Organization of American States (OAS)
Haiti Assumes Chair of OAS Permanent Council
By OAS
Jan 4, 2012 - 3:17:39 PM

From left to right: Bayney R. Karran, Ambassador, Permanent Representative of Guyana to the OAS Duly Brutus, Chair of the OAS Permanent Council and Permanent Representative of Haiti to the OAS Date: January 04, 2012 Place: Washington, DC Credit: Juan Manuel Herrera/OAS

The Permanent Representative of Haiti to the Organization of American States (OAS), Ambassador Duly Brutus, today assumed for the next three months the Chair of the Permanent Council, taking over from the Permanent Representative of Guyana, Ambassador Bayney Karran.

The Haitian diplomat said that “thanks to the consensus we find in this House of the Americas we are able to avoid constant tension in the region,” and reported that he will explore the possibility of holding a “meeting of members of parliament” from the region at OAS headquarters in the spirit of making inroads towards increasing development in the countries.

Ambassador Brutus highlighted the work of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) and the importance of the Inter-American Democratic Charter. “I believe that we share the common interest of working together so that a culture of democracy takes root in the continent,” he said, adding that “now we have a region where people are free to decide for themselves their own policies, and that is thanks to democracy.”

“Today we can say that democracy has triumphed, though it is a permanent struggle with no end,” he said. “Nevertheless, we face other challenges at the regional level, notably the challenge of development. We live in a global context dominated by the globalization of the economy, with the countries of the Caribbean not having the strength or population necessary to engage enough in this struggle, and therefore we must reflect on the best way to help our countries advance in their development,” he concluded.

The Permanent Representative of Canada, Allan Culham, assumed the Vice Chair of the Permanent Council, which until now was exercised by the Permanent Representative of Chile, Ambassador Darío Paya.

Also present at the ceremony, held in the Hall of Heroes at OAS headquarters in Washington, DC, were the Assistant Secretary General, Ambassador Albert Ramdin, and representatives of several missions of the Member States.

The Statute of the Permanent Council establishes that the Chair is to be held successively by each of the Permanent Representatives, in alphabetical order as determined by each country’s name in Spanish, and the Vice Chair in the same manner, following reverse alphabetical order. Both positions have a term of three months.



For more information, please visit the OAS Website at www.oas.org.

© Copyright 2012 by thebahamasweekly.com -