PERMANENT COUNCIL OF THE ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES
SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON INTER-AMERICAN SUMMITS MANAGEMENT

OAS/Ser.G   CE/GCI-93/97
20 March 1997
Original: Spanish

REPORT OF THE CHAIR OF THE WORKING GROUP ON ENHANCEMENT OF THE ADMINISTRATION OF JUSTICE IN THE AMERICAS TO THE SPECIAL COMMITTEE ON INTER-AMERICAN
SUMMITS MANAGEMENT

PERMANENT MISSION OF URUGUAY TO THE
ORGANIZATION OF AMERICAN STATES
034/97

Washington, D.C., March 18, 1997

Her Excellency
Ambassador Harriet Babbitt
Chair of the Special Committee on
Inter-American Summits Management
Permanent Representative of
the United States to the OAS
Washington, D.C.

Excellency:

In response to your note of February 27 and in my role as Chair of the Working Group on Enhancement of the Administration of Justice in the Americas, I am writing to report on the activities undertaken by this Group since the last report presented in March 1996, in implementation of the Action Plan of the Summit of the Americas, in addition to the two resolutions adopted at the twenty-fifth regular session of the General Assembly of the OAS [AG/RES. 1325 and 1326 (XXVI-O/96)].

I. Regional Seminar on the Implementation of International Legal Provisions

This seminar was conducted in Granada, Nicaragua on September 3 to 5, 1996 and was organized by the OAS and the Central American Court of Justice. The seminar dealt with the dissemination and implementation of international legal provisions promulgated by the inter-American system. Participants included members of the Inter-American Court of Justice, judges, law professors, and lawyers from Nicaragua, as well as the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Belize.

II. Regional Seminar on Enhancement of the Administration of Justice

This seminar was held in Managua, Nicaragua on September 24 to 26, 1996 and was organized by the OAS and the Nicaraguan Supreme Court. Participants included members of the Nicaraguan Supreme Court, the Nicaraguan Court of Appeals, university professors, and law enforcement and penitentiary system officials in Nicaragua. Representatives from the judiciary of every Central American country were also present. Participants also came from Chile, Mexico, and Venezuela.

III. Regional Workshop on Training of Public Defenders

This workshop was held in Tarija, Bolivia on March 13 to 15, 1997 and was organized by the OAS and the School for Public Defenders in Bolivia, with the assistance of representatives from the Office of Public Defenders from Bolivia, Brazil, Colombia, Peru, and Uruguay. Topics covered included the management of the administration of justice, the role of public defenders in different processes, training of public defenders, and regional cooperation, an area in which the OAS' role was emphasized.

IV. Action Plans

At the request of the President of the Committee on Juridical and Political Affairs, the Group is considering the future preparation of a draft agenda for a possible meeting of the Ministers of Justice in the Americas to be held under the framework of the OAS (CP/CAJP/SA.271/96).

In the expectation that this letter provides you with the information requested, as the Chair of the Special Committee on Summits Management, I extend my kind regards.