AG/DEC. 16 (XXVIII-O/98)

REAFFIRMATION OF CARACAS

(Declaration adopted at the second plenary session, held on June 2, 1998)

We, the foreign ministers and heads of delegation of the member countries of the Organization of American States, meeting in Caracas at this twenty-eighth regular session of its General Assembly, in the year marking the 50th anniversary of the adoption of the Charter;

After a half-century of progress toward a spirit of unity in the Hemisphere around the historic mission of providing for our peoples a land of freedom and an environment conducive to their integral development;

In view of the confirmed role of hemispheric partnership as essential to the welfare of our people and to strengthening a system of individual freedom and social justice based on respect for human rights within a framework of democratic institutions;

I

RECALLING that the political will to strengthen the Organization and employ it as the natural forum for political dialogue, understanding, and cooperation in the Hemisphere in pursuit of the aims of the Charter was affirmed at the centennial of the inter-American system, by the General Assembly session in Asunción;

REITERATING, in the light of the Santiago Commitment to Democracy and the Renewal of the Inter-American System, our will to promote the revitalization of the Organization of American States;

EMPHASIZING, as did the General Assembly in Nassau, that international cooperation is crucial to solving the economic, social, and environmental problems of the countries of the Hemisphere;

NOTING that, the General Assembly, in Managua, when democracy, peace, and development were acknowledged to be inseparable and indivisible parts of a renewed and integral view of solidarity in the Americas, affirmed the need for greater opportunities for the development of our peoples, based on the commonality of inter-American interests, genuine interdependence, mutual benefits, and a spirit of shared responsibility;

REAFFIRMING the value of integration, recognized by the General Assembly, in Belém do Pará, as an instrument for creating new economic and social realities and a decisive factor in freeing the Hemisphere of extreme poverty;

MINDFUL, in view of the challenges of globalization facing the hemispheric community, of the relevance of the objective, set forth by the General Assembly in Montrouis, of strengthening the capacity of multilateral organizations to promote cooperation among nations of the Hemisphere;

FIRM in the conviction, stated by the General Assembly in Panama, that multilateralism, through international cooperation, political dialogue, and joint efforts, in the context of full respect for the sovereign will of states, is an effective instrument for realizing shared aspirations and overcoming the challenges facing the Hemisphere;

REAFFIRMING that this historic occasion calls for coordinated efforts to develop, strengthen, and hone existing consensus-building mechanisms, an idea which led the General Assembly in Lima to define the OAS as the foremost instrument for consolidating a new hemispheric relationship characterized by partnership for development;

TAKING INTO ACCOUNT the important contribution of the Summits of the Americas to strengthening the OAS and revitalizing its agenda;

II

EMPHASIZING that the 1985 Protocol of Cartagena de Indias, the 1991 Santiago Commitment, General Assembly resolution AG/RES. 1080 (XXI-O/91) of 1991, and the 1992 Protocol of Washington give the Organization of American States an important role in defending and promoting democracy in the Hemisphere;

VALUING the action taken by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, in promoting and protecting the rights recognized in the 1948 American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man and the 1969 American Convention on Human Rights (Pact of San José);

CONFIRMING that the body of inter-American human rights law has been developed, since the Pact of San José, by way of the Protocol to the American Convention on Human Rights to Abolish the Death Penalty; the Additional Protocol to the American Convention on Human Rights in the Area of Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights (Protocol of San Salvador); the Inter-American Convention to Prevent and Punish Torture; the Inter-American Convention on Forced Disappearance of Persons, and the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment, and Eradication of Violence against Women (Convention of Belém do Pará);

AWARE that reinforcing democracy, peace, and the full enjoyment of human rights is central to the hemispheric agenda and a fundamental aim of the Organization;

CONVINCED that, with the entry into force of the Protocol of Managua, the Inter-American Council for Integral Development (CIDI)-a forum for inter-American dialogue that promotes joint action to address the challenges of development-is a key instrument for realizing the objectives of partnership for development and overcoming poverty;

