    [Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: William J. Clinton (1997, Book I)]
    [May 10, 1997]
    [Pages 594-596]
    [From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]

    Caribbean/United States Summit: Bridgetown Declaration of Principles
    May 10, 1997

        We, the Heads of State and Government of the Caribbean nations of
    Antigua and Barbuda, the Commonwealth of the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize,
    the Commonwealth of Dominica, the Dominican Republic, Grenada, the Co-
    operative Republic of Guyana, the Republic of Haiti, Jamaica, the
    Federation of St. Christopher and Nevis, Saint Lucia, St. Vincent and
    the Grenadines, the Republic of Suriname and the Republic of Trinidad
    and Tobago and of the United States of America, meeting in Bridgetown,
    Barbados on May 10, 1997, pledge to strengthen our cooperation in
    responding to the challenges of the coming millennium, in a spirit of
    partnership and mutual respect.
        2. We affirm our unswerving commitment to the norms of international
    law and the principles enshrined in the Charter of the United Nations
    and in the Charter of the Organization of American States and our
    respect for the sovereignty of states, multilateral approaches,
    democratic traditions, human rights, good governance, human dignity and
    the rule of law.
        3. We recognise the heterogeneity and diversity yet shared identity
    of our family of nations and people bonded by historic and ethnic
    origins, cultural ties and affinity and close social and economic links.
    We remain appreciative of the significant contribution of our respective
    nationals as immigrant communities to the development of each other's
    societies.
        4. We also recognise the inextricable link between trade, economic
    development, security and prosperity in our societies. We therefore
    declare our intention to act in concert to improve the economic well-
    being and security of all our citizens, to defend and strengthen our
    democratic institutions and to provide for social justice and stability.
        5. As we enter a new century marked by rapid expansion and
    globalisation of finance and investment, production and commerce, driven
    by revolutionary developments in technology, we acknowledge the need for
    a new era in our

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    partnership. In this context, we re-affirm our support for the
    Declaration of Principles and Plan of Action adopted by the 1994 Summit
    of the Americas of Miami. We recall that this process undertook to
    consider the special needs of small economies, with a view to enhancing
    their level of development and preparing them to meet the challenges
    posed by the inexorable trends of globalisation and liberalisation of
    the world economy, and the creation of the Free Trade Area of the
    Americas. We note the increasing role of the human, technological and
    communication capacities required for operating in this new competitive
    international environment and the current reality in most Caribbean
    States and accept the need for systematic, cooperative initiatives to
    strengthen the quality of their human resources and technological
    capacity.
        6. Firm in our conviction that stable and prosperous economies,
    buttressed by the rule of law, are bulwarks against the forces of
    transnational crime, we are concerned by the growing strength and
    capabilities of transnational criminal organisations and drug cartels,
    their attempts to distort and weaken our free economies and democratic
    systems, and the effects which their activities and presence have on
    levels of violence and basic public order. We declare our resolve to
    collaborate in combatting both organised transnational crime and the
    threat posed to our peoples and the foundations of our nations by
    illegal firearms and ammunition trafficking. We are acutely concerned by
    the increasing incidence of alien smuggling and commit ourselves to
    search for creative and innovative ways to improve our justice systems
    and the cooperation between them, in order to provide our societies with
    that sense of security and stability so necessary to freely pursue
    sustainable social and economic development.
        7. We recognise that despite the substantial progress in dealing
    with debt problems, high foreign debt burdens still hinder the
    development of some of our countries. We therefore affirm the importance
    of appropriate debt management measures including those in the
    programmes of the International Financial Institutions.
        8. We affirm our strong commitment to internationally recognised
    labour standards and worker rights, especially freedom of association
    and collective bargaining. We underscore the importance of the
    empowerment of women to permit their full participation in the political
    and economic spheres, through fair access to education, health care and
    credit and recognise that addressing and preventing violence against
    women is an important step toward our goal of strengthening democracy.
    Vibrant, sustainable and equitable development requires the contribution
    of all members of society.
        9. To achieve these objectives and maintain our process of
    consultation, we agree that all Ministers/Secretaries of State of the
    nations of the Caribbean responsible for Foreign Affairs and the
    Secretary of State of the United States of America will meet to oversee
    and report to us on an annual basis on the implementation of the Plan of
    Action appended hereto. In addition, we hereby establish Joint
    Committees on Justice and Security and on Trade, Development, Finance
    and Environmental Issues, the latter to work in close collaboration with
    the CARICOM/U.S. Trade and Investment Council, to facilitate an
    increasing and effective level of communication, coordination and
    follow-up among our Governments.
        10. Towards these ends, we adopt and issue this Bridgetown
    Declaration of Principles, detailing our beliefs and uniting our efforts
    to strengthen the ability of our States to pursue sustainable
    development and to preserve our democracy, peace, economic and social
    progress and to which we hereby affix our signatures.

    Note: This joint statement was embargoed for release until the
    conclusion of the President's 145th news conference. An original was not
    available for verification of the content of this joint statement. The
    Caribbean/United States Summit Plan of Action was attached to the
    release.

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