THE Organisation of American States (OAS) is willing to provide international observers and technical support for the upcoming general elections in Jamaica and also assist in resolving the issue of campaign financing, if asked to do so.

General secretary of the OAS, José Miguel Insulza of Chile told the Observer in an interview Tuesday that the organisation would help Jamaica in the general elections this year if the government requested it.

“If they want technical support and observers we will assist. That’s the prerogative of the country, they have to ask us,” said Insulza who was here on a two-day official visit ending yesterday. “We are perfectly willing to provide any co-operation that they want,” he added.

Late last year, the OAS provided technical support and international observers for general elections in Venezuela on December 3, and on December 11, in the Caribbean island of St Lucia. Starting in 1962, the OAS has observed close to one hundred elections in South and Central America and the Caribbean.

Insulza reiterated his position on assistance for the Jamaican electoral process at a brief press conference hosted by junior minister for foreign affairs, Delano Franklyn at the foreign ministry yesterday, saying that the OAS was prepared to help promote dialogue on any proposal that Jamaica advanced to discuss election campaign financing.

Speaking on the issue, Franklyn said there were many critical issues to be resolved, for example, how to address the mixture of public and private funds for public campaigning.

He said extensive dialogue locally would be necessary before any proposal could be made to the OAS regarding the funding of elections. He stressed that donors to both parties in an election campaign wished to remain anonymous. “How transparent must it be,” he questioned.

While here, Insulza held closed door meetings with Prime Minister Portia Simpson Miller, the minister of national security, Peter Phillips, and the attorney-general, A J Nicholson.

Insulza declined to reveal details about his talks with Nicholson, but said that the issue of human rights in Jamaica was discussed with the attorney-general.

“In general, the relations are good but there are some issues we have to resolve. We will see how any misunderstandings can be sorted out,” he told the Observer.

The OAS human rights system provides an avenue for recourse to people in the Americas who have suffered violations of their rights by the state. It works through the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights based in Washington, DC, and the Inter-American Court of Human Rights, in San José, Costa Rica.

Jamaica in the past has disagreed with findings of the Human Rights Commission, a matter which was recently addressed by Foreign Minister Anthony Hylton in his state of the nation presentation in Parliament.

“While our commitment to the OAS remains unshakeable, our ministry of justice has, however, expressed concerns with the approach and procedures of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights,” said Hylton. “Jamaica continues to adhere to basic tenets such as the exhaustion of local remedies before appeals are made to the Commission,” he added.

Insulza’s discussions with minister Phillips centred on security for next month’s World Cup Cricket, arms trafficking and the illegal drug trade. It was mooted that there could be sharing of best practices regarding crime prevention between member nations of the OAS, the security ministry said in a later release.