Center for Global Management

Twenty years ago, to safeguard the region’s hard-fought democratic gains, every country in the region except Cuba signed onto the Inter-American Democratic Charter. The transitional government of Peru created the initial proposal for a charter shortly before the Third Summit of the Americas in April 2001, held in Canada. In the “Declaration of Quebec City” produced at the summit, leaders agreed that democracy and the rule of law were an “essential condition” for participation in the summit process, and emphasized the need for better tools to defend democracy in the hemisphere.  On June 8, The Latin American Program at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, the UCLA Burkle Center for International Relations, UCLA Latin American Institute, UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs, The Carter Center, and the Community of Democracies will convene experts and senior leaders to discuss ways to strengthen the collective defense of democracy in the Americas. This regional democracy dialogue, taking place on the margins of the Summit of the Americas, is designed to generate and advance realistic policy recommendations to improve the charter’s application by OAS member states.