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HOME PAGE -> LATEST NEWS -> NEWS ARCHIVES (NOVEMBER 2010 - FEBRUARY 2011)
News Archives
(November 2010 - February 2011)
UN Women's Executive Director: "Parliamentarians must take leadership towards gender equality"
28 February 2011. Ms. Bachelet called on MPs gathered at the parliamentary meeting organized by the IPU and UN Women at the 55th Session of the CSW to ensure that a gender perspective is integrated into all policies and legislation and to ensure close follow-up. She invited them to make sure that national budgets respond to the needs of women and men and that adequate allocations are made to women's machineries. In a question-and-answer session with her, the MPs highlighted some of the challenges they faced. Their main concern was how to make the leap from words to action in terms of women's political participation, ending violence against women, addressing the needs of the most vulnerable women and empowering women economically. Governments need to make tough choices and take the right decisions. Parliamentarians, for their part, have to ensure that those decisions meet the needs of women and lead to their empowerment. |
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Political violence against women needs to be addressed as a priority
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25 February 2011. Members of parliament and political activists from around the world participated on 25 February in a joint IPU-UNDP side-event on "Taking action on political violence against women" at the 55th session of the CSW. They felt it was crucial to address this specific type of violence against women that affected women voters to politicians and took on various forms - from insults and intimidation to physical assault and sexual violence. Participants called for political violence to be clearly defined and for relevant indicators to be developed. They proposed innovative strategies to curb the problem, such as adopting legislation on violence against women, building on community outreach, forming coalitions of women in politics and NGOs, and providing gender training for the media. |
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Girls' education: a sound economic investment for achieving MDGs 4 and 5
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25 February 2011. Gender equity in education is key to promoting enhanced maternal, neonatal and child health, said members of parliament meeting at an IPU-sponsored panel discussion on Gender inequality, education and maternal, newborn and child health: The role of parliaments. The event, organized during 55th session of the Commission on the Status of Women, stressed that girls' education can break the cycle of poverty, save the lives of women and children and can act as a "vaccine" against HIV/AIDS. MPs should consider their education, therefore, as a sound economic investment. Parliaments were encouraged to creatively use their legislative function to ensure that girls' education became mandatory and ensure that obstacles to universal access to essential health services, such as user fees, were overcome. Parliamentarians also highlighted the need for quality education for girls and the prioritization of improved maternal, newborn and child health. Women parliamentarians underscored their particular responsibility with respect to quality education for girls and health issues affecting their female constituents. The meeting acknowledged the complementary roles of parliamentarians, civil society organizations and development partners. |
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IPU President condemns violent repression in Libya
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22 February 2011. IPU President Theo-Ben Gurirab made the following statement today: "I wholeheartedly condemn the use of force by military and security staff against demonstrators in Libya in recent days. According to reports I have seen, the demonstrators have even been subjected to rocket and machine gun fire from the air. To use weapons of war against unarmed demonstrators is reprehensible and totally unacceptable. As I said at a recent meeting of Arab parliaments, it is the people, and only the people, who must choose their leaders. Demonstrations in various countries in the Arab world and beyond are clear indications that the people are not satisfied. They want more transparency, freedom and greater social justice. They demand reforms, jobs and the benefits of development. They want more opportunities and service delivery, less marginalization and corruption; in other words, more democracy; not less. Ignoring these legitimate demands of the people is unacceptable and self-defeating. I call upon the authorities in Libya to take the path of negotiation and dialogue. Free speech will not be silenced by bullets." |
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IPU President's statement on events in Egypt
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12 February 2011. IPU President, Dr. Theo-Ben Gurirab, issued a statement today on the events in Egypt. He saluted the heroic people of Egypt as they celebrated their newfound freedom. "The Egyptian youth and all those, young and old, in Egypt and elsewhere, who are taking to the streets these days, remind us that the essential role of government is to serve the people. It is the duty of government to provide citizens with an environment in which they can live in freedom, have access to education, health and gainful employment and take an equal part in the development of the country", said President Gurirab. "Leaders everywhere ignore these calls for action at their peril. These recent events confirm the importance of self-determination. It is rightfully the people of Egypt who have decided. They now face the arduous task of instituting change throughout Egyptian society and of building democratic institutions for men and women alike at all levels. I call upon the interim authorities in Egypt to do all they can to allow for a peaceful and orderly transition. I offer the wholehearted support and assistance of the Inter-Parliamentary Union in building a strong and fully representative parliament", concluded the IPU President. [ Full text of the statement ... ] |
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IPU President addresses 17th AIPU Conference
