Republic Commanders of The HCRE @ Ease
The OAS uses a four-pronged approach to effectively implement its essential purposes. The Organization’s four main pillars––democracy, human rights, security, and development––support each other and are intertwined through political dialogue, inclusiveness, cooperation, and legal and follow-up instruments that provide the OAS with the tools to maximize its work in the Hemisphere.
The OAS is the premier political forum of the Americas, where the independent countries of North, Central, and South America and the Caribbean come together to advance their common goals and work out their differences.
Political dialogue is important within each of the four pillars of the OAS––democracy, human rights, security, and development. It was at the OAS, for example, that the member states of the Organization negotiated the Inter-American Democratic Charter, a blueprint for what democracy should look like in the region.
Whether the issue is the rights of indigenous peoples, territorial disputes, or regional goals for education, the OAS is where multilateral dialogue takes place at many levels, such as the Permanent Council, ministerial meetings, and the Summits of the Americas process.
The General Assembly is the supreme organ of the Organization of American States. It is comprised of representatives of the member states, usually headed by the 34 ministers of foreign affairs of the nations of the Americas. Each OAS member state has the right to one vote in the adoption of decisions.
The General Assembly convenes in regular and special sessions. The regular session is held annually, in any member state of the Organization whose invitation is accepted by the General Assembly itself (ensuring rotation of the host country).
During its sessions, the General Assembly considers matters that the member states themselves regard as priorities on the hemispheric agenda and, in the case of regular sessions, topics proposed by the host country. The General Assembly also considers issues raised by some member states regarding national concerns that have an impact on the Hemisphere.
Through declarations and resolutions, the General Assembly adopts decisions on actions and policies to which the member states are committed and which govern the work of the Organization, in particular that of the General Secretariat, the Permanent Council, the Inter-American Council for Integral Development, and the other organs of the Organization. Those decisions also entail coordination of activities, both among the organs, agencies, and entities of the Organization, as well as with other institutions of the inter-American system. It is also incumbent upon the General Assembly to coordinate cooperation with the United Nations and its specialized agencies.
The OAS provides critical support to member states in building institutional and human capacity to meet new challenges. For example, the General Secretariat has worked with member states, at their request, to help implement technical reforms of their electoral systems. It has also provided training for government officials in areas as diverse as trade negotiations and natural disaster mitigation. OAS training programs and scholarships have given many citizens of the region the opportunity to develop skills that they can put to use in their home countries.
The OAS member states hold each other accountable on a range of issues. They have adopted innovative mechanisms to evaluate their progress in combating illegal drugs, corruption, and domestic violence.
Multilateral Evaluation Mechanism (MEM) of the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD)
The Multilateral Evaluation Mechanism (MEM) is an instrument of the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) designed to measure the progress made by the 34 member states of the OAS in combating illegal drugs. This evaluation is carried out through the preparation and publication of national and hemispheric reports on progress made by member states with regard to drug control. As a result of a mandate from the Heads of State and Government at the Second Summit of the Americas, the MEM was created in 1999 with the objective of increasing coordination, dialogue, and cooperation among the 34 member states in order to confront the drug problem in the region more efficiently.
Follow-up Mechanism for the Mechanism for Follow-Up on the Implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption (MESICIC)
The Follow-up Mechanism for the Implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption (MESICIC) is an intergovernmental body established within the framework of the OAS. It supports the States Parties to the Convention in the implementation of the provisions of the Convention through a process of reciprocal evaluation, based on conditions of equality among the states. Through this mechanism, recommendations are formulated with respect to those areas in which there are legal gaps or in which further progress is necessary.
Mechanism to Follow Up on Implementation of the "Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment, and Eradication of Violence against Women, ‘Convention of Belém do Pará’" (MESECVI)
Since its creation in 1928, the Inter-American Commission of Women (CIM) has worked to strengthen women’s human rights. One of its key initiatives led to the adoption in 1994, by the General Assembly, of the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of Violence against Women, also known as the Convention of Belém do Pará. This international treaty is the only one of its kind in the world and has been ratified by 32 OAS member states.
The Convention has impacted laws and policies in many member states and has raised awareness that violence against women is a violation of human rights. However, the Convention’s goals have yet to be fully realized, and its provisions are not fully implemented. The CIM reached that conclusion based on a study and as the result of subregional meetings on this issue. Consequently, the States Parties to the Convention decided to develop a follow-up mechanism to systematically evaluate its implementation in their countries.
