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Jamaica’s Ambassador Accentuates Economic Development and Poverty Reduction in Maiden Address To OAS Permanent Council

WASHINGTON, DC – Jamaica’s continued special interest in the issue of economic development and poverty reduction at the hemispheric level were accentuated by Ambassador Anthony Johnson, in his first address as Permanent Representative to the Organization of American States Permanent Council in Washington on Tuesday, April 1.

OAS Secretary General José Miguel Insulza and Assistant Secretary General Albert Ramdin joined the member state ambassadors in welcoming Ambassador Johnson, who used his maiden address to reiterate the call for a timely conclusion of the proposed Social Charter of the Americas to serve as “a blueprint for action on the social agenda of the OAS and in the fight against poverty.” He urged full commitment by all parties, so as to forge consensus on this important hemispheric instrument to ensure balanced treatment between the political and the economic and social agenda of the Organization.

In the Permanent Council session chaired by Barbados Ambassador Michael King, the new envoy to the OAS also underscored Jamaica’s “unswerving” commitment to the principles of multilateralism, and stressed the importance of the organization’s development cooperation agenda. He explain Jamaica’s commitment to multilateralism as “guided by strong adherence to the tenets and principles of respect among sovereign states, territorial integrity, non-interference and the peaceful settlement of dispute—all of which are underlying principles of the OAS Charter.”

Ambassador Johnson said Jamaica continues to regard the OAS as important and relevant to the objectives of consolidating democracy, maintaining peace and security and promoting economic development. He also cited the orderly and peaceful change in administration in Jamaica last September—the eighth change of government since Independence in 1962—as emblematic of the “maturity of our democracy and our commitment to the rule of law and respect for human rights.” He said that the unbroken democratic tradition enjoyed by Jamaica and indeed the Caribbean, “is a matter of immense pride.”

In other priorities he highlighted in his maiden address, Johnson spoke of the challenges to hemispheric security posed by “the borderless phenomena of illicit traffic in drugs and small arms, transnational organized crime and terrorism, to which all our countries are vulnerable and which undermine our efforts to maintain stable and prosperous societies.” The OAS must continue to play its part in tackling these scourges which are threatening the stability of our hemisphere, he argued. Noting how the Multilateral Evaluation Mechanism (MEM) “reflects the principle of shared responsibility, he said Jamaica remains convinced that “this Mechanism is the most appropriate instrument to assess our efforts in this area.”

Among priority issues he raised, the Ambassador Johnson—who presented credentials at the OAS on March 20 and is also Ambassador to the United States—highlighted the deleterious economic effects of natural disasters, noting how Jamaica was ravaged by Hurricane Dean last year and by several other powerful hurricanes over the years, with huge economic implications. He also highlighted the value his country puts on “the role that all institutions can play in responding to humanitarian needs and in developing risk reduction and risk management strategies,” saying he looks forward to participating in the First Inter-American Meeting of National Authorities on Natural Disaster Reduction and Risk Management to be held in Venezuela in June.

“Jamaica maintains its call for the international community to provide the assistance pledged to Haiti in order to support the country’s development efforts,” said Ambassador Johnson. The Fifth Summit of the Americas, to be held in Trinidad and Tobago next year, is another important forum to which the government is fully committed, he noted. “The overriding objective of Jamaica’s foreign policy remains the pursuit of a global order that is conducive to peace and stability and one which can promote sustainable development with justice and equity,” Ambassador Johnson told the OAS member state ambassadors.

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