Montreal Conference on the Inter-American Democratic Charter.

As the Organization of American States' (OAS) adoption last September 11, 2001 of the Inter-American Charter on Democracy was somewhat overshadowed by terrorist attacks and their aftermath, Rights & Democracy is contributing to a seminar in March 2002 in Montreal on the new Charter and its implications for democracy in the Americas.

Rights & Democracy's Democratic Development Programme is participating in setting the agenda for the two-day seminar, organized jointly by the Centre for Studies on Internal Law and Globalization (CEDIM) and the Université du Québec à Montréal. Preliminary plans call for the President Warren Allmand to make a presentation on the issues of terrorism and the principles of the Inter-American Democracy Charter, and Board member Sofia Macher has been asked to make a presentation on the experience of civil society in her native Peru in the development of the Charter.

The proposed application of the Inter-American Democratic Charter to the political crisis in Haiti, which remains deadlocked over the count system used in the May 2000 legislative elections, will also be considered during the seminar. A January 15 resolution of the OAS Permanent Council (CP/RES. 806 (1303/02) (link: http://www.oas.org/consejo/resolutions/res806.htm) stopped short of invoking the Charter, but condemned the attack on the presidential palace December 17, 2001 and resolved to establish an OAS Mission in Haiti to work in the spirit of the OAS Charter and the Inter-American Democratic Charter.

Rights & Democracy has contributed $7,000 towards the CEDIM seminar. For further background on the Inter-American Democracy Charter, see a presentation by Rights & Democracy former staff member Love St-Fleur at www.cedim.uqam.ca - in French. Please go to the Fiches Section of the CEDIM site.