Bill Summary
The "Upholding the Inter-American Democratic Charter Act of 2022" aims to reinforce democratic principles in the Americas, with a focus on free and fair elections. It recognizes the 20th anniversary of the Inter-American Democratic Charter and urges governments to uphold their commitments to democracy. The legislation also addresses challenges such as disinformation and corruption and requires measures to strengthen confidence in the media and combat digital election interference. It directs the Secretary of State to develop a strategy to uphold the Charter, including initiatives to improve electoral processes and address threats to its integrity. It also requires a plan for strengthening the integrity of elections and improving observation methods. The Act will terminate 10 years after its enactment.
Possible Impacts
1. Citizens in the Americas will be affected by the legislation as it encourages governments to reinforce their commitments to democratic principles, such as free and fair elections, which are crucial for ensuring the integrity of electoral processes and upholding democracy.
2. The legislation also recognizes the concerning issues of electoral irregularities and manipulation in various countries in the Americas, highlighting the need for measures to strengthen confidence in a free press and address digital election interference. This will ultimately impact how people in these countries view and participate in their own democratic processes.
3. The implementation of a multi-year strategy to uphold and strengthen the Inter-American Democratic Charter will also have a direct impact on citizens in the Americas, as it includes initiatives to improve electoral processes and combat threats to the Charter's integrity. This will ultimately affect the overall strength and stability of democracy in the region.
[Congressional Bills 117th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[S. 4285 Introduced in Senate (IS)]
<DOC>
117th CONGRESS
2d Session
S. 4285
To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Inter-American Democratic
Charter, to encourage governments in the Americas to reinforce their
commitments to the principles enshrined in the Inter-American
Democratic Charter, to reaffirm the role of free and fair elections as
a cornerstone of democracy, to address the challenges posed by
disinformation and misinformation in the Americas, and for other
purposes.
_______________________________________________________________________
IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES
May 19 (legislative day, May 17), 2022
Mr. Menendez (for himself, Mr. Cassidy, Mr. Kaine, Mr. Wicker, and Mr.
Cardin) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and
referred to the Committee on Foreign Relations
_______________________________________________________________________
A BILL
To celebrate the 20th anniversary of the Inter-American Democratic
Charter, to encourage governments in the Americas to reinforce their
commitments to the principles enshrined in the Inter-American
Democratic Charter, to reaffirm the role of free and fair elections as
a cornerstone of democracy, to address the challenges posed by
disinformation and misinformation in the Americas, and for other
purposes.
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the
United States of America in Congress assembled,
SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.
This Act may be cited as the ``Upholding the Inter-American
Democratic Charter Act of 2022''.
SEC. 2. FINDINGS.
Congress makes the following findings:
(1) The Inter-American Democratic Charter (referred to in
this section as the ``Charter''), done at Lima September 11,
2001, established a set of shared democratic principles and
norms among member states of the Organization of American
States (referred to in this section as the ``OAS''), including
commitments to the separation of powers and independence of the
branches of government, pluralistic systems of political
parties and organizations, and free, transparent, and fair
elections.
(2) Articles 1 and 2 of the Charter recognize,
respectively, that ``[t]he peoples of the Americas have a right
to democracy and their governments have an obligation to
promote and defend it'' and that ``[t]he effective exercise of
representative democracy is the basis for the rule of law and
[constitutional order in OAS member states]''.
(3) Article 3 of the Charter asserts that ``access to and
the exercise of power in accordance with the rule of law'' and
``the holding of periodic, free, and fair elections based on
secret balloting and universal suffrage as an expression of the
sovereignty of the people'' are essential elements of
representative democracy.
(4) Article 4 of the Charter states that ``[t]ransparency
in government activities, probity, responsible public
administration on the part of governments'' and ``freedom of
expression and of the press'' are also essential for the
democratic functioning of member states of the OAS.
