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A new manifestation of the trend toward democracy in the hemisphere
is the increasing civil society involvement in policymaking
at the national and regional levels. Since the beginning of
the Summit of the Americas process in 1994, questions of transparency,
participation and accountability have been paramount. The
role of civil society has been a key focus in the drive to
consolidate the triumph of the democratic process in almost
all of the hemisphere. As the Dante B. Fascell North-South
Center at the University of Miami stated in its publication,
Civil
Society and the Summit of the Americas: The 1998 Santiago
Summit , the 1994 Summit of the Americas "has opened
up unprecedented opportunities for civil society actors to
participate in the formulation and implementation of important
initiatives in the economic, political, and social development
of the Western Hemisphere." But, the fragile nature of
democratic governance and the tension between formal versus
real democratic values continue to fuel the question of who
represents civil society in the region's integration and development
debates and negotiations. This section will follow the developments
and comment on the progress in this area.
Civil society participation in the Summits covers
wide ground. It moves from the Americas Business Forum that
has been recognized by the FTAA Trade Ministerials since 1995
to the OAS System's recently unveiled
Inter-American
Strategy for Promotion of Public Participation in Decision
Making for Sustainable Development, to other institutional
efforts to coordinate the input of civil society. On the other
hand, there has developed a strong parallel structure of Non-Governmental
and Labor Organizations that are highly critical of the access
and transparency of the integration process and in particular
of the FTAA. Many of these groups are loosely organized within
the Continental Social Alliance or the ASC, using its Spanish
acronym. This Alliance was launched at the 1998 Summit of
the Americas in Santiago, Chile and is made up of the Regional
Organization of Workers, community-based and Non-Governmental
Organizations. Put together with the many business and environmental
networks, both national and international, this creates a
rather unwieldy body of diverse views and approaches. However,
many believe that the involvement of civil society will be
key in the expansion of well-being through the greater market
access and sustainable development that the Summit process
seeks.
This section will provide a view of the
many voices that claim to represent elements of civil society
and seek access and input to the Summit process. This will
include the FTAA efforts to create a bridge between civil
society and its negotiations. Within the current FTAA structure
the
Committee
of Government Representatives on Civil Society continues
to debate the framework of this relationship. Proposed new
multilateral processes include the OAS Guidelines for Civil
Society accreditation, which were established in 1999. Many
other current and potential sources will provide debate and
information for us to follow on these electronic pages.
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