And let me say, after 52 years, these ideals are still worth celebrating and remembering. This year, in addition, we celebrate the 200th anniversary of the birth of the great South American liberator Simon Bolivar. It was Bolivar's ideal of hemispheric cooperation that inspired the creation of the inter-american system. Well, in the last half century, while other areas of the world have been convulsed in open strife, war between the countries of our hemisphere here have been uncommon. The activities of the Organization of American States, moreover, reach beyond conflict resolution.
Democracy remains the basic bond of our nations.
It is our people's permanent aspiration and, for most of them, their way of life. Two-thirds of the members of this organization govern themselves democratically. As you would agree, it is democracy that gives our people their dignity and hope for the future. And just 2 weeks ago, we signed an important agreement which is part of that initiative. Although the amounts are modest, these scholarships will, through a combination of grants and interest-free loans, enable Caribbean students to study subjects crucial to development and democracy in their countries.