Have you ever wondered where members of our Administration were when the World Trade Center Towers were attacked and destroyed by terrorists on September 11th, 2001? I can’t tell you the location or activities of President Bush or Vice President Cheney, in the hours immediately following the attack by terrorists. I can tell you where Secretary of State Colin Powell was and what he was doing as our towers fell.

While Citizens of the United States of America sat hostage and terrified, in doomed airplanes, frantic World Trade Center employees made final desperate phone calls to loved ones, bystanders ran from plumes of dust and debris, children lost parents and parents lost children and Americans all around our nation, sat before televisions in stunned sickened horror…..

Secretary of State Colin Powel was involved with other priorities….

It is understandable that the terrorist attacks of September 11th, 2001 came unexpectedly and in the moments before the attack, unsuspecting members of our administration were pursuing other activities. What is inconceivable is that after the attacks had occurred and our country was in a state of confusion and distress, our Secretary of State did not do everything, in his power, to return immediately to American soil. The idea that he stayed in Peru, for the purpose of ensuring the signing of a document, after our country had been devastated, is deeply troubling to me.

(An excerpt from A Magna Carta for the Americans – The Inter-American Democratic Charter: Genesis, Challenges and Canadian Connections by John W. Graham)

http://www.focal.ca/pdf/iad_charter.pdf

The terrorist catastrophes in New York and Washington swept away media comment on other global events taking place on September 11, 2001. Virtually obscured was the historic agreement reached that day in Lima by the foreign ministers of the Organization of American States (OAS) on the Inter-American Democratic Charter……… The OAS foreign ministers met scarcely an hour after the terrorist attacks. Instead of departing immediately for the airport, Secretary of State Colin Powell delayed his return flight to Washington for several hours in the hope that he could leave with a strong and unanimously approved Charter…… While giant TV screens outside the hotel replayed the tumbling towers, the Charter was adopted by acclamation and Powell left for the airport…On the first day of the terrorist crisis, Powell had given priority to multilateralism.

Why was the signing of this document so important that our Secretary of State would prolong his time away from home during one of worst attacks, on American Soil, in our history? Why, did Colin Powell seemingly choose multilateralism, even temporarily, over the tragedy occurring at home? What does this tell us about the priorities of our Administration and their obligations to the Citizens of the United States of America?

As Citizens of the United States of America, we must start to ask more questions and demand real answers. Here are a few of the questions the reading of this document left me asking. It is important to remember that the OAS is an agency of the United Nations.

The following, in bold, are a few of the statements and articles in the Inter-American Democratic Charter which was adopted by the General Assembly, Lima Peru on September 11th, 2001.

http://www.oas.org/OASpage/eng/Documents/Democractic_Charter.htm

RECOGNIZING the contributions of the OAS and other regional and sub-regional mechanisms to the promotion and consolidation of democracy in the Americas;

What does “Consolidation of Democracy?” mean?

Who are the “other regional and sub-regional mechanisms” and who empowered them?

REAFFIRMING that the participatory nature of democracy in our countries in different aspects of public life contributes to the consolidation of democratic values and to freedom and solidarity in the Hemisphere;

REAFFIRMING that the fight against poverty, and especially the elimination of extreme poverty, is essential to the promotion and consolidation of democracy and constitutes a common and shared responsibility of the American states;

Where in our constitution does it obligate the Citizens of the United States of America to share responsibility for the elimination of extreme poverty throughout the Hemisphere? Where does it mandate us to work towards a consolidation of democratic values and solidarity with the Hemisphere?

BEARING IN MIND that the American Declaration on the Rights and Duties of Man and the American Convention on Human Rights contain the values and principles of liberty, equality, and social justice that are intrinsic to democracy;

I don’t remember learning about these documents in civics class, do you? Does our Constitution authorize the statements in this document?

