NEWS RELEASES
SENATOR MOLGAT TO LEAD CANADIAN DELEGATIONTO OAS GENERAL ASSEMBLY IN PERU
May 29, 1997 No. 100
SENATOR MOLGAT TO LEAD CANADIAN DELEGATION
TO OAS GENERAL ASSEMBLY IN PERU
Foreign Affairs Minister Lloyd Axworthy today announced that the Honourable Gildas
L. Molgat, Speaker of the Senate of Canada, will lead the Canadian delegation to
the 27th Organization of American States (OAS) General Assembly from June 1 to 6,
1997, in Lima, Peru.
"We are fortunate to have a representative of Senator Molgat's stature
representing Canada at this important hemispheric meeting," said Mr. Axworthy. The
Minister noted that Senator Molgat will be an honorary co-chair of the upcoming
Parliamentary Conference of the Americas, to be held in September in Quebec City.
Canada's objectives for this year's OAS meeting include:
building regional support through the Ottawa Process, a Canadian initiative aimed
at concluding a treaty by December 1997 for a global ban on anti-personnel
landmines, following on a resolution passed at the 1996 General Assembly to create
a Western Hemisphere Anti-Personnel Landmines-Free Zone by the year 2000;
seeking hemispheric support for a continued international presence in Haiti,
which Canada believes will assist Haitian efforts to consolidate democracy and
build a lasting foundation for peace;
focussing trade discussions on the 1998 launch of negotiations toward a Free
Trade Agreement of the Americas, following a decision by foreign affairs ministers
from the hemisphere at their May 14 meeting in Belo Horizonte, Brazil; and
pursuing reforms under way at the OAS, including a review of the inter-American
human rights system.
While in Lima, Senator Molgat will meet with Peruvian ministers and senior
representatives from Central and South America and the Caribbean. He will also
participate in a meeting of foreign affairs ministers to review planning for the
next Summit of the Americas, to be held in Santiago, Chile, in March 1998.
The General Assembly of the OAS is an annual meeting of foreign affairs ministers
from 34 member states in North, Central and South America and the Caribbean.
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For further information, media representatives may contact:
Catherine Lappe
Director of Communications
Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs
(613) 995-1851
Media Relations Office
Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade
(613) 995-1874
This document is also available on the Department's Internet site:
http://www.dfait-maeci.gc.ca
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