A working meeting with the heads of diplomatic missions of fourteen countries took place in the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation.
.
On March 2, 2015 a working meeting with the heads of diplomatic missions of fourteen Latin American countries took place in the Public Chamber of Russia. The purpose of the meeting was to expand the sphere of cooperation between non-governmental organizations of the countries participating in the meeting in the international format.
Sergei Ordzhonikidze, deputy secretary of the Russian Public Chamber, pointed out several areas where it would be important to coordinate efforts: «First of all, the struggle for human rights. Next, the observance of the UN Charter, we all see how for a quarter of a century basic UN principles have been violated and by whom. A very important direction is the observance of international law. The development of economic ties. And no less important than the above-mentioned areas is the establishment of cultural and educational ties between our countries.
Summing up the history and experience of the Public Chamber, Sergei Ordzhonikidze said: «We have a unique situation which doesn’t exist anywhere else — we have access of civil control to places of compulsory detention of citizens, and accordingly a lot of work is done in the direction of protecting the rights of citizens who are in places of detention.
He also reminded the audience that Russia currently chairs the International Association of Economic and Social Councils and Similar Institutions and that in the fall, the IASSSI General Assembly will be held in Moscow, where the report «National Human Capital and New Sources of National Competitiveness» will be presented.
Maria Ursagaste, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Bolivia to Russia, also stressed in her speech that the development of democracy in individual countries and the level of development of civil society institutions are inextricably linked. She expressed her condolences and support for «the events that occurred in Russia in the last 48 hours. Ambassadors and representatives of diplomatic missions of Brazil, Mexico, Chile and other countries also expressed their concern about the «political assassination» and «attempts to destabilize the situation in Russia. At the same time, they look forward to the deepening influence of civic institutions in both domestic and foreign policies of the countries.
A cooperation agreement was signed as the result of the working meeting.
Press Service of the Public Chamber of the Russian Federation