By Lizzy Okoji
Monrovia (Liberia) - Mrs Clar Weah, First Lady of the Republic of Liberia has called for long lasting and meaningful solutions and actions to end all forms of violence against women and ensure women empowerment across all sectors.
Weah made the call on Tuesday at the opening of the ECOWAS Parliament Joint Committee delocalized meeting in Monrovia, Liberia with the theme “Empowerment of Women in the ECOWAS region”.
According to Weah, despite the much improved awareness of women’s worth in society, a lot of work remains undone to ensure women across the ECOWAS region are given the proper recognition.
She however noted that now is the time when collective efforts needs to be taken to find long lasting solutions to issues that affect all women, and not just women in politics or business but all women in the region.
“The theme of Empowerment of Women in the ECOWAS region, speaks of coming together to agree on a common approach.
“For ensuring that no girl or woman in our region feels abandoned or deprived of any opportunity by virtue of her gender.
“There are so many issues that require our attention and to which our focus must be clear, determined and dedicated and to which we must collectively begin to find long lasting and meaningful solutions.
“The issues such as Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV), harmful practices, female genital mutilation, child marriage and teenage pregnancy remains high across the region, while access to reproductive health is low.
“Sadly, it must be said that even where there has been progress in peace-building and security across Member States, over the last decade, this has not been translated into actions to end violence against women and girls”, Weah said.
Weah however noted that in Liberia, the George Weah led government has made commitments through several policies in tackling rape and other forms of violence towards women and girls.
She however urged participants at the Joint Committee meeting to engage in the meeting with all seriousness in ensuring issues are properly debated upon and come up with salient recommendations
Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament Sidie Tunis said that ECOWAS on its part has made a clear commitment to prioritise gender equality and women’s empowerment in its framework of regional integration process.
Tunis said that that has become urgent to move from words to actions, stating that the ECOWAS Parliament has also shown several commitments to ensuring women empowerment in the ECOWAS region.
“At the just concluded 2021 1st Extra-Ordinary Session, held in Freetown, Sierra Leone, from 29th March to 2ndApril 2021, the ECOWAS Parliament considered and adopted its Strategic Plan for the 5th Legislature.
“This Plan identified the enhancement of gender equality and women's empowerment as a major strategic are under the Parliament’s participation programme.
“This, if pursued vigorously, would make the ECOWAS Parliament gender responsive and I pledge to do my best to ensure the achievement of that feat within the period of my mandate.
“All these reflect a political will clearly affirmed by all on the need to improve the status of women in our States and to ensure equal opportunity for women and men.
“However, it is clear that there is still a range of institutional, economic, and socio-cultural barriers to women's empowerment.
“Politically, women are still not involved in all the decisions that affect the future at all levels: local, national, and regional.
“This is simply because they are not significantly present in all the elected bodies and assemblies where these decisions are made.
“Socially, women's fundamental rights are still being over looked. In many of our countries, women are still unable to exercise their freedom.
“Including the right to live without the fear of violence, the right to education, the right to family planning, the right to own land and the right to choose their own destiny”, Tunis said.
Tunis however called for collective efforts to implement already existing laws to ensure the empowerment of women in the region.
Source: parliamentnews360.com
[post_date_unix] => 1618448445 [post_date] => April 15, 2021 [post_modified] => April 15, 2021 [post_author_url] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/author/parliamentnews360/ [post_author_name] => Clement Akoloh [post_author_email] => senaakoloh@gmail.com [post_comments_no] => 0 [post_comments_link] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/support-affirmative-action-end-violence-against-women-mrs-clar-weah/#respond [post_theme_settings] => Array ( ) ) [639] => Array ( [post_id] => 639 [post_type] => post [has_post_thumbnail] => 1 [post_thumbnail_id] => 640 [post_link] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/women-have-socio-economic-roles-to-play-in-shaping-modern-political-discourse-dr-schaack/ [post_title] => Women have Socio-Economic Roles to Play in Shaping Modern Political Discourse – Dr. Schaack [post_title_attribute] => Women have Socio-Economic Roles to Play in Shaping Modern Political Discourse – Dr. Schaack [post_excerpt] => [post_content] =>By Omonu Nelson, Monrovia, Liberia
The Community parliament of the ECOWAS region has been challenged to create the needed enabling environment for women participation and occupy strategic positions like their male counterpart.
