Declaration adopted by the Conference

The 3rd World Conference of Speakers of Parliament closed with the adoption of a declaration on the need to secure global democratic accountability. Over 130 Speakers of Parliament gave their assent to a text that affirmed how accountability and representation lie at the heart of democracy.

Full text of the Declaration adopted by the Conference [PDF]

From the Secretary General’s diary – Wednesday

For three days, the UN Assembly Hall has been much like a parliament.  A plenary debate, rich in political content, mixed with lots of discussions and networking in the corridors and in separate meeting rooms.

Those who attended the panel discussions came back with the impression of having sat in parliamentary committees: no speeches, lots of debate.

Meetings have started on time (almost unheard of at the UN) and been well attended throughout.  The closing session has almost as many participants as the beginning.

The morning today is hectic, to say the least, and busy with last minute negotiations.  Really, it is only by the time that we sit down to hear the rapporteur that I am fairly certain that the Speakers will adopt an outcome document.

I am conscious of the fact that the declaration is not perfect, says the rapporteur.  We have a divergence of opinions and this is of course quite natural.  We are, after all, political leaders.  This is maybe the best compromise we can forge at this stage, he concludes.

Maybe.  President Gurirab makes the point that all delegates clearly do not agree with everything that is said in the declaration.  Several Speakers from the European Union do not agree with everything said about the IPU in the fourth part of the declaration.  That  must mean that we will have to continue our dialogue to resolve our differences.  On that understanding, he invites the Speakers to adopt the declaration.

It is 12.36 pm; the declaration is adopted.

Throughout these days, we have heard the most extraordinary plurality of opinions.  It is going to take us quite a while to distil it all.

That will also mean – for this Secretary General – to learn the lessons of his first blogging experience!

Photo gallery: Speakers of parliament – Wednesday

Summary of the panel: Strengthening trust between parliament and the people

Report presented by Josep Dallères Codina, Speaker of the General Council, Andorra

In old and new democracies alike, public trust is often low in parliaments, political parties and indeed the entire political system. Money is often at the heart of the problem. A lack of transparency in political funding casts doubt over the integrity of decision-making processes…

Ultimately, public trust may depend on respect for basic principles: respect for the other, and respect for the word that is given; total integrity and dedication to public service. Equally, the public will respect parliaments that are strong, that are seen to have influence over the legislative process and to exercise effective oversight of the executive and, in sum, to address the basics needs of the people in an efficient and timely manner.  In my opinion, it is not a vain statement to say that stronger parliaments lead to stronger democracies.

Bern Initiative for Global Parliamentary Action on Maternal and Child Health

Report delivered by Erika Forster-Vannini, Speaker, Council of States, Switzerland

The women Speakers of parliament concluded their Sixth meeting held on 16 and 17 July in the Swiss Parliament by adopting the Bern Initiative for Global Parliamentary Action on Maternal and Child Health, an eight-point plan for action to:

1. Advocate the development or strengthening of gender-equitable national health action plans addressing family planning, skilled care during delivery, and emergency care;
2. Review and, where required, enact legislation ensuring that the national legislative framework is aligned with international treaties, does not discriminate against women and girls, ensures their effective access to care, protects women from all forms of gender-based violence and children from abuse, violence and neglect;
3. Hold debates and dialogues in parliament on women’s and children’s health alongside the discussions on the budget;
4. Commission reports on the impact the budget will have on the achievement of MDGs 4 and 5 and introduce gender-sensitive budgeting;
5. Advocate fulfillment of international official development aid commitments and ensure that all official international aid is provided through the national budget adopted by parliament;
6. Monitor the implementation of the budget from the perspective of MDGs 4 and 5;
7. Undertake visits to facilities in the country and hold public hearings in parliament with the participation of women and children to assess the impact of health legislation, policies and budgets; and
8. Promote women’s empowerment by all means.

I strongly encourage all of you to join me and all the women Speakers in taking action for women’s and children’s health and in implementing the Bern initiative in its 8 points of action.

Full text of the Bern Initiative for Global Parliamentary Action on Maternal and Child Health [PDF]

Summary of the panel: “Countdown to 2015″ on the role of parliaments in the Millenium Development Goals

There is palpable progress on the MDGs – enough to justify a more upbeat mood than in the past.  The numbers do not tell the whole story. Case after case shows that the MDGs are perfectly doable if there is enough political will and if governments exercise true leadership. By increasing social investments by just a fraction of GDP, even some of the poorest countries were able to provide free primary education and other essential services. It is the job of parliamentarians to make sure that the right decisions are made and followed up on.