10 February 2011. IPU President Dr. Theo-Ben Gurirab addressed the 17th Conference of the Arab Inter-Parliamentary Union (AIPU) in Doha yesterday. "People in many Arab countries are expressing their discontent" said Gurirab. "They want more transparency, freedom and greater social justice. They demand fair play, jobs and the benefits of development. They want more participation and service delivery, less marginalization and corruption; in other words, more democracy, not less". Apart from the question of the occupied Arab territories, the AIPU has been discussing the popular uprisings in Tunisia, Egypt and other Arab countries, terrorist acts against Christian churches, and the independence of South Sudan. During the two-day conference Arab presiding officers and parliamentarians expressed their support to the people of Tunisia and Egypt, calling for good governance, justice and public freedoms as well as participation through legal and peaceful means. [ Full text of the President's speech ... ]
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UN General Assembly debates disaster risk reduction
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9 February 2011. Building on last year’s UN Summit on the Millennium Development Goals, the UN General Assembly today held its first-ever debate on disaster risk reduction. The meeting served to raise awareness and encourage action for greater and more urgent investment in advanced planning and sound policies to help avert natural hazards – hazards that would cost more in human and financial terms than steps to prevent them or reduce their impact. Ms. Tioulong Saumura, MP from Cambodia and Vice-President of the IPU Standing Committee on Sustainable Development, Finance and Trade, joined the President of the General Assembly and other prominent personalities as a featured speaker. Referring to the new Advocacy Kit for Parliamentarians on disaster risk reduction, produced jointly by IPU and the UN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR), Ms. Tioulong stressed that "politicians need to stop thinking in the short term [ ... ]. We cannot afford not to invest in prevention". All sustainable development programmes and strategies should include measures for funding disaster risk reduction, she said, stressing that ensuring preparedness was as much about changing mindsets as about "generating dollars". [ More about the event ... ]
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IPU President hopes 2011 will bring real change
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31 December 2010. In his New Year message, the IPU President, Dr. Theo-Ben Gurirab, expressed hope that 2011 would bring real change that is founded on a political ethos of democracy, tolerance, respect and reconciliation. "I look forward to a year in which the management of public affairs becomes the province of the majority and not the few; a year in which the more profound injustices behind the crises that afflict our world are faced with collective will; a year in which we make real progress in attaining gender equality and the reins of power begin to be held by more women in all countries; a year in which intransigence and violence give way to reason and dialogue. A year in which peaceful cooperation and sustainable development prevail", he concluded. [ Full text of the message ... ]
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United Nations General Assembly adopts landmark Resolution on cooperation with parliaments and the IPU
13 December 2010. The UN General Assembly adopted a landmark consensus resolution today on Cooperation between the United Nations, national parliaments and the IPU. With 90 member States formally co-sponsoring the Resolution, the General Assembly took note of the outcome of the third World Conference of Speakers of Parliaments, including its declaration on securing global democratic accountability for the common good, and decided to engage more systematically with the IPU in organizing a parliamentary component to major UN deliberative processes and the review of international commitments. Addressing the Assembly, IPU Secretary-General Anders Johnsson welcomed the decision for a dedicated item on the agenda of the General Assembly which would "seek to open up the discussion on how the United Nations, as a system, can relate more coherently to parliaments and parliamentarians. The legislatures form a constituency that can bring significant weight to global governance, making it more transparent, accountable and effective". [ Read the Statement by the IPU Secretary-General and the General Assembly Resolution ] |
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Parliamentary message transmitted to the President of COP16 in Cancún
8 December 2010. At a special event held during the UN Climate Change Conference in Cancún, the IPU President, Theo-Ben Gurirab, transmitted to the Conference President, Mexican Secretary of Foreign Affairs Patricia Espinosa, the text of the outcome document adopted two days earlier by the Parliamentary Meeting held in conjunction with the UN Conference. "Our declaration is a call for climate action from members of parliament from around the world. The IPU will take the lead in organizing and integrating an ever stronger and more effective parliamentary contribution to future United Nations Climate Change Conferences", said the IPU President. Among the speakers at the event was the current Chair of the World Mayors Council on Climate Change, the Mayor of Mexico City, Marcelo Ebrard Casaubon. [ Read the Outcome Document of the Parliamentary Meeting ] |
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Belgrade seminar on HIV and AIDS
7 December 2010. One of the most important tasks of legislatures is to protect the human rights of all, including people living with HIV and groups most vulnerable to the infection. With these words the Speaker of the National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, Slavica Djukic-Dejanovic, opened a seminar on the role of parliaments and parliamentarians in creating effective responses to HIV/AIDS. Organized by the National Assembly and the IPU, the Belgrade seminar provided participants from Serbia and neighboring countries with an opportunity to debate the challenges facing legislators and opportunities for partnerships and joint action to support parliamentary engagement on HIV/AIDS. They also discussed ways to set up informal cross-party groups on HIV/AIDS and reproductive health. The participants concluded that despite the fact that HIV prevalence in the region was not high, it was necessary to work hard to keep the virus from spreading further. They adopted recommendations to make this happen and held a smaller meeting the following day to turn them into concrete action. |
