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Resolution on the "Situation in Bolivia" approved by the OAS Permanent Council
November 20, 2019(Adopted by the Permanent Council at its regular meeting of November 20, 2019)
THE PERMANENT COUNCIL OF THE ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES,
RECALLING that Article 1 of the Inter-American Democratic Charter affirms that “[t]he peoples of the Americas have a right to democracy and their governments have an obligation to promote and defend it”;
RECOGNIZING the need to hold elections as soon as possible, in accordance with the Constitution of Bolivia;
UNDERSCORING the urgent need for all political, social, and institutional actors to act within a framework of respect for the rule of law and as stipulated by the Bolivian Constitution and law;
BEARING IN MIND that it must be guaranteed that the electoral process will be carried out with justice, freedom, transparency, and respect for the sovereign will of the Bolivian people; and
TAKING NOTE of the concerns expressed by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights on November 12 and 16, 2019, in relation to the acts of violence in Bolivia and to the publication of Supreme Decree No. 4078 of November 15, 2019,
RESOLVES:
1. To call upon the Bolivian authorities urgently to call elections, as mandated by the Constitution and law of Bolivia, and to promptly adopt an electoral schedule that gives certainty to the Bolivian people about an electoral process with full democratic guarantees.
2. To urge all political and civil actors in Bolivia, including all authorities, civil society, the military and security forces, and the general public, immediately to cease from violence, preserve peace, and seek a frank dialogue to promote national democratic reconciliation.
3. To call on all Bolivian authorities to ensure full and unrestricted observance and protection of human rights and to ensure that any violation thereof is held to account, in accordance with international human rights law.
4. To support the initiative of the Secretary General of the OAS to deploy, at the invitation of Bolivia, a delegation to hold preliminary high-level meetings in a bid to ensure the holding of free, fair, and transparent elections with effective guarantees within a short time.
5. To instruct the General Secretariat of the OAS, through the Secretariat for Strengthening Democracy, to grant all the requested technical support necessary for the electoral process to begin immediately, in accordance with the principles of transparency, independence, credibility, and trust consistent with international electoral standards.
Reference: S-025/19