The Chairperson of the Female Legislature Caucus, Dr Rosanna Schaack gave this challenge in a goodwill message at the opening ceremony of the Delocalized Meeting of the Joint Committee on Social Affairs, Gender and Women Empowerment, Education, Science and Culture underway in Monrovia, the Liberian capital.
She said women must be empowered socially and economically to play active role in shaping modern political discourse.
In a speech, Liberia's Minister for Gender, Children, and Social Affairs, Madam Williametta Saydee Tarr, explained that significant milestone has been achieved in support of gender equality and women's empowerment within the context of the African Leaders adoption of the strategy for the African Women Decades covering the period, 2010 to 2020.
According to her, "As a responsible agency, significant progress has been made under the dynamic leadership of Dr George Manneh Weah, as he has continued to exhibit political-will and commitment, thus promoting gender equality, women's empowerment and women's rights as ensconced in government's Pro-poor Agenda, Prosperity and Development (PAPD)
She said, "Our Government has continued to support civil society actor and development partners to capitalize and leveraging on commitment to promote economic and political empowerment of women to improve the status of women through legal and constitutional means, institutional gender mechanisms or creating conducive environment for women to realize their potential.
"We acknowedge the heightened cases of sexual violence. Our Government is partnering with local and international stakeholders to domesticated laws that will adequately punish offenders"
Madam Tarr agreed that a lot more still needs to be done as the female gender still continues to face challenges of harmful practices such as genital mutilation and others.
In a welcome address, the leader of Liberian delegation to ECOWAS Parliament, Senator Edwin Melvin Snowe Jr. said since George Weah's era as the head of the country's delegation to ECOParl, the parliament has continued to witness more Delocalized meetings. "Liberia as founding member of ECOWAS has continued to play pivotal role in sustaining the organization.
In a goodwill message, Liberian Foreign Affairs, Dee - Maxwell Saah Kemayah explained that in its nearly three decades of existence, ECOWAS Parliament has deliberated on key issues that have impacted positively on the region.
Source: parliamentnews360.com
[post_date_unix] => 1618445645 [post_date] => April 15, 2021 [post_modified] => April 15, 2021 [post_author_url] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/author/parliamentnews360/ [post_author_name] => Clement Akoloh [post_author_email] => senaakoloh@gmail.com [post_comments_no] => 0 [post_comments_link] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/women-have-socio-economic-roles-to-play-in-shaping-modern-political-discourse-dr-schaack/#respond [post_theme_settings] => Array ( ) ) [635] => Array ( [post_id] => 635 [post_type] => post [has_post_thumbnail] => 1 [post_thumbnail_id] => 636 [post_link] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/ecowas-parliament-speaks-for-women-empowerment-in-the-region/ [post_title] => ECOWAS PARLIAMENT Reemphasizes Women Empowerment in the Region [post_title_attribute] => ECOWAS PARLIAMENT Reemphasizes Women Empowerment in the Region [post_excerpt] => [post_content] =>By: Communication Division, ECOWAS Parliament.
The Parliament of the Economic Community of West African States
(ECOWAS) is organizing a delocalized meeting under the theme "Empowerment of women in the ECOWAS region", from 13 to 17 April 2021 in Monrovia, Liberia.
The meeting is being led by the Joint Committee on Social Affairs, Gender and Women Empowerment / Education, Science and Culture / Health, of the Community Parliament.
The main aim of the Monrovia meeting is to provide the members of the Joint Committee with the keys to analyzing and understanding the problems that impede women’s empowerment in the region, in order to propose solutions.
