More than 700 parliamentarians from 130 countries - among them 50 Speakers of parliament - attending the 118th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) in Cape Town today urged all the parties concerned to accelerate the creation of a Palestinian State through a viable peace process and to end the blockade in Gaza. In a statement read by the President of the 118th Assembly, Ms. Baleka Mbete, the Speaker of the National Assembly of South Africa, they also urged the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission to release all results of the elections held almost three weeks ago.
In the presidential statement, the legislators present in Cape Town express their solidarity with the efforts of the SADC Heads of State to resolve the electoral stalemate in Zimbabwe. “Should there be a need for a re-run of the elections, we strongly urge the authorities of Zimbabwe to invite, among others, continental and regional inter-parliamentary organizations, notably the Pan-African Parliament (PAP) and the SADC Parliamentary Forum, as well as the regional civil society election observer institutions such as the Electoral Institute of Southern Africa (EISA)”.
The statement also calls upon the Zimbabwe authorities to lift all restrictions on freedom of assembly and speech immediately and demands "that Parliament be convened as soon as possible so that the people of Zimbabwe are not deprived of their rightful voice in the government of their country”. In the meantime, the Zimbabwe authorities should exercise restraint, and all parliaments, as institutions of democracy and oversight, should continue to exert their influence until the matter is fully resolved.
Halt the humanitarian deterioration in conflict areas, particularly in Gaza
The Assembly adopted four resolutions today, among them one demanding action to bring an immediate halt to the rapidly deteriorating humanitarian situation in conflict areas, to deal with the environmental dimension of such conflicts, to facilitate the Palestinians’ right to self-determination - particularly by ending the blockade in Gaza - and to accelerate the creation of a Palestinian State through a viable peace process.
The resolution expresses solidarity with all those suffering as a result of conflicts around the world, especially the marginalized and vulnerable, and including the elderly, women and children. It calls for immediate action by the United Nations to prevent any worsening of the humanitarian and environmental situation in affected areas, assure the safety of fleeing civilians, prevent human rights abuses and establish and protect refugee camps.
Striking a balance between national security and individual freedoms
In a second resolution, the Assembly calls on parliaments to acknowledge the link between security, development and human rights, in the understanding that it is key to establish the causes and sources of human insecurity and work to address these effectively. It “urges national parliaments to enact effective anti-terrorism legislation, in keeping with relevant international instruments and commitments, including the United Nations Global Counter-terrorism Strategy, and to assess such legislation at regular intervals so as to ensure that it is fully compatible with national security and individual freedoms”.
The resolution underscores the need for parliaments to assess what further improvements need to be made within their own jurisdictions to protect human security and individual freedoms, particularly in the context of tighter national security measures, and to play an active role in monitoring the national reporting process under the new mechanisms put in place by the United Nations Human Rights Council.
It also urges parliaments to acknowledge that the approach to human security must take account of the gender perspective and of specific heritages and cultures, to review the adequacy of existing legal measures to protect people from terrorist attacks and to bring the perpetrators of such attacks to justice.
The education stipulates that parliaments need to oversee executive action, including when they vote on the budget and monitor its implementation, to ensure that a balance is struck between national security, human security and individual freedoms, and to avert any threats to democracy. It emphasizes the need to train law enforcement and security forces in order to heighten their awareness of human rights when dealing with terrorism and related activities.
Parliamentary oversight of State policies on foreign aid
In a third resolution, the Assembly “urges donor country parliaments to require that their respective governments set aside a portion of their annual budgets for the Millennium Development Goals and for the poorest countries and peoples, in accordance with the Millennium Declaration and the Monterrey Consensus”. It underscores the importance of measures to make parliamentary oversight of foreign aid more effective and thus rationalize the overall management of aid, improve results on the ground, and ultimately buttress the political case for increasing the volume of aid.
The resolution calls on donors to allocate a portion of foreign aid to bolster the oversight capacities of parliaments in recipient countries, including through independent national audit offices. It encourages the more systematic involvement of civil society in parliamentary debates so as to help align aid with actual country needs. It also addresses issues such as tied aid, budget support, and the definition of what should be counted as aid, and recognizes the importance of aid given by private entities or raised through various innovative sources in addition to official development assistance.
Migrants, people trafficking, xenophobia and human rights
The fourth resolution calls on IPU members to meet their treaty-based obligation to promote and protect the fundamental human rights of migrants, and to promote best practices by national parliaments to achieve understanding of the problems posed by migration and maximize its benefits, with special emphasis on vulnerable groups such as women and children. Women who face exploitation must have equal access to programmes enabling them to obtain knowledge of their rights.
The resolution urges the governments of developed countries to recognize the economic importance of migration in trade liberalization agreements and to improve the living conditions of migrants around the world. It presses all IPU members to enact legislation prohibiting the dissemination of racist, sexist or xenophobic ideologies through the media.
The resolution further urges developed countries to consider moral redress and material compensation for the people of Latin America, Asia and Africa now living in poverty because of marginalization and technological disadvantages resulting in part from colonization. It calls for stronger alliances between national parliaments and civil society to promote programmes and activities aimed at furthering peace and dialogue among civilizations, realizing human rights, and eradicating racism, xenophobia and related intolerance.
It urges effective investigation, prosecution and adjudication of trafficking, including its component acts and related conduct, whether committed by governments or by non-State actors. Parliaments and governments have to review existing legislation or enact comprehensive laws concerning trafficking of women and pertaining in particular to prevention, prosecution, protection and rehabilitation.
The resolution concludes by asking developed countries to encourage investment in countries generally known to be sources of migration and people trafficking, with a view to creating jobs for local people who may resort to migration for economic reasons.
Next IPU Assemblies
The 119th IPU Assembly will be held in Geneva (Switzerland), from 13 to 15 October 2008, and the 120th IPU Assembly in Addis Ababa (Ethiopia) from 5 to 10 April 2009.
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