U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice encouraged members of the Organization of American States on Sunday to prop up feeble democracies. Rice's speech welcomed foreign ministers of the 34-nation OAS who are in Florida for a three-day summit with the theme "Delivering the Benefits of Democracy." President Bush will address the group later today. Rice, who is chairing the session as U.S. host, said the Bush administration has a "renewed interest" in the Western Hemisphere assembly as a way to promote its global democracy agenda. It is the first time the annual meeting of ministers has taken place on U.S. soil since 1974, CNN reported. She urged the organization to use its 2001 Democratic Charter to fortify democratically weak nations. Among the agenda items is a debate of a U.S. proposal to create a mechanism within the body's Democratic Charter to intervene in countries where democracy is in jeopardy. In the 2001 charter, member nations pledged to protect one another's democracies. "In places like Bolivia, Ecuador and Haiti, the institutions of democracy have perhaps brittle roots," Rice told the delegates. "To help democracies in our hemisphere find a path to lasting success, this organization must embrace the legitimate contributions of civil society." Rice said the Democratic Charter "must become the core of a principled, effective multilateralism for the Americas."
