PRESS RELEASE (E-002/01)

September 11, 2001

OAS Secretary General Condemns Acts of Terrorism in United States

The Secretary General of the Organization of American States (OAS), César Gaviria, condemns the cowardly acts of terrorism perpetrated on the United States of America today. These actions are an attack not only on the United States, but also on all the democratic and free states of the world. The community of the Americas joins together to express its deepest and heartfelt sympathies to the people of the United States.

The General Assembly of the Organization, gathered in Lima, Peru, on the very day of this tragedy, for the adoption of the Inter-American Democratic Charter, issued a statement today expressing “its utmost solidarity with the government of President George W. Bush and with the people of the United States of America.”

The 34 member states of the Organization of American States, with the presence and at the request of U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell, chose not to interrupt the ceremony adopting this democracy-bolstering mechanism at this difficult time “as a clear statement of our solidarity and resolve to condemn these cowardly acts.”

Secretary General Gaviria expressed his message of condolence in a letter to President George W. Bush, and personally to Secretary of State Powell.