CONTRIBUTION OF PARLIAMENTS TO ENHANCING THE ROLE OF THE UNITED NATIONS AND THE STRENGTHENING OF PARLIAMENTS' INVOLVEMENT IN FOREIGN POLICY THROUGH THE DEVELOPMENT OF PARLIAMENTARY DIPLOMACY AND CLOSER COLLABORATION BETWEEN THE EXECUTIVE AND THE LEGISLATIVE

Resolution adopted without a vote by the 88th Inter-Parliamentary Conference
(Stockholm, 12 September 1992)

The 88th Inter-Parliamentary Conference,

Recalling that in the minds of its founders, the primary goal of the United Nations system was to ensure peace and that it was to achieve that goal inter alia by:

• A direct search for peace through collective measures co-ordinated by the Security Council, or peace-keeping activities;
• Economic, social and cultural co-operation, between experts from the various sectors, to be established above all through the Specialized Agencies, as well as through development aid;
• The organization of a central negotiating forum where national policies would be harmonized and negotiations would be conducted involving all countries,

Cognizant that in pursuit of this goal, the United Nations should take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace and for the suppression of acts of aggression, and bring about settlement of international disputes by peaceful means and in conformity with the principles of justice and international law,

Reaffirming that the existence of the UN is a clear expression of mankind's desire to achieve peace, security and prosperity through the promotion of co-operation, understanding, mutual respect and equitable development,

Mindful that the UN's basic function is to achieve international co-operation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural or humanitarian character and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all, without distinction as to race, sex, language or religion,

Recalling the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights,

Recognizing that the United Nations has a responsibility to pay equal attention to all of its activities, whether they be related to security, environmental protection or development, with a view to benefiting the international community as a whole,

Recognizing that in the new international environment following the end of the Cold War there are unprecedented opportunities for enhancing the United Nations' role in promoting international peace, human rights and international law, and noting that this new atmosphere is leading the United Nations to play a more active role through the Security Council and the Secretary-General's office in maintaining peace and ensuring respect for the fundamental principles of the Charter,

Convinced that this new situation calls for the revitalization and restructuring of the United Nations; without in any way affecting the efficiency of the Organization, this process should involve the democratization of the United Nations and its General Assembly,

Desiring the enhancement of the prestige and authority of the United Nations through the adaptation of its structures to the economic and political relations of today's world,

Stressing the increasingly important role the Security Council has to play in settling international disputes and in keeping international peace and security, in conformity with Chapter VII of the United Nations Charter,

Noting with satisfaction the efforts of the present Secretary-General of the United Nations to rationalize the Organization's decision-making framework, and recalling his important role in drawing the attention of the Security Council to all situations which can threaten peace and security,

Noting the request from member States for electoral assistance and monitoring by the United Nations,

Noting also that electoral verification by the United Nations should remain an exceptional activity of the Organization to be undertaken only in well-defined circumstances,

Concerned about the financial limitations imposed on the United Nations which prevent it from carrying out its responsibilities in a satisfactory manner,

Reaffirming the vital importance of ensuring the prompt payment by States of their financial contributions to the Organization,

Considering that the active participation of parliaments in diplomacy involves peoples in international life,

Believing that parliaments and parliamentarians are pre-eminently suitable as a liaison between the peoples of the various United Nations Member States,

Convinced of the need for parliaments to make a useful contribution to current discussions on strengthening the role and means of action of the United Nations,

Noting that national politics are increasingly subject to the parameters of foreign policy, and that national legislation has to be increasingly adapted to international factors,

Noting also that parliament's function is such that it cannot accept restriction of its attributions and that it must become involved at an earlier stage of the elaboration of international instruments,

Conscious of the need to strengthen the links between the IPU and the United Nations, whose objectives the Union shares, and to make greater use of the Union's experience to strengthen parliamentary diplomacy,

A. FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLES

1. Stresses the main callings of the United Nations, namely:

• Maintaining peace and achieving disarmament;
• Combating under-development;
• Ensuring respect for human rights;

