Venezuelan
Government proposes converting SELA into "the think tank of the South American
Community of Nations"
Caracas, 23 Nov. 2004.- The Venezuelan government proposed on Tuesday that the
Latin American Economic System (SELA) should be made the "think tank" to provide
support to the governments of the region in their effort to meet the "historic
challenge" of creating the South American Community of Nations.
The creation of the South American Community of Nations, the groundwork of which will be
laid within the context of the presidential summit member countries of the Andean
Community and MERCOSUR, slated to be held in December in Peru, is "a historic
challenge" as it represents no less than the crystallization of the old and
oft-deferred aspiration of those who have been here before us, including our
Liberators", the Venezuelan deputy foreign minister, Arévalo Méndez, said at this
evening's opening of the ministerial stage of the XXX Regular Meeting of the Latin American Council, the highest
political decision-making body of SELA.
This decision involves an undertaking, which requires "the existence of a rational
structure and of a think tank to advise us, to alert us on how to proceed and to provide
us with the necessary tools with regard to the nature of this global integration process
which is the South American Community of Nations. SELA is indispensable for conducting
analytical processes and for supporting all our countries in this noble mission",
Méndez said.
"We hope that SELA will provide us with an overall view of Latin America and the
Caribbean, that will reconcile the domestic interests of each individual country with
those of the region and the continent as a whole. As soon as the presidents have decided
on the creation of this community, there will be a space for SELA to take due note and to
begin preparing and submitting ideas and proposals and to contribute to enriching the
debate that will invariably arise upon the creation of this community", the deputy
minister added.
In view of the financial and institutional crisis besetting SELA, Méndez appealed to the
member countries to give "solid support" to SELA, which is made up of all the
sovereign countries of Latin America and the Caribbean and which was established in 1975
with the purpose of providing a forum for debate and for the solution of the social and
economic problems affecting the countries in the region.
"The circumstances that led to the establishment of SELA still exist. We must
strengthen the organisation but we must cease simply paying it lip service and
establishing goals and objectives laden with good faith", Méndez said.
Meanwhile, the permanent secretary of SELA, Ambassador Roberto Guarnieri, pointed out
that, in order to surmount the financial and institutional difficulties bedevilling it,
the organisation must be equipped with the proper human and technological resources and
with a "high level of professionalism and excellence with regard to its management,
leadership and performance".
However, above all, the organisation "requires consistent, broad and unstinting
political support from its membership, support that admittedly must be earned by the
Permanent Secretary on the basis of the acknowledged net added value of the results that
will, in turn help member countries - both individually and collectively - to achieve
their relevant objectives. However, this support must first be provided by a sufficiently
large and crucial group, even in the absence of these results which cannot be achieved
without it", the Venezuelan diplomat declared.
For his part, Walter Hernández, the Costa Rican Ambassador to Venezuela, and Chair of the
Latin American Council, said that there was a sense of "commitment and political will
among the member countries to strengthen SELA".
"There is absolutely no doubt as to the relevance of SELA as the only truly Latin
American and Caribbean forum in operation today. There is, indeed, a will to resolve the
crisis affecting the organisation, a fact that will provide us with a SELA more in keeping
with the new global environment", Hernández added.
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