RECORD NUMBER OF ALLEGATIONS OF VIOLATIONS OF HUMAN RIGHTS OF MPS EXAMINED BY THE IPU
"There are now a record number of human rights cases being considered by the Inter-Parliamentary Union's Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians", according to its Chairperson, British Member of Parliament Ann Clwyd.
Presenting today her report to the Governing Council of the IPU, Mrs. Clywd said that during its 112th session, the Committee had examined 64 cases in 35 countries and held 12 meetings with delegations. The Council approved 12 resolutions concerning the cases of 118 parliamentarians in 21 countries all over the world, among them public cases in Bangladesh, Belarus, Burundi, Cambodia, Colombia, Ecuador, Eritrea, Honduras, Indonesia, Israel/Palestine, Lebanon, Malaysia, Mongolia, Myanmar, Pakistan, Philippines, Rwanda, Sri Lanka, Syrian Arab Republic, Turkey and Zimbabwe.
ELECTION OF COMMITTEE MEMBERS
During the Governing Council meeting, the following elections took place:
- Senator Monica Xavier of Uruguay was elected President of the Coordinating Committee of Women Parliamentarians. She becomes ex officio member of the IPU Executive Committee.
- German Member of Parliament Mr. Hans Raidel was elected member of the IPU Committee on Middle East Questions.
- Canadian Senator Sharon Carstairs and Algerian Senator Zahia Benarous were elected members of the IPU Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians.
- Member of the British House of Commons Mr. Derek Conway was elected member of the IPU Group of Facilitators for Cyprus.
NEW IPU MEMBERS
The IPU Governing Council readmitted the National Congress of Paraguay and the transitional parliament of Somalia and admitted Qatar as new IPU Member. It also amended the modalities of the rights and responsibilities of observers at IPU meetings so as to be able to grant observer status to international political party federations to attend future IPU Assemblies.
NEXT IPU ASSEMBLIES
The 115th IPU Assembly will be held in Geneva from 13 to 18 October 2006. It will address four items including Cooperation between parliaments and the United Nations in promoting world peace, particularly from the perspective of the fight against terrorism and energy security; The role of parliament in overseeing the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals, in particular with regard to the problem of debt and the eradication of poverty and corruption. The next IPU Assembly will also debate the issue of Missing persons.
The IPU 116th Assembly will take place from 29 April to 4 May 2007, in Bangkok (Thailand).
Established in 1889 and with its Headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland, the IPU, the oldest multilateral political organisation, currently brings together 146 affiliated parliaments and seven regional assemblies as associate members. The world organisation of parliaments has an Office in New York, which acts as its Permanent Observer at the United Nations.
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| Contact for additional information or interviews: |
Mrs. Luisa Ballin, IPU Information Officer
Phone: +254 20 216 469
Mobile: +254 0727 704 981
E-mail: lb@mail.ipu.org or cbl@mail.ipu.org
Kenyan Information Officer of the 114th Assembly:
Mrs. Susan Mumbi Njuguna, Press Officer.
Phone +254 20 250 702
E-mail: susannjuguna@yahoo.com
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