2. Confirms that the notion of security is broader in scope than limiting conflicts or preventing wars and that it also embraces environmental problems, social conflicts, population planning, economic rights and fundamental human rights;

3. Expresses the hope that the United Nations will become a central forum for action and the supreme international authority in the new world order;

4. Calls on all States to help strengthen the role of the United Nations with a view to restoring and maintaining peace, achieving disarmament and reducing military budgets for the benefit of development and respect for human rights;

5. Stresses the significance of upholding international law and respecting fully human rights and fundamental freedoms in the search for solutions to outstanding international problems;

B. FUNCTIONING OF UNITED NATIONS BODIES

6. Calls on all governments and parliaments to intensify the role of the UN and to provide the UN Security Council, and especially the UN Secretary-General, with all the necessary means for preventive action to minimize and overcome tension and conflict through preventive diplomacy;

7. Further calls on all governments and parliaments to step up support to the UN Security Council and the UN Secretary-General to assist them in accomplishing the duties laid down in the UN Charter;

8. Considers that it would be desirable to review the composition of the Security Council and to adapt it to the present balances of power in the world, geographical distribution remaining a key element;

9. Requests UN member States to work towards a review of the veto system within the UN Security Council;

10. Calls for the provision of better political options for the UN Secretary-General, and in particular the necessary means for him to avert impending conflicts by taking preventive action and to defuse crises;

11. Stresses the need to develop preventive diplomacy and, to that end, to strengthen dialogue between States and the UN Secretary-General's office;

C. SPECIFIC TASKS

12. Requests that, within the framework of the present provisions of the Charter, serious thought be given to the possibility of placing rapid intervention forces at the disposal of the Security Council so as to enhance the effectiveness of peace-making and peace-keeping operations, and stresses the need for a separate fund for the financing of peace-keeping operations;

13. Urges parliaments to offer their services for election monitoring, assistance or verification operations carried out by the United Nations or regional organizations at the request of the countries concerned;

D. FINANCIAL PROBLEMS

14. Urges the parliaments of countries which have thus far not respected their financial commitments to the United Nations to bring pressure to bear on their respective governments so that they meet their obligations in full and on time;

15. Recalls Article 19 of the Charter, which withdraws members' voting rights in the General Assembly if the amount of arrears on their contribution equals or exceeds the amount of the contributions due from them for the preceding two full years, and insists that this Article be applied;

E. CONTRIBUTION OF PARLIAMENTS

16. Urges the UN to acknowledge that parliamentary diplomacy plays an important role in the quest for international peace and security and greatly enhances its own role in that endeavour;

17. Considers that the strengthening of the United Nations must be accompanied by a greater degree of parliamentary involvement and control;

18. Reiterates its appeal to national governments to include parliamentarians in their countries' delegations to the UN General Assembly (or more parliamentarians if they already do so) as well as to meetings of the UN Specialized Agencies;

19. Recommends that parliamentarians initiate or intensify discussions on UN issues within their national parliaments;

20. Urges national parliaments to create or improve administrative structures for supporting and advising on parliamentary diplomacy;

21. Invites all parliaments to consider enabling parliament or its relevant bodies to be consulted before government establishes or modifies directives or guidelines on negotiating mandates;

22. Calls on parliaments to institute a procedure for dialogue between governments and foreign affairs committees whereby regular and complete information would be supplied promptly concerning the Executive's intentions with regard to foreign policy in general and in particular as it concerns international organizations and negotiations with foreign States;

23. Recommends that parliamentarians make every effort to establish committees in parliaments to monitor governments' implementation of their commitments, and to encourage increased funding of specific UN agencies;

24. Calls for greater co-operation between the Inter-Parliamentary Union and other inter-parliamentary organizations and between the IPU and the United Nations;

25. Urges the United Nations and the Inter-Parliamentary Union to study together the possible conditions for institutionalized co-operation between the two organizations;

26. Asks that the necessary steps be taken for the Inter-Parliamentary Union to be granted observer status with the United Nations General Assembly.