Historical Background on the Organization of American States General Assembly

Definition, Format, and Significance
The OAS Charter defines the General Assembly as its "supreme organ." The GA is the organization’s biggest event of the year, fulfilling multiple responsibilities. Above all, the GA serves as the Executive Board of the OAS, putting its seal of approval on the previous year’s work by the Permanent Council and setting the agenda for the coming year.

The OAS Permanent Council can also convoke a special GA if two-thirds of the members agree that "special circumstances" warrant it. Past special GA’s have dealt with such issues as amendments to the OAS Charter, crisis response, and elections for OAS Secretary General (the organization’s chief executive).

At the expiration of a five-year term, the Secretary General is elected at a regular or a special GA. The most dramatic election to date happened at the 1975 regular GA where it took seven rounds of balloting before Argentina’s candidate, Alejandro Orfila, won by a single vote. Normally, the heads of delegations approve one individual by acclamation.

The current format for regular GA’s packs an array of high-profile activities into a two and half day event featuring an inaugural session, an informal high-level discussion, four plenary sessions, and a closing ceremony. The compressed schedule means that resolutions and the language of the Declaration to be issued at that GA (laying out key goals for the Inter-American system) are now negotiated in advance. A General Committee, convoked when the GA convenes, handles any remaining differences or new issues that might arise.

The host government shapes the tone and agenda in several ways. Perhaps most importantly, the host government proposes the theme for a dialogue of the heads of delegation. This dialogue represents a major component of the plenary sessions.

The dialogue is intended to generate a more focused forum for discussion of a few key issues. Previous dialogues have concentrated on reforming the Inter-American system, fighting corruption, expanding freedom of expression, and other concerns. The United States has proposed that a principal theme of this year’s GA be "Delivering the Benefits of Democracy."

Two changes in recent years have increased the GA’s impact: linkage to the Summit of Americas (SOA) and incorporation of a civil society component. High-level meetings of the Summit Implementation and Review Group (SIRG) take place in conjunction with the GA. The Ft. Lauderdale GA this June will have particular influence on preparations for the November 2005 SOA in Argentina.

Civil society groups are a growing presence at the GA and within the OAS in general. The OAS formally defines them as "any national or international institution, organization, or entity made up of natural or juridical persons of a nongovernmental nature." Some past GA observers have included the Bar Association of Port-au-Prince, Amnesty International, and the Fundación Mujeres en Igualdad.

The OAS expects to officially register 120 civil society groups by January 2005. Registered groups, which undergo a rigorous OAS vetting process, receive access to OAS documents and the right to comment on OAS resolutions. At the GA, the registered organizations are admitted as observers and participate in a formal Sunday morning dialogue with heads of delegation.

Important work also takes place on the margins of the GA’s formal structure. Bilateral and multilateral side discussions often happen during the event. Other member delegations and the Permanent Observers also take advantage of the presence of so many foreign ministers to make a variety of side agreements.

Sites: Selection, Politics, and Symbolism
Initially, Washington, DC, dominated the GA’s. Five out of the first ten GA’s took place in Washington, because DC serves as the GA default site when no host steps forward. In addition, as one foreign minister noted in 1973, DC has "functional and administrative" advantages as OAS headquarters. However, the same official lamented the "lack of attention" focused on the DC meetings. Sites outside DC tend to generate greater media interest, owing to host presidential participation and geographic variety. Only three cities (San José, Santiago, and Guatemala) have served as host more than once.

The greater diversity of Caribbean, Central American, and South American hosts after 1980 promoted the ideal that all member nations, large and small, are equal in the OAS system. Additionally, the choice of particular hosts has often underscored key aspects of the OAS mission. For example, President Violeta Chamorro of Nicaragua observed that the Managua GA (1993) paid tribute to her country’s democratic transition, a process in which the OAS played a vital role.

Competition between countries to host rarely emerges because of the event’s annual nature. In 1998, both Barbados and Costa Rica offered to have the same upcoming GA, but resolved the matter by simply taking different years. The expenses incurred by a host also act to keep down the number of interested countries, although the smallest hosts have received some help (often in-kind) from donor countries to put on the GA.

Almost all GA’s have taken place in national capitals because of logistics and the desire to use prestige buildings. Ft. Lauderdale’s regional status is therefore highly unusual. Only five previous GA’s occurred outside of national capitals: Atlanta, USA (1974); Cartagena, Colombia (1985); Belém, Brazil (1994); Montrouis, Haiti (1995); and Windsor, Canada (2000). Cartagena and Montrouis involved primarily practical concerns--security, availability of accommodations, etc.--while Belém honored outgoing OAS Secretary General Baena Soares who claimed it as his hometown.

Atlanta and Windsor reflected larger symbolic objectives. At the 1972 GA, Secretary of State Rogers expressed the U.S. desire to serve as the "official host of the Assembly, not just the site of its meeting." He offered to host in a city other than DC in 1974.

Governor Jimmy Carter, Atlanta’s mayor (Maynard Jackson), and civic leaders viewed the GA as an excellent opportunity to raise Atlanta’s profile in Latin America. They organized an array of activities for the delegates including sightseeing tours, dinners at the homes of volunteers, and a visit to Martin Luther King’s grave. The OAS visitors were shown that Atlanta had more to offer the world than just Coca-Cola and "Gone with the Wind."

Georgia’s state and local officials also used the GA to increase awareness about Latin America within Atlanta. School children learned about the history, food, languages, and flags of OAS nations in class while adults received comparable lessons through an exhibit and performances at a prominent shopping mall. The city of Atlanta even renamed a downtown park "Plaza of the Americas" in honor of the occasion.

Participants: Key Players and Precedents

Heads of State
The host country’s chief of state or government has with only one exception made a speech at the inaugural session. In 1974 President Nixon had to cancel his plans to attend the Atlanta GA. The default site of DC, considered a non-hosted event, does not ordinarily share this feature. However, President Carter did speak in 1978 and 1980 at GA’s held in Washington, and President Nixon sent a letter to be read at the 1973 Washington GA.

Host presidents have used the GA forum in a variety of ways. Some have emphasized specific national concerns. For example, Bolivia’s president urged the United States not to sell off its strategic tin reserve (1979). More commonly, presidential speeches have developed broader regional themes that connect to key OAS objectives. St. Lucia’s prime minister delivered especially gracious remarks in this vein (1981). He praised Caribbean regional coordination and OAS expansion while gently asking affluent nations to do more to help small nations hurt by high oil prices and interest rates.

Other heads of state occasionally come as guests, but this is highly unusual. Most notably, five South American presidents attended the Asunción GA (1990) as guests on the occasion of the 100^th anniversary of the Inter-American system.

Foreign Ministers
The core business of a GA centers on the foreign ministers. These officials typically serve as the heads of delegation and take part in the dialogues that discuss the major themes chosen for a particular GA.

The host foreign minister plays a particularly important role. By custom, this official is elected president of the GA at the first plenary session. Following this practice, Secretary of State Kissinger served as GA president in Atlanta in 1974. Current OAS rules give the assembly president various powers to ensure smooth proceedings.

Secretaries of State have headed the U.S. delegation at 24 GA’s (out of 34). Deputy Secretaries of State stood in at most of the rest. In a few cases, Under Secretaries, Assistant Secretaries of State, or Special Envoys have also served in this capacity.