The Organization of American States (OAS, or, as it is known in the three other official languages, OEA) is an international organization An international organization is an organization with an international membership, scope, or presence. There are two main types:, headquartered in Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C. , formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States, founded on July 16, 1790. The City of Washington was originally a separate municipality within the Territory of Columbia until an act of Congress in 1871 effectively merged the City and the, United States ^ b. English is the de facto language of American government and the sole language spoken at home by 80% of Americans age five and older. Spanish is the second most commonly spoken language.[1] Its members are the thirty-five independent states of the Americas The Americas, or America, are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World, comprising the continents of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions. The plural form the Americas is often used in English, as the singular America is ambiguous: America is more commonly used to refer to the United States, although Honduras Honduras (pronounced /hɑnˈdʊrəs/ , Spanish: República de Honduras, pronounced [reˈpuβlika ðe onˈduɾas]) is a republic in Central America. It was formerly known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras (now Belize). The country is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by was suspended as a result of the June 28, 2009 coup d’état that expelled President Manuel Zelaya José Manuel Zelaya Rosales is a Honduran politician. He was elected President of Honduras on January 27, 2006. A son of a wealthy businessman, he inherited his father's nickname "Mel." Zelaya was involved in his ranch, logging and timber trade businesses. During his presidency, Zelaya moved sharply to the political left. On June 28, 2009 from office.[2]

Contents

History

The notion of closer hemispheric union in America was first put forward by Simón Bolívar Simón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar Palacios y Blanco, commonly known as Simón Bolívar was a South American political leader. Together with José de San Martín, he played a key role in Latin America's successful struggle for independence from Spain[3] who, at the 1826 Congress of Panama The Congress of Panama was a congress organized by Simón Bolívar in 1826 so that Latin American countries could become closer and develop a unified policy towards Spain. Held in Panama City from 22 June to 15 July of that year, the meeting proposed creating a league of American republics, with a common military, a mutual defense pact, and a, proposed creating a league of American republics, with a common military, a mutual defense pact, and a supranational parliamentary assembly. This meeting was attended by representatives of Gran Colombia Gran Colombia is a name used today for the state that encompassed a great part of the territory of northern South America and part of southern Central America during the years 1819 to 1831. This short-lived republic encompassed the territories of present-day Colombia, Venezuela, Ecuador, and Panama. The first three were the successor states to (comprising the modern-day nations of Colombia Colombia (pronounced /kəˈlʌmbiə/ ), officially the Republic of Colombia (Spanish: República de Colombia, pronounced [reˈpuβlika ðe koˈlombja] ( listen)), is a constitutional republic in northwestern South America. Colombia is bordered to the east by Venezuela and Brazil; to the south by Ecuador and Peru; to the north by the Caribbean Sea;, Ecuador Ecuador (pronounced /ˈɛkwədɔr/ ), officially the Republic of Ecuador (Spanish: República del Ecuador, pronounced [reˈpuβlika ðel ekwaˈðor]), literally, "Republic of the equator") is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to, Panama Panama (pronounced /ˈpænəmɑː/ ), officially the Republic of Panama (Spanish: República de Panamá; pronounced [reˈpuβlika ðe panaˈma]), is the southernmost country of both Central America and, in turn, North America. Situated on the isthmus connecting North and South America, it is bordered by Costa Rica to the northwest, Colombia to the, and Venezuela Venezuela (pronounced /ˌvɛnɨˈzweɪlə/ ; Spanish: [beneˈswela]), officially called the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (Spanish: República Bolivariana de Venezuela), is a tropical country on the northern coast of South America. It is a continental mainland with numerous islands located off its coastline in the Caribbean Sea. The republic is), Peru Peru (pronounced /pəˈrʊ/ ; Spanish: Perú, Quechua: Piruw, Aymara: Piruw), officially the Republic of Peru (Spanish: República del Perú, pronounced [reˈpuβlika ðel peˈɾu] ( listen)), is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south, the United Provinces of Central America The Federal Republic of Central America, after known as the United Provinces of Central America in its first year of creation, was a short-lived sovereign state in Central America, which consisted of the territories of the former Captaincy General of Guatemala. A republican democracy, it existed from July 1823 to 1840. The coat of arms on the, and Mexico In Pre-Columbian Mesoamerica many cultures matured into advanced civilizations such as the Olmec, the Toltec, the Teotihuacan, the Zapotec, the Maya and the Aztec before the first contact with Europeans. In 1521, Spain conquered and colonized the territory, which was administered as the viceroyalty of New Spain which would eventually become Mexico, but the grandly titled "Treaty of Union, League, and Perpetual Confederation" was ultimately only ratified by Gran Colombia. Bolívar's dream soon floundered with civil war in Gran Colombia, the disintegration of Central America, and the emergence of national Nationalism involves a strong identification of a group of individuals with a political entity defined in national terms, i.e. a nation. Often, it is the belief that an ethnic group has a right to statehood, or that citizenship in a state should be limited to one ethnic group, or that multinationality in a single state should necessarily comprise rather than continental outlooks in the newly independent American republics. Bolívar's dream of American unity was meant to unify Latin American nations against imperial domination by external power.

