SECRETARIAT FOR LEGAL AFFAIRS Presentation to the Permanent

SECRETARIAT FOR LEGAL AFFAIRS Presentation to the Permanent Council Working Group on the Strategic Vision of the OAS

SECRETARIAT FOR LEGAL AFFAIRS The SECRETARIAT FOR LEGAL AFFAIRS is the area responsible for advising on the adoption, implementation and dissemination of Inter-American legal standards. These constitute the basis of the Inter. American legal system, the strengthening of the Rule of Law and are the legal foundation of the different pillars of the Organization. www. oas. org/en/sla

SECRETARIAT FOR LEGAL AFFAIRS • Programs: Strengthening of the Democratic Rule of Law and of Inter-American Law. Drafting and dissemination of Inter. American legal standards. SLA Implementation of mechanisms and networks that ensure the application and increased compliance with Inter-American legal standards. Promotion of Access to Justice and Legal and Judicial Cooperation.

SECRETARIAT FOR LEGAL AFFAIRS • Structure: SLA Executive Office of the Secretary Program of Judicial Facilitators Department of International Law IAJC Department of Legal Cooperation REMJA MESICIC

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY Inter-American Program of Judicial Facilitators The INTER-AMERICAN PROGRAM OF JUDICIAL FACILITATORS reinforces access to justice for citizens that live in the most isolated rural areas, by establishing a service with national coverage, administered by the Judicial Branch. www. oas. org/en/sla/judicial_facilitators. asp

EXECUTIVE OFFICE OF THE SECRETARY Inter-American Program of Judicial Facilitators Objectives: • • • Reduce the possibility of conflicts. Facilitate access to justice. Contribute to a decrease in gender-related violence. Strengthen compliance with the right to family. Reduce the costs of the administration of justice. Improve the relationship between the judicial branch and the public. Coverage Argentina Costa Rica El Salvador Guatemala Honduras Nicaragua Panama Paraguay Achievements • 80, 000 cases in the last 5 years. • 20, 700 mediations. • 350, 000 persons served. Future Belize Dominican Republic Peru Partners Spain Netherlands Italy Sweden

HUMAN AND FINANCIAL RESOURCES Executive Office of the Secretary Human resources: 1 Secretary. 1 Advisor. 1 Coordinator (Program of Judicial Facilitators). 1 Administrative Officer. 2 Administrative Assistants. Budget 2013 (in US$ 1000): Regular Fund: Personnel: $ 535. 9 Non-personnel: Total: Specific Funds: $ 21. 4 $ 557. 3 $6, 071. 5

DEPARTMENT OF INTERNATIONAL LAW DIL supports and provides services to the Organs of the OAS in the elaboration of legal norms, promotes their adoption and disseminates their contents, in order to be implemented in OAS Member States based in the OAS Charter (articles 3, a and 112, f), the Panama Declaration on the Inter-American Contribution to the Development and Codification of International Law (1996) and the Inter-American Program for the Development of International Law (1997) www. oas. org/en/sla/dil

PROGRAMS, OBJECTIVES AND RESULTS Department of International Law LEGAL ADVISORY SERVICES DIL supports OAS Organs in the elaboration of inter-American legal norms: conventions, declarations, resolutions, Model Legislation and Plans of Action GENERAL ASSEMBLY (General Committee) MEETING OF MINISTERS OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS PERMANENT COUNCIL (CAJP and Working Groups) SPECIALIZED CONFERENCES (CIDIPs) GENERAL SECRETARIAT INTER-AMERICAN JURIDICAL COMMITTEE: TECHNICAL SECRETARIAT

PROGRAMS, OBJECTIVES AND RESULTS Department of International Law Main results and activities for the 2012 -2013 period : • Legal advisory services in the adoption of the Conventions on Racism and Discrimination • Legal advisory services in the adoption of General Assembly resolutions on: • Access to public information and data protection; • Indigenous peoples and afro-descendants; • Sexual orientation; • Public defense and access to justice; • Elderly people; • International humanitarian law and International Criminal Court; • Refugees and internally displaced persons, and stateless people; • Inter-American Program for the Development of International Law; • Among others.