(5) Despite widespread advances in the consolidation of
democratic governance in the Americas, there remain deep and
concerning challenges facing democracies throughout Latin
America and the Caribbean, including--
(A) recurring incidents of significant electoral
irregularities and manipulation;
(B) the extension and elimination of presidential
term limits;
(C) the politicization of judicial systems and the
expansion of executive powers and executive influence
over the judiciary;
(D) corruption and a lack of transparency, which
hinders integral development in addition to weakening
democratic institutions; and
(E) misinformation and disinformation disseminated
by foreign governments via traditional and digital
media platforms that undermine faith in democratic
institutions and elections.
(6) Since 2016, there have been concerning levels of
irregularities in several electoral processes throughout the
Americas, including--
(A) the 2016 and 2021 general elections in
Nicaragua;
(B) the 2017 general elections in Honduras;
(C) the sham 2017 constituent assembly, 2018
presidential, and 2020 national legislative elections
in Venezuela;
(D) the 2019 presidential elections in Bolivia; and
(E) the 2020 general and regional elections in
Guyana.
(7) The November 6, 2016, general elections in Nicaragua
were characterized by severe democratic deficiencies, including
widespread limitations on the participation of opposition
candidates, and the November 7, 2021, general elections in
Nicaragua were characterized by similar deficiencies, including
the criminalization of the legitimate work of social
organizations and political parties and the political
imprisonment of potential opposition candidates, which
consequently led the General Assembly of the OAS to pass a
resolution approved by 25 countries declaring that the 2021
elections ``were not free, fair or transparent and have no
democratic legitimacy''.
(8) Following the general elections in Honduras on November
26, 2017, the OAS Electoral Observation Mission reported that
``[t]he tight margin of the results, and the irregularities,
errors and systemic problems that . . . surrounded [the]
election [did] not allow the Mission to hold certainty about
the results'', leading Secretary General of the OAS Luis
Almagro to subsequently issue a statement noting that ``the
only possible way for the victor to be the people of Honduras
is a new call for general elections''.
(9) The July 30, 2017, elections in Venezuela to establish
a Constituent Assembly were widely derided as fraudulent by the
international community, with Smartmatic, the company that
supplied Venezuela's voting machines, stating that the regime
manipulated the results by more than 1,000,000 votes, and the
May 20, 2018, presidential elections in Venezuela were
similarly deemed to be fraudulent and illegitimate, leading the
OAS to invoke the Charter and declare that the elections did
not comply with international standards, permit the
participation of all political actors, or satisfy conditions
necessary to be considered a free, fair, transparent, and
democratic process.
(10) The Final Report of the OAS Electoral Observation
Mission on the October 20, 2019, general election in Bolivia,
``Analysis of Electoral Integrity General Elections in the
Plurinational State of Bolivia'', found widespread and
conclusive evidence of manipulation through secret computer
servers with the capacity to modify the results and tally
sheets, which made it impossible for the Mission to have
confidence in the election results.
(11) In the aftermath of the 2020 general elections in
Guyana, international observers from the OAS and the Caribbean
Community (CARICOM) ``unanimously agreed that there was no
credible result'' from Guyana's general and regional elections
held on March 2, 2020, which were marked by ``flagrant
tabulation irregularities''.
(12) Notwithstanding challenges in the region, several
countries have held free and fair elections for heads of state
since 2020, including the countries of Belize, Chile, Costa
Rica, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Honduras, Peru, Saint
Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Trinidad and Tobago, and Saint
Vincent and the Grenadines, which serve as examples for other
countries in the region on conducting democratic electoral
processes.
(13) Transparency International's seminal 2021 report
indicates that corruption, bolstered by widespread impunity and
attacks against the independence of the press and the
judiciary, remains a significant challenge to human rights and
democratic governance in the Americas, with the region making
insufficient progress in combating corruption between 2011 and
2021.
(14) Additional steps are needed to strengthen confidence
in a free press in Latin America, given that a study from
Vanderbilt University in 2018 shows that less than \1/2\ of
Latin Americans trust the press, down from \2/3\ in 2004.
