[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 72 (Tuesday, April 15, 1997)]
[Presidential Documents]
[Pages 18503-18504]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-9915]


 
 
                         Presidential Documents 
 
 

  Federal Register / Vol. 62, No. 72 / Tuesday, April 15, 1997 / 
Presidential Documents  

[[Page 18503]]


                Proclamation 6987 of April 11, 1997

                
Pan American Day and Pan American Week, 1997

                By the President of the United States of America

                A Proclamation

                Each year, we pause to reflect on how the 34 free 
                countries of the Western Hemisphere are inextricably 
                linked to a shared vision through the common thread of 
                democracy, free trade, and mutual respect. This vision 
                can be achieved by continuing our efforts to create a 
                hemispheric free trade area and by working together to 
                uphold democracy, defend human rights, and defeat the 
                scourge of narcotics trafficking.

                The citizens of the Americas have made remarkable 
                progress toward the advancement of democratic values 
                and institutions, as well as the creation of integrated 
                markets within which goods may be exchanged freely in a 
                common market of ideas and innovation. Today, every 
                country in our hemisphere--with one exception--has made 
                the promise of democracy a reality. These countries 
                have recognized that representative democracy is 
                essential for guaranteeing the basic human rights of 
                their citizens. Through common effort, we can make this 
                gift of freedom a reality for all.

                The United States applauds the people of Paraguay for 
                their great accomplishment in resolving last year's 
                constitutional crisis, and we welcome the central role 
                of the Organization of American States in defending 
                democracy in Paraguay. We commend the people and 
                government of Guatemala for their success in forging a 
                comprehensive peace accord, and we encourage the spirit 
                of reconciliation that has firmly taken root throughout 
                Central America. Americans continue to maintain a 
                special consideration for the people of Haiti as they 
                strive to consolidate their new democracy and set the 
                stage for economic growth. Today, all of us must work 
                together to encourage the one country--Cuba--that has 
                not embraced our common purpose to join the community 
                of democracies.

                As the united standard bearers of democracy in the 
                Western Hemisphere, we now approach a new century of 
                unprecedented possibilities. Our vision is bold, and 
                our expectations are high. Our cooperative spirit was 
                nurtured through the Summit of the Americas, where we 
                committed ourselves to free trade, representative 
                democracy, relief from poverty, and respect for the 
                environment. We are now collaborating closely with 
                others in the hemisphere to prepare the agenda for the 
                next Summit of the Americas, to be held in Santiago in 
                March 1998. Never before has there been such a window 
                of opportunity to promote a higher standard of living 
                through improved access to quality education and 
                adequate health care. Working together, we can prove 
                that democracy provides the means for improving the 
                daily lives of all the citizens of the Americas.

                NOW, THEREFORE, I, WILLIAM J. CLINTON, President of the 
                United States of America, by virtue of the authority 
                vested in me by the Constitution and laws of the United 
                States, do hereby proclaim Monday, April 14, 1997, as 
                Pan American Day and April 13 through April 19, 1997, 
                as Pan American Week. I urge the Governors of the 50 
                States, the Governor of the Commonwealth of Puerto 
                Rico, and the officials of other areas under the flag 
                of the United States of America to honor these 
                observances with appropriate ceremonies and activities.

[[Page 18504]]

                 IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this 
                eleventh day of April, in the year of our Lord nineteen 
                hundred and ninety-seven, and of the Independence of 
                the United States of America the two hundred and 
                twenty-first.

                    (Presidential Sig.)

[FR Doc. 97-9915
Filed 4-14-97; 11:18 am]
Billing code 3195-01-P