Choosing Liberia to host this important meeting is not done randomly. This is the first country in Africa to elect a woman, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, as President, by direct universal suffrage.
Gender equality and women’s empowerment remains at the heart of the regional integration process. To achieve this, ECOWAS adopted a legal instrument, the Supplementary Act on Equality of Rights between Men and Women for Sustainable Development in the ECOWAS Region, which was adopted by the 47th Ordinary Session of the Authority of Heads of State and Government held in Accra, Ghana, on the 19th of May 2015.
More recently at the ECOWAS Parliament level, the strategic plan of the fifth legislature, adopted on 31st March 2021 in Freetown, Sierra Leone, strongly reaffirms equality of opportunity between women and men and identifies women empowerment as a major strategic focus of the fifth legislature.
Despite the progress made in promoting gender equality, there is still a range of institutional, political, or economic obstacles, which impede women's empowerment.
It is intended that at the end of the meeting, the Community Parliamentarians will reach conclusions that will contribute to the removal of these obstacles. Women’s Empowerment is a complex process, of attaining full participation in civil, political, social, and economic life, and the exercise of corresponding rights.
Source: parliamentnews360.com
[post_date_unix] => 1618442386 [post_date] => April 14, 2021 [post_modified] => April 14, 2021 [post_author_url] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/author/parliamentnews360/ [post_author_name] => Clement Akoloh [post_author_email] => senaakoloh@gmail.com [post_comments_no] => 0 [post_comments_link] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/ecowas-parliament-speaks-for-women-empowerment-in-the-region/#respond [post_theme_settings] => Array ( ) ) [618] => Array ( [post_id] => 618 [post_type] => post [has_post_thumbnail] => 1 [post_thumbnail_id] => 619 [post_link] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/un-pushes-for-policies-to-protect-women-in-informal-sector/ [post_title] => UN Pushes for Policies to Protect Women in informal Sector [post_title_attribute] => UN Pushes for Policies to Protect Women in informal Sector [post_excerpt] => [post_content] =>By Lizzy Okoji
Monrovia (Liberia), April 14, 2021 (NAN) Mrs Sangeteta Thapa, Deputy Country Representative, United Nations Women in Liberia has called on the ECOWAS Parliament to come up with policies that will protect and recognize the contributions of women in the informal sectors.
Thappa made the call on Wednesday during a Technical Session on “Strategies to Empower Women Working in the Informal Sector” at the ongoing ECOWAS Parliament delocalized meeting in Monrovia, Liberia.
According to Thappa, women in the informal sector contribute a lot to the economy of countries in the ECOWAS Region but unfortunately, they are invisible and their contributions are not recognized.
Thappa however called on the ECOWAS Parliament not to limit their focus on women in the formal sectors but also push for policies that will protect and recognize women in the informal sector.
She said that the UN Women have been doing a lot to support Women Informal Cross Border Traders in Liberia, recognizing their huge economic contribution s of their trading activities in Liberia.
This she says relates to the challenges women Informal Cross Border Traders face even in other countries of the Sub region.
“Women are economic actors and the importance of women in the informal sector cannot be overemphasized.
“They are backbone to the society and their contributions are not formally recognized but they have proven themselves to be economic actors but their contributions are not visible.
“So it is very important to formalize their role and to recognise them to have an identity so that their contributions are recorded in the National Account system.
“That is something that is not recorded and something that we really need to push.
“As a region there could be a few things that could be done together but I think individually in each of these countries we need to take into considerations the constraints and the recommendations.
“The ECOWAS Parliament should also recognize their role in society and push for laws that will protect them and recognize their efforts.
“But as a regional body I think there should be a way to enforce mechanisms and monitor how they are implemented and how they are followed.
“And probably come up with a solution on actions to be taken if they are not monitored”, Thappa said.
In her Presentation, Hon. Salimata Ouatara, Charperson, Gender, Social Action and Health Committee, Burkina Faso said jobs in the informal economy in West Africa accounts for 76 per cent of the working population.
