III. SUMMARY OF MAJOR INTER-AMERICAN 1826-1988* A. Early Inter-American Conferences, 1826 Signing of the Treaty of Union, League, and Perpetual Confederation at the historic Congress of Panama, convoked by Simón Bolívar. 1889-1890 First International Conference of American States, 1901 Second International Conference of American States, 1906 Third International Conference of American States, 1910 Fourth International Conference of American States, 1923 Fifth International Conference of American States, Santiago, Chile, formalized a technique for the pacific settlement of disputes in the Treaty to Avoid or Prevent Conflicts between the American States (also known as the "Gondra Treaty" after its main author, Paraguayan Foreign Minister Manuel Gondra). It also approved a resolution leading to the founding of the Pan American Highway System. 1928 Sixth International Conference of American States, Havana, Cuba, approved conventions on political asylum, maritime neutrality, the rights and duties of states in the event of civil strife, private international law (Bustamante Code), extradition, and other matters. Source: System, The OAS and the Evolution of the Inter-American Department of Public Information, General Secretariat, OAS, with lettered subheadings added by CRS. Meetings after 1985 added by CRS with assistance from U.S. Mission to the OAS. 1929 International Conference of American States on Conciliation and Arbitration (a special conference), Washington, D.C., further strengthened the principles of arbitration and conciliation with the signing of the General Treaty of Inter-American Arbitration and the General Convention of Inter-American Conciliation. 1933 Seventh International Conference of American States, Montevideo, Uruguay, adopted the Convention on the Rights and Duties of States, establishing the equality of states and the principle that "no state has the right to intervene in the internal or external affairs of another." B. World War II-Related Conferences Leading to Creation of the OAS, 1936-1948 1936 Inter-American Conference for the Maintenance of Eighth International Conference of American States, 1939-1942 In instances of threats to peace and security, interAmerican meetings of consultation were held long before they were formally established either by the Charter or by the Rio Treaty. Three were called to devise strategy for the defense of the Western Hemisphere during World War II. The first was held in Panama City immediately after the outbreak of World War II in 1939; the second, in Havana, Cuba, after the fall of France in 1940; and the third in Rio de Janeiro in early 1942, after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. All subsequent meetings have been held under either the Rio Treaty or the Charter of the OAS (see 1947, 1948). 1945 Inter-American Conference on the Problems of War The meeting created the Inter-American Economic and 1947 Inter-American Conference for the Maintenance of Continental Peace and Security (a special conference), Rio de Janeiro, put into effect permanently the provisions of the Act of Chapultepec through the drawing up of the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance (Rio Treaty). The Treaty defines the principal obligations of the signatories in the event of armed attacks against an American state or acts of aggression short of armed attack. A security zone in which the treaty is operative was drawn and the Organ of Consultation was created. 1948 Ninth International Conference of American States, Bogotá, Colombia. Signing of the Charter of the OAS. The Union of American Republics changed its name to Organization of American States, although the General Secretariat of the OAS continued to be called the Pan American Union until 1970. The Conference also approved the American Treaty on Pacific Settlement or "Pact of Bogotá"; the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man, precursor of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights; the Economic Agreement of Bogotá; and conventions on the granting of civil and political rights to women. C. Inter-American Meetins Under 1948 OAS Charter, 1951-1970 1951 Fourth Meeting of Consultation (under the Charter) Washington, D.C., to confer on the threat to the peace of the Hemisphere posed by the expansionist policies of international communism, after the invasion of South Korea by North Korea and Chinese armed forces. Prompt measures were undertaken to ensure the military defense of the Hemisphere. 1954 Tenth Inter-American Conference, Caracas, Venezuela, changed the direction and orientation of the policies and programs of the OAS by emphasizing economic, social, and cultural development. Several new conventions on the promotion of cultural relations in the Americas and on territorial and diplomatic asylum were also signed. 