The
Summit of the Americas: A Backgrounder
Remarks by the Hon. David Kilgour, MP for
Edmonton Southeast
and Secretary of State for Africa and Latin
America
At the University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta
March 16, 2001
The Summit
of the Americas next month in Quebec City
is one more milestone on the Hemisphere's
journey to sustainable peace, more fulfilled
lives for its 800 million residents and
economic prosperity. Our country has a major
role to play in fostering human dignity
and respect, as well as the rule of law,
across the Hemisphere.
Canada's
relations with its hemispheric neighbours
are deepening. Hosting the Summit is another
very important step. Today, I've been asked
to share with you the genesis of the Summit
- the story, if you like, of how we got
from Miami to Quebec City.
In 1994,
presidents and prime ministers representing
the Hemisphere's 34 democratically elected
governments met together for the first time
at the Summit of the Americas in Miami.
At the dawn of the post Cold War era in
the Americas, the leaders' objective was
to find mutually beneficial solutions to
the common problems facing their citizens.
They also
believed that strong hemispheric partnerships
would encourage the advancement of mutual
interests, including peace, democracy, economic
integration and social justice. Their aim
was to channel the momentum created by the
regional convergence of political and economic
values into a concrete Plan of Action for
the Americas.
This meeting
- the first Summit of the Americas - was
the beginning of what is now called the
"Summit of the Americas process"
or, simply, the "Summit process"
- a catalytic force that is modernizing
inter-American affairs and increasing political,
economic and social stability in our Hemisphere.
The unprecedented
new co-operation achieved by Summit leaders
in Miami can be attributed to the development
of a more widely shared understanding of
political and economic principles based
on democracy and free market economics in
the post Cold War period. In the seven years
since, the Summit process has ushered in
an unparalleled era of revitalized multilateralism
in the Americas.
Miami was
the first inter-American Summit that included
Canada and the island states of the Caribbean.
Prior to the event, the Summit co-ordinators
of the 34 Organization of American States
[OAS] member countries met at Airlie House
in Virginia, to agree on a multilateral
proposal for the Miami Plan of Action.
Once these
representatives of the democracies of the
Americas had reached consensus, their proposed
Plan of Action was to be presented to leaders
for approval at the upcoming Summit. The
Declaration of Principles signed by the
34 heads of state and government in attendance
in Miami in 1994 firmly established the
preservation and strengthening of democracy
as a hemispheric priority. The Declaration
also sought to expand prosperity through
economic integration and free trade, and
to guarantee sustainable development while
protecting the environment.
The Plan
of Action contained 23 initiatives but is
remembered primarily for the agreement to
move forward toward establishing a Free
Trade Area of the Americas [FTAA] by 2005.
In order to help realize this goal, a tripartite
committee composed of the Inter-American
Development Bank [IADB], the Organization
of American States and the United Nations
Economic Commission for Latin America and
the Caribbean [ECLAC] was created to provide
technical support and help prepare the background
documents required for the negotiation process.
After Miami,
the Summit Implementation Review Group [SIRG]
was created to monitor and manage follow-up
and implementation of Summit action items.
Implementation of the 23 initiatives contained
in the Plan of Action was co-ordinated by
either a specific country or by a regional
organization or international financial
institution. Co-chaired by the United States
and Chile, SIRG handled planning and preparation
for the next Summit in Santiago, Chile.
The Miami
Summit's Declaration of Principles and Plan
of Action also acted as joint catalysts
to the Summit on Sustainable Development,
held in Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia,
in 1996. The objectives of this specialized
Summit were twofold: the establishment of
a common vision for the future according
to the concepts of sustainable development,
and the ratification of the principles subscribed
to at the 1992 Earth Summit held in Rio
de Janeiro, Brazil.
A first was
achieved in the Summit process when the
OAS working group in charge of preparing
the Summit documents invited civil society
organizations to participate in the Bolivian
Summit's preparatory process.
The working
group's final proposals for the meeting,
produced for presentation to OAS member
states, were the result of a series of broad
national and sub-regional consultations
carried out under the leadership of an OAS
technical committee. This precedent continues
to be an integral part of the Summit process
and has resulted in the institutionalization
of civil society participation within both
the OAS and FTAA frameworks.
The decision
to hold the second Summit of the Americas
in Santiago, Chile, in April 1998 was made
jointly by all heads of state and government
of the democratic countries of the Americas.