Outara said it is the most feminized sector with 53 per cent of informal workers being women and it plays a very important role in the empowerment of women in the ECOWAS region.
She said that it was important for Member States to take seriously capacity building of women in its informal sector to support and strengthen their businesses.
‘As long as women who are the majority in the population are not, or poorly integrated into economic growth, the impact of our State’s efforts on development will be less visible in terms of enrichment of the whole population.
“There is therefore a need to initiate and diversify inclusive, innovative strategies following the evolution of technology, that can contribute to the empowerment of women,” Outara said.
Dr Faye Ndoumbe, Programme Officer, Gender and Civil Society, ECOWAS Commission said there is need to promote advocacy so that laws can be changed in favour of women.
“We have to think of the best strategies and a law within the West African region to promote and protect women’s rights, including those in the informal sector”, Ndoumbe said. (NAN)
Source: parliamentnews360.com
[post_date_unix] => 1618439867 [post_date] => April 14, 2021 [post_modified] => April 14, 2021 [post_author_url] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/author/parliamentnews360/ [post_author_name] => Clement Akoloh [post_author_email] => senaakoloh@gmail.com [post_comments_no] => 0 [post_comments_link] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/un-pushes-for-policies-to-protect-women-in-informal-sector/#respond [post_theme_settings] => Array ( ) ) [615] => Array ( [post_id] => 615 [post_type] => post [has_post_thumbnail] => 1 [post_thumbnail_id] => 616 [post_link] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/we-need-to-do-more-for-women-ecowas-speaker/ [post_title] => We Need to Do More For Women – ECOWAS Speaker [post_title_attribute] => We Need to Do More For Women – ECOWAS Speaker [post_excerpt] => [post_content] =>By Melvin Tejan Mansaray
His Excellency Honorable Mohamed Sidie Tunis, Speaker of the Fifth Legislature of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has acknowledged that the ECOWAS need to do more in empowering women to hold positions of trust among its member states.
Hon. Tunis was speaking in a joint (with Liberia’s Head of Delegation to the ECOWAS Parliament, Hon. Edwin Melvin Snowe) Special Radio talk show on PUMAHFM106.3 upon his arrival in Monrovia, Liberia on Monday 12th April 2021 ahead of the Community Parliament's first 2021 delocalized meeting of joint committees on Social Affairs, Gender and Women’s Empowerment/ Education Science and Culture and/ Health focusing on the theme, “Empowerment of Women in the ECOWAS Region.”
Hon. Tunis said the empowerment of women must not be a matter of lip service but actualization, noting that “ for over twenty-five years since the Beijing Declaration where they spoke about empowering women, it has all been about talk, talk and talk.”
“If you look at even the statistics, let say female participation in politics, it has only moved from about eleven percent to about twenty-three percent for the last twenty-five years, which is abysmal. If we are talking about gender parity, if we are talking about women’s empowerment, we should be doing more than that, but from eleven to twenty percent, it means for the next twenty-five years, we would not even get to fifty percent. In my opinion, we should do more and do a little bit more. We should not talk more. We must engage and come out with concrete ideas, a framework that will guarantee women’s participation in politics that will guarantee the empowerment of women. That is the kind of message I am here to convey,” Hon. Tunis said.
Hon. Tunis noted that women are still not being given leverage, adding that they are still being attacked and abused when they enter into politics, adding that, “ in most cases, there is serious violence against them.” He said if the right atmosphere is not created for women to participate in politics, it will be very difficult to get the number stating that culture among other factors is debarring the progress of women and limiting them only to the kitchen.
The ECOWAS Parliament Speaker, Hon. Tunis said in terms of providing this opportunity for women, the ECOWAS Parliament is now taking the lead, noting, “ we are doing everything possible to ensure that in our flagship programme which is direct universal sufferage, we plan to make it a duty for every country to ensure that first; they have the thirty percent female representation to the ECOWAS Parliament. That is where we are going to start with.”