PROGRAMS, OBJECTIVES AND RESULTS Department of International Law Main results and activities for the 2012 -2013 period : • Legal advisory services in the adoption by the Inter-American Juridical Committee of: • • • Model Law on the protection of cultural property in the event of armed conflicts; Model Law on Simplified Stock Corporation; Principles on privacy and data protection; General guidelines on cultural diversity in the development of international law; General guidelines on access to justice in the Americas; Guide for regulating the use of force and protection of people in situations of internal violence that do not qualify as armed conflict, and other reports on human rights, democracy, peace, security and cooperation, freedom of thought and information, relationship between refugee and asylum, and Inter-American legal cooperation. • Other reports on human rights, democracy, peace, security and cooperation, freedom of thought and information, relationship between refuggee and asylum, and Inter-American legal cooperation.

PROGRAMS, OBJECTIVES AND RESULTS Department of International Law PROMOTION AND DISSEMINATION DIL keeps the Inter-American Legal archives promoting its adoption and disseminating its contents, in order to be implemented in OAS Member States Keeps and disseminates legal archives Depository of conventions and bilateral agreements Web page of the Legal Agenda Course on international law Courses and workshops Legal publications Data base of experts and professors Support of Member states on the domestic implementation of international norms News letter

PROGRAMS, OBJECTIVES AND RESULTS Department of International Law Main results and activities for the 2012 -2013 period : • DIL is depository of more than 200 conventions and 6, 000 bilateral agreements. • Two new Conventions were registered, 6 deposits of instruments of ratification were made, 24 notifications of state of emergencies were received, 3 processes of denunciation were made, 275 new bilateral agreements were registered. • 4, 190, 012 visits and 9, 375, 892 downloads to its web page. • 1547 students during the 40 years of the Course on International Law. • 27 courses and 1000 persons attended those activities. • 32 follow-up events and 860 persons trained on indigenous and afrodescendants topics. • 30 publications on line. • 85 Newsletters.

PROGRAMS, OBJECTIVES AND RESULTS Department of International Law INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT TO MEMBER STATES DIL supports Member States on domestic implementation and application of inter. American norms on: Access to public information based on the Inter-American Model Law: 3 worshops (Costa Rica, Panama and Peru) Secured transactions including the promotion of access to credit based on the Inter-American Model Law and its Guidelines (CIDIP VI and VII) Arbitration based on the Interamerican conventions : 3 worshops (Chile, Costa Rica and Miami) More than 300 public officials trained and specific recommendations made

HUMAN AND FINANCIAL RESOURCES Department of International Law Human resources: 1 Director. 4 Legal Officers. 1 Administrative Assistant. 1 Webmaster. 1 Legal Officer (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, IJC). 1 Administrative Assistance (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, IJC). Budget 2013 (in US$ 1000): Regular Fund: Personnel: $ 975. 5 Non-personnel: Total: Specific Funds: $ 56. 0 $1, 013. 5 $ 824. 4

DEPARTMENT OF LEGAL COOPERATION Provides legal advisory and technical secretariat services to the organs of the OAS and the legal cooperation mechanisms for the effective implementation of Inter. American instruments and the strengthening of hemispheric cooperation in the areas of justice, legal cooperation and the fight against corruption, pursuant to the OAS Charter and the mandates of the Summits of the Americas and the General Assembly. www. oas. org/en/sla/dlc

PROGRAMS, OBJECTIVES AND RESULTS Department of Legal Cooperation HEMISPHERIC LEGAL COOPERATION As REMJA Technical Secretariat, the DLC develops concrete actions to strengthen Inter-American legal cooperation in criminal matters and justice. Legal Cooperation in Criminal Matters Develop legal instruments and cooperation and technological tools to facilitate and make mutual assistance, cooperation and the exchange of information between central authorities more effective, efficient and expedient. Legal Cooperation on Cyber-Crime Strengthen the cooperation and the capacity of States in the development of their cyber-crime legislation, as well as investigation, prosecution and sanction of these crimes. Legal Cooperation on Access to Justice Promote actions to strengthen the cooperation between States for the improvement of their public policies in the area of justice and access thereto.