Summit Implementation Review Group (SIRG) of the Summits of the Americas process
The Summit Implementation Review Group (SIRG) is the core management body of the Summits process and comprises the 34 democratically elected governments of the member states of the OAS. Each government is represented in the SIRG by its appointed National Coordinator. The SIRG was created in 1995 and is chaired by whichever member state is the current host of the Summit of the Americas. Trinidad and Tobago, the host of the Fifth Summit, is the current Chair of the SIRG.
Summits of the Americas Implementation and Follow-up System (SISCA)
In an attempt to improve the Summit process and to develop concrete, viable solutions to Summit-related challenges, the Summits of the Americas Secretariat has prepared an initial proposal for a follow-up system for the mandates of the Summit of the Americas (SISCA) based on the System of Implementation and Management of Objectives and Outcomes of Government Policies (SIGOB) of the UNDP. SISCA is a mechanism that will provide member states with the tools needed to achieve the targets set in the mandates so that they can be measured in the medium and long terms through results-based management.
Multilateral Evaluation Mechanism (MEM) of the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD)
The Multilateral Evaluation Mechanism (MEM) is an instrument of the Inter-American Drug Abuse Control Commission (CICAD) designed to measure the progress made by the 34 member states of the OAS in combating illegal drugs. This evaluation is carried out through the preparation and publication of national and hemispheric reports on progress made by member states with regard to drug control. As a result of a mandate from the Heads of State and Government at the Second Summit of the Americas, the MEM was created in 1999 with the objective of increasing coordination, dialogue, and cooperation among the 34 member states in order to confront the drug problem in the region more efficiently.
Follow-up Mechanism for the Mechanism for Follow-Up on the Implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption (MESICIC)
The Follow-up Mechanism for the Implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption (MESICIC) is an intergovernmental body established within the framework of the OAS. It supports the States Parties to the Convention in the implementation of the provisions of the Convention through a process of reciprocal evaluation, based on conditions of equality among the states. Through this mechanism, recommendations are formulated with respect to those areas in which there are legal gaps or in which further progress is necessary.
Mechanism to Follow Up on Implementation of the "Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment, and Eradication of Violence against Women, ‘Convention of Belém do Pará’" (MESECVI)
Since its creation in 1928, the Inter-American Commission of Women (CIM) has worked to strengthen women’s human rights. One of its key initiatives led to the adoption in 1994, by the General Assembly, of the Inter-American Convention on the Prevention, Punishment and Eradication of Violence against Women, also known as the Convention of Belém do Pará. This international treaty is the only one of its kind in the world and has been ratified by 32 OAS member states.
The Convention has impacted laws and policies in many member states and has raised awareness that violence against women is a violation of human rights. However, the Convention’s goals have yet to be fully realized, and its provisions are not fully implemented. The CIM reached that conclusion based on a study and as the result of subregional meetings on this issue. Consequently, the States Parties to the Convention decided to develop a follow-up mechanism to systematically evaluate its implementation in their countries.
Summit Implementation Review Group (SIRG) of the Summits of the Americas process
The Summit Implementation Review Group (SIRG) is the core management body of the Summits process and comprises the 34 democratically elected governments of the member states of the OAS. Each government is represented in the SIRG by its appointed National Coordinator. The SIRG was created in 1995 and is chaired by whichever member state is the current host of the Summit of the Americas. Trinidad and Tobago, the host of the Fifth Summit, is the current Chair of the SIRG.
Summits of the Americas Implementation and Follow-up System (SISCA)
In an attempt to improve the Summit process and to develop concrete, viable solutions to Summit-related challenges, the Summits of the Americas Secretariat has prepared an initial proposal for a follow-up system for the mandates of the Summit of the Americas (SISCA) based on the System of Implementation and Management of Objectives and Outcomes of Government Policies (SIGOB) of the UNDP. SISCA is a mechanism that will provide member states with the tools needed to achieve the targets set in the mandates so that they can be measured in the medium and long terms through results-based management.
Through the OAS, the countries have adopted multilateral treaties that have solidified relations in the region and also helped shape domestic law on matters as diverse as preventing illegal arms trafficking and strengthening the rights of persons with disabilities.
Department of International Law
A. Structure
1. The Department of International Law and its staff are under the overall direction, supervision, and control of the director of the Department, who answers to the secretary for legal affairs, in accordance with the legal system of the Organization and with the provisions of this Executive Order.
