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Dialogue
on Democracy
Office
of the Spokesman
U.S. Department of State
Washington, DC
June 3, 2003
The United States will host leaders from seven African and
seven Latin American and Caribbean countries in a Dialogue
on Democracy to be held June 5-6 in Coral Gables, Florida.
Under Secretary of State for Global Affairs Paula J. Dobriansky
will serve as U.S. host for the meeting. The Dialogue will
extend the work of the Seoul Plan of Action, adopted in Seoul,
Korea at the November 2002 Ministerial Conference of the Community
of Democracies. The Community’s strategy includes working
directly with emerging democracies, coordinating assistance,
and sharing best practices. The Plan of Action specifies cooperation
within and between regions as a key to the promotion of democracy
worldwide.
The Community of
Democracies is a unique forum, launched at a ministerial meeting
held in Warsaw in June 2000, bringing together countries from
all regions on the basis of their common commitment to build
lasting democratic institutions. For the Seoul ministerial
in November 2002, 118 countries were invited as participants
and 21 countries as observers.
Participants at
the Dialogue include governmental and non-governmental representatives
from the following countries: Cape Verde, Mali, Botswana,
Senegal, Kenya, Ghana, Mozambique, Jamaica, Brazil, Chile,
Nicaragua, El Salvador, Peru, and the Dominican Republic.
Representatives from the OAS and AU have also been invited.
Various U.S. officials, as well as leaders of several American
non-governmental organizations, will join to help facilitate
the meeting. Distinguished speakers include Francisco Flores,
President of El Salvador; Jose Maria Pereira Neves, Prime
Minister of Cape Verde; and Luis
Solari de la Fuente, Prime Minister of Peru.
The two-day
meeting will focus on role of the Organization of American
States and the Inter-American Democratic Charter, the African
Union, and the New Partnership for African Development in
regional efforts to extend, consolidate, and protect democracy.
Participants will discuss how to promote democratic institutions
and practices in their regions. They will focus particularly
on how regional organizations and coordinated efforts can
strengthen democracy, and overcome obstacles and threats to
its development. Topics will include good governance, anti-corruption
measures, electoral systems and political party development,
and programs to bolster civil society and civic education.
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