PROGRAMS, OBJECTIVES AND RESULTS Department of Legal Cooperation Main results and activities for the 2012 -2013 period : • Elimination of bureaucratic formalities in 20 States and of the double criminality requirement for mutual assistance in 11 States; and the adoption of legislation for the application of extradition treaties in 22 States. • Training of more than 200 prosecutors and investigators in Latin-America and the Caribbean with respect to cyber-crime. • Drafting the proposals for and additional protocol to the Nassau Convention, and of a model bilateral agreement on joint investigation teams. • Put into operation of the new secure videoconference system of the OAS/REMJA Criminal Matters Network; modernization of its technological platform by the central authorities of the States.

PROGRAMS, OBJECTIVES AND RESULTS Department of Legal Cooperation LEGAL COOPERATION AGAINST CORRUPTION As MESICIC Technical Secretariat, the DLC develops concrete actions to support the States in the prevention and the fight against corruption, within the framework of the Convention and the Inter-American Program. Legal Cooperation in the framework of the MESICIC Support the States in the implementation of the Inter. American Convention and in the strengthening of their institutional systems to prevent and fight corruption. Legal Cooperation in the framework of the Inter-American Program for Cooperation in the Fight against Corruption (AG/RES. 2275 (XXXVII-O/07)) Promotes, disseminates, coordinates and executes cooperation programs to support the efforts of the States in the fight against corruption.

PROGRAMS, OBJECTIVES AND RESULTS Department of Legal Cooperation Main results and activities for the 2012 -2013 period: • 19 on-site visit held; more than 100 oversight bodies visited and more than 100 civil society organizations interviewed (11 on-site visits being prepared for 2014). • Adoption of 15 country reports with concrete recommendations and of the Second Hemispheric Report on progress in the Implementation of the Inter-American Convention against Corruption, which reflects more than 740 advances which largely deal with legal and institutional strengthening. • Adoption of 2 Model Laws in the area of protections of whistleblowers and witnesses of acts of corruption and on sworn statements of interest; and the use of these instruments by various States. • Progress on the directives on private sector responsibility in the fight against corruption.

Actions executed by the States in relation the Convention provisions analyzed by the MESICIC in its first three Rounds of Review

HUMAN AND FINANCIAL RESOURCES Department of Legal Cooperation Human resources: 1 Director. 6 Legal Officers. 1 Administrative Assistant. Budget 2013 (in US$ 1000): Regular Fund: Personnel: $ 766. 0 Non-personnel: Total: Specific Funds: $ 16. 8 $ 792. 8 $ 767. 9

HUMAN AND FINANCIAL RESOURCES Secretariat for Legal Affairs Strengthening of the Democratic Rule of Law and of Inter-American Law. Drafting and dissemination of Inter-American legal standards. Implementation of mechanisms and networks that ensure the application and increased compliance with Inter. American legal standards. Promotion of Access to Justice and Legal and Judicial Cooperation. Regular Fund 2013: 3% SLA: $ 2, 342. 2 GS/OAS: $ 83, 870. 5 Specific Funds 2013: SLA: $ 1, 592. 3 Judicial Facilitators: $ 6, 071. 5 GS/OAS: $ 71, 977. 3 Human Resources: SLA: 23 Staff. GS/OAS: 622 Staff. 2% 8% IPJF 4%

Thank you. Jean Michel Arrighi Secretary for Legal Affairs General Secretariat Organization of American States October, 2013