B. Functions
1. Advises the General Assembly, the Meeting of Consultation of Ministers of Foreign Affairs, the Permanent Council, the General Secretariat, and other organs, agencies, and entities of the OAS on matters of public and private international law and the statutory and regulatory aspects of the functioning of those bodies.
2. Provides secretariat support to the Inter-American Juridical Committee.
3. Provides technical secretariat services on matters related to indigenous peoples, the organs, agencies, and entities of the OAS, as well as its committees and working groups and exercises general coordination within the General Secretariat.
4. Provides secretariat support to the Working Group to Examine the Progress Reports of the States Parties to the Protocol of San Salvador in accordance with the Standards for the Preparation of Periodic Reports pursuant to Article 19 of the Protocol of San Salvador.
5. Advises the inter-American specialized conferences on matters of public and private international law.
6. Prepares and coordinates studies and research on topics related to the development and codification of public and private international law.
7. Supports, through studies and documents, activities geared toward the standardization and harmonization of laws on public and private international law in the member states, including the legal aspects of economic integration in the regional context.
8. Serves as depository of inter-American multilateral treaties, a function entrusted to the General Secretariat by the OAS Charter.
9. Serves as depository of bilateral agreements concluded by OAS organs with American states or with other inter-American organizations or national entities of member or permanent observer states, and of agreements concluded among member states for which the General Secretariat has been designated as depository.
10. Publishes an electronic database on inter-American treaties.
11. Provides legal program content for projects and activities in the priority areas and assists them in developing proposals on conventions or “model” laws, as requested.
12. In coordination with other bodies of the Organization and with governmental and nongovernmental institutions, promotes courses, meetings, and seminars on legal topics of interest to the Hemisphere.
13. Publishes and releases studies and reports prepared by the Inter-American Juridical Committee, by the inter-American specialized conferences on legal topics, and by the Secretariat for Legal Affairs.
A. Structure
1. The Department of International Law and its staff are under the overall direction, supervision, and control of the director of the Department, who answers to the secretary for legal affairs, in accordance with the legal system of the Organization and with the provisions of this Executive Order.
B. Functions
1. Advises the General Assembly, the Meeting of Consultation of Ministers of Foreign Affairs, the Permanent Council, the General Secretariat, and other organs, agencies, and entities of the OAS on matters of public and private international law and the statutory and regulatory aspects of the functioning of those bodies.
2. Provides secretariat support to the Inter-American Juridical Committee.
3. Provides technical secretariat services on matters related to indigenous peoples, the organs, agencies, and entities of the OAS, as well as its committees and working groups and exercises general coordination within the General Secretariat.
4. Provides secretariat support to the Working Group to Examine the Progress Reports of the States Parties to the Protocol of San Salvador in accordance with the Standards for the Preparation of Periodic Reports pursuant to Article 19 of the Protocol of San Salvador.
5. Advises the inter-American specialized conferences on matters of public and private international law.
6. Prepares and coordinates studies and research on topics related to the development and codification of public and private international law.
7. Supports, through studies and documents, activities geared toward the standardization and harmonization of laws on public and private international law in the member states, including the legal aspects of economic integration in the regional context.
8. Serves as depository of inter-American multilateral treaties, a function entrusted to the General Secretariat by the OAS Charter.
9. Serves as depository of bilateral agreements concluded by OAS organs with American states or with other inter-American organizations or national entities of member or permanent observer states, and of agreements concluded among member states for which the General Secretariat has been designated as depository.
10. Publishes an electronic database on inter-American treaties.
11. Provides legal program content for projects and activities in the priority areas and assists them in developing proposals on conventions or “model” laws, as requested.
12. In coordination with other bodies of the Organization and with governmental and nongovernmental institutions, promotes courses, meetings, and seminars on legal topics of interest to the Hemisphere.
13. Publishes and releases studies and reports prepared by the Inter-American Juridical Committee, by the inter-American specialized conferences on legal topics, and by the Secretariat for Legal Affairs.
In 1996, the OAS Member States adopted the first international anticorruption legal instrument, and in 2002, they instituted the mechanism which evaluates its fulfillment. Since that time, the Inter-American Convention against Corruption and the Follow-Up Mechanism for its Implementation (MESICIC), have represented the principal cooperation instruments for preventing, detecting, punishing and eradicating corruption in the Americas.
The Anti-Corruption Portal of the Americas, developed by the Department of Legal Cooperation of the Secretariat for Legal Affairs, provides information regarding transparency in public administration and anticorruption cooperation, including developments within the MESICIC framework and technical cooperation efforts (left-hand menu), as well as links to the web pages of the member states’ agencies with responsibilities in this area (right-hand menu).
