The IPU reinforces its cooperation with UN Agencies

Photo: UN. Mr Koffi Anan

In Marrakech, the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) strengthened its cooperation with the UN agencies. Participants at the 107th Inter-Parliamentary Conference heard the UN Secretary-General's message read by his representative, Mr. Ruud Lubbers, who is currently the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

Mr Kofi Annan, UN Secretary-General
"The power of purse can make a real difference"

"You meet on the eve of the Monterrey Conference, which aims to mobilise the resources so desperately needed for development. You gather as we seek to build on the decisions taken by the World Trade Organization last year at Doha, so that men and women in the developing world can compete on fair terms in the global market. And you come together as we look ahead to the Johannesburg Summit to restore momentum to the global quest for sustainable development…

Parliamentarians are well placed to advance this entire agenda, and I hope you will do so - for example by committing funds, promoting investment, opening markets, removing unfair subsidies, and putting in place the policies and incentives that will encourage actions that are truly sustainable - economically, socially and environmentally. In our collective efforts to achieve the Millennium Development Goals, your unique powers - including the power of the purse - can make a real difference...

I recommend that the General Assembly grant the IPU observer status. The majority of Member States share my views on this question and I hope that when the Assembly considers the matter, it will codify our relationship and usher in a new era in our already long-standing cooperation".

Mr Ruud Lubbers, UN High Commissioner for Refugees
"Refugees and asylum seekers might become convenient scapegoats"

Photo: UNHCR. Mr Ruud Lubers

Mr Ruud Lubbers, UN High Commissioner for Refugees hopes that "lawmakers will encourage accession to the Refugee Convention and other instruments of refugee protection. I hope that you will also strive to ensure the adoption of appropriate national legislation for the protection of refugees, and that you will ensure its effective implementation.

"In the current climate there is a risk that refugees and asylum seekers might become convenient scapegoats. We must not allow this to happen. I count on the support of parliamentarians across the world in fighting xenophobia and intolerance in our societies, and in ensuring that refugees and asylum seekers receive the protection and assistance that they deserve".

The latest example of close IPU/UNCHR co-operation on refugee matters is the Handbook on International Refugee Law that we are jointly launching here today. It aims to help you, as Parliamentarians, to become familiar with the principles of international refugee law and its implementation, so that you can fully discharge your responsibilities.

Two MPs give their opinion on the Handbook published jointly by the IPU and the UNHCR and the recent incidents around the Sangatte refugee centre near Calais. Mrs Ann Clwyd, United Kingdom "The Handbook is a good thing to remind MPs of their obligations to refugees" The UN policy on the treatment of refugees should be carried out by all member countries in Europe. Some countries are trying to push refugees into other countries, although they have obligations to give those refugees proper treatment in their own countries. It is not good enough and so I would remind them of the right of refugees as spelt out by the United Nations. The IPU Handbook done in conjunction with the UNCHR is a good thing to remind MPs in all the countries of the IPU what their obligations are to refugees. Unfortunately, too many refugees are not being processed properly, they are not given the in-depth interviews. It is essential that they are given in the country where they land and that they should not be sent back to countries which they may have left in the first place because their human rights have been abused. Mr. Michel Vauzelle, France "MPs are essential guardians of human rights" It is very important to have a handbook such as the one published by IPU because MPs, except for those who are experts in international law or migratory flows, are a little bit disoriented or lack the basic tools needed for serious reflection. MPs are essentially guardians of human rights and are therefore given over to a generous, respectful attitude towards defending human rights and refugees in particular. Yet it is evident that at this point, we are dealing with problems that are worsening daily. Such a guide, which hones in on the issues and provides a number of technical details is very useful at this time. The Sangatte affair illustrates the disarray of governments and a lack of concerted action in dealing with these problems. In the meeting of IPU's Conference on Security and Cooperation in the Mediterranean (CSCM) over which I am presiding, I myself feel that the question of refugees is one of the issues (and this is no mean feat) which should be dealt with on a virtually ongoing basis by a commission or conference in order to achieve a convergence of views of the Mediterranean States in particular. The fact that the migratory flow to Great Britain, which is quite high, is not being handled in an appropriate manner by two powerful countries, two great civilisations where human rights are respected such as France and Great Britain, is absolutely unacceptable. The Sangatte affair has left us with a bitter aftertaste and, from now on, it is imperative for us to find a way of managing in an adequate manner what will inevitably occur in the passage across the Channel, particularly with the communications that exist.

Interview with UNESCO Director General, Mr Koïchiro Matsuura

Mr Koïchiro Matsuura, UNESCO Director General

"It is preferable that journalists work out new codes of conduct rather than have government regulations imposed upon them"

The Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), Mr Koïchiro Matsuura, also addressed the 107th Inter-Parliamentary Conference in Marrakech. For the UNESCO Director-General "lawmakers and representatives have a vital role to play in improving intercultural dialogue in order to overcome the prejudices, misunderstandings and fears that bedevil relations between different cultural communities".

