas práticas de mães e pais com relação ao filho único. De maneira geral, verificou-se semelhança nas práticas educativas entre mães e pais em ambos os grupos de famílias. Os resultados são discutidos à luz da literatura, com vistas a entender os fatores que podem estar contribuindo para explicar as semelhanças das práticas educativas utilizadas para filhos únicos e primogênitos. / The aim of this study was to examine eventual differences in parental child-rearing practices related to only child and first born of two children families. Twenty two families participated in this study, 12 only-child families and 10 two-children families. Families were matched according to socioeconomic level, age and sex of only child and first born. Only children’s age ranged from 4,6 to 6,1 years (M=5,5; sd=0,51) and first borns were aged from 4,3 to 6,3 years (M=5,1; sd=0,78). Mothers and fathers of both groups were interviewed about parental child-rearing practices. Answers were content-analyzed. The hypothesis of the study was not supported. According to chi-square test marginally significant differences were obtained in maternal and paternal child-rearing practices related to only child. Results indicated agreement between mother’s and father’s childrearing practices in both groups. Issues described as determinants of childrearing practices are discussed considering the role of the family in child development.

O presente estudo teve como objetivo examinar eventuais diferenças das práticas educativas parentais com relação a filhos únicos e primogênitos de famílias com dois filhos. Participaram do estudo 22 famílias, das quais 12 com filhos únicos e 10 com dois filhos. As famílias foram emparelhadas conforme o nível sócio-econômico e pela idade e sexo dos filhos únicos e primogênitos. A idade dos filhos únicos variou entre 4,6 e 6,1 anos (M=5,5; dp=0,51) e a dos primogênitos entre 4,3 e 6,3 anos (M=5,1; dp=0,78). As mães e pais dos dois grupos responderam a uma entrevista sobre práticas educativas parentais. As entrevistas foram submetidas à análise de conteúdo. Contrariando a hipótese inicial do estudo, o teste do qui-quadrado somente revelou diferença marginalmente significativa nas práticas de mães e pais com relação ao filho único. De maneira geral, verificou-se semelhança nas práticas educativas entre mães e pais em ambos os grupos de famílias. Os resultados são discutidos à luz da literatura, com vistas a entender os fatores que podem estar contribuindo para explicar as semelhanças das práticas educativas utilizadas para filhos únicos e primogênitos. / The aim of this study was to examine eventual differences in parental child-rearing practices related to only child and first born of two children families. Twenty two families participated in this study, 12 only-child families and 10 two-children families. Families were matched according to socioeconomic level, age and sex of only child and first born. Only children’s age ranged from 4,6 to 6,1 years (M=5,5; sd=0,51) and first borns were aged from 4,3 to 6,3 years (M=5,1; sd=0,78). Mothers and fathers of both groups were interviewed about parental child-rearing practices. Answers were content-analyzed. The hypothesis of the study was not supported. According to chi-square test marginally significant differences were obtained in maternal and paternal child-rearing practices related to only child. Results indicated agreement between mother’s and father’s childrearing practices in both groups. Issues described as determinants of childrearing practices are discussed considering the role of the family in child development.

