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OAS Announces Winners of Youth Essay Contest on Human Rights

On December 5, 2023, the Organization of American States (OAS) announced the winners of the Youth Essay Contest during the special meeting to commemorate Human Rights Day under the theme “Upholding Human Rights for Future Generations: 75 Years of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the American Declaration on the Rights and Duties of Man.” The winners from Argentina, Colombia, Ecuador, Mexico and Trinidad & Tobago read their essays virtually and were broadcast from the Hall of the Americas at the OAS headquarters.

The OAS Secretariat organized the contest in coordination with the Permanent Missions of Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Mexico, Panama, Peru, United States, and Uruguay to engage youth in describing the everyday impact of international instruments on advancing & promoting human rights. The essays covered: freedom of expression and assembly, rights of persons with disabilities, rights of women and girls, rights of LGBTQI+, indigenous peoples, sexual and reproductive health, afro-descendants, rights of migrants, and rights of older persons.

A total of 75 entries were received from 15 countries. An international panel—composed of representatives from the OAS Secretariat of Access to Rights and Equity and OAS Permanent Missions of Canada and the United States—judged the entries for relevance to the specific topics and novel approaches to problem-solving.

The winners were:

• “ Implementación de la Ley Nacional 27.610 en Argentina: Avances y desafíos a casi 3 años de su sanción ” by Antonella Perez and Carla Zapata (Argentina)

• “ Afirmando dignidad y justicia: defensa de los derechos humanos de la población afrodescendiente” by Jenny del Mar Lozano Mosquera (Colombia)

• “The key role of international instruments to ensure Indigenous Peoples’ rights” by Yairy Vega Muenala (Ecuador)

• “Advancing Human Rights for Women and Girls in Trinidad & Tobago” by Ronia Swan (Trinidad & Tobago)

• “El papel de México en la protección a personas migrantes: implementación de instrumentos internacionales y locales” by Rosario Edith Mendoza (Mexico)

This Essay Contest was part of extensive efforts by the OAS to engage youth in support of Human Rights Day, and to encourage their participation in the formulation of ideas and recommendations regarding people in situations of vulnerability in the Americas.

Other key regional actors that promote the human rights of young people, as highlighted in materials displayed at the OAS Main Building on December 5, include: the Young Americas Business Trust (YABT), the Pan American Development Foundation (PADF), the Inter-American Institute of the Child (IIN), and the U.S. State Department, through the Young Leaders of the Americas Initiative (YLAI).

Reference: E-087/23