The Anti-Corruption Portal of the Americas, developed by the Department of Legal Cooperation of the Secretariat for Legal Affairs, provides information regarding transparency in public administration and anticorruption cooperation, including developments within the MESICIC framework and technical cooperation efforts (left-hand menu), as well as links to the web pages of the member states’ agencies with responsibilities in this area (right-hand menu).
The REMJA process is the premier policy and technical forum at the hemispheric level on matters related to the strengthening of and access to justice and international legal cooperation in areas related to mutual legal assistance in criminal matters; extradition; penitentiary and prison policies; cybercrime and forensic sciences, among others.
The Hemispheric Information Exchange Network for Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters and Extradition (the “Network”) has been in development since the year 2000, when the Third Meeting of the Ministers of Justice or of Ministers or Attorney Generals of the Americas (REMJA-III) decided to increase and improve the exchange of information among OAS Member States in the area of mutual assistance in criminal matters. To read about the origins of the network, click here.
The Network is composed of three components: a public website, a private website and a secure electronic communication system.
Public Component
The public component of the Network (the site you are currently on) is a virtual library which provides legal information related to mutual assistance and extradition for the 34 OAS member states. By clicking on a country in the left-hand column, you can view a description of the country’s legal system, link to its basic legal documents (Constitution, criminal code, etc), and read the text of bilateral and multilateral treaties related to mutual assistance in criminal matters and extradition.
Private Component
The private component of the Network contains information for individuals who are directly involved in legal cooperation in criminal matters. The private site includes information on meetings, points of contact in other countries, a glossary of terms and training information on the secure electronic communication system.
Secure Electronic Communication System
The purpose of the secure electronic communication system is to facilitate the exchange of information between central authorities who deal with issues of mutual assistance in criminal matters and extradition. This system not only provides secure instant email service to central authorities, it also provides a space for virtual meetings and the exchange of pertinent documents.
The Network is composed of three components: a public website, a private website and a secure electronic communication system.
Public Component
The public component of the Network (the site you are currently on) is a virtual library which provides legal information related to mutual assistance and extradition for the 34 OAS member states. By clicking on a country in the left-hand column, you can view a description of the country’s legal system, link to its basic legal documents (Constitution, criminal code, etc), and read the text of bilateral and multilateral treaties related to mutual assistance in criminal matters and extradition.
Private Component
The private component of the Network contains information for individuals who are directly involved in legal cooperation in criminal matters. The private site includes information on meetings, points of contact in other countries, a glossary of terms and training information on the secure electronic communication system.
Secure Electronic Communication System
The purpose of the secure electronic communication system is to facilitate the exchange of information between central authorities who deal with issues of mutual assistance in criminal matters and extradition. This system not only provides secure instant email service to central authorities, it also provides a space for virtual meetings and the exchange of pertinent documents.
WELCOME to the Inter-American Cooperation Portal on Cyber-Crime.
The Inter-American Cooperation Portal on Cyber-Crime and the Working Group are two of the major outcomes of the process of Meetings of Ministers of Justice or Other Ministers or Attorneys General of the Americas (REMJA) aimed at strengthening hemispheric cooperation in the investigation and prosecution of these crimes.
This Portal was created primarily to facilitate and streamline cooperation and information exchange among government experts from OAS member states with responsibilities in the area of cybercrime or in international cooperation for its investigation and prosecution.
Meanwhile, the Working Group was established by the REMJA in 1999 as the principal hemispheric forum to strengthen international cooperation in the prevention, investigation and prosecution of cybercrime; facilitate the exchange of information and experiences among its members; and make necessary recommendations to enhance and strengthen cooperation among the OAS member states and with international organizations and mechanisms.
The Inter-American Cooperation Portal on Cyber-Crime and the Working Group are two of the major outcomes of the process of Meetings of Ministers of Justice or Other Ministers or Attorneys General of the Americas (REMJA) aimed at strengthening hemispheric cooperation in the investigation and prosecution of these crimes.
This Portal was created primarily to facilitate and streamline cooperation and information exchange among government experts from OAS member states with responsibilities in the area of cybercrime or in international cooperation for its investigation and prosecution.
Meanwhile, the Working Group was established by the REMJA in 1999 as the principal hemispheric forum to strengthen international cooperation in the prevention, investigation and prosecution of cybercrime; facilitate the exchange of information and experiences among its members; and make necessary recommendations to enhance and strengthen cooperation among the OAS member states and with international organizations and mechanisms.
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