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The Americas In this section you will find: I. Latin America 1. Introduction
2. Support for RtoP in the region 3. Regional bodies 4. Civil Society in Latin America I. Latin America and Caribbean1. Introduction Throughout much of the 20th century, Latin American and Caribbean states witnessed broad political transitions, economic instability and fierce repression. Massive human rights violations occurred throughout the continent. The issues that evolved in light of the Dirty War in Argentina, the Pinochet dictatorship in Chile, the series of military governments in Guatemala, the Peruvian insurrection launched by the Sendero Luminoso group, and many other instances of human rights violations have placed the Latin American continent in the spotlight. However, in recent decades there has been a clear decrease of internal conflicts, leading advocates to question why R2P is relevant in Latin America. While many initial proponents of R2P at the UN were originally from Latin America, and many governments have since supported the conceptual shift away from absolute sovereignty, others in the region still strongly consider R2P to be a military interventionist charter and yet another expression of Western or U.S. hegemony. There remain no provisions in regional mechanisms which address responses to cases of genocide, ethnic cleansing, war crimes and crimes against humanity. 2. Support for RtoP in the region During informal discussions of the General Assembly prior to the 2005 World Summit, a number of Latin American states, including Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, Panama, Chile and Peru, declared strong support for the concept of the Responsibility to Protect. Others, such as Brazil, chose to keep a vague position on RtoP, while Cuba, El Salvador and Venezuela rejected it completely. It was because of the leadership of Argentina, Chile, Guatemala and Mexico during the negotiations that many other governments from the Global South chose to support the inclusion of RtoP in paragraph 138 and 139 of the World Summit 2005 Outcome Document. See chart of Government positions on RtoP prior to World Summit: here See statements of Latin American governments on RtoP: 2005-2007: here Latin American governments at the July 2009 Debate on RtoP: Coming soon... The following bodies nonetheless have existing mandates to promote peace processes and the defense of human rights, an avenue where R2P-related work, especially preventive, can be advanced: The Organization of American States (OAS)
4. Civil Society in Latin America: The human rights protection system of the OAS includes the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights. Other relevant bodies in the OAS include the Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs which promotes human rights and international humanitarian law, the Inter-American Commission on Women which promotes women’s rights, the Inter-American Institute of Human Rights which is a center for teaching, research and promotion of human rights, and the Central American Integration System which promotes peace and human rights in Central America. Central American Integration System (SICA) This mechanism includes three separate organs: the Central American Court of Justice (CCJ), the Central American Parliament (PARLACEN) and the Secretariat General of the Central American Integration system. The structure of the institution includes the representation of civil society. Union of South American Nations (UNASUR) UNASURis a new economic and political intergovernmental union integrating all twelve South American countries, as part of a continuing process of South American integration. It aims at eliminating socio-economic inequalities in the region, promoting social inclusion and strengthen democracy through means such as political dialogue and social policies. Conference of Central American Armed Forces (CFAC) Conference of the Central American Armed Forces (CFAC) is a regional security and defense body which can warn international organizations about deteriorating situations in Central America. There is a need to articulate a strategy to further awareness and endorsement of R2P by Latin American governments and institutions. Groups with R2P-related mandates stilll need to consolidate their efforts to target national endorsement in countries already supportive of the norm (i.e. those most supportive of R2P at the World Summit: Argentina, Chile, Guatemala and Mexico). Increasing civil society involvement in conflict prevention and in building a culture of dialogue, negotiation and trust with regional mechanisms also remains a priority for many groups. The Latin American and Caribbean Platform for Conflict Prevention and Peacebuilding (LAC Platform) is particularly relevant to this goal. It is a network of Latin American and Caribbean civil society organizations and wider networks working proactively towards peacebuilding through the prevention of armed and/or violent conflict. Through coordinated actions with representatives of governments, IGOs and NGOs at the sub-regional, regional and international levels, the network aims at preventing the outbreak, escalation or recurrence of armed and/or violent conflict and developing of early warning and early response mechanisms. Events: WFM-IGP (host of the ICRtoP Secretariat), in partnership with the Consejo Argentino de Relaciones Internacionales (CARI) and the Coordinadora Regional de Investigaciones Econmicas y Sociales (CRIES), held a roundtable in Buenos Aires on March 31-April 1, 2008 entitled Dialogue on the R2P: Latin American Perspectives. See the outcomes of all global roundtables in our January 2009 publication Civil Society Perspectives and Recommendations for Action : here. On 27-28 February 2009, the Global Centre for the Responsibility to Protect held a Regional Forum on the Responsibility to Protect in Mexico. Read the meeting summary here. For more events organized by civil society in the Americas, see related documents tab (Civil Society) above. II. North America Coming soon... I. Related documents:
II. Civil society in North America
Canada R2P Roundtable : WFM-IGP's Canada Consultation with Civil Society Groups: 7 March 2008 |