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Delegation Reports
Parliamentary Hearing at the United Nations
28 and 29 November 2011 Report by Fabian Hamilton MP and Gareth Johnson MP Delegates The annual Parliamentary Hearing of the IPU took place at the United Nations in New York on 28th and 29th November 2011 with Fabian Hamilton MP and Gareth Johnson MP attending on behalf of the British Group. This was a good opportunity for British Parliamentarians to meet Parliamentarians from around the world and to discuss many important global issues. For Fabian, it was a chance for him to put his experience in Foreign Affairs to good use and to develop the excellent relationships that the British Group IPU has developed with other national IPU delegations from around the world. Gareth was attending an IPU event for the first time and so was experiencing the workings of the United Nations from a different perspective as it was also his first visit to New York. The conference was opened by the President of the UN General Assembly and speeches were given by the Deputy Secretary-General of the UN and the Vice-President of the IPU. The theme for the first session concentrated on ‘Strengthening Political Accountability for a more Peaceful and Prosperous World’. There were two sessions on each of the two days, examining different themes around the general issue of strengthening political accountability. The format was the same as last year’s, with a moderator controlling the contributions of a panel of three or four speakers, each of whom spoke for around ten minutes. Following those speeches, the floor was open and members of national IPU delegations were able to say their piece. The title of the debate on the morning of the first day, Monday 28th, was ‘the role of the UN General Assembly in strengthening global accountability’; in the afternoon it was ‘Youth participation in the democratic process – challenges and opportunities’ During this session, different countries gave accounts of how they face the challenges of ensuring that young people remain engaged with political processes. One of the panel speakers in the debate claimed that the rioting in the UK during the summer was the result of political frustration. This was an assertion that Fabian and Gareth profoundly disagreed with. Fabian successfully requested to speak in the debate and stated that there was no evidence of political frustration from the rioters but actually the disorder arose more from criminal opportunism. His intervention was well received within the conference hall. The following day’s sessions concentrated on accountability in the management of public funds and in strengthening the links between national institutions and civil society, the morning session being entitled ‘Accountability in the management of public funds – good practices and model legislation for budget transparency’; and the afternoon and final session: ‘Strengthening the links between national institutions and civil society –toward more open societies'. An informal reception took place on the evening of Monday 28th at the end of that day’s sessions which gave an excellent opportunity for Gareth and Fabian to meet with other delegations. There’s no doubt that there is huge value in Parliamentarians building up working relationships and friendships. The more countries communicate with each other, the more we understand each other and our respective needs and aspirations. It was also a good chance to meet with Mark Lyall-Grant our Permanent Representative to the United Nations. His support for our work at the conference was very much welcomed by Gareth and Fabian and they were grateful that he spared the time at short notice during a very busy evening for him. On the Monday afternoon, the delegation from the Republic of Korea asked to meet Gareth and Fabian to raise some of their general concerns about the tensions with the North and they requested that the UK, as one of the permanent members of the Security Council, take a close interest in the situation between the two states and support South Korea’s desire for peace and reconciliation between the two Koreas. That meeting took place very shortly before the death was announced of North Korea’s Leader, Kim Jong Il. The conference was a very worthwhile event because it helped to build up friendship and trust between countries and developed the crucial work of the United Nations. The debates were generally well informed and contributed to the best traditions of the United Nations and the IPU.
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