Declaration
of Santiago
The
following document is the complete text of the
Declaration of Santiago signed by the Heads of
State and Government participating in the Second
Summit of the Americas:
We,
the democratically-elected Heads of State and
Government of the countries of the Americas, have
met in Santiago, Chile, in order to continue the
dialogue and strengthen the cooperation we began
in Miami in December 1994. Since that time,
significant progress has been made in the
formulation and execution of joint plans and
programs in order to take advantage of the great
opportunities before us. We reaffirm our will to
continue this most important undertaking, which
requires sustained national efforts and dynamic
international cooperation.
The
strengthening of democracy, political dialogue,
economic stability, progress towards social
justice, the extent to which our trade
liberalization policies coincide, and the will to
expedite a process of ongoing Hemispheric
integration have made our relations more mature.
We will redouble our efforts to continue reforms
designed to improve the living conditions of the
peoples of the Americas and to achieve a mutually
supportive community. For this reason, we have
decided that education is a key theme and is of
particular importance in our deliberations. We
approve the attached Plan of Action and undertake
to carry out its initiatives.
Since
our meeting in Miami, we have seen real economic
benefits in the Americas resulting from more open
trade, transparency in economic regulations,
sound, market-based economic policies, as well as
efforts by the private sector to increase its
competitiveness. Even as countries in our region
have been tested by financial and other economic
pressures, and as countries in other regions have
experienced serious economic setbacks, the overall
course in the Americas has been one of faster
economic growth, lower inflation, expanded
opportunities, and confidence in facing the global
marketplace. A major reason for this positive
record has been our countries´ steadfast and
cooperative efforts to promote prosperity through
increased economic integration and more open
economies. New partnerships have been formed and
existing ones strengthened and expanded. A
positive role is being played by sub-regional and
bilateral integration and free trade agreements.
We are confident that the Free Trade Area of the
Americas (FTAA) will improve the well-being of all
our people, including economically disadvantaged
populations within our respective countries.
Hemispheric
integration is a necessary complement to national
policies aimed at overcoming lingering problems
and obtaining a higher level of development. In
its broadest sense, a process of integration based
on respect for cultural identities will make it
possible to shape a common, interwoven set of
values and interests that helps us in these
objectives.
Globalization
offers great opportunities for progress to our
countries and opens up new areas of cooperation
for the hemispheric community. However, it can
also heighten the differences among countries and
within our societies. With steadfast determination
to reap its benefits and to face its challenges,
we will give special attention to the most
vulnerable countries and social groups in the
Hemisphere.
Education
is the determining factor for the political,
social, cultural, and economic development of our
peoples. We undertake to facilitate access of all
inhabitants of the Americas to preschool, primary,
secondary, and higher education, and we will make
learning a lifelong process. We will put science
and technology at the service of education to
assure growing levels of knowledge and so that
educators may develop their skills to the highest
level. The Plan of Action that accompanies this
Declaration defines the objectives and goals we
intend to achieve and the actions that will make
them a reality. In order to meet our goals within
the agreed timeframes, we reaffirm our commitment
to invest greater resources in this important
area, and to encourage civil society to
participate in developing education.
The
decisions adopted by our Ministers of Education at
the Conference held in Mérida, Mexico, last
February, reflect our desire to promote specific
joint initiatives designed to improve access to
education, with fairness, quality, relevancy, and
effectiveness. In order to consolidate and lend
continuity to our decisions, we have instructed
that another Conference be held in Brasilia,
Brazil, in July of this year.
Today,
we direct our Ministers Responsible for Trade to
begin negotiations for the FTAA, in accordance
with the March 1998 Ministerial Declaration of San
José. We reaffirm our determination to conclude
the negotiation of the FTAA no later than 2005,
and to make concrete progress by the end of the
century. The FTAA agreement will be balanced,
comprehensive, WTO-consistent and constitute a
single undertaking.
We
note with satisfaction the preparatory work by the
Ministers Responsible for Trade over the past
three years which has strengthened our trade
policies, fostered understanding of our economic
objectives and facilitated dialogue among all
participating countries. We appreciate the
significant contribution of the Inter-American
Development Bank (IDB), the Organization of
American States (OAS), and the United Nations
Economic Commission for Latin America and the
Caribbean (ECLAC), acting as the Tripartite
Committee.
The
FTAA negotiating process will be transparent, and
take into account the differences in the levels of
development and size of the economies in the
Americas, in order to create the opportunities for
the full participation by all countries. We
encourage all segments of civil society to
participate in and contribute to the process in a
constructive manner, through our respective
mechanisms of dialogue and consultation and by
presenting their views through the mechanism
created in the FTAA negotiating process. We
believe that economic integration, investment, and
free trade are key factors for raising standards
of living, improving the working conditions of the
people of the Americas and better protecting the
environment. These issues will be taken into
account as we proceed with the economic
integration process in the Americas.
The
region has made significant advances in both
monetary and fiscal policy as well as in price
stability and liberalizing our economies. The
volatility of capital markets vindicates our
decision to strengthen banking supervision in the
Hemisphere and to establish regulations relating
to disclosure and reporting of banking
information.
