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SUMMIT PROPOSALS: PRESERVING AND STRENGTHENING DEMOCRACY AND HUMAN RIGHTS Michael Shifter
The most striking fact about democracy in Latin America and the Caribbean is the persistence of the norm that favors democratic practices and institutions. Happily, the context remains inhospitable to the sort of unconstitutional takeovers that once distinguished the region. Civilian leaders still reaffirm the importance of freely elected governments, buttressed by public opinion that prefers the democratic system. The adoption of the Washington Protocol in September 1997 -- which grants OAS member governments the authority to expel countries that violate the norm of constitutional government -- underlines a continuing region-wide juridical commitment and obligation. At the same time, though constitutional governments are for the most part in place, there is a sharp disparity between the norm and the reality of democratic practices and institutions. The litany of deficiencies is by now all too familiar: ineffectual and unaccountable justice systems and legislatures; lack of full subordination of the military to civilian authority; curtailment of press freedoms; and relatively weak participation and representation in the democratic process. Though in many countries there is much to appreciate, and celebrate, the rule of law is generally far from robust. Against such a backdrop, it is crucial to sustain the political momentum in the hemisphere towards the strong defense and promotion of democracy -- and protection of fundamental human rights. It is important to guard against reversals, and to anticipate and address serious, potential problems. An array of mechanisms and instruments, in both the governmental and non-governmental sectors, already perform well. Some -- such as the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights -- serve as models for other parts of the world. But at a time when many democracies are under considerable strain -- and the region is witnessing more ambiguous and subtle threats to democratic governance -- they especially need sustained support by the hemisphere's heads of state to respond even more effectively to multiple challenges. One of the most urgent challenges is crime. Democratic practice becomes problematic when fundamental personal security and core constitutional protections are seriously threatened. The problem has a variety of dimensions -- social, economic, political, cultural -- but the central fact is that the Americas is the most violent continent in the world, reflected in the highest homicide rates. Available data reveal that over the last decade all of the urban centers in Latin America have witnessed a surge in common crime. The subject dominates the headlines of the region*s daily newspapers and magazines -- and stands out in any public opinion survey about what most concerns Latin American citizens. Though the problem particularly afflicts the poorest sectors of society, today few remain entirely unaffected. It is important for the hemisphere's heads of state to discuss and deal with one of the issues that most troubles their citizens -- and in a way that is consistent with democratic and human rights norms. It would be productive and timely to emphasize the importance of exploring policy options to address the crime problem. At present, there is a wide gap between the gravity of the issue and the resources set aside to tackle it. One promising step would be to enhance mechanisms of exchange of information and expertise, in an effort to discover "best practices" and disseminate them as broadly as possible. In some cases -- New York City and Rio de Janeiro, for example -- there is evidence of a drop in crime. It would be important to identify the factors that account for the improvement, and to see how they might apply to cities where crime is on the rise. The crime challenge also suggests enhanced attention to reforming and modernizing the region's judiciaries and police forces. These are complex and long-term challenges, but they are essential to construct the rule of law throughout the region. In the 1990s, many countries in the region have undertaken judicial reform efforts, increasingly with the support of the Inter-American Development Bank and World Bank. But surprisingly little is known about what has worked and what has not worked, and whether there are some elements that make up an emerging "model" of successful judicial reform. Hemispheric governments should commit themselves to conducting a collective, systematic inquiry to develop more informed guidelines for future efforts. Such an inquiry might include an assessment of the quality and effectiveness of various national training programs for judges. Improving the capacity and professionalism of the region's police forces is also a high priority to advance the democratic and human rights agenda. Some noteworthy effects have been carried out to create new civilian police forces in post-conflict situations, including El Salvador and, currently, Guatemala. In addition, there have recently been some substantial police reforms in Brazil, which have in part inspired the follow-up to the democracy initiative in the 1994 Summit, coordinated by Brazil and Canada. The exchanges of information and expertise involving both countries have been helpful. But what has essentially been a bilateral endeavor should be considerably broader, engaging the support of other hemispheric governments. In many countries, the role of the police has been relatively neglected over the past several decades. Yet, in view of the coming challenges to democracy and human rights in the region, this institution deserves urgent, high-level, multilateral attention. One of the most promising