Hon. Tunis said in reaching their goal of women’s participation, the ECOWAS Parliament intends to employ the strategy of practicalizing words.
“The strategy the ECOWAS is going to use to empower women is to make it a law. We already have the Supplementary Act on Gender Parity, so by using the universal direct suffrage for the election of members of the ECOWAS Parliament, we will use that as mandatory. In other words, if Liberia has ten members in the ECOWAS Parliament, we must ensure and obey the law that makes it mandatory to empower women, at least three women. We start from there and those three women are going to be guaranteed seats, other women can also fight for the other seven seats. So for example, if we are certain with three seats, which is the thirty percent mandatory seats, the seven remaining seats can also be fought for by other women, assuming that one woman gets another among the seven seats, it is forty percent already, that will be a very good beginning,” Hon. Tunis said.
On what is expected as the outcome for the delocalized meeting from the 13th to the 17th, April 2021 in Liberia, Hon. Tunis said: “ In the first place we decided on Liberia because Liberia has already started. Our topic is empowering women in the sub-region and if we are talking about the empowerment of women in the sub-region, Liberia has already started by empowering women by having the first female president of a country in Africa. We have also seen after the election of the first female president, we also saw Liberia electing the first female vice president, so for us in the ECOWAS Parliament, that is huge progress. It is a huge yardstick that we can use to promote women's empowerment .”
However, listeners of the radio show called in to express gratitude to the ECOWAS Speaker for meeting and understanding the plight of the Community’s citizens and appealed that university students, especially women are giving scholarship opportunities, a plea that Hon. Tunis promised to look into it.
Separately, the ECOWAS Speaker was heartily received by a team of ECOWAS officials led by the Community Parliament's Chief of Protocol Ezekiel, and a representative of the Liberian House of Representatives, and President George O. Weah, Hon. Snowe and a team of journalists at the Mano River Bridge where he was escorted by a convoy of Liberian National Police officers to several locations. He met with West Africans in Liberia who complained about immigration officers extorting monies from them, visited a school and a hospital at Bomi County where he separately donated five thousand dollars each. He also paid a private visit to Senator Snowe’s one thousand acre oil palm plantation, office, houses, and above all, his (Hon. Tunis) ancestral home, Fassi Community in honor of his late uncle, Muniru Nyei.
Apparently, the delocalized meeting is to commence on Tuesday 13th, April 2021, and on Friday 16th, April 2021, Hon. Tunis’ former university would be conferring him with an honorary doctorate degree.
Source: parliamentnews360.com
[post_date_unix] => 1618281422 [post_date] => April 13, 2021 [post_modified] => April 13, 2021 [post_author_url] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/author/parliamentnews360/ [post_author_name] => Clement Akoloh [post_author_email] => senaakoloh@gmail.com [post_comments_no] => 0 [post_comments_link] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/we-need-to-do-more-for-women-ecowas-speaker/#respond [post_theme_settings] => Array ( ) ) [610] => Array ( [post_id] => 610 [post_type] => post [has_post_thumbnail] => 1 [post_thumbnail_id] => 611 [post_link] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/ecoparl-to-take-action-on-women-empowerment-25-years-after-beijing-declaration-speaker-tunis/ [post_title] => ECOPARL to take Action on Women Empowerment 25 Years After Beijing Declaration – Speaker Tunis [post_title_attribute] => ECOPARL to take Action on Women Empowerment 25 Years After Beijing Declaration – Speaker Tunis [post_excerpt] => [post_content] =>From Omonu Nelson, Liberia-Sierra Leone boarder
The Speaker of the ECOWAS Parliament, Mohamed Sidie Tunis has reiterated the need for concrete and deliberate actions on Women Empowerment, 25 years after Beijing Declaration.
Speaker Tunis, who was on his way to Liberia for the Delocalized meeting on Women’s Empowerment, made this declaration on Monday 12 April, 2021 at the Mano River Bridge, when he was received by a delegation, consisting of ECOWAS staff and journalists.
