– says OAS Secretary-General

“Consensus-building is a complex, sometimes thankless pursuit, but let us not give up on it. Ultimately, consensus solutions are more solid and lasting,” according to Secretary-General of the Organisation of American States (OAS), Mr José Miguel Insulza.Addressing Wednesday’s inauguration of the forty-fourth regular session of the OAS General Assembly, Insulza also stressed the “force and vitality” of the Organisation in the context of the Hemisphere’s “exceptional” past

decade, which has resulted in a more prosperous, democratic, and stable Region.

But he noted that “if our Region wants to progress in its democratic development and achieve healthy, comprehensive growth, it must take up four pressing policy challenges now: social inclusion, public security, defense of human rights, and the spread of democracy and the rule of law.”

Secretary-General Insulza focused his speech on ‘Development with Social Inclusion’, the theme of the event, which brings together all the foreign ministers of the Hemisphere.
He also reviewed the Hemisphere’s major political issues, highlighted the Organisation’s contributions to the well-being and progress of its citizens, and called upon governments to seek consensus because, although that path is “complex, consensus solutions are more solid and lasting.”

The hemispheric event was opened by the President of Paraguay, Horacio Cartes, in the presence of foreign ministers and vice foreign ministers of the Region, government authorities at the highest level, and the accredited diplomatic corps. In his speech, the Paraguayan leader said “this General Assembly session will accomplish its task if it serves as a turning point with the political will and programmatic measures to change the face of the Americas in a historic way.”
“I trust that the governments and states so eminently represented here will bring to fruition the pressing and vast commitments we are undertaking,” added President Cartes.
In his speech, Secretary-General Insulza said: “Our Region has changed greatly, and for the better, in its economy, its society, and its politics, but the question we face today is whether, under somewhat different economic circumstances, we will be able to deal effectively with the major problems that still beset our democracies, to make them more stable, more just, and more effective in responding to citizens’ demands.”

The top OAS official said the “force and vitality” of the Organisation is expressed in the “continuity and relevance” of the annual General Assembly session. He said the event reflects its continual pursuit of “its principal aim: to serve as the policy forum of the countries of the Americas, where everything is said, where there is genuine dialogue, where everyone can participate on an equal footing and express his or her views on any topic pertinent to the Region and be treated with dignity and respect.”

The multilateral institution, he went on to say, “has been an essential political actor in our Hemisphere over the past decade. Ideological differences expressed within its halls have not hindered the pursuit of its mission of unity and cooperation — far from it; they have strengthened it as a forum for debate, which is the best antidote to conflict.”
He recalled that it is also the depository of the law and institutions of the Americas, promoter of a set of action programmes, carried out day after day, that yield results directly affecting the lives of its citizens.

In that context, Secretary-General Insulza called upon the member states “to conduct the debate in a positive spirit, one that opens the door to understanding and agreement, to solutions that will benefit our Hemisphere’s society as a whole. That is the spirit that has motivated my efforts over the past nine years as Secretary General of the OAS.”