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Press Department
In Depth
Canada at the OAS: 20 Years of Sustained Commitment
Since 1990, Canada has been an active participant in OAS debates, processes of building consensus, and in bridging discordant positions. During these two decades it has made significant contributions to the work of the Organization accumulating an immense list of accomplishments that become today good reasons to celebrate ... Read more »
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“The OAS role must be to try to achieve the highest common goals”: Minister of Foreign Affairs of Peru
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Peru, José Antonio García Belaúnde, presented the theme of “Peace, Security and Cooperation” for the upcoming 40th OAS General Assembly. In an interview, the Minister spoke about the OAS’ role and his country’s expectations for the June meeting ... Read more »
New Technologies for Fighting Cross-border Crime: A Network on Criminal Matters
The task of investigating, prosecuting and punishing crime to guarantee the protection of citizens requires structured and fluid transnational collaboration and communication, capable of confronting the various manifestations of crime around the world. ... Read more »
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“We have contributed to reduce the impunity that existed in many countries of the region”: Executive Secretary of the IACHR
Having visited most OAS member states, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) has become the most important body for the protection and promotion of human rights in the Americas. Interview with Santiago Canton ... Read more »
Initiatives to address the challenges and opportunities of migration
Originally settled by people from other continents and colonized by Europeans in the XVI Century, the Americas have traditionally been a region of immigrants. Nevertheless, for several decades this phenomenon has switched directions in Latin America and the Caribbean ... Read more »
Women and Power: for a world with equality
The situation of women in the Americas has been, for a long time, a subject of long debate and commendable endeavors. Although important progress has been achieved in areas such as political participation and citizenship, there are still some unresolved matters in relation to access to power, influence on decision-making processes, domestic violence, trade and human trafficking of women, and equal labor opportunities, among others ... Read more »
Foreign trade information system: A useful tool for development
Imagine you grow blueberries and want to export your produce to a neighboring country. How much profit can you hope to make? Are there any trade agreements in place between the two countries? What rules and tariffs already exist? ... Read more »
Foto: OEA
Reaching into Haiti’s Cultural Past to Lift its Future
The people of Haiti have inherited a vibrant culture rooted in three continents—America, Europe and Africa—that continues to lift their spirit through good and bad times. This is the cultural legacy the OAS sought to take advantage of when it launched its Orchestra Program for Youth at Risk in the Caribbean out of the École de Musique Sainte Trinité in Port-au-Prince ... Read more »
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Pan American Development Foundation: A month after the quake, Haiti needs to rebuild
Thirty days after the catastrophic earthquake that killed more than 170,000 people in Haiti, the Pan American Development Foundation (PADF), the OAS and their partners renewed their efforts to get Haitians to work, to rebuild their homes and to take care of their families ... Read more »
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The OAS in Haiti: Investing in a Country’s Future
Haiti has come a long way. One of the first nations in the Americas to achieve independence following a slave rebellion in 1804, the Caribbean nation has also experienced political violence and instability throughout its history, including civil oppression and outside political intervention. But in recent years, optimism had shone more brightly on the country’s future ... Read more »
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Haiti Representative to the OAS: “The vast support of the world is a good example of solidarity for us to follow”
Ambassador Brutus has been the Permanent representative of Haiti to the Organization of American States (OAS) since 2004. His role as spokesperson of his country to the hemispheric institution has been essential in determining how to channel and prioritize the support for Haiti and the earthquake that hit the country last January 12th ... Read more »
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Institutions and governments come together to cooperate for Haiti
“Tragedy has returned to hit the already suffering Haitian people. It is in these moments when the people, the governments and the leaders of this hemisphere, as neighbors and brothers of the Haitian community, should show our sense of solidarity and support in a real, effective and immediate manner, guided by the government of the island, who knows best which are the most urgent needs,” stated the OAS Secretary General ... Read more »
The OAS supports socially responsible enterprises
Practicing social responsibility at the corporate level has gained significant importance in recent years given the growing demand by consumers for products and services produced and delivered under ethical standards, with adequate labor conditions and respect to local communities and competitors ... Read more »
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The OAS in Copenhagen: "Climate change a grave threat to development"
Cletus Springer, Director of the OAS Department of Sustainable Development, attended the 15th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP 15) in Copenhagen from December 7 to 18, 2009. In a recent interview, Mr. Springer elaborated on the work of the OAS in helping countries cope with climate change and its related challenges to the region. ... Read more »
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A decade of civil society participation at the OAS
Civil society’s active role in public policy debates reflects a new trend of consensus in the Americas that defines social organizations as “agents of democracy.” These new participation helps shape opinions, share experiences, and identify obstacles ... Read more »
Spain and the OAS: Past, present and much future
Political and economic developments on both sides of the Atlantic have built a new and stronger bond between Spain and the Americas. Today, at the beginning of the second decade of the 21st century, the two sides now have a close and stable relationship best exemplified within the framework of the OAS ... Read more »
OAS verifies new trends in drug abuse
Approximately seven percent of the population in the Western Hemisphere consumed marijuana during the past year that percentage is double that of the world average, which fluctuates between 3.3 percent and 4.4 percent, and is also greater than the average in Europe, where it reaches about 5.3 percent. This and other important facts are included in the Report on the Situation of Drug Consumption in the Hemisphere , presented by the OAS Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission ... Read more »
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Electoral Observation Missions watch over transparency and citizen participation
On December 6, 2009, an Electoral Observation Mission from the Organization of American States (OAS) will participate in the general elections of Bolivia. This will be the sixth mission the OAS deploys to the South American country ... Read more »
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A landmine-free Hemisphere
Every year, hundreds of people, most of them civilians, die or suffer physical harm as a result of anti-personnel mines.
To address this scourge, the Organization of American States (OAS)created in 1992 the Assistance Program for Demining in Central America (PADCA), acting on a request from Central American member states among which Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Honduras and Guatemala
... Read more »
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Belize and Guatemala: Youth for peace
For a day, the spirit of the Adjacency Zone Belize-Guatemala was anything but what might be expected of a territory that has been under dispute for more than a century, as hundreds of Guatemalan and Belizean youth joined in a colorful parade, artistic presentations and other activities that were part of a cultural celebration of peace ... Read more »
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Interview - Wanda K. Jones: "To eradicate violence against women in the Hemisphere"
Wanda K. Jones, Deputy Assistant Secretary for Health at the US Department of Health and Human Services and Director of the Office of Women's Health, has assumed the Presidency of the Inter-American Commission of Women (CIM), a Specialized Organization of the Organization of American States (OAS) ... Read more »
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Haiti: Underprivileged children interpret the great classics
Children and youth from underprivileged neighborhoods in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, interpreted some of the great compositions of Classical music and Haitian folk music arrangements ... Read more »