He said there couldn't have been a better venue for the Delocalised meeting than Liberia. This he said is against the backdrop of Liberia’s serial feats of electing women into prominent political positions.
"Liberia is the most suitable country to host the Delocalised meeting on Women Empowerment because it was Liberia that blaised the trail in 2015, with the election of Africa's First Female President, Ellen Sirleaf Johnson.
"Few years later, another woman was elected Vice President by Liberians." According to the Speaker, this is no mean feats by Liberia and deserved to be reciprocated."
While receiving the Speaker on behalf of the Liberian Parliament and President George Weah, at the Mano River Bridge, the border between Liberia and Sierra Leone, a member of the Liberian Parliament and leader of the country's delegation to ECOWAS Parliament, Senator Edwin Melvin Snowe, explained the significance of receiving the Speaker on Mano Bridge, adding that it was Mano Bridge that was used to transport weapons into Liberia during the Civil War. Its on the same Mano River Bridge that we are receiving the Speaker into our country," Snowe said.
He assured the security team, which accompanied the Speaker to the border of his security and safety.
"I assure you, the Speaker is at home in Liberia, and there is absolutely no need for reservation.
In another development, Senator Snowe on Sunday, treated journalists and ECOWAS Parliament staff to a sumptuous buffet at his Sea side beach residence, where he welcomed them to the Liberty and Freedom country.
He urged all to feel at home as according to him, Liberia is safe and belongs to all of us.
Source: parliamentnews360.com
[post_date_unix] => 1618279371 [post_date] => April 13, 2021 [post_modified] => April 13, 2021 [post_author_url] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/author/parliamentnews360/ [post_author_name] => Clement Akoloh [post_author_email] => senaakoloh@gmail.com [post_comments_no] => 0 [post_comments_link] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/ecoparl-to-take-action-on-women-empowerment-25-years-after-beijing-declaration-speaker-tunis/#respond [post_theme_settings] => Array ( ) ) [591] => Array ( [post_id] => 591 [post_type] => post [has_post_thumbnail] => 1 [post_thumbnail_id] => 592 [post_link] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/the-resilience-of-democracy-against-the-odds-in-the-ipu-perspective/ [post_title] => The Resilience of Democracy Against the Odds – The IPU Perspective [post_title_attribute] => The Resilience of Democracy Against the Odds – The IPU Perspective [post_excerpt] => [post_content] =>On 6 January 2021, the world watched in horror as a mob waged an outrageous assault on the US Capitol building. Congress was in session, performing the usually calm and orderly ritual of confirming the election results and certifying the victory of Joe Biden and Kamala Harris.
Democracy was under actual, physical danger as parliamentarians took shelter wherever they could, many fearing for their lives.
Disbelief underscored the horror. The peaceful, post-election transfer of power is a linchpin of democratic systems. How could this occur in the United States, a nation many countries have looked to as a shining example of democracy? What did it mean for democratic ideals?
If anything, this affront to democracy exposed its true fragility - it cannot be taken for granted and must be protected and nurtured every day. If this could happen in the US, it could happen anywhere. The grim events in Myanmar serve as a reminder that progress towards building a democratic system can go into reverse.
But it also confirmed democracy’s resilience. Despite the attempt to usurp the electoral will of the people, democracy did not break. Its bedrock institutions and the rule of law prevailed. This resilience was immediately demonstrated when US parliamentarians reconvened a few hours later to perform their constitutional duty of counting electoral votes that confirmed the winners of the November presidential elections.
Democracy is the only system of governance that is self-correcting. The system bowed, but resisted, as proved by the subsequent inauguration and smooth transition of power on January 20. If it had been another system, the result may have been different.
What transpired after the storming of the US Capitol building goes to the heart of IPU’s mission to empower parliaments and parliamentarians to promote peace, democracy and sustainable development. Our slogan is ‘For democracy, for everyone’, and it is helpful to revisit 1997, when IPU Member Parliaments adopted the Universal Declaration of Democracy. The twenty-seven-point affirmation underscores the strength of the democratic system of government as a universally recognized ideal based on common values shared by all people.
