The United Nations has co-hosted its largest in-person gathering since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, with hundreds of parliamentarians from around the world attending the 2022 Parliamentary Hearing, a joint initiative of the IPU and the President of the General Assembly, on 17 and 18 February. Around 200 MPs, Speakers, advisers and related officials […]
2022 is set to be a dynamic year for voting worldwide. Several elections could reshape the parliamentary makeup in many countries. According to Parline, the IPU’s open data platform on parliaments, in 2022 there will be 31 elections for the direct selection of parliamentarians in every region of the globe. Each result will have a lasting impact […]
On 9 February, BGIPU hosted a roundtable discussion on human rights in China against the backdrop of the Beijing Olympics, with particular focus on the Uyghur crisis. The meeting was chaired by Tim Loughton MP and heard from Dr Ewelina Ochab from the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute and Alkan Akad from Amnesty International […]
On 3 February, BGIPU hosted a virtual briefing with the British Ambassador to Tunisia, HMA Helen Winterton. Damien Moore MP, member of the BGIPU Executive Committee and Chair of the Tunisia APPG, hosted the briefing. Tunisia was initially hailed as a democratic success after the Arab Spring in 2011. However, years of political wrangling revealed […]
On 1-2 February 2022, BGIPU hosted a delegation of three parliamentarians from France. The visit had the purpose of enhancing parliamentary relations between the two founding countries of the IPU. It was the first inward delegation BGIPU has hosted in Parliament since the pandemic, and it was significant that the first visit was our closet neighbour […]
We, the IPU President and the IPU Secretary General, call for renewed dialogue between the Russian Federation and Ukraine to ease tensions in the region. We call for respect of internationally (UN) recognized borders and territorial integrity and sovereignty of all States. The IPU was founded by parliamentarians who believed in the power of dialogue […]
The IPU opened its doors to its first 2022 in-person delegation of parliamentarians with a dozen MPs visiting from Denmark, Finland and Sweden on 27-28 January to learn more about the IPU’s work. Led by Ms. Cecilia Widegren, Head of the Swedish Delegation, Mr. Søren Søndergaard, Chair of the Danish delegation and Ms. Heli Järvinen, Head […]
The IPU expresses grave concern over reports of a military coup in Burkina Faso with the arrests of President Kabore, the Speaker of Parliament and other government officials as well as news of the dissolution of the National Assembly. The IPU calls for a swift return to constitutional order with respect for the rule of law and democratically elected institutions. Gunfire and violence on […]
The IPU is pleased to announce a new prize: the Cremer-Passy prize. The prize will be awarded annually to an MP or MPs whose exceptional actions contributes to a more united, fair, secure, sustainable and equitable future. Named after the two IPU founders, Frédéric Passy and Sir William Randal Cremer, this annual award will be given to a parliamentarian […]
End-of-year statement by President Duarte Pacheco and Secretary General Martin Chungong. 2021 bore witness to several assaults on democracy, starting with what many saw as one of its bastions – the US Congress. Then Myanmar suffered a bloody military coup which unravelled in an instant nearly a decade of democratic progress led by its elected […]
