…as Ambassador Karran makes petition for ASG post
Guyana’s Ambassador to the US and the Organisation of American States (OAS) Bayney Karran earlier this week made his petition to become the
Guyana’s Ambassador to the OAS Bayney Karran makes a point during his presentation
next Assistant Secretary General (ASG) of the hemispheric body.
He also used the occasion to lobby for campaign finance reform – something which the body had been working on Caribbean countries to implement. Here in Guyana efforts to have such reforms in place have been stymied giving rise to a dubious group coordinated by Kaieteur News Publisher, Glenn Lall – Funding a United Committee for Opposition Presidency (FUCOP).
Opposition leaders have all denied ever drawing down from the fund, claiming that they do not know what FUCOP is or how it came into being.
In a release the OAS said that the Permanent Council of the organisation received presentations by the two candidates proposed by the member states for the position of Assistant Secretary General. The election of the Assistant Secretary General is scheduled for March 18, the same date on which the next Secretary General of the Organisation will be elected. According to the rules, new candidates can be presented until the same day of the election. The order of the presentations was determined by lottery.
Karran who is running against, Belizean Nestor Mendez to replace the current SG, Albert Ramdin referred to the basic pillars of the OAS-democracy, human rights, security and development- and how he would seek to strengthen the role of the OAS in each of these areas.
On the issue of democracy he stated that the capacity of the General Secretariat must be enhanced to monitor, anticipate and head off potential threats to constitutional order in member states, by refining early warning systems. “We need to support efforts aimed at campaign finance reform, constitutional reform and institutional strengthening while at the same time increasing our assistance for election processes and for the promotion of good governance,” he said.
Moreover, he added that in the future political environment of the region “member states should be prepared to welcome the participation of the Government of Cuba in the councils of the hemisphere,” and commented that the initiative by the United States and Cuba to normalize relations
Belizean Ambassador to the OAS Nestor Mendez
“has the potential to significantly improve the tenor of future political discourse in the region.”
Karran also said that on the issue of combating inequality and promoting integral development “the OAS has a fundamental obligation to assist member states to overcome the scourges of poverty, inequality and underdevelopment”.
“Our smaller and more vulnerable States, which comprise a substantial component of our membership, are not satisfied with our level of accomplishment in this area in spite of some significant successes,” he noted and highlighted the need to be more proactive in addressing these challenges.
“If elected as Assistant Secretary General, I would work closely with member states to find ways to raise more resources and to channel them into low-cost, high-impact development programs, with emphasis on education,” he asserted.
Speaking of the pillar of multidimensional security, the Guyanese diplomat encouraged extending the organisation’s work to ensure that public security is addressed more comprehensively.
“The OAS must continue to build hemispheric networks of cooperation, sharing of experiences and capacity building in order to combat the scourge of transnational criminal organizations,” he said, and added that the OAS can play a central role in moving the Hemisphere closer to consensus in the war on drugs and on immigration issues.
Ambassador Karran also referred to the strengthening of the Inter-American human rights system and highlighted that the General Secretariat should exert efforts to ensure that the system is improved and strengthened.
“This can commence with a renewed dialogue under the new administration starting with the human rights institutions and the member states,” he said, and expressed his intention to formulate proposals to ease the friction between member states and the system.
On the issue of the relationship between the Secretary General and the Assistant Secretary General, the Ambassador from Guyana said that they “must have an intimate working relationship based on mutual trust, mutual cooperation and mutual respect”.
“They must be at one with regard to the mission and strategic objectives,” he said, and added that it would benefit the Organization for the Assistant Secretary General to play a strong and well-defined political role.
The Ambassador of Guyana’s vision for the future of the OAS includes strengthening dialogue and collaboration with member states and greater synergies with financial institutions and with subregional groups.
He also proposed creating a program of dialogue and consultation between the various subregional groupings to promote understanding and consensus on issues of common interest.
“Member states would like the next administration breathe new life into the Organization and they are concerned that the influence and authority of the OAS would diminish unless it is given a fresh impetus,” he said.
Karran also included specific initiatives related to the modernisation and management of the OAS, including increased mobilisation and efficiency of resources; strategies for increased effectiveness and coordination in monitoring the implementation of mandates emerged from the Summits of the Americas; the establishment of the Office of an Ombudsman; a re-evaluation and re-articulation of the role of the OAS national offices; promoting an initiative to create a more dynamic relationship with Permanent Observers; addressing issues of representativeness, transparency and trust in the field of human resources; and institutionalising the mechanism of regional coordinators, which “has been considered a valuable tool to manage negotiations and to facilitate consensus building”.
Following the initial presentation of the candidate of Guyana, the representatives of Ecuador, Venezuela, El Salvador, Chile, Brazil, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Trinidad and Tobago, Guatemala, Mexico, Suriname, Nicaragua, Colombia, Dominica, Canada, Jamaica, Costa Rica, Peru, Barbados, the United States and Bolivia took the floor during the exchange with Ambassador Karran.
For his part the Permanent Representative of Belize to the OAS, Nestor Mendez, highlighted that the OAS is today faced with a “golden opportunity, a unique moment”, one that comes only once every decade.
“A moment when we will be ushering in a new leadership, when we will be finishing a strategic plan, when we will be transitioning to a new administration. It is a moment, an opportunity for change. I want to invite you to seize the moment.”
To transform the Organization and build on the basis of the consensus around the Strategic Vision, said Ambassador Mendez, the input of everyone will be needed.
“This joint undertaking approach, this collective ownership of the Inter-American System cannot be overemphasized. We are here, all member states because we want to be here, because we see value in this Organization which binds our membership and anchors our relations on the founding principles and purposes of the OAS,” he added.