The Declaration came about during the Soviet empire’s slow implosion, when some analysts predicted the “end of history”. But new countries emerged from the former Soviet Union and elsewhere, as authoritarian regimes lost their superpower protection and collapsed. These changes often led to newly-formed democracies that better encompassed the desire by peoples for a more effective and equitable form of government.
The IPU empowers parliaments for democracy, and aims to safeguard parliamentarians everywhere, particularly through its unique mechanism to protect and defend them. As the assault on the US Congress showed, being a parliamentarian can be one of the most dangerous jobs in the world. No legislator should fear for their life. No parliamentarian should have to shelter in their office from rioters.
Every year, the IPU witnesses more and more cases of parliamentarians in danger or being abused, usually those that are critical of the governing powers. And every year we see how democracy can triumph against the odds. It is a phoenix, constantly reborn, rising up again. It remains the ideal form of governance – of the people, for the people, and by the people.
The IPU is the only international parliamentary organization which tackles such issues, particularly through the continuous work of its Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians. The Committee calls for action, expresses concern and requests information, helping, at least, to prevent violations against the human rights of parliamentarian from going unnoticed.
We, as always, believe in the strength of democracy. For democracy. For everyone.
Duarte Pacheco, IPU President
Martin Chungong, IPU Secretary General
IPU President, Mr. Duarte Pacheco and IPU Secretary General, Mr. Martin Chungong met today a group of Myanmar parliamentarians elected in the general election of November 2020 but prevented from taking their seats in the new parliament following the military coup on 1 February 2021.
The parliamentarians are part of the newly formed 17-member Committee to Represent the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw Union Assembly (CRPH). The CRPH represents some 400 parliamentarians elected in the November elections. Its objective is to carry out parliamentary functions despite the coup, and in circumstances where the parliamentarians are under close watch by the military and police.
IPU President, Mr. Duarte Pacheco said “We express our solidarity with our elected parliamentary colleagues in Myanmar. The IPU is an organization of national parliaments dedicated to defending democracy and the human rights of parliamentarians. We call for respect of the rule of law, the constitution and the results of the November elections.”
IPU Secretary General, Mr. Martin Chungong said “The subversion of any democratic process is unacceptable, especially when it involves military repression of peaceful civil protests. The IPU stands ready to defend the physical and legal integrity of the Myanmar parliament and the human rights of its duly elected parliamentarians.”
The members of the CRPH thanked the IPU for its recent support, notably an IPU statement issued during the coup itself, on the day the new Parliament was due to convene for the first time.
The Myanmar parliamentarians spoke of the violence and destruction in the country, and of the damage to the state, already weakened by poverty and the pandemic.
The parliamentarians also asked the IPU to facilitate contacts with other parliaments with experience of conflict or constitutional crises who could support them and share their experiences.
The IPU Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians is closely monitoring the situation of several of the parliamentarians in Myanmar. The IPU Committee has received reports of human rights violations against 39 parliamentarians, including threats, acts of intimidation, arbitrary arrest and detention and failure of the authorities to respect parliamentary immunity.
The IPU Committee will issue its full report on the human rights situation of the Myanmar parliamentarians shortly.
[post_date_unix] => 1617623220 [post_date] => April 5, 2021 [post_modified] => April 5, 2021 [post_author_url] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/author/parliamentnews360/ [post_author_name] => Clement Akoloh [post_author_email] => senaakoloh@gmail.com [post_comments_no] => 0 [post_comments_link] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/ipu-leadership-meets-with-myanmar-parliamentarians/#respond [post_theme_settings] => Array ( ) ) [585] => Array ( [post_id] => 585 [post_type] => post [has_post_thumbnail] => 1 [post_thumbnail_id] => 586 [post_link] => https://parliamentnews360.com/index.php/abuse-against-parliamentarians-increases-sharply-ipu-reports/ [post_title] => Abuse Against Parliamentarians Increases Sharply – IPU Reports [post_title_attribute] => Abuse Against Parliamentarians Increases Sharply – IPU Reports [post_excerpt] => [post_content] =>The IPU Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians is monitoring a record 601 cases of alleged violations against parliamentarians around the world. This represents a significant uptick compared to 552 cases in December 2020. The caseload includes many new claims, particularly from Myanmar and Turkey.
