The priority areas will be the institutional strengthening of political and of civil society, with a view to reinforcing interrelationships between them in the decision-making process. Article 16 Political parties are essential components of democracy, since it is through them that the people exercise their sovereign power. It is a priority interest of the inter-American democratic community to promote growing and representative participation by the people in political parties as the most appropriate means for strengthening democratic life. The strengthening and participation of civil society and its links to the government decision-making process also constitute an essential priority for the promotion of representative democracy. The effectiveness, transparency and probity of governance are essential elements for strengthening the State and democracy in the region.
Democracy is the ideal means for achieving social cohesion and the equitable distribution of wealth.
To instruct the Secretary General to call for the immediate convocation of a meeting of the Permanent Council in the event of any occurrences giving rise to the sudden or irregular interruption of the democratic political institutional process or of the legitimate exercise of power by the democratically elected government in any of the Organization s member states, in order, within the framework of the Charter, to examine the situation, decide on and convene and ad hoc meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs, or a special session of the General Assembly, all of which must take place within a ten-day period. To state that the purpose of the ad hoc meeting of Ministers of Foreign Affairs or the special session of the General Assembly shall be to look into the events collectively and adopt any decisions deemed appropriate, in accordance with the Charter and international law. To instruct the Permanent Council to devise a set of proposals that will serve as incentives to preserve and strengthen democratic systems, based on international solidarity and cooperation, and to apprise the General Assembly thereof at its twenty-second regular session. Ha ti-Info .