Newsletter - January 2010

Upcoming Events

On 22 January 2010, the first Expert Workshop on People of African Descent in the Americas will take place at the offices of the OAS Department of International Law. The purpose of the event is to produce a technical-legal document that can subsequently be used as a reference by representatives of African-descent organizations, the political organs of the Inter-American System (including the Working Group created within the OAS to draft an Inter-American Convention Against Racism and All Forms of Discrimination and Intolerance), and other interested stakeholders.

This workshop is held as part of the project to incorporate the matter of indigenous and African-descent populations in the policies and programs of the OAS, which is being implemented by the Department of International Law and includes several other activities scheduled to take place in the coming months.

Recognized experts from different countries of the region will participate in the workshop including professor Robert Cottrol (George Washington University) and professor Pastor Murillo (member of the Committee for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, Colombia). Topics to be addressed include civil responsibility for acts of racial discrimination, affirmative action, hate speech, and others.

People of African descent are among the most vulnerable social groups in the Hemisphere. Both the OAS and the Summits of the Americas Process have repeatedly expressed their concern with regard to inclusion, respect for human rights, and attention to the needs of these groups. For this reason, the Department of International Law is currently working in this area to increase democratic governance in the Hemisphere by including these vulnerable groups, with increased awareness regarding their rights and basic needs.

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