Q: Do you think that the freedom of press is in danger after the 11 September events and the measures that countries may have taken to reinforce national security ?
Koïchiro Matsuura: I believe strongly that freedom of the press must be honoured and respected. I further believe that the way journalists are to report and how they conduct themselves in times of heightened terrorist threats should be a matter of professional self-regulation. There is an undoubted tension between the exercise of basic freedoms and the need for greater security in the face of terrorism, but the whole point of any anti-terrorist campaign must be the security of our freedoms. For me, it is preferable by far that journalists themselves work out new codes of conduct rather than have government regulations imposed upon them. But it is definitely desirable to have a public airing of the whole issue. For this reason, UNESCO is organizing a symposium on press freedom and terrorism to coincide with this year's World Press Freedom Day early in May.

Q: In a globalised world with new information technologies, do you think that we are better informed ?
K.M.: By and large, I believe we are better informed, particularly in the developed countries where new information and communication technologies (ICTs) have become widely diffused. But we must not forget that there are millions of people across the world who have no access to the Internet, many of them, in fact, have no access to television or even the radio. The "digital divide" is a reality but there is a wider and deeper divide between the technologically rich and the technologically poor. We must try to close these gaps but this does not typically require that we take the very latest ICTs to the very poorest countries and communities. Assistance should be shaped by what is most appropriate to people's real needs and problems.

Q: One of UNESCO's priorities is "education for all". What are the concrete steps you have reached so far in this field ? How can parliaments be instrumental in that respect ?
K.M.: In order to achieve universal primary education, create equal learning opportunities for boys and girls, and reduce illiteracy, developing countries must step up their own efforts, not least by allocating increased budgetary resources to education, especially basic education. However, it was recognized that many developing countries need additional help (financial, material and technical) if they are to make real advances. The international community is seeking to generate the resources, especially but not only financial assistance, that will make a difference to country-level action. The active engagement of parliaments with the "education for all" challenge is particularly important in three areas. First, legislative support is needed to ensure that education receives higher budgetary allocations that are sustained over several years. This applies to the education budgets of developing countries as well as to the overseas aid budgets of developed countries. Second, the promotion of "education for all" within new educational legislation merits greater parliamentary attention and action. Third, MPs can make a big contribution by championing the cause of "education for all". It is vital that this cause at the national level rests securely on a broad base of popular support and also enjoys the backing of national leaders. If possible, a national consensus should be built around the priority of "education for all"; in this regard, MPs can do much by forging closer links between government, civil society, the private sector and professional groups.

Mrs. Mary Robinson, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Mary Robinson calls for effective partnership with parliaments In line with its action in defense of human rights, on 8th April 2002, the IPU organized in Geneva the first ever Parliamentary Meeting on the occasion of a session of the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. Modeled after the IPU Parliamentary Day which the IPU organizes regularly on the occasion of the UN General Assembly, the initiative was taken in response to an interest expressed by many parliamentarians to hear from UN officials and experts about human rights standards and mechanisms at the moment when the main UN body in this field, the Commission on Human Rights, is actually discussing these matters. In his introductory statement to the meeting, which was attended by MPs from a dozen countries, the IPU Secretary General Mr Anders B. Johnsson, expressed the hope that it would "become a springboard for increasing parliamentary involvement in the work of the Commission in the years to come". In her opening speech the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Ms. Mary Robinson, strongly advocated such involvement and stressed that "national parliaments are central to what goes on here. The entire purpose of the UN human rights program is to make a difference on the ground, in your countries, in your constituencies. We at the international level can achieve nothing unless you are involved in the same mission. To make real progress on these challenges we have to build effective practical partnerships between the international and national levels." A basic outline of the structure and agenda of the Commission was presented as well as a civil society perspective on its functioning and on strengthening ties between non-governmental organizations and parliamentarians. The ensuing presentations by the UN Special Rapporteurs on freedom of expression and opinion, on the independence of the judiciary and on the right to education raised considerable interest and revealed the important role parliamentarians can play to support the work of special rapporteurs in general and ensure implementation of their recommendations. While the meeting's limited size created an informal atmosphere which facilitated a direct exchange of ideas, it also revealed how much still remains to be done to have a parliamentary voice in the Commission and to ensure that its work and results are echoed in the activities of parliamentarians back home. The parliamentarians advocated holding such meetings on a regular basis because, in their view, they constitute a useful opportunity of making parliaments and their members increasingly acquainted with the work of the United Nations in the field of human rights.