(15) The growing challenges of disinformation,
misinformation, and digital election interference across the
Americas, and their potential to sow social discord and lower
public trust in democratic institutions, pose significant risks
to democratic governance and the integrity of future elections.
SEC. 3. SENSE OF CONGRESS.
It is the sense of Congress that--
(1) the 20th anniversary of the Inter-American Democratic
Charter is an important hallmark in inter-American relations,
and democracies in the Western Hemisphere should continue to
uphold the democratic electoral norms and standards,
principles, and commitments enshrined in the Charter;
(2) member states of the Organization of American States
should continuously work to strengthen democratic institutions
and practices, as well as economic and political institutions
that enable integral development, including by promoting
transparency and combating corruption;
(3) free, fair, and transparent elections are the
foundation of representative democracy in the Americas;
(4) the separation of powers and the defense of human
rights, freedom of expression, and freedom of the press remain
fundamental democratic principles in the Americas that must be
respected;
(5) member states of the Organization of American States
should--
(A) strengthen processes for holding free, fair,
and transparent elections;
(B) defend the right of all of their citizens to
peacefully assemble, campaign, participate, and vote in
democratic elections; and
(C) actively promote the dissemination of fact-
based public information while cooperating with private
media to identify and discourage the propagation of
misinformation and disinformation surrounding civic
life; and
(6) the Secretary of State should work with the
Organization of American States and member states of the
Organization of American States--
(A) to strengthen the integrity of electoral
processes in the Americas, including by modernizing
electoral observation methodologies to better address
the challenges posed by digital election interference;
(B) to promote quality independent journalism and
media while strengthening institutional capacity in the
Americas to monitor and address disinformation and
misinformation and the threats they pose to democratic
governance, especially by the Russian Federation, the
People's Republic of China, and Iran, as well as Cuba
and the regime of Nicolas Maduro in Venezuela;
(C) to address the challenges posed to democratic
governance and multilateral institutions in the
Americas by the activities of non-democratic, nonmember
states of the Organization of American States,
including the Russian Federation, the People's Republic
of China, Iran, and Cuba;
(D) to augment efforts to combat corruption and
organized criminal activity, including by using digital
tools to increase transparency in public
administration, tax collection, and customs management;
(E) to support the modernization of judicial
systems critical to combating corruption in the
Americas and efforts to strengthen the transparency,
integrity, and independence of those systems;
(F) to advance initiatives to strengthen the
harmonization of regulatory mechanisms to facilitate
increased investment and digital governance throughout
the Americas; and
(G) to uphold the positive advances that member
states of the Organization of American States have made
to strengthen the integrity of electoral processes,
promote free and independent journalism, combat
corruption, and modernize judicial systems, and to
encourage those member states to share their experience
with other member states of the Organization of
American States through formal and informal mechanisms,
including through the forum for democratically elected
national legislatures of members states called for in
section 4(a)(2) of the Organization of American States
Legislative Engagement Act of 2020 (22 U.S.C. 290q
note; Public Law 116-343).
SEC. 4. STATEMENT OF POLICY.
It shall be the policy of the United States--
(1) to promote continued adherence to the democratic
principles and norms of the Inter-American Democratic Charter;
and
(2) to advance diplomatic initiatives in coordination with
the Organization of American States and its member states to
address threats to the integrity of the Inter-American
Democratic Charter and to democratic institutions in the
Americas.
SEC. 5. STRATEGY FOR STRENGTHENING THE INTER-AMERICAN DEMOCRATIC
CHARTER.
(a) Strategy.--
(1) In general.--The Secretary of State shall develop and
implement a multi-year strategy to uphold and strengthen the
Inter-American Democratic Charter.
