![]() The 2005 OAS General Assembly was hosted by the United States for the first time since 1974 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida under the theme “Delivering the Benefits of Democracy.” The Declaration of Florida and Resolution 2154, adopted at the meeting, marked an important multilateral commitment to advance the hemisphere’s democratic agenda.īuilding on previous achievements of the inter-American community to address threats to democracy- Resolution 1080, the Washington Protocol and the Quebec Summit-the declaration and accompanying resolution empowered and gave the Secretary General a new mandate to develop initiatives for regional cooperation to strengthen implementation of the Democratic Charter in order to proactively address threats to democracy. ![]() If there is a clear interruption of democratic order, or if an undemocratic alteration is not remedied, the document calls for a General Assembly that may, among other things, suspend the offending government from the inter-American system, which requires a two-thirds vote of the member states. In the event that one of the OAS members should fail to uphold the essential elements of democratic life, the Democratic Charter allows a member state or the Secretary General to request an immediate convocation of the Permanent Council to consider the facts, deploy diplomatic efforts, or use other political mediation. The Democratic Charter defines the essential elements of representative democracy in very specific terms, including: respect for human rights and fundamental freedoms holding free and fair elections a pluralistic system of political parties and organizations separation of powers independence of the branches of government freedom of expression and of the press and constitutional subordination of all state institutions to the legally constituted civilian authority. The Democratic Charter prescribes steps to be taken in the event of an unconstitutional interruption of the democratic order or the unconstitutional alteration of the constitutional regime that seriously impairs the democratic order of a member state.Īrticle 1 states: “The peoples of the Americas have a right to democracy and their governments have an obligation to promote and defend it.” It also states that: “Democracy is essential for the social, political, and economic development of the peoples of the Americas.” On September 11, 2001, the OAS adopted the Inter-American Democratic Charter designed to strengthen and preserve representative democracy in the hemisphere. The promotion of peace, democracy, and good governance are core OAS concerns.
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