[pt] Na adoção tardia, a criança chega ao novo lar com um histórico, muitas vezes, repleto de rupturas e abandonos. É nesse contexto, com a demanda de reconstruir um ambiente suficientemente bom, além da busca de satisfazer as próprias motivações para uma adoção, que as famílias adotantes de crianças maiores encontrarão desafios importantes na construção do vínculo parento-filial. Esta pesquisa teve por objetivo investigar a construção do vínculo parento-filial nas adoções tardias, levando em consideração as motivações dos pais, as vivências anteriores das crianças, além das fantasias e expectativas relacionadas à criança imaginada. Para alcançar os objetivos propostos, foram entrevistados 10 sujeitos independentes, 3 homens e 7 mulheres, que adotaram crianças maiores de dois anos e as entrevistas analisadas pelo método de análise de conteúdo. Os participantes ressaltaram como principais desafios para construção do vínculo o comportamento agressivo da criança, dificuldades com regras e autoridade, falta de segurança jurídica, atraso escolar e problemas na adaptação à rotina familiar. A vivência da parentalidade se mostrou diretamente relacionada ao sentimento de responsabilidade e à imposição de regras. A principal motivação foi o desejo de ser mãe/pai, além da busca por fazer o bem. As expectativas e fantasias emergiram nas falas ligadas ao medo de não conseguir exercer a função parental de maneira plena. A forma singular como os pais acolheram as dificuldades, integrando passado e presente, de modo a reconstruir o ambiente familiar perdido, bem como o suporte oferecido pela rede, foi fundamental para a construção e manutenção do vínculo parento-filial. / [en] In late adoption, the child arrives at the new home with a history, often full of ruptures and abandonment. It is in this context, with a demand to build a good enough environment, besides the search to satisfy their own motivations for an adoption, that adoptive families of older children will find important challenges when building a parental-child bond. This research aimed to investigate the construction of the parental-child bond in late adoptions, taking into consideration the parents motivations, children s previous experiences, and the fantasies and expectations related to the imagined child. In order to achieve the proposed objectives, 10 independent people were interviewed, 3 men and 7 women, who adopted children older than 2 years old. The interviews were analyzed by the content analysis method. Participants emphasized the following as main challenges for the bond construction: the child s aggressive behavior, difficulties with rules and authority, lack of legal certainty, delay in school and problems in the adaptation with family routine. The experience of parenting was found directly related to the feeling of responsibility and the imposition of rules. The main motivation was the desire to be a parent , as well as the desire to do something good. Expectations and fantasies emerged in the speeches linked to the fear of not being able to fully exercise the parental function. The singular way that parents welcomed difficulties, integrating past and present, in order to rebuild the lost family environment, as well as the support network offered was fundamental for the construction and maintenance of the parental-child bond.

[pt] A desistência do filho ou devolução após a concretização da adoção não é reconhecida juridicamente, uma vez que a adoção possui caráter irrevogável. Assim, a devolução se configuraria como abandono, uma vez que o filho por adoção tem os mesmos direitos que o filho biológico. Todavia, durante o estágio de convivência e/ou guarda provisória, a devolução costuma acontecer por motivos diversos. Esta tese teve como objetivo investigar a vivência do processo de devolução de crianças/adolescentes na perspectiva dos pais adotantes. Realizou-se uma pesquisa qualitativa, na qual foram feitas entrevistas semiestruturadas com onze sujeitos independentes, nove mulheres e dois homens, moradores de diferentes estados do Brasil, que passaram por adoções malsucedidas. Verificou-se que o processo que leva à desistência do filho se dá, geralmente, pela intensificação dos conflitos durante o convívio mais direto. Os adotantes buscaram encontrar os motivos para o fracasso na adoção por meio da responsabilização dos profissionais à frente do caso e/ou da criança/adolescente. A temporalidade para a gestação simbólica do filho pareceu sofrer interferências tanto psíquicas quanto burocráticas. As falhas no reconhecimento da alteridade do filho apareceram como pano de fundo importante nas desistências do processo de adoção. O sofrimento dos adotantes se mostrou como aspecto que necessita de maior atenção, sobretudo nos momentos iniciais do estabelecimento do vínculo. Concluímos que o sentimento de incapacidade diante do projeto parental necessita de acolhimento e escuta por parte das equipes técnicas para que intervenções junto ao vínculo parento-filial possam ser feitas. / [en] The child s abandonment or odoption disruption is not legally recognized, since the adoption is irrevocable. Thus, the adoption disruption would be configured as abandonment, since the child by adoption has the same rights as the biological child. However, during the coexistence and / or provisional custody stage, the return usually happens for different reasons. This thesis aimed to investigate the experience of the adoption disruption of children / adolescents from the perspective of the adopting parents. A qualitative research was carried out, in which semi-structured interviews were conducted with eleven independent subjects, nine women and two men, living in different states of Brazil, who underwent unsuccessful adoptions. It was found that the process that leads to the abandonment of the child is usually due to the intensification of conflicts during the most direct interaction. The adopters sought to find the reasons for the failure in the adoption by holding the professionals in charge of the case and / or the child / adolescent accountable. The temporality for the child s symbolic pregnancy seemed to suffer both psychic and bureaucratic interference. Failures in recognizing the child s otherness appeared as an important background in the withdrawal from the adoption process. The adopters suffering proved to be an aspect that needs more attention, especially in the initial moments of establishing the bond. We conclude that the feeling of incapacity in the face of the parental project needs to be welcomed and listened to by the technical teams so that interventions with the parent-child bond can be made.

