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In the foundational reunion of the Community of Latin-American and Caribbean States (CELAC) which took place in Caracas in December 3, 2011, with the then Commandant Hugo Chavez as the main political protagonist, it was signed that the creation of the CELAC was based in the absolute respect of the rule of law, the defense of democracy, the respect of the Human Rights and fundamental liberties, as fundamental requisites to integrate the organism.
In its “Special Declaration about the Deference of the Democracy and the Constitutional Order” subscript in December 3rd of 2011, the CELAC adopted a democratic clause that included the rights of the persons to not be detained, arrested or exiled.
The ALBA has been characterized precisely for diminishing the rule of Law and the democratic institutions. The electoral process in these countries have tuned dull, as they have profoundly become authoritarian as it occurs in Venezuela and Nicaragua.
The government of Venezuela has an abundant amount of political Prisoners, including Leopoldo Lopez and Antonio Ledezma, whose freedom has been requested by the international democratic community.
Likewise, unlike the OAS, suggestively the special declaration about the Deference of the democracy and the constitutional order of the CELAC doesn’t include a reference that expresses celebration of periodical, free, fair, elections based on universal suffrage and secret like the expression of the sovereignty of the people: the plural regime of parties and political organizations, and the separation and intendance of the public powers.
It is evident that the CELAC emerges as an initiative of the Alba to politically influence the rest of the countries in the region. For various motives, the CELAC member states that were really committed with the rule of law and the respect of the fundamental liberties have to take advantage of the actual context in Venezuela to abandon this organism that suffers of authoritarians vice in its origins, giving the anti-democratic cases of Venezuelan y Cuban governments.
Besides this political motive, that will contribute to weaken the Venezuelan government and strengthen its democratic actors, it exist a practical aspect. It is that the countries of Latin America participate in too many regional organisms intergovernmental, where its officers overlap duties trying the same themes in each and one of them causing a deficiency of outcomes. It is better to concentrate in the participation of organisms with better funded institutions and more committed to democracy. On the contrary, in CADAL and TE we request the Government of the Republic of Argentina to withdraw its membership in the CELAC and reinforce its participation in OEAS and Mercosur; and within its Pro presidency tempore of the UNASUR to promote the application in Venezuela of the additional protocol in the constructive deal of UNASUR about democracy.
CADAL is a private, non-profit and non-partisan foundation with a mission consisting on research, dissemination and support to the respect of civic, political and economic liberties. For this objective, CADAL prioritizes the defense and strengthening of democracy as a cornerstone of economic and social progress, and the international promotion of human rights.
Transparencia Electoral is a non-governmental organization that promotes the democratic values in Argentina and in all the Latin American region. Electoral transparency analyzes and observes the electoral systems with the objective to guarantee the political rights of the citizens in the electoral processes, to develop concrete actions with the end consecrate integral elections, transparent and fair. Equally TE supports the understanding that democracy only strengthens when fair elections take place.
