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alteration constitutes "an insurmountable obstacle to its government's participation in sessions of the
General Assembly, the Meeting of Consultation, the Councils of the Organization, the specialized conferences, the commissions, working groups, and other bodies of the Organization." Consequently, Article 20 provides that following such a breakdown in a member state's constitutional regime, any other member state or the
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without parliamentary approval, and threats made by
President Maduro to close down the National Assembly and prevent a recall referendum promoted by the opposition. On 31 May, despite considerable criticism from left-wing countries, Almagro called an emergency meeting that could have potentially resulted in Venezuela's expulsion from the OAS.
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organization of those States on the basis of the effective exercise of representative democracy". However, the charter also exhorts the organization to promote democracy "with due respect for the principle of nonintervention," and lacks any mechanism for collective action among the states in defense of democracy.
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to undertake a collective assessment of the situation and to take such decisions as it deems appropriate. Should the
Permanent Council's diplomatic efforts prove fruitless in re-establishing the constitutional order, or if the situation is deemed particularly urgent, a special session of the General
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strengthened the charter's original language on democracy by asserting that "representative democracy is an indispensable condition for the stability, peace and development of the region" and "he solidarity of the
American States and the high aims which are sought through it require the political
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Title IV establishes how the
Organization is to react following "an unconstitutional interruption of the democratic order or an unconstitutional alteration of the constitutional regime that seriously impairs the democratic order in a member state." Article 19 states that such an interruption or
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to apply the Inter-American
Democratic Charter in view of the country's economic and political situation, including the economic crisis, the de facto control by President Maduro of the judicial and electoral branches of government, a decree of "state of exception and economic emergency" passed
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On the one-month anniversary of continued protests and political unrest in
Venezuela, the U.S. Secretary of State, John Kerry, said in a hearing before the House of Representatives that the United States was prepared to invoke the Democratic Charter on Venezuela if necessary.
168:, when news of the coup broke and were able to issue a joint statement on 12 April condemning the attempted takeover and calling for a special session of the General Assembly to be held. One of the leaders who issued an immediate call for a special session was
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The
Charter contains additional provisions dealing with actions to be adopted by member states to promote a culture of democracy within their countries, and it sets a framework for the conduction of the OAS's electoral observation missions in the member states.
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and other regional organizations of states, the
Organization of American States held a series of diplomatic conferences on the issue of democracy. Democracy is one of the foundational principles of the OAS, and it was enshrined in
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248:(JNJ), the Center for Justice and International Law (CEJIL), Due Process of Law Foundation, Fundación Construir, Fundación para la Justicia y el Estado Democrático de Derecho (FJEDD),
47:. The Charter, which is binding on all 34 of the currently active OAS member states, spells out what democracy entails and specifies how it should be defended when it is under threat.
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Assembly may be convened to address the matter. That special session may then resolve, by a two-thirds vote of the member states, to suspend the membership of the state in question.
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Once the situation that led to suspension has been resolved, the suspended member may be re-instated by a two-thirds vote of the
General Assembly.
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on the development of the document. The General Assembly special session in Lima at which the Democratic Charter was adopted was the reason why
59:, as international interest in multilateral action in support of human rights and democracy resulted in several conventions and treaties at the
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referred to the Charter in his statement regarding the coup. Obama stated he believed that the coup was in violation of the Charter.
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28:
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187:". As it transpired, Chávez was returned to power before any further steps could be taken to convene the General Assembly.
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111:"The peoples of the Americas have a right to democracy and their governments have an obligation to promote and defend it."
