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Moreno: The OAS does not commit “interference” when acting with Venezuela and Nicaragua
Posted On 18 Apr 2019
Ecuadornews:
The president of Ecuador, Lenin Moreno, considered Wednesday that the Organization of American States (OAS) is not committing any type of “interference” when it takes measures to prevent human rights violations in Venezuela and Nicaragua.
Moreno made the remarks during a speech before the Permanent Council of the OAS, the first address by an Ecuadorian president to that body in 17 years.
“The joint action, exercised in the protection of these (human) rights, does not violate the principle of non-intervention (…) In this framework, the position that Ecuador observes for Venezuela, Nicaragua or for any country, in which they violate or contradict human rights, “argued Moreno.
The president wanted to be “emphatic” in that the application of the Democratic Charter should not be interpreted as a “condemnation of a given regime, much less as an interference”, since “its gradual application, when appropriate, seeks to assist and contribute to the restoration of democratic order. “
The Democratic Charter is a legal instrument that, in its articles 20 and 21, contemplates diplomatic procedures against a Member State where there is “an alteration of the constitutional order” and, failing these efforts, it smooths the process for its suspension, which implies that the State would stop participating in the agency.
In its 70 years of history, the OAS has only suspended two States (Cuba and Honduras); while at its June 2018 General Assembly it took a first step to begin that process with Venezuela.
The OAS Permanent Council initiated the application of the Charter to Nicaragua on January 11, but since then no specific diplomatic initiative has been taken on the crisis in the Central American country, which has left three hundred dead since April 2018.
In his speech, Moreno wanted to “pay homage” to the members of the journalistic team of the Ecuadorian newspaper El Comercio murdered more than a year ago on the border with Colombia.
“A year of the kidnapping and murder has been commemorated. From the first events of this crime, I undertook to investigate the facts, to clarify them, and to guarantee the right to the truth to their families, “said Moreno, whose Government and the Colombian State have been collaborating with the IACHR to clarify the crime.
Moreno took advantage of his speech to reiterate his commitment to the OAS and the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR), two bodies that were much questioned by his predecessor in the Presidency, former President Rafael Correa (2007-2017), who considered them partial and dominated by Washington.
“We have returned after a period of distrust and suspicion,” Moreno said.
Outside the OAS, a dozen Ecuadorians gathered with an Ecuadorian flag and banners calling for the release of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange, a prisoner in the United Kingdom after Moreno revoked an asylum permit that allowed him to live in the United States. Embassy of Ecuador in London for seven years. (I)