American Declaration for the Rights and Duties of Man

Adopted by the Ninth International Conference of American States, Bogota, Colombia, 1948

http://www.hrcr.org/docs/OAS_Declaration/oasrights.html

AMERICAN CONVENTION ON HUMAN RIGHTS “PACT OF SAN JOSE, COSTA RICA” ADOPTED AT: SAN JOSE, COSTA RICA DATE: 11/22/69 Treaty we have signed and not yet ratified

http://www.oas.org/juridico/English/sigs/b-32.html

REAFFIRMING that the promotion and protection of human rights is a basic prerequisite for the existence of a democratic society, and recognizing the importance of the continuous development and strengthening of the inter-American human rights system for the consolidation of democracy;

The inter-American human rights system was created with the adoption of the American Declaration of The Rights and Duties of Man in Bogotá, Colombia in April of 1948.

resolution AG/RES. 1080 (XXI-O/91) therefore established a mechanism for collective action in the case of a 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, thereby fulfilling a long-standing aspiration of the Hemisphere to be able to respond rapidly and collectively in defense of democracy;

So, the Hemisphere has aspirations to respond rapidly and collectively? Who has decided the aspirations of the Hemisphere, and who authorized it to function in this way? Who is funding these aspirations? Is the Hemisphere now authorized to respond to a “sudden or irregular interruption of the democratic political process” on our American soil?

BEARING IN MIND the progressive development of international law and the advisability of clarifying the provisions set forth in the OAS Charter and related basic instruments on the preservation and defense of democratic institutions, according to established practice

Citizens of the United States of America are under the authority of the Constitution of the United States of America. Have we surrendered our sovereignty to the OAS Charter (treaty) and in doing so, are we now obligated to international law?

Democracy is essential for the social, political, and economic development of the peoples of the Americas.

We are Citizens of the United States of America. When did we become a part of a collective unit in the Hemisphere?

Article 5

The strengthening of political parties and other political organizations is a priority for democracy. Special attention will be paid to the problems associated with the high cost of election campaigns and the establishment of a balanced and transparent system for their financing.

Who are the “Other political organizations?” What authority do they have, and how are they funded? To whom do they answer? Would this explain the disastrous McCain-Feingold’s political finance reform?

Article 8

Any person or group of persons who consider that their human rights have been violated may present claims or petitions to the inter-American system for the promotion and protection of human rights in accordance with its established procedures. Member states reaffirm their intention to strengthen the inter-American system for the protection of human rights for the consolidation of democracy in the Hemisphere.

Isn’t this the duty of our Supreme Court? Who has jurisdiction over the Citizens of the United States of America? Is our Supreme Court now subservient to International law?

Article 10

The promotion and strengthening of democracy requires the full and effective exercise of workers’ rights and the application of core labor standards, as recognized in the International Labour Organization (ILO) Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, and its Follow-up, adopted in 1998, as well as other related Fundamental ILO conventions.

Are our laws and policies now being harmonized with those of international law? Where are our Representatives and congressional oversight?

Article 12

Poverty, illiteracy, and low levels of human development are factors that adversely affect the consolidation of democracy. The OAS member states are committed to adopting and implementing all those actions required to generate productive employment, reduce poverty, and eradicate extreme poverty, taking into account the different economic realities and conditions of the countries of the Hemisphere. This shared commitment regarding the problems associated with development and poverty also underscores the importance of maintaining macroeconomic equilibria and the obligation to strengthen social cohesion and democracy.

Is “Macroeconomic equilbria” a redistribution of wealth to equalize all “states” in the hemisphere?

This would explain the unfair trade agreements now destroying our manufacturing base and our middle class. If the rest of the hemisphere cannot reach up to our standard of living, are we then obligated to fall to theirs?

Article 26

The OAS will continue to carry out programs and activities designed to promote democratic principles and practices and strengthen a democratic culture in the Hemisphere, bearing in mind that democracy is a way of life based on liberty and enhancement of economic, social, and cultural conditions for the peoples of the Americas. The OAS will consult and cooperate on an ongoing basis with member states and take into account the contributions of civil society organizations working in those fields.

THIS Citizen of the United States of America will continue in my quest to inform my fellow citizens of the forces that gather against our liberty.

Email CJ Graham at

cjgraham2008@gmail.com

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