Press release of the Inter-Parliamentary Union
Geneva, 21 January 2000
N° 87

The Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) will hold its 88th session from 23 to 26 January 2000 at IPU Headquarters in Geneva. Established in 1976, the Committee, which meets in camera, has five members, all elected to the parliaments of their respective countries. The meeting will be attended by Mr. François Autain (France, President), Mr. Hilarion Etong (Cameroon, Vice-President), Mr. Juan Pablo Letelier (Chile), Mr. Mahinda Samarasinghe (Sri Lanka) and Mrs. Maria Grazia Daniele Galdi (Italy).

The Committee meets four times a year. It may arrange hearings and can propose on-site missions. Acting as an intermediary between complainants and the authorities of the countries concerned, the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians endeavours to put an end as rapidly as possible to any arbitrary measure affecting MPs, to ensure their protection and, where appropriate, to obtain compensation. At its 88th session, it will consider public and confidential cases concerning 91 parliamentarians in 32 countries. At present, there are a total of 179 parliaments and some 42,000 parliamentarians worldwide.

The agenda for this meeting includes a review of the reports on missions to Belarus in November 1999 and to Guinea last week, where the IPU delegation was able to meet parliamentarians, including the former presidential candidate Mr. Alpha Condé, who is still in prison. The conclusions of these reports will be submitted to the IPU Council (governing body) at its meeting on 6 May in Amman.

The IPU, established in 1889 and with its headquarters in Geneva, currently has 139 affiliated national parliaments and five associated regional assemblies.

Contact for additional information or interviews: Mrs. Luisa Ballin, Information Officer. Tel. (41 22) 919.41.16 or 919.41.27, fax: 919.41.60 or 733.31.41, e-mail: lb@mail.ipu.org or cd@mail.ipu.org

The IPU also has a Liaison Office with the United Nations in New York. Tel: (001.212) 557.58.80, fax: 557.39.54, e-mail: ny-office@mail.ipu.org.

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