Communiqué from the Andean Community Council of Foreign Ministers

The Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Andean Community Member Countries – Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador and Peru–, meeting during the Sixteenth Iberoamerican Summit of Heads of State and of Government in Montevideo on November 3, 2006, declare that they: 

Migration

Recognize the growing challenge to the Iberoamerican and Andean Community agendas posed by migratory movements and in this connection reaffirm the need to respect the principles of international law in regulating those movements and, in their treatment, to further integral commitments under the principle of shared responsibility.   

Agree on the importance of strengthening Andean social commitments concerning migration, with a view to guaranteeing appropriate labor, health and social security conditions for the circulation of people among the Member Countries.   

Agree on the need to advance a policy that will foster dialogue between the Andean Community Member Countries and the countries of destination of their migrant workers, in order to safeguard the human rights of those people; encourage those migratory flows to contribute favorably to the development of the societies of origin, transit or destination; and avoid policies aimed at criminalizing migrants.   

Political Dialogue and Cooperation Agreement between Mexico and the Andean Community

Express their pleasure over the Agreement signed today between the United Mexican States and the Andean Community Member Countries that establishes a Mechanism for Political Dialogue and Cooperation on Matters of Mutual Interest.   This Mechanism will make it possible to strengthen the historical ties between those nations, promote multilateralism as the coordinating mechanism for international relations, and reinforce cooperation between the Parties through dialogue and periodic meetings on political, economic, social and cultural matters.  

Share the view that the Mexico-CAN Agreement constitutes a contribution toward building up the Iberoamerican community so that it can jointly meet the challenge of building an alliance at the service of peace, democracy, security, human rights and socially equitable sustainable development. 

Cooperation Program between the Spanish International Cooperation Agency and the Andean Community

Underscore the importance of launching the Andean Regional Program between the Spanish International Cooperation Agency (AECI) and the Andean Community during the Sixteenth Iberoamerican Summit.  This Program corresponds to a shared vision of Spain and the Member Countries of promoting cooperation for sustainable human development, social inclusion and the strengthening of democratic governance. 

Hail the launching of this Program through AECI’s strong backing of the Andean Araucaria XXI project to build up Andean environmental management in the Andean subregion, and of Andean programs in the fields of territorial and border development, tourism, sociolabor aspects and equality of opportunities between women and men living in poverty. 

South American Community of Nations

Welcome with pleasure the invitation circulated by the President of the Republic of Bolivia, Evo Morales Ayma, to attend the Second Summit of Heads of State of the South American Community of Nations on December 8 and 9, 2006 in Cochabamba, Bolivia, together with his invitation to reflection through the delivery of his document “Let us build with our peoples a true South American Community of Nations in order to live well,” that will contribute to thoughts for moving ahead the convergence toward the South American Community of Nations. 

Montevideo, November 3, 2006.