Mr Duarte Pacheco, a Portuguese Member of Parliament since 1991, was elected to the IPU Presidency in an historic virtual vote in November, winning 56 per cent of the votes in the first round. In his first video interview for the IPU, the new President sets out his vision and his priorities for the three […]
In the lead-up to Human Rights Day on 10 December, the IPU has released its yearly figures on the human rights abuses experienced by parliamentarians around the world. The numbers confirm an upward trend of reported violations against parliamentarians. They also reveal an uptick in acts of intimidation and violence, with women MPs suffering more […]
Twenty-five years after the Beijing Declaration to advance women’s rights, young women are still one of the most under-represented groups in political leadership positions. IPU figures show that only 2.2 per cent of MPs worldwide are under 30, of which women only make up a small proportion. On 18 November 2020, the IPU and the […]
Assuring our Common Future is a new guide for parliaments to support disarmament for security and sustainable development. The IPU contributed to the guide in partnership with the Geneva Centre for Security Policy, Parliamentarians for Global Action, Parliamentarians for Nuclear Non-proliferation and Disarmament, Parliamentary Forum on Small Arms and Light Weapons and the World Future Council, […]
New allegations of human rights violations against parliamentarians in countries holding elections have recently been brought to the attention of the IPU. The cases involve opposition MPs whose basic rights to freedom of expression, assembly and movement have reportedly been severely curtailed in the context of elections, particularly in Venezuela, Côte d’Ivoire and Tanzania. In […]
Mr. Duarte Pacheco has been elected as the 30th President of the IPU after an unprecedented online election during an extraordinary virtual session of the IPU’s Governing Council, its main decision-making body made up of parliamentarians from around the world. Mr. Pacheco takes over from Ms. Gabriela Cuevas Barron, a Mexican parliamentarian, who has just […]
On the opening day of the virtual Governing Council of the Inter-Parliamentary Union on 1 November 2020, the outgoing President Gabriel Cuevas reported key achievements and events during the term of her three-year Presidency to the IPU membership. Addressing many of the 412 registered delegates from 145 of the IPU’s 179 members parliaments participating, the […]
At its meeting on 26 June 2020, the IPU Executive Committee decided that, in light of the constraints imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic, a virtual session of the Governing Council would be convened from 1 to 4 November 2020 to discuss and take decisions on pressing issues relating to the functioning of the organization – […]
In ending her term as IPU President, Gabriela Cuevas wrote to the IPU’s members in the following terms on 19 October 2020, the final day of her Presidency: Dear Speakers of Parliament, Dear parliamentary colleagues, Dear friends from the United Nations, Dear friends with whom I shared these years as President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, […]
In a new research paper, the IPU shines the spotlight on parliamentary staff, the people who support the Members of Parliament. The paper analyses key dimensions of parliamentary autonomy in administrations – from recruitment practices to budgetary powers – across the globe. Since 2016, the IPU has conducted research through global surveys and in-depth case […]
