Media Center

Press Release

OAS Holds VIII Model Permanent Council for Interns

The Organization of American States (OAS) today held the VIII Model of the Permanent Council for OAS interns at its headquarters in Washington, DC, with the participation of 77 young interns from throughout the hemisphere.

The MOAS is organized by the departments of International Affairs and Human Resources of the OAS and has for its objective to promote democratic values among the youth of the hemisphere through simulation exercises of the main political bodies of the hemispheric Organization, where students represent each one of the Member States according to the policies of the assigned countries, and negotiate and approve resolutions to promote democracy, human rights, hemispheric security and development in the Americas.

During the VIII MOAS/PC, participants debated resolutions on the promotion of the rights of migrant workers in the Americas, and on the prevention of human trafficking of children and adolescents: Implementation of Conventional and Non-Conventional Educational Programs.

The Director of the Department of International Affairs, Irene Klinger, welcomed the interns and highlighted the importance of their participation as a complement to the experience acquired during their work in the various areas of the hemispheric Organization. She mentioned that the MOAS is the vehicle that helps them understand the reason for the programs and activities they support through their work. She underlined the importance of dialogue and consensus in the multilateral environment, as well as the need to instill democratic values among the youth of the hemisphere so they may take root in the thinking of the leaders of tomorrow. Klinger emphasized that the issues addressed are priorities on the inter-American agenda. She mentioned that 15% of global migration originates in Latin America and the Caribbean, and that one of every 35 people in the world is a migrant.

The guest speaker, Ambassador Darío Paya, Permanent Representative of Chile to the OAS, spoke about the art of negotiation in an international organization such as the OAS.

The MOAS for interns of the OAS is the latest addition to this Program, which since 1980 has sought to educate the youth of the Americas on democracy and the role of the OAS in the hemisphere through its Models for universities and high schools. The next MOAS for high school students is scheduled for December 1-4, 2010, at OAS headquarters. During the first semester of 2011, two MOAS will be held for universities in the hemisphere: the Washington MOAS, in April, and the 29th MOAS in El Salvador, in May.

All information about the MOAS Program and its activities may be found on the MOAS web page at www.moas.oas.org. For more information contact: [email protected].

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

Reference: E-439/10