Second Dialogue Session in Lima

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The second session of the dialogue forum took place in Lima, Peru, on June 1-2, 2010. Two days of discussion provided an opportunity for the members to report on the progress made since the first dialogue session in Atlanta and to present concrete proposals for the second phase of the project. The meeting achieved a greater level of confidence between the members, the consolidation and validation of a civil society space for positive dialogue, and a deepening of analysis on issues of mutual interest. The working groups that had formed during the Atlanta meeting discussed their priorities and presented work plans for their next activities and planned the visits by U.S. forum members to the Andean countries to further deepen the understanding of each national context and to foment the personal relationships between forum members. Ambassador Néstor Popolizio, Peru's vice minister of foreign affairs, addressed the forum members on behalf of Peru's President Alan Garcia and extolled the benefits of the initiative and the work of its members. The Head of Foreign Relations of the CAN Camila Polo Floréz participated as an observer. The forum members also had the opportunity to interact with representatives from the Ecuadorian, Peruvian, and U.S. Governments during a dinner at the Club Nacional.

Photo credit: Carter Center (Click to enlarge)

The second session of the Andean-U.S. Dialogue Forum convenes forum members from the six member countries in Lima, Peru.

Common Agenda Report
A first draft of the Common Agenda Report was presented and discussed by the participants. The Common Agenda Report presented an initial mapping of the perceptions and expectations each of the six countries had for relations with the United States and the other Andean countries. Forum members agreed to undertake more consultations with key actors in their respective countries, to carry out a public opinion survey, and to include a short background analysis of each country.

Role of the Media in Creating Positive and Negative Perceptions of Other Countries
The participants proposed meetings of journalists that would bring together media professionals from the forum countries to engage in a dialogue on how the media contributes to mutual understanding or negative perceptions between the countries.

Photo credit: Carter Center (Click to enlarge)

The Forum's Working Group on Drugs and Organized Crime discusses potential strategies and ideas to move forward on assessing current and alternative policies in the Andean subregion and the United States.

Drug Policy and Organized Crime
The working group on drug policy identified the need to reframe the issue of drug policy, which is seen as an important obstacle to increased cooperation and understanding among the forum countries. The group expressed its belief that substantive change is taking place in the overall political, economic, and social landscape related to drug policy. In this situation they deem it important to promote the debate around the results of traditional policy and the search for alternative approaches. The group identified the need to contribute to a debate about the costs and benefits of new approaches, as well as multilateral approaches and confidence-building measures for security and defense. The group proposed a meeting with national experts on organized crime and drugs during each country trip that the U.S. members would undertake to the Andean countries.

Each thematic working group decided to advance on their work plan according to the consensus reached in Lima, and the group decided to meet again for a third dialogue session  in Washington, D.C., in September, 2010. 

Photo credit: Carter Center (Click to enlarge)

All of the forum members together on the last day of the second dialogue session in Lima, Peru.