institutional advances in the justice area in Latin America over the past decade has been the expansion of "ombudsman" offices, now found in some 13 countries. These perform slightly different functions, with varying degrees of effectiveness, but often respond to citizen's concerns in human rights and administrative law. Such non-governmental organizations as the Inter-American Institute of Human Rights and the Andean Commission of Jurists are playing valuable roles in convening a region-wide network made up of directors of these institutions, in an effort to strengthen their capacity. The ombudsman offices -- different terms are used in different countries -- could benefit from an expression of enthusiastic support from the hemisphere's heads of state, increased resources from the multilateral banks, and a commitment to expand their faculties in addressing citizen demands. Apart from ombudsman offices and other national judicial institutions, the Summit should accord special recognition to the inter-American human rights system, particularly the Inter-American Human Rights Commission and Court. Heads of state should be encouraged to underscore these institutions' critical role in exposing human rights transgressions and developing a body of regional jurisprudence. Both the Commission and Court should get more substantial financial support. The Commission's overriding juridical role should be strongly reaffirmed, with an eye towards improving democratic institutional protections. Stronger collaboration between the Commission and the Inter-American Development Bank's increasing work in judicial reform should also be supported. The Inter-American Development Bank, as well as the OAS and national development agencies, are also focusing growing attention on efforts aimed at the modernization and reform of the Congress throughout Latin America. The principles and framework embraced by parliamentary leaders at an IADB-sponsored meeting in Chile in September 1997 should be endorsed by the hemisphere's heads of state. (See "Carta de la Modernizacion Parlamentaria Iberoamericana") The heads of state should acknowledge the weakness of many of the region's legislatures as a democratic shortcoming that should be addressed through enhanced training, exchange and policy discussions among key leaders.
In addition, hemispheric governments should sustain progress made in the area of fighting corruption. Heads of state should commit themselves to implementing the 1996 Inter-American Convention Against Corruption and encouraging governments to adopt laws that seek to modernize government procurement and acquisitions systems and improve accountability through financial management and thorough and transparent financial reporting. The OAS would be the appropriate vehicle to work with governments in establishing a monitoring mechanism to track progress toward implementation of the Convention and other anti-corruption Summit efforts. One of the more positive democratic developments in the region has been the institutionalization of elections in nearly every country. Electoral tribunals are markedly better -- more efficient and accountable -- than they were just a few years ago. Yet, routine elections have been accompanied by the complicated question of campaign and political party financing, sometimes illegal funding that penetrates the political process. This problem affects all of the countries of the hemisphere, and has important implications for democracy. The heads of state should address the campaign financing issue directly, and propose to review national legislation and attempt to develop region-wide norms and standards in this area. This would not involve enforcement, or even evaluation, but would simply be an attempt to deal collectively with a common, growing problem. Many analysts agree that the growing independence and professionalism of much of the media in Latin America and the Caribbean is one of the more heartening democratic trends. In country after country, the print and television media are revealing important public information, and keeping public officials accountable. At the same time, however, perhaps the clearest measure of the media's increasing strength has been a number of attempts throughout the region to restrict its freedoms and introduce some measure of censorship. Such attempts constitute a step backward. The Santiago Summit would be an excellent opportunity for the heads of state to reaffirm their support in the strongest terms for regional norms that embrace full press freedom. They might also endorse training programs in investigative journalism. The idea of setting up an ombudsman's office in the OAS (perhaps within the Inter-American Commission of Human Rights), to monitor carefully attempts to restrict press freedom, might also be pursued. It is important to establish a region-wide mechanism to ensure that the press enjoys the fullest range of freedom in carrying out its work. Finally, and importantly, even in the context of civilian, constitutional governments, the relationship between civilian and military leaders in many countries remains problematic and conflicted. Almost a decade after the end of the Cold War, there is still no clear, coherent formulation about the purpose of the armed forces, its appropriate role and mission. Regional norms in this area are essential, but to date have not been adequately developed, despite positive meetings of the defense ministers in Williamsburg and Bariloche. This issue also deserves the highest level attention, including a serious review of inter-American security institutions. Civil-military relations remains a serious challenge to deepening and improving the quality of democracy throughout the hemisphere.
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