| Title |
International
Migrations
in Latin America and the Caribbean
Edition Nº 65
May-August 2002
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| Author: |
Permanent Secretariat of SELA |
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Index |
DECLARATION OF THE
ANDEAN PRESIDENTIAL COUNCIL
The Andean Presidential Council, meeting in the city of Guayaquil on July 26, 2002, on the
occasion of the Second South American Summit,
Convinced that the Andean integration process must provide the adequate response of their
respective countries to the challenges posed by globalization in the political, economic,
social, cultural, technological and scientific spheres;
Aware of the multidimensional nature of the Andean Community and its aptitude as a dynamic
actor in international relations, which is rooted in its Andean identity;
Considering that the Andean Community is based on the full support of democracy and the
rule of law, and relies on mechanisms that promote respect for human rights, political
cooperation, as well as active and democratic participation of Community citizens, for the
sake of its strengthening and the consolidation of a single market:
1. Are grateful to the Government of Bolivia for the work done as Pro Tempore Secretariat
of the Andean Community during the 2001-2002 term, and highlight the important steps taken
towards the consolidation of our integration process.
2. Acknowledge and express their appreciation for the work done by Ambassador Sebastián
Alegrett as Secretary General of the Andean Community, which he undertook with an
unrelenting integrationist spirit. His commitment to the Andean Community and his efforts
to promote it are an important legacy for the future of our process.
3. Reiterate their confidence in the work to be undertaken by the Colombian Pro Tempore
Secretariat during the 2002-2003 term, with a view to the strengthening of Community
bodies, the political dimension of integration and the consolidation of the
institutionalism of the Andean Integration System.
4. Express their satisfaction at the election of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of
Colombia, Doctor Guillermo Fernández de Soto, as Secretary General of the Andean
Community, convinced that his qualities will make it possible to develop and further the
work of the General Secretariat.
State their full endorsement of the strengthening of the General Secretariat and reaffirm
their commitment to provide it with adequate support to enable the Andean integration
strategy to move forward.
5. Adopt the "Andean Charter for the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights",
as an instrument that contains general principles, rules, scopes and mechanisms to
guarantee the observance, respect, promotion and defense of these rights in the
sub-region. The binding nature of this Charter shall be decided in due time by the Andean
Council of Ministers of Foreign Affairs.
6. Highlight the adoption of the Lima Commitment "Andean Charter for Peace and
Security and the Limitation and Control of Expenditure on Foreign Defense", a
transcendental step towards building a Common Andean Security Policy-CASP- and for the
intensification of subregional political cooperation. In this sense, they urge the High
Level Group on Security and Confidence-Building to effectively comply with the time frames
foreseen in the Commitment in order to move forward towards the formulation of the above
policy, to be presented to the next Presidential Council and incorporated, as applicable,
into Andean regulations.
7. Support with interest the proposal for the creation of an International Humanitarian
Fund to mitigate the impacts of poverty.
8. Highlight the approval of the Biodiversity Strategy for the Countries in the Andean
Tropics, a flexible instrument that contributes to the generation of viable alternatives
for sustainable regional development based on the countries' natural resources and to the
agreement of common positions before the various international negotiation forums. They
reiterate the importance of the support of the Andean Development Corporation and of the
Inter-American Development Bank for financing of the portfolio of environmental and
sustainable development projects.
9. Keeping in mind that the Common External Policy is the basis for the relationship of
the CAN with third countries or blocks of countries, instruct their Ministers responsible
for this area to consolidate political, economic and commercial partnership and
cooperation ties with the American Hemisphere, the European Union, the Asia-Pacific and
other spheres of common foreign outreach.
In particular, agree that coordination of the appropriate political spheres and Andean
techniques for trade negotiations with third parties shall be carried out on the basis of
the Common External Tariff and the Community Foreign Policy guidelines.
10. Highlight the progress made by the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and of Foreign Trade
on the creation and improvement of the free trade area and the establishment of a Customs
Union, while reiterating the need to adopt a Common External Tariff by October 15, 2002 at
the latest, as a key factor for the consolidation of Andean integration and as an element
of utmost importance for trade negotiations with third countries, in particular within the
scope of the FTAA. In these sense, they instruct their Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Trade
and Finance to meet in order to adopt the CET during the first half of October.
11. Express their commitment to move forward, as much as possible, towards the
establishment of an Andean labor market that guarantees the free circulation of workers
and other individuals within the subregional space, highlighting the important progress
made in this respect by the Advisory Council of Ministers of Labor.
12. Renew their commitment to move forward in the drafting of the Comprehensive Plan for
Andean Social Development, for the implementation of the Community social agenda, which is
recognized as the cornerstone of the current stage of integration. To this end, they agree
to hold the meeting of national experts during the second half of 2002 and the meeting of
Social Area Ministers during the first half of next year.
13. Recognize that the formation of the Working Panel on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples
is a transcendental and encouraging step that must be strengthened and expanded through
the convoking of other forums.
14. Take note of the preliminary report on the "Energy potential of the Andean
Sub-region as a strategic factor for regional and hemispheric energy security",
prepared by the IDB, CAF, the General Secretariat of the CAN, ECLAC, OLADE and UNCTAD.
In this sense, request the IDB and the CAF to support the work of the aforementioned
bodies so that they can present their results during the next Presidential Council.
In witness whereof, they sign this Declaration in the city of Guayaquil, on the
twenty-sixth day of the month of July, two thousand and two.
Jorge Quiroga Ramírez
President of the Republic of Bolivia
Andrés Pastrana Arango
President of the Republic of Colombia
Gustavo Noboa Bejarano
President of the Republic of Ecuador
Alejandro Toledo Manrique
President of the Republic of Peru
Hugo Chávez Frías
President of the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
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