MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Caribbean calls on US to restrict Helms-Burton Act

The Association of Caribbean States ended its summit Friday in Panama calling on the United States to end the extraterritorial enforcement of domestic legislation, notably the Helms-Burton Act aimed at keeping corporations from investing in Cuba.

"We are deeply concerned with measures that strengthen and broaden the scope of such legislation" and "once more urge the government of the United States of America to put an end to such measures" reads the Declaration of Panama, signed at the end of the 25-member ACS's fourth summit.

The 1996 Helms-Burton Act sanctions people making business in the United States who invest in Cuba.

Recalling the previous Caribbean summit in Venezuela's Isla Margarita in 2001, the declaration "rejects all types of unilateral coercive economic measures applied by one state". In a long, 30-point text, the representatives also addressed the war on poverty and drugs, terrorism, cooperation, trade, tourism, energy integration, corruption and natural-disaster warning systems.

The summit highlighted principles of sovereignty, territorial integrity, non-intervention and "the right of every country to build its own political system in peace, stability and justice", as well as condemning terrorist acts and commitment to battle corruption.

Energy integration was stressed as essential for the region and Venezuela was praised for its initiatives such as Petrocaribe; Mexico for expanding the San Jose Treaty, and Trinidad and Tobago's proposal of an oil stabilization fund.

Regarding Haiti, the leaders made a commitment to working on "promoting democracy, economic development and social progress" and urged the international community to "grant greater priority to mobilizing resources to boost" the impoverished nation's development.

ACS summit was attended by seven presidents and three prime ministers, as well as vice presidents, deputy prime ministers, foreign ministers and other high-ranking officials. Besides the island nations of the Caribbean, ACS includes Central America and Colombia and Venezuela from South America.