39 OAS General Assembly in San Pedro Sula, Honduras

On Tuesday, June 2, in San Pedro Sula, Honduras, began the 39th OAS General Assembly, which  theme was "Towards a culture of nonviolence”. At the opening ceremony were present the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the countries from the Inter-American System and the opening speeches were made by the OAS Secretary General, José Miguel Insulza and the President of the Republic of Honduras, Manuel Zelaya.

The central matters of the speeches of the Secretary General and the President of Honduras were non-violence, social protection at times of economic crisis, the democratic situation of the countries of the region, the role of the Court and the Inter-American Human Rights Commission, and the validity of resolution 1962 which suspended the rights of participation of Cuba in the hemispheric body.

The Secretary General stressed the help of the OAS missions towards peacekeeping and conflict resolution, electoral missions and on legal matters, as on human rights, and mentioned the work done by the Inter-American Children’s Institute, among other areas. He also referred at present as a time to strengthen the Inter-American system, enhanced by the recent Summit of the Americas held last April in Trinidad and Tobago.

In relation to the global economic crisis, the OAS Secretary General emphasized the importance of political and social arrangements that strengthen governance and political feasibility of the measures to be adopted, so as to reduce the effects of the crisis on the most vulnerable social sectors.

The President of Honduras, Manuel Zelaya, gave an overview of the macroeconomic and social changes that have taken place so far under his government administration and stressed the need for the pursuit of peace and a "non-violence" culture throughout the continent.

In relation to the situation in Cuba within the OAS, both the President of the Republic of Honduras and the OAS Secretary General called on those present to resolve the issue seeking consensus. "We want to move forward and leave behind a past that is not positive for many, but not at the expense of falling again into divisions," affirmed the Secretary General, stressing the importance of the values such as inclusion and democracy. The next day, and after a long day of negotiations, the General Assembly agreed to waive the resolution adopted on January 31, 1962, which suspended Cuba as an active member of the organization.