OAS CICTE VI PREPARATION: DOMINICAN REPUBLIC

UNCLAS SANTO DOMINGO 000946 SIPDIS SIPDIS STATE FOR WHA/USOAS, WHA/AND, WHA/CAR, WHA/PPC, S/CT, IO/UNP E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PTER PREL OAS DR CO ECON MARR MASS CVIS VE UN, KTIA SUBJECT: OAS CICTE VI PREPARATION: DOMINICAN REPUBLIC RECEPTIVE, WANTS SEMINAR FOR SECURITY FORCES REF: A. STATE 040856 ¶B. STATE 031112 ¶1. Embassy political officer met on March 16 with Dominican Republic MFA legal adviser Miguel Pichardo to discuss preparations for the March 22-24 OAS counterterrorism ministerial in Bogota (CICTE VI). Drawing on talking points in both reftels, political officer emphasized the need to finish work on the draft comprehensive document proposed by Colombia so that the meeting would not be derailed by Venezuela's late submission of a different draft with serious substantive problems. ¶2. Pichardo said he would head the Dominican delegation to CICTE VI, accompanied by Dominican ambassador to Colombia Silvio Erasme Pena and DCM Briuni Garabito. Pichardo said he "saw no reason not to support a strong counterterrorism declaration" at the meeting, but would have to see how the meeting went before making a final judgment. Political officer replied that the U.S. delegation would be available to work closely with other like-minded delegations to achieve the desired outcome. ¶3. The legal adviser noted that CICTE had recently offered to hold a seminar in the Dominican Republic for government agencies with responsibilities relevant to counterterrorism. Pichardo expressed hope that during the meeting in Bogota he could arrange a definite date for this activity. He said the seminar would involve personnel from the MFA, Armed Forces, National Police, Superintendency of Banks, Finance Secretariat, Migration Directorate, Customs Directorate, and SIPDIS other agencies. It would serve to raise awareness among public officials of the importance of interagency and international cooperation against terrorist threats. 4, Pichardo hoped it would also motivate agencies to submit opinions he had requested on whether the Dominican Republic should ratify certain international conventions and protocols against terrorism that had already been signed Once the opinions are received, the government will forward the conventions to congress for ratification. He noted that three conventions had already been approved by the Senate and were awaiting action by the Chamber of Deputies (lower house). These are the: -- UN Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime; -- Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Maritime Navigation; and -- International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism. ¶5. Political officer expressed appreciation for the Dominican Government's counterterrorism efforts. KUBISKE