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Saudi delegation visits The House of Parliaments
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6 December 2010. A delegation of members of the Consultative Council (Parliament) of Saudi Arabia and the Saudi-Swiss Friendship Parliamentary Committee today visited IPU Headquarters to discuss cooperation between the IPU and the Saudi Parliament. Headed by Mr. Rashid Bin Hamad Al-Kathiri, the delegation spoke of an exercise underway to review the law on municipal elections, which should pave the way for all municipal representatives to be elected and facilitate women's participation in politics in the kingdom. The delegation urged the IPU to continue to work for peace in the Middle East. |
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Parliamentarians in Cancún debate climate change
6 December 2010. The message could not be clearer: "Deep cuts in global emissions are consistent with scientific knowledge and can be implemented without compromising the right to development". At the end of a long day of animated debate, legislators attending the parliamentary meeting in Cancún adopted a declaration stating their common position on one of the most complex issues ever put for negotiation within the United Nations – the global threat of climate change. The meeting was held in conjunction with the UN Climate Change Conference (COP16/CMP6) and organized by the IPU and the Mexican Congress, with the support of UNDP. The UN Conference President, Mexican Foreign Affairs Secretary Patricia Espinosa, personally briefed parliamentarians on the state of play in the Conference. With one more week of inter-governmental negotiations to go, hopes that Cancún will deliver a substantive package of decisions are still alive. At the same time, preparations are already under way for next year’s COP17 in Durban at the end of 2011. [ More on the Parliamentary Meeting in Cancún ... ] |
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Parliamentary Hearing at the United Nations
3 December 2010.“The global economy is characterised by a predominance of finance over the real productive economy. What this means in practice is that Wall Street is once again announcing record profits at the same time as the worldwide unemployment figures continue to stagnate.” With these words the IPU President opened the 2010 Parliamentary Hearing at the United Nations, which concluded its discussions today. At four sessions under the theme of “Towards economic recovery: Rethinking development, retooling global governance” members of some 50 parliaments debated with UN officials, diplomats and academics on risks to economic recovery, structural imbalances in the economy, reform of the international financial system, sustainable development in today’s economic and environmental framework, global economic governance and UN-G20 relations, and modalities to ensure greater transparency and accountability in international decision-making. The Summary Report of the Parliamentary Hearing, convened as a joint UN-IPU event, will be issued next month and distributed to national parliaments, and circulated as an official document of the UN General Assembly. [ More on the parliamentary event in New York ] |
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IPU Secretary General meets Executive Director of UN Women
30 November 2010. At a meeting in New York this morning with Michelle Bachelet, the newly appointed Executive Director of UN Women, Anders Johnsson exchanged views on the IPU activities for the political empowerment of women. Together they looked at areas where the IPU and the United Nations could work in a mutually supportive fashion, once the new UN women’s entity is established at the start of 2011. Ms. Bachelet, who until recently was the President of Chile, talked about the need for good laws, more particularly in the area of violence against women, while saying that legislation alone was not enough. “Laws don’t change reality” she said “they only help you shape it”. Enforcement was crucial, she stated, adding that wielding economic power was the key to empowerment. Ms. Bachelet accepted an invitation from the IPU Secretary General to address the IPU Assembly in Panama in April 2011. |
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Three priorities for the Togolese Parliament
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29 November 2010. Parliamentarians, National Assembly staff and representatives of government and civil society have just concluded a three-day retreat in Notsè, Togo, to discuss action to achieve equality. The retreat, attended by parliamentarians of both genders and organized by the Togolese National Assembly and the IPU, closed with the adoption of a three-pronged plan of action to improve living conditions in Togo. Greater equality of opportunity should be secured by improving the enrollment and attendance rates for girls in schools; numbers of women politicians should be increased, especially by adopting special temporary measures; and to underpin women’s emancipation, a new Family Code –the discriminatory provisions of which are under review – should be adopted shortly. On the first day, 25 November, coinciding with International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, participants heard testimony on the need to repress violence against women in Togo, support victims, and punish perpetrators. The participants highlighted incestuous sexual violence that is said to be on the rise in Togo. Civil society organizations have taken measures against this, but so far there is no law on gender violence in Togo. |
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125th IPU Assembly set for Bern
25 November 2010. The Secretary General of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), Mr. Anders B. Johnsson, and the President of the Swiss National Council, Ms. Pascale Bruderer, today signed an agreement effectively sealing the deal for the 125th IPU Assembly to be held in Bern, the capital of Switzerland, from 16 to 19 October 2011, at the invitation of the Federal Assembly. The agreement was signed in the presence of Ms. Erika Forster-Vannini, Speaker of the Council of States, Mr. Jean-René Germanier, who will accede to the speakership of the National Council on 30 November 2010 for a one-year term, and Ms. Doris Stump, a Swiss MP and IPU Executive Committee member. The IPU looks forward to holding an Assembly in the Swiss capital. |