The
strength and meaning of representative democracy
lie in the active participation of individuals at
all levels of civic life. The democratic culture
must encompass our entire population. We will
strengthen education for democracy and promote the
necessary actions for government institutions to
become more participatory structures. We undertake
to strengthen the capabilities of regional and
local governments, when appropriate, and to foster
more active participation in civil society.
Respect
for and promotion of human rights and the
fundamental freedoms of all individuals is a
primary concern of our governments. In
commemorating the fiftieth anniversary of the
American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of
Man and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,
we agree on the need to promote the ratification
and implementation of the international agreements
aimed at preserving them and to continue
strengthening the pertinent national and
international institutions. We agree that a free
press plays a fundamental role in this area and we
reaffirm the importance of guaranteeing freedom of
expression, information, and opinion. We commend
the recent appointment of a Special Rapporteur for
Freedom of Expression, within the framework of the
Organization of American States.
Confident
that an independent, efficient, and effective
administration of justice plays an essential role
in the process of consolidating democracy,
strengthens its institutions, guarantees the
equality of all its citizens, and contributes to
economic development, we will enhance our policies
relating to justice and encourage the reforms
necessary to promote legal and judicial
cooperation. To that end, we will strengthen
national entities involved in the study of the
administration of justice and expedite the
establishment of a hemispheric center for studies
on this subject.
We
will combat all forms of discrimination in the
Hemisphere. Equal rights and opportunities between
men and women and the objective of ensuring active
participation of women in all areas of national
endeavor are priority tasks. We will continue to
promote the full integration of indigenous
populations and other vulnerable groups into
political and economic life, with due respect for
the characteristics and expressions that affirm
their cultural identity. We will make a special
effort to guarantee the human rights of all
migrants, including migrant workers and their
families.
Overcoming
poverty continues to be the greatest challenge
confronted by our Hemisphere. We are conscious
that the positive growth shown in the Americas in
past years has yet to resolve the problems of
inequity and social exclusion. We are determined
to remove the barriers that deny the poor access
to proper nutrition, social services, a healthy
environment, credit, and legal title to their
property. We will provide greater support to micro
and small enterprises, promote core labor
standards recognized by the International Labor
Organization (ILO), and use new technologies to
improve the health conditions of every family in
the Americas, with the technical support of the
Pan-American Health Organization (PAHO), achieving
greater levels of equity and sustainable
development.
With
deep satisfaction, we note that peace, an
essential value for human coexistence, is a
reality in the Hemisphere. We underscore that
Central America has become a zone of peace,
democracy, and development and we recognize
efforts to eliminate antipersonnel mines and to
rehabilitate their victims. We will continue to
foster confidence and security among our countries
through such measures as those mentioned in the
Santiago and San Salvador Declarations on
Confidence- and Security-Building Measures. We
encourage the pacific settlement of disputes.
We
will lend new impetus to the struggle against
corruption, money laundering, terrorism, weapons
trafficking, and the drug problem, including
illicit use, and work together to ensure that
criminals do not find safe haven anywhere in the
Hemisphere. We are determined to persevere in this
direction.
In
forging an alliance against drugs and applying the
Hemispheric Anti-Drug Strategy, we welcome the
start of formal negotiations at the May 4 meeting
of Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission
(CICAD) to be held in Washington within the
framework of the Organization of American States
(OAS), to establish an objective procedure for the
multilateral evaluation of actions and cooperation
to prevent and combat all aspects of the drug
problem and related crimes, based on the
principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity
of States, shared responsibility, and with a
comprehensive and balanced approach.
We
will strengthen national, hemispheric, and
international efforts aimed at environmental
protection as a basis for sustainable development
that provides human beings a healthy and
productive life in harmony with nature. The
commitments undertaken at the Miami Summit and the
Summit on Sustainable Development held in Santa
Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia, provide a solid basis
for strengthening our actions. As parties to the
United Nations Framework Convention on Climate
Change, we underscore the importance of working
together to further fulfillment of the agreement
reached at the Conference in Kyoto, Japan, and to
promote its ratification in our countries.
Moreover, we will work closely to make
preparations for a Conference of the Parties to be
held in November of this year in Buenos Aires,
Argentina.
We
acknowledge that the development of energy links
between our countries and the intensification of
trade in the energy sector strengthen and foster
the integration of the Americas. Energy
integration, based on competitive and transparent
activities, and in compliance with national
conditions and objectives, contributes to the
sustainable development of our nations and to the
improvement of the quality of life of our people
with minimum impact on the environment.
Recognizing
the importance of, and positive role played by
hemispheric institutions, particularly the
Organization of American States (OAS), we instruct
our Ministers to examine the strengthening and
modernizing of these institutions.
We
reaffirm our will to continue strengthening
intra-hemispheric dialogue and cooperation within
the framework of friendship and solidarity that
inspires our nations.
Done
in Santiago, Chile, on this the 19th day of April,
1998, in the Spanish, French, English and
Portuguese languages.
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