Press release of the Inter-Parliamentary Union
Jakarta, 21 October 2000
N° 8

The 104th Inter-Parliamentary Conference, which took place from 15 to 21 October 2000 at the Jakarta Convention Center, ended this morning with the last sitting of the Council of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), the governing body of the world organisation of parliaments. Among other things, the Council adopted several resolutions, proposed by the IPU's Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians, including one in which it "urges the authorities to release immediately and unconditionally all detained MPs-elect" and to "show their solidarity with their colleagues from the Pyithu Hluttaw (People's Assembly) elected in 1990".

During the week, the Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians examined the situation of 183 parliamentarians from 27 countries. Today, its Vice-President, Mr Hilarion Etong (Cameroon), submitted to the Council for approval the cases made public of 133 parliamentarians from 16 countries (five of which are examined for the first time) from all parts of the world (Argentina, Belarus, Burundi, Cambodia, Colombia, Djibouti, Ecuador, Gambia, Guinea, Honduras, Malaysia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Republic of Moldova, Sri Lanka and Turkey).

The Committee, which meets four times yearly to examine the cases of MPs subjected to arbitrary treatment during their term of office, is composed of five members: Mr François Autain, France, President; Mr Hilarion Etong, Cameroon, Vice-President, as well as Mrs Maria Grazia Daniele, Italy, Mr Juan Pablo Letelier, Chile and Mr Mahinda Samarasinghe, Sri Lanka. Among the public cases was that of several MPs from Myanmar. In its resolution on Myanmar adopted this morning, the Council:

"Reaffirms its indignation that the authorities of the Union of Myanmar continue to ignore the outcome of the election of 27 May 1990; reiterates in this respect that the National Convention convened by the authorities in 1993 is designed to prolong and legitimise military rule against the will of the people as expressed in the 1990 elections, and reaffirms that the refusal of the authorities to convene the Parliament elected in 1990 constitutes a violation of the principle established in Article 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that 'the will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of government'".

"Outraged at the continuing harassment, arrests and sentencing of MPs-elect", the IPU Council "strongly urges the authorities to release immediately and unconditionally all detained MPs-elect, including U Aye Tha Aung, U Saw Naing Naing and U Soe Thein, to respect the freedom of their movement and right to assembly and to put an immediate end to all practices aimed at preventing the MPs-elect from engaging in their legitimate political activity".

It further calls again on its member Parliaments "to press for the respect of democratic principles in Myanmar and to show their solidarity with their colleagues from the Pyithu Hluttaw (People's Assembly) elected in 1990 by whatever means they deem appropriate in particular by supporting the 'Committee Representing the People's Parliament'...".

Elections

The Council also elected to the Executive Committee Mr Mohammad Jassim Al-Hamad Al-Saqer (Kuwait) as well as Mrs Zury Rios Montt Sosa (Guatemala), to replace Mr F.S. Tuaimeh (Jordan) and Mr F. Solana (Mexico), whose terms of office had expired. Mr Washington Abdala (Uruguay) and Mr Nyamaa Enkhbold (Mongolia) were also elected to replace Mr Bold and Mr Trobo, who are no longer members of Parliament.

Mrs Adelina Sa Carvalhi, Secretary General of the Assembly of the Republic of Portugal, was previously elected President of the Association of Secretaries General of Parliament (ASGP). This is the first time that a women has been elected to the head of this body.

The Council also examined this morning the reports concerning the other related meetings which were also held in connection with the 104th Conference in Jakarta.

With regard to the Fourth Meeting of Women Parliamentarians, which was held on Sunday, 15 October, the Council examined the report of the President of this meeting, Mrs Iris Indira Murti, member of the Indonesian Parliament. At their meeting, the women MPs called on all IPU member Parliaments to urge their respective governments to ratify the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women in order to present a progress report on this issue at the next Inter-Parliamentary conference.

The Committee on Middle East Questions also met in Jakarta, with Mr Yves Tavernier (France) in the Chair. It expressed regret at the absence of Israel, which was unable to attend the 104th Conference.

The Committee recognised the urgent situation that prevailed in the region following the provocations that threatened the peace process and called on the parties to continue all efforts that began with the meeting in Sharm el-Sheikh on 17 October 2000 and which are aimed at ending the violence in the occupied territories.

The Meeting of Representatives of Parties to the Process of the Conference on Security and Cooperation in the Mediterranean (CSCM), which was held on 18 October under the presidency of Mr Michel Vauzelle (France), was unanimous in upholding the eventual establishment of a Parliamentary Assembly of Mediterranean States and felt that the IPU afforded the best framework in which to reflect on the mission of such an assembly.

The Committee to Promote Respect for International Humanitarian Law also met in Jakarta. In 1999, the Committee drafted a Handbook for Parliamentarians entitled Respect for International Humanitarian Law, considering that the level of information in parliaments on the issues it examines is still generally low and parliamentary action is only sporadic. The Indonesian version of the Handbook was published on the occasion of the 104th Jakarta Conference and was presented at a press conference held on 20 October. This Handbook has already been translated into English, French, Spanish, Arabic, Russian, Japanese and Hindi.

The 105th Inter-Parliamentary Conference will take place in Cuba, at the invitation of the Cuban Parliament, from 1 to 7 April 2001. The subjects of the Conference will be the following:

• Securing observance of the principles of international law in the interests of world peace and security;
• Education and culture as essential factors in promoting the participation of men and women in political life and as prerequisites for the development of peoples.

The IPU, founded in 1889 and based in Geneva, currently has 140 member parliaments affiliated and 5 regional parliamentary organisations associated. It also has a Liaison Office with the UN in New York.