The pursuit of regional solidarity and cooperation again came to the forefront in 1889–90, at the First International Conference of American States. Gathered together in Washington, D.C., 18 nations resolved to found the International Union of American Republics, served by a permanent secretariat called the Commercial Bureau of the American Republics (renamed the "International Commercial Bureau" at the Second International Conference in 1901–02). These two bodies, in existence as of 14 April 1890, represent the point of inception to which today's OAS and its General Secretariat trace their origins.

At the Fourth International Conference of American States (Buenos Aires Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent. Greater Buenos Aires conurbation, which also includes several Buenos Aires, 1910), the name of the organization was changed to the "Union of American Republics" and the Bureau became the "Pan American Union".

Pan American Union headquarters building in Washington, D.C., 1943

The experience of World War II Albania · Australia · Austria · Azerbaijan · Belarus · Belgium · Brazil · Bulgaria · Burma · Cambodia · Canada · Ceylon (Sri Lanka) · Channel Islands · China · Czechoslovakia · Denmark · Dutch East Indies · Egypt · Estonia · Finland · France · Germany · Gibraltar · Greece · Greenland · Hong Kong · Hungary · Iceland · convinced hemispheric governments that unilateral action could not ensure the territorial integrity of the American nations in the event of extra-continental aggression. To meet the challenges of global conflict in the postwar world and to contain conflicts within the hemisphere, they adopted a system of collective security Collective security can be understood as a security arrangement in which all states cooperate collectively to provide security for all by the actions of all against any states within the groups which might challenge the existing order by using sanctions and force. According to And while collective security is possible, several prerequisites have, the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance The Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance was an agreement ratified on 1947 in Rio de Janeiro among many American countries. The central principle contained in its articles is that an attack against one is to be considered an attack against them all; this was known as the "hemispheric defense" doctrine. The treaty was initially (Rio Treaty) signed in 1947 in Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro , commonly referred to simply as Rio, is the capital city of the State of Rio de Janeiro, the second largest city of Brazil and the third largest metropolitan area and agglomeration in South America, 6th largest in the Americas.

The Ninth International Conference of American States was held in Bogotá Bogotá, Distrito Capital (Spanish pronunciation: [boɣoˈta] ), formerly called Santa Fé de Bogotá, is the capital city of Colombia, as well as the most populous city in the country, with an estimated 7,304,384 inhabitants as of 2009. Bogotá and its metropolitan area, which includes municipalities such as Chía, Cota, Soacha, Cajicá and La between March and May 1948 and led by United States Secretary of State The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence. The current Secretary of State is Hillary Rodham Clinton, the 67th person, and third woman George Marshall General of the Army George Catlett Marshall was an American military leader, Chief of Staff of the Army, Secretary of State, and the third Secretary of Defense. Once noted as the "organizer of victory" by Winston Churchill for his leadership of the Allied victory in World War II, Marshall served as the U.S. Army Chief of Staff during the, a meeting which led to a pledge by members to fight communism in America. This was the event that saw the birth of the OAS as it stands today, with the signature by 21 American countries of the Charter of the Organization of American States on 30 April 1948 (in effect since December 1951). The meeting also adopted the American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man The American Declaration of the Rights and Duties of Man was the world's first international human rights instrument of a general nature, predating the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by less than a year, the world's first general human rights instrument.