The committee took decisions on these and a number of other cases of alleged abuse of parliamentarians in Afghanistan, Belarus, Burundi, Colombia, Eritrea, Gabon, Mauritania, Mongolia, Thailand, Togo and Venezuela.
Myanmar
Since the military coup in February 2021, the IPU’s human rights committee has received specific reports of human rights violations against 39 parliamentarians elected in the November 2020 ballot. The violations include threats, acts of intimidation, arbitrary arrest and the failure of the authorities to respect parliamentary immunity.
The alleged violations are taking place against the backdrop of the lethal and large-scale use of military force against civilians, with particular bloodshed on Saturday, 27 March.
The IPU is particularly concerned for the welfare of the parliamentarians who constitute the newly formed 17-member Committee to Represent the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw Union Assembly (CRPH). The CRPH represents some 400 parliamentarians. Its objective is to carry out parliamentary functions despite the coup, and in circumstances where Myanmar parliamentarians are under close watch by the military and the police.
The military have declared the CRPH illegal and said that its members could face charges of high treason under Myanmar law, punishable by death or up to 22 years of imprisonment. All 17 CRPH members have gone into hiding, fearing reprisals by the military.
Last week, IPU leadership spoke with some of the CRPH parliamentarians to find out more about their circumstances and how to support them.
The IPU is also contacting the military authorities to urge them to respect the basic human rights of all the elected parliamentarians and to request more information concerning their situation.
Turkey
The IPU human rights committee has examined the cases of 64 parliamentarians from Turkey, of whom 30 are women. Over 600 criminal and terrorism charges have been brought against parliamentarians from the opposition People’s Democratic Party (HDP) since 15 December 2015, when the Constitution was amended to lift their parliamentary immunity.
As a result, hundreds of trial proceedings are ongoing throughout the country against both current and former HDP parliamentarians.
Since November 2016, many parliamentarians have been detained and others have gone into exile. Thirteen current and former parliamentarians are currently in prison.
According to the reports received by the IPU, the charges against the HDP members of parliament are politically motivated and violate their rights to freedom of expression and of assembly.
In a recent development, Turkey’s top prosecutor filed an indictment seeking the dissolution of the HDP. The IPU Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians is concerned that this would not only deprive the HDP parliamentarians of their right to participate in public life, but also their electorate of representation in the Turkish parliament.
The IPU is working closely with the Turkish Inter-Parliamentary Group to find solutions to the impasse.
Venezuela
The IPU Committee on the Human Rights of Parliamentarians continues to monitor the cases of 139 opposition parliamentarians elected in the 2015 National Assembly, of whom 41 are women.
Almost all the parliamentarians have been attacked or otherwise intimidated during demonstrations, inside parliament or in their homes.
At least 11 National Assembly members were arrested and later released, reportedly following politically motivated legal proceedings. In all of the cases, the members were detained without respect for their parliamentary immunity. There are also serious concerns regarding due process and their treatment in detention.
According to information received by the IPU, at least 17 parliamentarians have gone into exile, sought the protection of foreign embassies in Caracas or gone into hiding due to continued harassment. Six have been barred from holding public office. Another 28 parliamentarians are subject to ongoing proceedings to prevent them from holding public office. At least 13 members of parliament are unable to secure passports, reportedly to prevent them from criticizing the government from abroad.
The alleged violations take place in the context of continuous harassment by the government to undermine the opposition members of the National Assembly elected in 2015.
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