HIGHLIGHTING the Strategic Plan for Partnership for Development 1997-2001 as a tool for defining policies, programs, and measures for CIDI in the areas of social development and the creation of productive employment, education, economic diversification and integration, trade liberalization and market access, scientific development and exchange and transfer of technology, strengthening of democratic institutions, sustainable development of tourism, sustainable development and the environment, and culture, which are priorities of multilateral cooperation;

RECOGNIZING that responsible and organized participation by communities guarantees the stability of democracy, governability, and integral development;

REAFFIRMING the need to incorporate sustainable development strategies, since they are essential to achieving economic, social, and environmental goals in a balanced and complementary manner;

POINTING TO progress made toward establishing the Free Trade Area of the Americas and the formal startup of negotiations as evidence of our countries' capacity for economic consensus, based on coexistence with bilateral and subregional agreements, as described in the March 1998 Ministerial Declaration of San José;

DETERMINED to strengthen the hemispheric response, with the entry into force of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption, to a syndrome that undermines the legitimacy of public institutions and subverts the moral order and integral development of nations;

CONFIRMING our staunch commitment to fighting terrorism in all its forms, as provided in the Declaration and Plan of Action on Hemispheric Cooperation to Prevent, Combat, and Eliminate Terrorism, as an expression of our strong condemnation and repudiation of all forms of terrorism, by whomever and however they are perpetrated, as acts that constitute a violation of the essential rights of individuals;

STRESSING that the confidence- and security-building measures recommended at the Santiago and San Salvador Regional Conferences are an important contribution to transparency, mutual understanding, regional security, and peace;

CONVINCED that strengthening representative democracy, economic and social development, stepping up integration processes, and partnership between member states are fundamental to reinforcing peace and security in the region;

RECALLING the mandate issued to the OAS at the Second Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Americas to revitalize and strengthen the institutions of the inter-American system related to the various aspects of hemispheric security;

REAFFIRMING that the hemispheric security climate has also been enhanced by the General Assembly decision to reaffirm the goals of achieving global elimination of antipersonnel land mines and converting the Western Hemisphere into an antipersonnel-land-mine-free zone, in addition to completing mine-clearing in Central America by the year 2000 and continuing with the Mine-Clearing Assistance Program in that region; recognizing as well the importance of programs for the preventive education of civilians as to the danger of antipersonnel mines, the physical and psychological rehabilitation of victims, and the socioeconomic recovery of demined areas;

REITERATING that the full ratification and imminent entry into force of the Inter-American Convention against the Illicit Manufacturing of and Trafficking in Firearms, Ammunition, Explosives, and Other Related Materials is key to combating and eradicating this serious problem and, at the same time, helps to increase confidence, security, and cooperation among states;

PERSUADED of the need to foster greater understanding of the special security concerns of small island states;

CONVINCED of the importance of the Anti-drug Strategy in the Hemisphere as a coordinated response by the Americas to reduce the illicit consumption and production of, and illicit traffic in, narcotics and psychotropic substances;

REITERATING the importance of the Declaration and Plan of Action of the Second Summit of the Americas in galvanizing an alliance against drugs, together with the aim of increasing mutual trust, dialogue, and hemispheric cooperation by developing a single, objective, multilateral process of governmental evaluation to follow up on the individual and collective progress of efforts by the Hemisphere and by all its countries to address the various manifestations of the problem;

III

MINDFUL that, just as this 50th anniversary is an invitation to celebrate the commonality of democratic values in the Hemisphere, it also commits us to achieving the full promotion and protection of the essential human rights and to establishing circumstances in which human beings can progress both spiritually and materially;

REAFFIRMING that fighting poverty is essential to peaceful coexistence, social harmony, and developing and strengthening democratic institutions;

RECALLING that, at the Second Summit of the Americas, held in Santiago, the Heads of State and Government of the Hemisphere reaffirmed the importance of education as a prerequisite to and determining factor in the social, cultural, political, and economic development of our nations;

RECALLING once more that economic growth is essential, but not sufficient in itself, for improving the quality of life, overcoming poverty, and eliminating discrimination and social exclusion, and that the region's experience shows the need for growth aimed at promoting economic development with equity and social justice; and

