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OAS and ParlAmericas Sign Agreement to Increase Cooperation

The Organization of American States (OAS) and the Inter-Parliamentary Forum of the Americas (ParlAmericas) today signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) through which both organizations seek to establish a framework to improve cooperation in areas of common interest, in particular democracy, legal systems, and the rule of law.

The OAS Secretary General, José Miguel Insulza, said that to the hemispheric organization "it is very important to maintain cooperation with ParlAmericas because we are convinced that the efforts they make to modernize and strengthen parliamentary branches of government are crucial to the democracy.”

The head of the OAS said Inter-Parliamentary cooperation "contributes to the strengthening of institutions and strengthens the ability of legislatures to contribute to democratic governance, which is also a priority for our Organization." He also expressed the OAS willingness to work closely with ParlAmericas, and stressed that "parliaments are the place where politics take place, therefore we need to strengthen our congresses to have better politics and broader representation."

ParlAmericas President Randy Hoback stressed that the organization he leads will work with the OAS to "strengthen common objectives," and thus improve not only "the role of parliamentarians" but "the quality of democracy in the Western Hemisphere.”

Hoback, Member of the Canadian Parliament, highlighted the benefits of bringing together parliamentarians from different countries of the region and facilitating the exchange of experiences, communication and best practices on topics as diverse as trade, security, democratic development and representation. "This inter-American dialogue allows us to bring people together," he said.

The signing was held at OAS headquarters in Washington, DC, and was attended by the Chairman of the Permanent Council and Permanent Representative of Haiti, Ambassador Duly Brutus; ParlAmericas Executive Secretary Gina Hill; and several Representatives of Missions to the OAS.

Prior to the signing ceremony, the OAS Secretary General and the President of ParlAmericas held a meeting in which they talked about the importance of Parliaments in the creation and definition of Policies in the hemisphere. Other topics discussed at the meeting included: the Sixth Summit of the Americas to be held in Cartagena de Indias (Colombia) in April, the dynamics and composition of ParlAmericas and the options for more collaborative work between the two active institutions.

A gallery of photos of the event is available here.

For more information, please visit the OAS Website at www.oas.org.

Reference: E-039/12