La tesi è una raccolta di tre articoli sugli effetti delle politiche per l’infanzia e le scelte dei genitori circa l’utilizzo dell’asilo nido sullo sviluppo cognitivo dei bambini. Il primo capitolo presenta una rassegna degli studi più recenti sul tema, considerando in particolare le analisi che hanno valutato gli effetti di politiche per l’infanzia e il ruolo della partecipazione pubblica nella gestione del servizio. Il secondo capitolo esplora la relazione tra la disponibilità di asili nido in Italia e i risultati scolastici dei bambini misurati dai test INVALSI relativi all’anno scolastico 2009-10. Il terzo capitolo analizza gli effetti delle scelte materne di lavoro e uso del child care sullo sviluppo cognitivo del bambino tramite la stima di un modello strutturale. / This thesis is composed by three chapters, dealing with the effects of policies for young children and parental child care decisions on subsequent child’s cognitive development. The first chapter presents a review of the most recent studies on this topic, considering in particular analyses that focus on public child care policies. The second chapter investigates the relationship between child care coverage in Italy and children’s scholastic achievement, as measured by the INVALSI test scores for the school year 2009-10. The third chapter evaluates the effects of maternal decisions concerning work and external child care use on subsequent child’s cognitive outcomes defining and estimating a behavioral model.

The research dealt with three girls in middle childhood years, in a children’s home, who were experiencing difficulties with self-blame. These difficulties were addressed through play therapy sessions using the ‘gestalt’ approach with the life story book as an aid. The motivation for the study originated during discussions with the social workers at the Abraham Kriel/Maria Kloppers Children’s Home. During these discussions the researcher became aware of the vast number of children in the caseloads of the social workers at Abraham Kriel/Maria Kloppers Children’s Home, who blame themselves for being removed from their parents’ custody. The purpose of the study was to determine whether the life story book could be used as an aid in play therapy sessions focussing on the self-blame of girls in middle childhood years, living in a children’s home. To achieve the goal of this study, a literature study was done regarding the middle childhood years, self-blame, the child in a children’s home and the use of the life story book in play therapy. An empirical study was conducted on the use of the life story book regarding the self-blame of three girls in the middle childhood years, living in a children’s home. Finally the researcher made conclusions and recommendations regarding the use of the life story book, after taking into consideration both the literature study and the empirical study. The investigation was based on applied research. For the purpose of this study, three girls in middle childhood years living in a children’s home were identified by means of purposive sampling. The girls participated in six play therapy sessions each. From this empirical research, it was clear that the life story book could be successfully used in play therapy, focussing on self-blame, with the three girls in middle childhood years living in a children’s home. As an outcome of this study, conclusions and recommendations were formulated. / Dissertation (MSD (Play Therapy))--University of Pretoria, 2006. / Social Work / unrestricted