MINDFUL that the ideals of peace, social justice, integral development, and solidarity are constant challenges for our democracies,

REAFFIRM:

The intent to strengthen multilateralism as an expression of the unity that guides our efforts to reinforce the principles and accomplish the purposes enshrined in the Charter of the Organization of American States;

The firm commitment to review the institutional structure of the inter-American system, particularly the Organization of American States, in order to strengthen and update its responsiveness to the challenges of the coming century, adapt it to new realities in the Hemisphere, achieve greater complementarity between its various bodies, and lend it the necessary organizational efficiency, as mandated by our Heads of State and Government in the Declaration of Santiago, adopted at the Second Summit of the Americas;

The intention to continue an ongoing and creative effort to safeguard and consolidate democracy in the Hemisphere while respecting the principles of self-determination and nonintervention;

The commitment to build a culture of peace, development, and nonviolence, recognizing the right to peace as inalienable and intrinsic to human dignity;

The decision to establish, as a priority area of the Organization's activities, mechanisms for support, cooperation, and follow-up of justice system reform processes for those member states that so request;

The determination to continue to strengthen and fine-tune the inter-American system for the promotion and protection of human rights and to promote the inter-American program for the international promotion of human rights, noting that promotion and protection are related and mutually reinforcing concepts;

The decision, adopted at the Second Summit of the Americas, to promote the signature or ratification of, or accession to, as appropriate, the instruments that make up the body of inter-American law pertaining to human rights;

The commitment to complete the preparation of legal instruments to protect the rights of indigenous populations and to eliminate all forms of discrimination against persons with disabilities, and to make further progress in the study and development, in accordance with inter-American instruments, of measures designed to improve detention and prison conditions; promote and protect women's rights and institute a gender equity perspective at all levels; promote and safeguard the human rights of all migrant workers and their families; address the situation of refugees, repatriated persons, and internally displaced persons; promote the establishment and observance of the rights of children in the Americas; and guarantee respect for freedom of expression;

The intent to foster more active participation by civil society in public affairs;

The decision to continue supporting economic integration efforts with a view to achieving and consolidating free trade in the Americas and, in particular, strengthening the actions taken by the Organization regarding the legal development of integration; The intent to promote the stability of democratic institutions in the countries of the Hemisphere, for which we confirm the approach taken in the Inter-American Program for Cooperation in the Fight against Corruption, in the Declaration and the Plan of Action on Hemispheric Cooperation to Prevent, Combat, and Eliminate Terrorism, in the Anti-drug Strategy in the Hemisphere, in combating money laundering, and in the Strategic Plan for Partnership for Development 1997-2001, and we point to the importance of sharing experience to prevent illegal contributions to electoral campaign funds;

The commitment to consolidate the significant strides made in confidence and security in the Hemisphere, as a true expression of the culture and tradition of peace in the region and the democratic values that shape that peace;

The intent to continue consultations and the sharing of ideas in the Hemisphere to further the limitation and control of conventional weapons in the region;

The certainty that the security of small island states, faced with special concerns of various kinds, could be increased if policy dialogue and cooperation programs for this subregion were strengthened;

The commitment to make the utmost effort, at the highest level, to ensure the earliest possible implementation of the mandate, issued at the Second Summit of the Americas, to develop a single, objective, multilateral evaluation process to follow up on individual and collective efforts by the Hemisphere as a whole and by all its countries to address the various manifestations of the drug problem;

The determination to consolidate the agreements adopted at the Summit of the Americas on Sustainable Development in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, and, for that purpose, to strengthen existing mechanisms within the Organization; and

The firm intent to implement the actions entrusted to the Organization of American States by the Summits of the Americas in Miami and Santiago and to coordinate with other institutions in the inter-American system to carry out those tasks.

Therefore, we, the foreign ministers and heads of delegation of the OAS member states, on behalf of our peoples, and during this Assembly session marking the 50th anniversary of the Organization, reaffirm the commitment to the defense and promotion of representative democracy and human rights in the region, the firm will to achieve development with social justice, and the determination to make the Americas a land of peace and well-being.

Caracas, June 1, 1998