The transition from the Pan American Union to OAS was smooth. The Director General of the former, Alberto Lleras Camargo, became the Organization's first Secretary General. The current Secretary General is former Chilean foreign minister José Miguel Insulza.

Significant milestones in the history of the OAS since the signing of the Charter have included the following:

Goals and purpose

Pan American Union (building)
U.S. ^ b. English is the de facto language of American government and the sole language spoken at home by 80% of Americans age five and older. Spanish is the second most commonly spoken language National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation. Having a property on the National Register, or located within a National Register Historic District, could result in its eligibility for tax incentives derived from the
OAS headquarters building in Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C. , formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, the District, or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States, founded on July 16, 1790. The City of Washington was originally a separate municipality within the Territory of Columbia until an act of Congress in 1871 effectively merged the City and the
Location: 17th Street NW between C Street NW and Constitution Avenue In Washington, D.C., Constitution Avenue is a major east-west street running just north of the United States Capitol in the city's Northwest and Northeast quadrants. The avenue carries heavy commuter traffic on weekdays and heavy tourist traffic on the weekends; it is also an important parade route, NW. Washington, D.C.
Architect: Paul P. Cret
Added to NRHP The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation. Having a property on the National Register, or located within a National Register Historic District, could result in its eligibility for tax incentives derived from the: 4 June 1969
NRHP Reference#: 69000298

In the words of Article 1 of the Charter, the goal of the member nations in creating the OAS was "to achieve an order of peace and justice, to promote their solidarity, to strengthen their collaboration, and to defend their sovereignty, their territorial integrity, and their independence." Article 2 then defines eight essential purposes:

Over the course of the 1990s, with the end of the Cold War The Cold War was the continuing state of political conflict, military tension, proxy wars, and economic competition existing after World War II (1939–1945), primarily between the Soviet Union and its satellite states, and the powers of the Western world, particularly the United States. Although the primary participants' military forces never, the return to democracy in Latin America Latin America is a region of the Americas where Romance languages (i.e., those derived from Latin) – particularly Spanish, Portuguese, and variably French – are primarily spoken. Latin America has an area of approximately 21,069,501 km² (7,880,000 sq mi), almost 3.9% of the Earth's surface or 14.1% of its land surface area. As of 2009, its, and the thrust toward globalization Globalization describes a process by which regional economies, societies, and cultures have become integrated through a global network of communication, transportation, and trade. The term is sometimes used to refer specifically to economic globalization: the integration of national economies into the international economy through trade, foreign, the OAS made major efforts to reinvent itself to fit the new context. Its stated priorities now include the following:

Article 19 of the OAS Charter prohibits any State from interfering with the internal or external affairs of a member state. Article 21 prohibits any State from the military occupation—even temporarily—of a Member State's territory. The Charter subscribes to international law but goes further, saying that Charter rights depend not on power but follow from the existence of the state. The United States is signatory to the OAS Charter, meaning that the U.S. (like other Members) is legally bound by Article 19, 21, and other Charter provisions. [See Membership].

There is an increasing world perception that the OAS is bias toward US concerns and influence in non-US states and countries. For example, Article 19 prohibits interfering with member states but does not prohibit interference with non-member states (not to mention military occupation). This effectively forces third world nations to join the OAS by coercion and threat of US interference. It has forced these nations to subscribe to US domination. There is currently an effort in South American countries including Venezuela, Bolivia, Ecuador, etc to create a new body that represents the South American countries in a more equitable manner and is not centered in Washington, DC.

Organizational structure

The OAS is composed of a Permanent Council, and a number of committees, including:

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