This dissertation looks at the position of the unmarried father in South Africa with regard to obtaining access to his illegitimate child. The writer has focused on three distinct eras in South African family law: the position of unmarried fathers in terms of: the common law; Natural Fathers of Children Born out of Wedlock Act; and the Children's Act. The writer has further focused on a case study. This is to emphasis the difficulty which unmarried fathers have when attempting to go through the courts to have access to his child. In terms of South African common law, fathers of illegitimate children did not have any form of parental authority over the child. The mothers of illegitimate children have full parental authority over such children. Access in terms of South African common-law is seen as an incident of parental authority. Unmarried fathers nevertheless had the right to approach the high court to obtain access to their children, if the mother of the child refuses to allow the father to have such access. In the late 1980's and early 1990's, there was an overwhelming amount of applications brought by unmarried fathers in the high courts so as to obtain access to their illegitimate children. The case of Van Erk v Holmer 1992 (2) SA 636 (W) sparked victory for unmarried fathers when the learned judge held that all unmarried fathers of children have an inherent right of access to their children. This victory was short-lived. Subsequent case law and in particular the case of B v S 1995 (3) SA 571 (A) enforced the common law and held that unmarried fathers do not have an automatic right to their illegitimate children and that such fathers will have to apply to the high court for such access. Due to the increase in litigation in the late 1980's and early 1990's regarding a father's access to his child born out of wedlock the Natural Fathers of Children Born out of Wedlock Act commenced on 4 September 1998. The South African legislature adopted the approach taken in the case of B v S 1995 (3) SA 571 (A) and rejected the approach taken in the case of Van Erk v Holmer 1992 (2) SA 636 (W) ie the common law continued to remain the approach taken in South Africa. Legislators recognised that the approach taken in the Natural Fathers of Children Born out of Wedlock Act does not conform to the provisions of the African Charter of the Rights and the Welfare of the Child, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and equality and dignity provisions of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. On 19 June 2006, the Children's Act was effected and will commence once promulgated in the Government Gazette. The writer then determines whether the Children's Act has in practice changed the position of the unmarried father. / JURISPRUDENCE / LLM

This dissertation looks at the position of the unmarried father in South Africa with regard to obtaining access to his illegitimate child. The writer has focused on three distinct eras in South African family law: the position of unmarried fathers in terms of: the common law; Natural Fathers of Children Born out of Wedlock Act; and the Children's Act. The writer has further focused on a case study. This is to emphasis the difficulty which unmarried fathers have when attempting to go through the courts to have access to his child. In terms of South African common law, fathers of illegitimate children did not have any form of parental authority over the child. The mothers of illegitimate children have full parental authority over such children. Access in terms of South African common-law is seen as an incident of parental authority. Unmarried fathers nevertheless had the right to approach the high court to obtain access to their children, if the mother of the child refuses to allow the father to have such access. In the late 1980's and early 1990's, there was an overwhelming amount of applications brought by unmarried fathers in the high courts so as to obtain access to their illegitimate children. The case of Van Erk v Holmer 1992 (2) SA 636 (W) sparked victory for unmarried fathers when the learned judge held that all unmarried fathers of children have an inherent right of access to their children. This victory was short-lived. Subsequent case law and in particular the case of B v S 1995 (3) SA 571 (A) enforced the common law and held that unmarried fathers do not have an automatic right to their illegitimate children and that such fathers will have to apply to the high court for such access. Due to the increase in litigation in the late 1980's and early 1990's regarding a father's access to his child born out of wedlock the Natural Fathers of Children Born out of Wedlock Act commenced on 4 September 1998. The South African legislature adopted the approach taken in the case of B v S 1995 (3) SA 571 (A) and rejected the approach taken in the case of Van Erk v Holmer 1992 (2) SA 636 (W) ie the common law continued to remain the approach taken in South Africa. Legislators recognised that the approach taken in the Natural Fathers of Children Born out of Wedlock Act does not conform to the provisions of the African Charter of the Rights and the Welfare of the Child, the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child and equality and dignity provisions of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. On 19 June 2006, the Children's Act was effected and will commence once promulgated in the Government Gazette. The writer then determines whether the Children's Act has in practice changed the position of the unmarried father. / JURISPRUDENCE / LLM