The Declaration of Principles and Plan of
Action were jointly prepared, discussed
and approved by all countries in meetings
of the SIRG. These meetings were supported
by the OAS, the IADB and the UN ECLAC.
In preparing
for Santiago, Canada identified a number
of priorities and carefully considered the
views expressed by Canadians during civil
society consultations, which took place
in six Canadian cities in October 1997.
True to our Canadian values, the human rights
and democracy theme continued to be a priority
for Canada. In the Summit process, we presented
specific proposals to improve key aspects
of the administration of justice in the
Americas. Canada also placed Indigenous
issues on the Summit agenda as a separate
item, and emphasized the need to ensure
that women and people with disabilities
be given particular attention.
Canada participated
actively in all areas of discussion at the
Santiago Summit. Among the issues addressed
was how to combat the illicit drug trade
in the Hemisphere. The leaders endorsed
the creation of a Multilateral Evaluation
Mechanism [MEM] - developed by an Intergovernmental
Working Group chaired by Canada, to review
countries' progress in the fight against
drugs. As part of the MEM initiative, country
reports for all OAS member states will be
presented to leaders at the 2001 Summit
of the Americas in Quebec City next month.
The Santiago
Summit is remembered principally for two
things: education and the launch of negotiations
for the Free Trade Area of the Americas,
with Canada as chair for the first 18 months.
The Summit also addressed the preservation
and strengthening of democracy, justice
and human rights, and the eradication of
poverty and discrimination in the Americas.
It further solidified the institutionalization
of the Summit process: for example, it committed
the heads of state and government to continue
meeting periodically to "deepen co-operation
and understanding" among the countries
of the Americas, and it made the Summit
Implementation Review Group officially responsible
for doing the follow-up work between summits.
The OAS was given the task of serving as
the institutional memory of the Summit process
and providing ongoing technical support
to the SIRG.
As a reflection
of our country's expanding role in the Hemisphere,
at the conclusion of the Summit Canada was
chosen to host the next Summit of the Americas
in 2001. In acceptance, Prime Minister Chrétien
said, "This announcement is the culmination
of years of hard work in the region on trade
liberalization and social issues. Our leadership
of the next Summit recognizes our strong
role in the evolving community of the Americas,
and in the dawning of a new global century
of shared progress and values."
The third
Summit of the Americas, to be held in Quebec
City from April 20 to 22, 2001, will be
a defining moment for democratic, economic
and social progress in the Americas at the
beginning of this new century.
As Summit
host, Canada has an unparalleled opportunity
to place its stamp on the future of hemispheric
integration in the Americas. Many Canadians
increasingly share a sense of common purpose
with our neighbours of the Americas. We
benefit from co-operation on initiatives
promoting political stability, economic
liberalization and social justice for all
citizens of the Americas; these give us
increased opportunities for growth, prosperity
and cultural/linguistic enrichment. Commitment
to improving political, economic and social
governance in the Americas is also a key
element in "levelling the playing field"
and developing successful development strategies
that will lead to poverty reduction.
The 2001
Summit of the Americas provides both an
opportunity and an occasion for the leaders
of the Hemisphere to make a strong affirmation
of their commitment to community through
practical measures to further a coherent
and balanced political, economic and social
agenda.
Preparations
for the Summit were launched last June in
Windsor, Ontario, in a private dialogue
of foreign ministers at the OAS General
Assembly. Foreign ministers endorsed an
approach that took as its first point of
departure a focus on people and the need
to produce real benefits for the citizens
of the Americas through collective action.
They agreed
on a political, economic and social agenda
embodied in a three-part Plan of Action.
Titles for the three themes: "strengthening
democracy," "creating prosperity"
and "realizing human potential"
reflect continuity as well as a recognition
of challenges and opportunities. There was
also agreement that information and communications
technology, or connectivity, be harnessed
to support efforts to achieve these common
goals.
Special recognition
is being given to the fact that there is
a very significant relationship between
our collective commitment to the consolidation
of democracy in the Americas and support
for human development. Citizens are best
able to participate in, contribute to and,
if necessary, defend the democratic development
of their societies when they are given the
fullest opportunities to realize their potential
as individuals.
We face an
enormous challenge in making our common
vision for the Americas a reality. The opportunities
before us, however, fully justify our investment
in the Summit. All those involved in the
preparations are giving their very best.
If these efforts are successful, they will
pay a handsome return on our collective
investment in the Summit of the Americas
process. The cause is really that of humanity
in this Hemisphere.
Thank you.
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