THE current stalemate in the election of a new Secretary General of the OAS has strengthened prospects for the advancement of the South American Community of Nations (SACN). This Community, in developing its organisational strength at the expense of a weakened OAS, can clearly be seen as a strategic “South” alliance which is redrawing the geo-political map and counterbalancing the global dominance of the United States.

The OAS election has ruptured the 34-member body along what some political observers regard as sharp ideological lines. Even if one of the two present candidates from Mexico and Chile – or as currently speculated a new candidate from somewhere else – is eventually elected on May 2, the divisions will remain as sharp as ever since the new Secretary General will assume a position with less political clout and with even lower political respect in many of the member states of the hemispheric organisation.

In this scenario, the SACN, formally established in December 2004, now has a strong advantage of taking the leadership role in the hemisphere. Although the Community has only 12 members – all members of the OAS as well – their economic and demographic strength can set the pace for enhanced development and expanded trade, and economic and political cooperation with Central America, the Caribbean and North America. In this respect the SACN, by driving the economic and development agenda in the hemisphere, can even help to resurrect the waning influence of the OAS.

The Community received a boost of confidence on March 30 at the meeting between the Presidents of Brazil, Colombia and Venezuela and the Prime Minister of Spain in the Venezuelan city of Puerto Ordaz. Arising out of their deliberations, the four leaders agreed that the SACN would be an important mechanism to promote political coordination and economic, social and cultural integration while promoting South American interests into the international scene.

Already there is active movement in working out the Community’s organisational mechanism through its first formal meeting of Foreign Ministers in Brasilia on April 18. This Ministerial developed ideas for an organisational structure and discussed themes for the first Heads of State meeting to be also hosted by Brazil four months from now.

Much has already been stated about the Community’s trade and economic strength. It occupies an area of 17 million square kilometres and has more than 361 million inhabitants. In terms of its economic clout, its annual exports amount to over 180 billion dollars and its GDP currently climbs to about 975 billion dollars.

But while these statistics are impressive, there exist only a few trade and economic “giants” in Brazil, Chile, Argentina and Venezuela. At the same time, there are also countries with wide disparities in development, with Bolivia, Guyana, and Suriname clinging to the bottom of the ladder.

During the FTAA negotiations, which have halted indefinitely, the smaller economies continuously asked for special and differential treatment to help move them out from their depressed economic circumstances. It is obvious that as the SACN develops into a wider organised economic entity, the smaller economies in this Community stand a stronger chance to obtain the assistance they have been pleading for under the yet unborn FTAA.

The two large economic blocs in South America – Mercosur and the Andean Community – are expected to enhance their cooperation since both bodies will be incorporated in the overall organisational structure of the SACN. Significantly, some Andean nations – Peru, Venezuela and Bolivia – as well as Chile already have associate status in Mercosur, and Venezuela is already thinking about upgrading their status to full membership. Guyana and Suriname, rapidly expanding trade links with Brazil, are also considering accessing associate status in the southern trading bloc as well.

With the growing cooperation between Mercosur and the Andean Community, there are signs that an agreement between these two sub-regional groupings can materialise into a free trade area for South America. Some economic observers feel that this process can come about faster if the member countries actively integrate their energy infrastructure.

Currently, there is serious thinking on this matter, and Venezuela has been moving to render some assistance. Its leaders have constantly stated that the struggle against the poverty in South America and elsewhere in the Western hemisphere finds an ally in the Venezuelan oil industry. Over the past year, Venezuela has signed energy agreements with a few South American countries and these are already being touted as part of the energy integration of the continent.

But other forms of continental integration are already moving forward. In 2002, the South American Presidents at a summit held in Ecuador, established the initiative for the Integration of the Regional Infrastructure in South America (IISRA). This body, now an integral part of the SACN, has already started to identify and implement projects on the integration of transport and other communication networks in South America.

Moves are also being made in the area of information dissemination. In May, Televisora del Sur (Television of the South), a Spanish-language television news network broadcasting information from various South American countries, will begin transmission all over the continent from its headquarters in Caracas. This network, jointly owned by Venezuela, Argentina, Brazil and Uruguay, will compete with CNN Español for the South American television news audience.

In addition, initiatives are being taken to expand cooperation between the continent and other extra-regional political blocs. One of these is the convening of a South America-Arab states Presidential summit in Brasilia on May 8-11. The objective of this meeting involving 12 South American and 22 Arab countries is to establish South-South cooperation areas in combating hunger and poverty, and also in developing trade and investment.

It is obvious, too, that sooner rather than later, the SACN leaders will have to also meet with those of the European Union and the U.S.A. to work out cooperation agreements since these entities are the Community’s main trade and investment partners.

But despite the positive advances, the continent is plagued with political unrest, stifling poverty, crises in governance, and sharp economic and political divisions. Guerrilla warfare continues to create instability in Colombia. And almost daily, political demonstrations erupt against the democratically elected governments in Bolivia and Ecuador. (In Ecuador itself, the President, accused by the populace of packing the Supreme Court with his supporters, was ousted by the Congress on April 20). In addition, political-diplomatic relations between a few of the countries are not at their best. These are all situations that the OAS has faced, but has not earned much success in helping to find solutions to such pressing problems. A more close-knit SACN, with its concentration directed immediately on South American issues, may be able to apply better preventive diplomacy to address these troubles in their infancy and, through “community” efforts, work to develop better understanding and find solutions to at least most of them.

Caracas, 20 April 2005.
(Dr. Odeen Ishmael is Guyana’s Ambassador to Venezuela.)