(2) Elements.--The strategy required by paragraph (1) shall
include--
(A) developing diplomatic initiatives to highlight
past successes of the Inter-American Democratic Charter
and its ongoing relevance;
(B) documenting threats to democratic governance in
the Western Hemisphere, including efforts to undermine
civil society, the rule of law, free and fair
elections, presidential term limits, or the separation
of powers, and convening diplomatic forums to review
and address those threats;
(C) developing and implementing the plans required
by sections 6, 7, and 8; and
(D) fully implementing provisions of the
Organization of American States Legislative Engagement
Act of 2020 (22 U.S.C. 290q note; Public Law 116-343)
to advance efforts to enhance the participation of
democratically elected national legislatures in the
Organization of American States, including--
(i) promoting involvement by those
legislatures in activities that advance the
principles of the Inter-American Democratic
Charter and the core values of the Organization
of American States, as described in section
4(a)(1) of that Act;
(ii) creating and supporting an annual
forum to discuss issues of hemispheric
importance, including corruption, as described
in section 4(a)(2) of that Act; and
(iii) strengthening the ability of those
legislatures to make presentations, contribute
information, and provide expert advice to
entities of the Organization of American
States, as described in section 4(a)(3) of that
Act.
(b) Annual Report.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the
enactment of this Act, and annually thereafter, the Secretary of State
shall submit to the Committee on Foreign Relations of the Senate and
the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the House of Representatives a
report describing in detail--
(1) the strategy required by subsection (a)(1) and efforts
to implement the strategy, including the plans required by
sections 6, 7, and 8 and efforts to implement the plans;
(2) progress made by the United States Government toward
achieving the goals of the strategy of upholding and
strengthening the Inter-American Democratic Charter;
(3) challenges to efforts by the United States Government
and the Organization of American States to uphold and
strengthen the Inter-American Democratic Charter; and
(4) progress made in implementing the Organization of
American States Revitalization and Reform Act of 2013 (Public
Law 113-41; 127 Stat. 548) and the Organization of American
States Legislative Engagement Act of 2020 (22 U.S.C. 290q note;
Public Law 116-343).
SEC. 6. STRENGTHENING THE INTEGRITY OF ELECTORAL PROCESSES IN THE
AMERICAS.
(a) In General.--As part of the strategy required by section
5(a)(1), the Secretary of State shall develop and implement a plan for
strengthening the integrity of electoral processes in the Americas.
(b) Elements.--The plan required by subsection (a) shall include--
(1) an assessment of emerging challenges and risks to
democratic elections in the Americas, including the unique
threats posed by digital election interference; and
(2) initiatives, in coordination with the Organization of
American States and member states of the Organization of
American States--
(A) to ensure the integrity of elections, preserve
the credibility and objectivity of electoral
observation missions of the Organization of American
States, and strengthen the technical capacity of those
missions to investigate electoral irregularities in
electoral processes; and
(B) to improve election observation methodologies
of the Organization of American States and strengthen
the training provided to electoral observation missions
of the Organization of American States to effectively
monitor, report, and address the emerging threat of
digital election interference.
SEC. 7. COUNTERING DISINFORMATION AND MISINFORMATION IN THE AMERICAS.
(a) Sense of Congress.--It is the sense of Congress that Congress
supports--
(1) efforts by the Secretary General of the Organization of
American States to strengthen public interest media on
traditional and digital media platforms, promote investigative
journalism, fortify the integrity of media environments, and
counter disinformation and misinformation across the Americas;
and
(2) plans by the Secretary General of the Organization of
American States to announce the creation of the Center for
Media Integrity of the Americas at the Ninth Summit of the
Americas.
(b) In General.--As part of the strategy required by section
5(a)(1), the Secretary of State shall develop and implement a plan for
countering the spread and amplification of disinformation and
misinformation in the Americas and strengthening vulnerable information
environments.
