MINISTERS HIGHLIGHT CONTRIBUTION OF CIVIL SOCIETY TO IMPROVE
QUALITY OF DEMOCRACY IN THE AMERICAS
June 3, 2007
PANAMA CITY, Panama –The Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the
member countries of the Organization of American States (OAS)
held an extensive dialogue today with representatives of civil
society. The meeting was held a few hours before the opening of
the 37th OAS General Assembly and was moderated by Panamanian
Foreign Minister Samuel Lewis Navarro.
Participants representing nongovernmental organizations (NGOs)
from around the hemisphere talked to the Heads of Delegation
about the main issue of this General Assembly, “Energy for
Sustainable Development,” as well as the promotion of human
rights, fundamentally in the area of gender equity, the
eradication of poverty, freedom of expression, access to public
information, the struggle against all forms of discrimination
and the fight against terrorism.
The participants addressed the need to further institutionalize
the dialogue with the OAS and its member states, as well as to
define the procedures that guarantee its effectiveness. They
expressed their appreciation for OAS Secretary General José
Miguel Insulza’s move to strengthen the relationship with civil
society by designating a permanent liaison between the General
Secretariat and the NGOs.
The foreign ministers and other delegates from Canada, Haiti,
Chile, Trinidad and Tobago, Guatemala, El Salvador, Argentina,
Brazil, Venezuela, Costa Rica, Grenada and Mexico highlighted
the positive contributions civil society has made to the
region’s democratic agenda, noting that its active participation
is an essential condition for improving the quality of democracy
in the countries of the hemisphere.
Proposal for the Creation of a Special Fund
Prior to the meeting with Heads of Delegation, the civil society
representatives held informal talks on Saturday with Secretary
General Insulza at a hotel in Panama. During the meeting, the
NGOs that work in the region raised questions related to their
dialogue with the OAS, the follow-up to different inter-American
conventions and the promotion of human rights.
The Secretary General raised the possibility of promoting the
creation of a special fund that would be made up of voluntary
contributions from the OAS member states to implement actions
they consider a priority and that are normally carried out by
civil society organizations.
“We hope to constitute a fund next year based on resources
provided by the countries. This should be made up of voluntary
contributions,” Insulza said. He added that the OAS could raise
voluntary resources for the participation of civil society
organizations—based on agreements with them—then accept
applications for grants. “We hope the NGOs that have resources
understand that there are others who have less. But in the end
there will be a bidding process,” explained Insulza.
What has still not been decided, he added, is the type of
mechanism to be used. “One could be the following: the country
that so desires could give money so that NGOs could provide
support on issues that are a priority for the states. I promise
for the next Assembly, in the reasonable lapse of a year, to
have a bidding process in place for this type of participation,”
the Secretary General told the representatives from civil
society.
Reference: GA-12-07
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