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Press Release

COMMEMORATING COLUMBUS, SPAIN
REAFFIRMS LINKS WITH OAS NATIONS

Permanent Observer to the Organization of American States (OAS) Ambassador Eduardo Gutiérrez said today that over the next few decades Spain will develop even closer ties with the nations of the Americas and, in particular, with their principal meeting place, OAS

Addressing a special Permanent Council session marking the 510th anniversary of Christopher Columbus' arrival—"Discovery of the Americas: Encounter of Two Worlds"— Ambassador Gutiérrez recalled that Spain obtained observer status with the Western Hemisphere body in 1972, and has succeeded in strengthening its trans-Atlantic links.

He made reference to Spain's economic and political support to OAS activities, citing among others the $255,000 contribution to the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) and another $150,000 from the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation. He pointed as well to contributions to the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and to the OAS Special Mission to Haiti.

Permanent Council Chairman Denis Antoine, the Ambassador of Grenada, declared that Columbus was "critical to the transplantation of Western civilization in the Americas."

Ambassador Antoine said that despite the subsequent history of colonialism, slavery and tyranny, the history of the Americas would also be marked by "enlightened men and women whose nations are today represented in this Organization, whose charter reminds us that true significance of American solidarity can only mean the consolidation, within the framework of democratic institutions, of a system of individual liberty and social justice."

OAS Assistant Secretary General Luigi Einaudi stated: "Today, the presence of Spain and France in the OAS and the involvement of the nations of the Americas in dialogue and cooperation through the Ibero-American Summits and high-level meetings with the European Union are essential meeting points and bases for cooperation."

According to Einaudi, Spain today clearly demonstrates that deep transformations of nations seeking to regain liberty are collective concerns that call for involvement of all political forces. "On a date like today and as we celebrate the first anniversary of the Inter-American Democratic Charter, I think it is appropriate for us to once again pay tribute to the great Spanish democracy."

Ambassador Joshua Sears of The Bahamas, where Columbus first set foot on land in the Americas, spoke about the many profound changes that the history-making voyage set in motion. He noted as well that "globalization, a challenge during the time of Columbus, remains an even more daunting challenge today." He stressed that "economic and human security and safeguarding the interests of all in the global society and marketplace… lie at the foundation of world peace and human [and] economic development."

In his remarks on behalf of the Latin American Integration Association (ALADI) nations, Chile's Ambassador Esteban Tomic praised "those who yearned and worked for unity, each in his particular era, using the available tools."

Tomic said "things were different when the countries of the Hemisphere acknowledged their commitment to unity, and the Americas became what it is today: 34 nations united by a common ideal, with common institutions."

And, Costa Rica's Ambassador to the OAS, Walter Niehaus, urged the nations of the Americas to confront international challenges together. "Today, more than ever, we must recognize our rich diversity and work together, with tolerance and respect, towards building a world of peace and harmony."

Reference: E-201/02