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Parliaments Take Action on Violence against Women
25 November 2010. Parliaments around the world are joining forces in organizing special events to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women this 25 November. This year, the IPU is calling on parliaments to mobilize around the theme Building partnerships to combat violence against women on the understanding that a united front is needed for this cause. Parliaments are joining the campaign with a range of activities. A press conference on stopping violence against women is taking place at the Parliament of Romania; in Mali, a parliamentary network on violence against women and children has been set up to get parliamentarians to engage with communities and discuss how to bring female genital mutilation to a halt; in Norway, there will be a round-table conference between parliamentarians and civil society organizations; workshops for MPs are being organized by the Parliaments of Zambia and Indonesia; in Trinidad and Tobago, a TV show advocating non-violence will bring together parliamentarians, representatives from NGOs and youth parliamentarians; in Georgia, the nationwide 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence will be opened under the chairmanship of the Speaker of Parliament. Last year, 33 parliaments organized around 50 activities to mark the Day. [ More on the IPU campaign to stop violence against women ... ] |
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Childbirth and infancy: a question of survival
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24 November 2010. Giving birth safely is largely a privilege of the rich. If the appalling figures worldwide for maternal fatalities in childbirth are to be reduced, and if more children are to survive their infancy, parliaments have to be part of the struggle. There are two Millennium Development Goals that cover these twin objectives, Nos. 4 and 5. The IPU sees the role of parliament as being to provide better accountability for the pledges and commitments made towards their achievement. At a recent forum in New Delhi the IPU held a panel discussion entitled Delivering on MDGs 4 and 5 through Improved Accountability: Working with Parliaments. Parliamentarians, representatives of international organizations, and people from the media and civil society sat down to look at what parliaments could do to boost progress in maternal, newborn and child health, with a special focus on enforcing accountability. The participants stressed the need for partnerships between parliamentarians, the media, civil society organizations and development partners in improving policy and budget performance in this area. They also said that there should be more MPs who were conversant with health issues. |
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Can policies, laws and budget allocations help redress gender inequality?
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17 November 2010. Members of parliament and parliamentary staff of the Parliament of the Democratic Republic of the Congo debated precisely this question at a seminar organized by the IPU, the Parliament of DR Congo and UNDP in Kinshasa from 10 to 12 November 2010. They also debated what parliament and its members could do to enhance implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and, by so doing, promote gender equality. The participants examined gender budgeting as an instrument of equity and social justice and agreed to initiate a review of the Family and Electoral Codes with a view to weeding out discriminatory provisions, support a bill on reproductive health and promote women's participation in politics through special temporary measures. They undertook to use oversight mechanisms to ensure that government submitted the bill on implementing gender parity to parliament and that enforcement of the law on combating violence against women was enhanced. It was considered crucial to undertake awareness-raising activities, in particular on the occasion of International Women's Day (8 March) and the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women (25 November). |
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IPU mourns former Secretary General Pio-Carlo Terenzio
15 November 2010. The Inter-Parliamentary Union was saddened to learn of the passing of Mr. Pio-Carlo Terenzio, Secretary General of the IPU from 1970 to 1986, in Rome on Sunday, 14 November, 2010. Throughout the years when the IPU was going through profound change, Mr. Terenzio was the architect behind the organization's expanded activities and modernized structures. A senior UNESCO official prior to being elected to the helm of the IPU Secretariat, Mr. Terenzio worked tirelessly to forge ties and build cooperation between the IPU and the United Nations and its specialized agencies. It was under his leadership and with his encouragement that the IPU launched many of its flagship programmes, in particular its programmes to promote peace and security, the human rights of parliamentarians, the participation of women and capacity-building for national parliaments. The IPU wishes to pay tribute to Mr. Pio-Carlo Terenzio for his distinguished service to the organization for many years. The Inter-Parliamentary Union and the staff at its Secretariat wish to express their sincere condolences to Mr. Terenzio's children and other members of his family. |
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Chiapas Declaration on the participation of minorities and indigenous peoples in politics
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4 November 2010. "We are calling for genuine change. We cannot accept that minorities and indigenous peoples are the most vulnerable members of our societies and that they remain excluded from decision-making that affects their lives and the future of our countries", begins the Chiapas Declaration. A special debate in parliament on the situation of minorities and indigenous peoples and a Plan of Action to make the right to participation and non-discrimination a reality are among the specific recommendations that the Declaration urges parliaments to implement in the next two years. Parliamentarians from more than 30 countries, many of whom represent minorities and indigenous peoples themselves, also took the opportunity of this international parliamentary conference to dialogue with indigenous leaders in the State of Chiapas, Mexico. [ Read the Chiapas Declaration ... ] |
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