1956 Meeting of the Presidents of the American Republics in Panama City to commemorate the 130th anniversary of the Congress of Panama and to honor Simón Bolívar. The Declaration of Panama signed by the presidents on that occasion called for an intensive cooperative effort to make human liberty and just and decent living conditions a reality for all the peoples of America. 1958 The Government of Brazil set forth a dynamic plan of action called Operation Pan America. 1959 Fifth Meeting of Consultation (under the Charter), Santiago, Chile, considered the situation of international tension in the Caribbean area and the effective exercise of representative democracy and respect for human rights. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights was created. 1960 Sixth Meeting of Consultation, San José, Costa Rica (first under the Rio Treaty), resolved "to condemn ... participation of the Government of the Dominican Republic in acts of aggression and intervention against Venezuela which culminated in the attempt on the life of the president of the country," and called for the breaking of diplomatic relations of all the member states with the Dominican Republic and partial interruption of economic relations of all member states with that country. Seventh Meeting of Consultation, also in San José, Costa Rica, (under the Charter) adopted the Declaration of San José that denounced all types of intervention that could endanger American solidarity. The Act of Bogotá set forth measures for the social improvement and economic development of the countries, within the framework of Operation Pan America, and laid the foundation of the Alliance for Progress. 1961 The Alliance for Progress became a reality when the OAS adopted the Charter of Punta del Este and the Declaration to the Peoples of America. 1962 Eighth Meeting of Consultation (under the Rio Treaty), Punta del Este, Uruguay, approved a resolution excluding the Government of Cuba from participation in the inter-American system. 1964 Ninth Meeting of Consultation (under the Rio Treaty), Washington, D.C., condemned the Government of Cuba for its acts of aggression and intervention against Venezuela, and requested the American states to suspend diplomatic relations and their trade with the Government of Cuba, except for humanitarian reasons. First Special Inter-American Conference, Washington, D.C., approved the Act of Washington that sets guidelines for the admission of new members to the Organization. 1965 Tenth Meeting of Consultation (under the Charter), Washington, D.C., considered the "serious situation created by armed strife in the Dominican Republic" and created an Inter-American Peace Force. Second Special Inter-American Conference, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil, acknowledged the need to reform the Charter. 1967 Third Special Inter-American Conference, Buenos Aires, Argentina, approved the Protocol of Amendments to the Charter of the OAS (known as Protocol of Buenos Aires) that entered into effect in 1970. Eleventh Meeting of Consultation (under the Charter) held three sessions (Washington, D.C.; Buenos Aires, Argentina; Punta del Este, Uruguay) to prepare a projected Meeting of American Chiefs of State for the purpose of strengthening the Alliance for Progress. Meeting of American Chiefs of State, Punta del Este, Uruguay, where the Declaration of the Presidents of America was signed, spelling out the means for the American nations to intensify inter-American cooperation. Twelfth Meeting of Consultation (under the Charter) Washington, D.C. culminated in a resolution that vigorously condemned the Cuban Government for its repeated acts of aggression and intervention against Venezuela, Bolivia, and other American states, and urged nonmember states to cooperate in a trade embargo. Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago became new members of the OAS. 1969 Thirteenth Meeting of Consultation, Washington, D.C. (under the Rio Treaty) held for the purpose of resolving the armed conflict that broke out between El Salvador and Honduras. Jamaica became a member of the OAS. D. Meetings Under the 1967 OAS Charter, 1970-1988 1970 The OAS Charter, as amended by the Protocol of Buenos Aires, entered into force on February 27, changing the structure of the OAS. The General Assembly replaced the Inter-American Conference. During the course of seven months the General Assembly held three special sessions in order to put the new mechanism provided for in the new Charter into operation. 1971 Fourteenth Meeting of Consultation (under the Charter) Washington, D.C., considered a dispute between Ecuador and the United States concerning fishing jurisdiction and the extent of territorial seas. The ministers urged the parties to avoid aggravation of their differences and to use the negotiations in which they had shown special interest. First Meeting of the General Assembly, San José, Costa Rica, under the terms of the Charter as amended. |