Inaugural Organization of American States-African Union Democracy Bridge

Thank you, Ambassador Caputo, for that introduction. Members of the diplomatic corps, distinguished participants, guests, and friends, I am pleased to be here today and to address this inaugural OAS-AU Democracy Bridge. This is truly a landmark event. It is significant and full of great promise for future cooperation among democracies. I want to thank Chairman Konaré and Secretary General Insulza for their leadership of this Democracy Bridge, and for their dedication and effectiveness at the AU and OAS, respectively. Thanks go to the OAS and AU for organizing this event, and the OAS for graciously hosting us.

I have been asked to address the Community of Democracies, also known as the CD, and its crucial role in promoting democracy. The CD was founded in 2000. It unites democracies from every region of the globe to help strengthen our own democratic institutions and values, and encourage the growth of democracy where it is now denied. We know that democracy is crucial to peace and sustainable development. We cherish our democratic principles and rights. We share fundamental values and interests. It is natural — it is vital — that we should come together to support democracy both in our own countries and elsewhere. The Community of Democracies serves that essential purpose in today’s world.

Foreign ministers of the CD countries, together with members of civil society, have met in Warsaw, in Seoul, and most recently in Santiago. Mali, the current chair of the CD, will host the next Ministerial Meeting this November in Bamako.

In fact, this OAS-AU Democracy Bridge grew out of the last CD Ministerial, in Santiago. At that meeting, we pledged to strengthen democracy through cooperation at a regional level and between different regions. Today’s gathering is a direct outcome of that commitment in Santiago. And it is an important milestone as we head toward the November meeting in Bamako. It also shows the centrality of countries from the Western Hemisphere and Africa to the CD process, both in terms of the leadership you continue to provide and the opportunities for real, constructive results that the CD affords.

The Community of Democracies is young. Yet, we have made considerable progress. I’d like to highlight three developments in particular. First, we are on track to launch an efficient, effective permanent secretariat based in Warsaw. That secretariat will serve a crucial role in facilitating the Community’s initiatives. Second, this year a non-governmental International Advisory Committee provided recommendations for the rigorous selection of participants in the Bamako Ministerial. Third, led by Bamako, and particularly through the leadership of Mali’s Ambassador to the U.S. Abdoulaye Diop, the Community last year established working groups to operationalize its activities. Those working groups are engines of action within the Community. Each focuses on one of the four priority areas that the CD agreed to in Santiago: first, regional and interregional cooperation in support of democracy; second, the promotion of democratic governance and civil society; third, the mutually reinforcing benefits between democracy and development; and fourth, the response required when democracy is faced with national and transnational threats.

There have been some tangible accomplishments in those four areas, some issues we hope to move forward on in the future, and there are developments that the OAS and AU have made key contributions to and can benefit from.

First, regional and inter-regional cooperation lies at the heart of the CD’s focus. Experience shows that solidarity and coordination among democracies within a region can be indispensable to reinforcing each other’s core principles and democratic institutions — and encouraging accountable government in neighboring non-democracies. This Democracy Bridge embodies the mutual benefits that come from cooperation between different regions, from the sharing of experiences in electoral observation to dialogue on promoting human rights, fostering civil society, and effectively implementing the democracy charters. Each of our regions will benefit substantially from the dialogue that has taken place over the last three days here. And this Democracy Bridge will catalyze further inter-regional democracy consultations.

Providing impetus for inter-regional exchanges, such as this event and the upcoming AU-U.S. Dialogue on Human Rights and Democracy, is a key mission of the Community of Democracies. The CD can also play a critical role in supporting the development of regional democracy fora where they do not currently exist, such as in Asia. One of the most important tasks of our time is the building of what might be called the architecture of democracy. The CD can serve as a cornerstone, anchoring a global network of democratic states and regional and inter-regional groupings that share similar values and work toward common goals.

In addition to regional and inter-regional cooperation, democracies can and should work together in global multilateral settings, and again the CD is playing an important role. The CD has supported the UN Democracy Fund since its inception in 2005. The Democracy Fund has provided roughly $36 million in direct grants to over 120 projects around the world, with a particular emphasis on NGOs in emerging democracies. One of the initiatives supported by the Democracy Fund is the International Center for Democratic Transition, or ICDT, which arose out of the CD Ministerial in Santiago. Based in Hungary, the ICDT provides guidance on the transition to democracy from countries that have recently undergone the process. We strongly urge the OAS and AU to partner with both the UN Democracy Fund and the ICDT, which have great potential in supporting democracy in the Americas, Africa, and elsewhere. Similarly, the UN Democracy Caucus provides members of the Community of Democracies the opportunity to discuss issues at the United Nations. We must work together in the UN to see that our common values and interests are pursued.

A second key focus of the CD is to promote and protect human rights and fundamental freedoms in the face of the recent pushback against civil and human rights defenders around the globe   —such as in Venezuela and Zimbabwe. As democratic governments and societies, we must support and protect freedom of expression.

To bolster interaction between governments and civil society, the Community of Democracies has pledged to foster positive environments for civil society both domestically and internationally. Regional organizations like the OAS and AU are essential in encouraging civil society and taking action against those who seek to curtail and abuse it. The discussion of civil society at this event is an excellent example. As another step, we strongly encourage the OAS and AU, and the CD as a whole, to endorse a global set of NGO Principles to serve as best practices for the promotion, support, and protection of non-governmental organizations and their work.

The third focus of the CD is to foster the mutually-reinforcing relationship between democracy and development. Political democracy, transparency, open economic markets, and respect for human rights work together to promote sustainable development and poverty reduction, as affirmed in the 2002 Monterrey Consensus. Mali has chosen that relationship as the key theme of the upcoming Bamako Ministerial. CD countries are working both individually and collectively to demonstrate the mutually-reinforcing ties between democracy and development in concrete terms: that is, to improve people’s real lives. As one important step, developed countries and international financial institutions are increasingly recognizing and supporting countries that are governing justly and democratically.

In an era of globalization, threats such as transnational organized crime, trafficking in persons, and terrorism pose challenges to established and nascent democracies alike. The fourth focus of the CD is to help respond to national and transnational threats through regional efforts and the exchange of experience. Again, regional organizations have a critical role to play, and have made significant strides through, for example, Inter-American commissions to combat terrorism and drugs.

Today’s event is an important part of a most significant year in the development of the CD. It is clear that the strengthening of each of our democracies, and the growth of democracy elsewhere, requires us to cooperate within our own regions, among those regions, and globally. Each of us here is contributing to the development of those overlapping and interacting networks of democracies, and thus to the building of the architecture of democracy. Thank you for your participation in this groundbreaking meeting, and let us continue this critical work together. Thank you.