(c) Elements.--The plan required by subsection (b) shall include--
(1) an assessment of--
(A) the nature and prevalence of disinformation and
misinformation activities in traditional, digital, and
social media in the Americas, including--
(i) the major intra-regional and extra-
regional actors involved in spreading or
amplifying disinformation and misinformation;
(ii) the tactics those actors use;
(iii) the major narratives those actors
disseminate; and
(iv) the extent to which the activities
involve or are being coordinated by state
entities or government officials;
(B) the vulnerability of information environments
within the Americas;
(C) which countries are most targeted by campaigns
to spread and amplify disinformation and misinformation
and the effectiveness of those campaigns; and
(D) the nature and magnitude of the threats posed
by disinformation and misinformation activities to
democratic governance, human rights, and other United
States interests; and
(2) efforts, including the multilateral diplomacy described
in subsection (d), in coordination with the Organization of
American States and member states of the Organization of
American States--
(A) to monitor and share information about
disinformation and misinformation activities and the
effects of those activities;
(B) to convene regional summits, forums, and multi-
stakeholder initiatives with engagement from
governments, technology companies, media organizations,
academia, and civil society groups to address the
challenges posed by disinformation and misinformation
and other related issues, including data privacy,
shared cybersecurity standards, and platform
interoperability;
(C) to develop a regional code of best practices
and other joint solutions to address disinformation and
misinformation, including rapid alert systems and
agreements on other related issues;
(D) to strengthen the capacity of the Organization
of American States, member states of the Organization
of American States, and independent media and civil
society groups to counter disinformation and
misinformation and address vulnerable information
environments, including by providing support for media
and digital literacy, independent journalism, and fact-
checking initiatives; and
(E) to support and promote the creation of public
interest media and investigative journalism to provide
accurate, objective, and reliable local news.
(d) Multilateral Diplomacy.--The Secretary of State, acting through
the United States Permanent Representative to the Organization of
American States, shall use the voice, vote, and influence of the United
States--
(1) to establish a working group at the Organization of
American States to monitor the deleterious effects that
disinformation and misinformation pose to democratic governance
and human rights and develop regional approaches to address
those effects; and
(2) to advance a resolution of the Organization of American
States on condemning and countering disinformation and
misinformation in the Americas.
(e) Resources.--The Secretary of State, acting through the United
States Mission to the Organization of American States, should use the
voice, vote, and influence of the United States to support increased
attention and resources for the General Secretariat of the Organization
of American States to develop efforts to address the threat posed by
disinformation and misinformation to democratic governance and human
rights, including--
(1) by increasing the proportion of United States voluntary
contributions designated for addressing that threat; and
(2) by encouraging similar efforts by other member states
of the Organization of American States.
SEC. 8. ADDRESSING ADDITIONAL CHALLENGES TO DEMOCRATIC GOVERNANCE IN
THE AMERICAS.
(a) In General.--As part of the strategy required by section
5(a)(1), the Secretary of State shall develop and implement a plan for
addressing threats to democratic governance posed by--
(1) corruption and criminality; and
(2) the malign activities of nondemocratic, nonmember
states of the Organization of American States, including the
People's Republic of China, the Russian Federation, Iran, and
Cuba.
(b) Elements.--The plan required by subsection (a) shall include--
(1) an assessment of--
(A) the major threats from, and vulnerabilities to,
corruption and criminality in the Americas; and
(B) how the People's Republic of China and the
Russian Federation have sought to exploit regional
multilateral institutions to advance their goals and
undermine democratic governance; and
(2) efforts by the Secretary of State--
(A) to propose and develop, in coordination with
regional multilateral institutions, digital governance
programs--
(i) to strengthen transparency in public
administration, tax collection, and customs
management; and
(ii) to reduce corruption; and
(B) to use the voice, vote, and influence of the
United States--
(i) to diminish the influence of the
People's Republic of China and the Russian
Federation in regional multilateral
institutions and call attention to how those
states undermine the principles of the Inter-
American Democratic Charter; and
(ii) to support the creation of a special
rapporteur on anti-corruption at the Inter-
American Commission on Human Rights with the
mandate to monitor threats from, and
vulnerabilities to, corruption among member
states of the Organization of American States
and promote the adoption of measures to address
such threats, including minimum standards for
transparency and access to public records.
SEC. 9. SUNSET.
This Act shall terminate on the date that is 10 years after the
date of the enactment of this Act.
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