The essay "Toward the New Millenium," by the General Secretary of the Organization of American States, Cesar Gaviria, chronicles the changes that the OAS is striving towards in the Western Hemisphere. Gaviria also attends to the work that still needs to be done throughout the Hemisphere, setting forth a path that he believes the OAS would benefit from following. The essay discusses many of the issues that the OAS faces today, explaining what has been done, and what should be done.
The first issue tackled by Gaviria is the ever important strengthening and promotion of democracy. Recently the OAS passed a doctrine resolving to act immediately on any threats against a country's democracy, which has proven to be helpful, resolving conflicts in Haiti, Guatemala, and Paraguay. Other breakthroughs include programs to help with the decentralization processes, local government, and citizen participation. .
The defense and protection of human rights is another issue which the OAS puts a lot of it's time into. The OAS has spent a lot of time and effort restoring the member states" confidence in courts and the justice system, as well as strengthening the Inter-American Human Rights Court and Commission. Currently, problems with the human rights system stem from the fact that not all nations have complied with the programs. .
The combating of illicit drugs and drug trafficking in the Western Hemisphere is by far one of the more important issues that the OAS currently handles. The OAS has made advancements with 1996's Antidrug Strategy and the Second Summit of the Americas, both of which have advocated strongly for giving an abundance of attention to the drug problem. Problems with illicit drugs affect every aspect of the societies in the Western Hemisphere, with many other problems being fueled by the use and distribution of drugs. Currently, the OAS is advancing the amount of material handed out to the public about drugs, trying to make the negative effects drugs have clear to the public.