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The Inter-American Democratic Charter was formally invoked for the first time in April 2002 on the occasion of the
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instrument with the central aim of strengthening and upholding democratic institutions in the nations of the
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495:"Organizaciones internacionales piden aplicar carta democrática al Perú por investigación a la JNJ"
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of 11 September 2001; he cut short his participation at the meeting and departed Lima for
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The Inter-American Democratic Charter was not invoked again until the
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Declaración del Presidente Fox sobre la situación actual en Venezuela
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Instrument for strengthening and defending democracy in the Americas
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Kerry: The United States is ready to impose sanctions on Venezuela
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formally asked Organization of American States Secretary General
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after Chávez called his Mexican counterpart a "puppy dog of the
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was adopted on 11 September 2001 by a special session of the
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Declaración del Grupo de Río sobre la situación en Venezuela
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may request the immediate convocation of the Organization's
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Bush Must Re-Embrace Latin Leaders After Break Over Chávez
175:– himself no supporter of Chávez's policies and who would
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Article 1 frames the purpose and goal of the Charter:
467:"Congreso aprueba golpe contra el sistema de justicia"
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African Charter on Democracy, Elections and Governance
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Office of the President of the United Mexican States
177:three years later recall his country's ambassador
55:Beginning in the 1980s, and especially after the
441:"Why Venezuela Must be Expelled from the OAS"
8:
331:, 11 September 2001; retrieved 2007-06-01.
256:, Observatorio Derechos y Justicia (ODJ),
242:consolidating power of Peru's institutions
407:, 14 November 2005; retrieved 2007-06-01.
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91:was absent from his country during the
430:, 12 March 2014; retrieved 2014-03-13.
392:, 12 April 2002; retrieved 2007-06-01.
370:, 19 April 2002; retrieved 2007-06-01.
354:, 12 April 2002; retrieved 2007-06-01.
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465:Sánchez, Diego Quispe (2023-09-08).
300:"The Carter Center Americas Program"
254:International Commission of Jurists
244:regarding the restructuring of the
530:The Carter Center Americas Program
319:Press Briefing By Philip T. Reeker
262:Washington Office on Latin America
147:attempted coup d'état in Venezuela
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524:Inter-American Democratic Charter
402:Chavez and Fox recall ambassadors
164:nations were holding a summit in
68:from the beginning. In 1985, the
21:Inter-American Democratic Charter
86:United States Secretary of State
80:'s Americas Program advised the
550:Organization of American States
82:Organization of American States
70:Protocol of Cartagena de Indias
29:Organization of American States
493:Saavedra, Narda (2023-09-08).
258:Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights
222:National Assembly of Venezuela
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199:in June 2009. U.S. President
156:from office on 11 April. The
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93:Al-Qaeda terrorist attacks
246:National Board of Justice
237:Due to concerns with the
149:that temporarily removed
99:, shortly after midday.
197:coup d'état in Honduras
428:El Universal (Caracas)
329:U.S. State Department
368:Pacific News Service
166:San José, Costa Rica
297:The Carter Center,
422:2014-03-13 at the
385:2018-11-11 at the
346:2012-02-07 at the
324:2007-06-14 at the
250:Human Rights Watch
170:Mexican President
122:Permanent Council
118:Secretary General
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279:Ushuaia Protocol
239:Congress of Peru
220:On 19 May, the
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25:General Assembly
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505:. Retrieved
503:(in Spanish)
500:La República
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477:. Retrieved
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472:La República
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449:. Retrieved
447:. 2016-06-09
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226:Luis Almagro
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136:Applications
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89:Colin Powell
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526:(full text)
173:Vicente Fox
154:Hugo Chávez
66:its charter
39:. It is an
539:Categories
507:2023-09-09
479:2023-09-09
451:2023-04-19
306:2008-07-21
285:References
233:Peru, 2023
103:Provisions
51:Background
31:, held in
545:Democracy
352:Rio Group
162:Rio Group
151:President
445:HuffPost
420:Archived
405:BBC News
383:Archived
344:Archived
322:Archived
268:See also
260:and the
57:Cold War
45:Americas
181:Caracas
27:of the
252:, the
185:Empire
160:of 19
179:from
76:The
37:Peru
33:Lima
19:The
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