Aid is important to the success of the MDGs… [but] must be more effective.  There are still countless stories of waste and expensive overheads.  Excessive politicy conditionality remains an issue in many countries.  More aid should be in the form of budget support. Internal resources are more important [than aid and] good governance remains key to the success of the MDGs.  Corruption…continues to divert development funds away, undermining confidence in the institutions by both citizens and donors.  South-South cooperation can also help achieve the MDGs.  As more and more countries transition from developing to developed, they should share their experiences and practices with other developing countries in the region.

Donald Oliver: Speaker pro tempore, Senate, Canada

Of course, much of what I am raising reflects a hopeful analysis of the potential of ICTs for the work of Parliaments. We are still at a relatively early stage in their adoption, and a number of challenges must be overcome for ICTs to fully flourish as a tool for strengthening democracy. Investment in public ICT infrastructure, broadband Internet coverage, and skills training are essential if these new methods of political engagement are to support a more accessible Parliament for all citizens. In addition to overcoming the digital divide, we must also address the socio-economic barriers to democratic engagement, remembering that ICTs are not a panacea for the deeper issues of disenfranchisement and apathy that threaten the quality of democracy today.

Anouchka van Miltenburg: Vice-President of the House of Representatives, Netherlands

Whereas more people than ever live in democracies, more people than ever are deeply disappointed by the problem-solving ability of democracy and politics. The gap between voters and their representatives is much smaller these days than a few decades ago, which is due to the media in particular. Yet, many of our citizens are turning away from politics and the democratic decision-making process because they consider government and parliament the domain of an elite they themselves do not belong to or do not want to belong to.  The third paradox is the reaction…of people who call for larger and stronger authorities every time something goes wrong in society…

We need new answers to such questions as what the role of government should be in times of global crisis, what citizens may expect from their governments and how citizens can influence government policy in our democracies…”Business as usual” is the worst possible reponse.  National and international thinking about economic growth will have to change.. We should focus on quality of growth rather quantity…At parliamentary level we require a different attitude with respect to accountability and responsiveness towards our citizens and parliament’s oversight duty.

Video: Majalli Whbee, Deputy Speaker of the Knesset, Israel

Interview in English

Panel discussion: Trust in parliament

Excerpts from the panel discussion:

Keynote speakers

It’s not enough to have perfect institutions. Parliament is a delegation of power of people. Democracy is based on trust between those who have power and those who delegated their power. (Josep Dallerès Codina, Speaker of the General Council, Andorra)

How can we have a better relation with the citizens? How do we win back credibility? Through commitment first. we need to be 100% devoted to politics… In politics today, we need to be seen doing what we do. It is a matter of accountability and transparency. Our electorate has to be able to judge if we are being consistent in the political choices we are taking. When we vote for an issue, we need to be seen voting on this issue.  (Jorge Pizarro: President of the Senate, Chile)

The stronger the civil society is, the better politics are. We need the input from outside the parliament… Women represent women’s issues and concerns better. (Barbara Prammer: Speaker of the National Council, Austria)

On representation

Several groups need to be included in parliament: women and men with special needs, young men and women and, women and men from different origins.

 In many countries, special measures are being applied to increase women’s participation as temporary measures. This is working and it is worth more discussions and exchanges among parliamentarians.

On technology

People are debating on political issues thanks to new technologies without including the parliament. Parliaments are still using websites to communicate when people are using more interactive channels of communication using ICTs such as social networks.

On the role of parliament

People don’t know what role is played by parliaments while parliaments are vested with a great deal of power on decision making and oversight function of the Executive. The media and new technologies can contribute to democracy but they cannot replace people who can scrutinize the consistency and coherence of decision taken by parliamentarians.

What are parliaments for? Why do they exist? Of course, where parliaments act as rubber stamps for the executive, people have the right to ask themselves this question. In such cases, constitutional reforms are necessary to give more power and legitimacy to parliament.

We all know that political decisions are taken after long and painful negociations which resulted in a compromise. People need to know about the negociation process. This is what transparency is about.

Sometime you do everything you can and everything right but people still do not like you when you are touching delicate matters such as taxes, pension reform, or reserved seats for women.

As a parliamentarian, sometimes you have to take decisions that are for the good of the people but that are not popular among lobbies, some associations… What upsets people is the use of power for personal benefit and the lack of transparency.

What citizens want from parliamentarians is responses to their needs. Social stability, socio-economic rights, good coverage and quality of  education, healthcare facilities… The common point is that citizens want responsive, fair and timely decisions that can benefit all of them.

Peoples’ expectations from parliamentarians changes from one country to another. In some countries, citizens simply expect from parliamentarians to ensure that they have food and a dollar in their pocket.

In conclusion

How to win back peoples trust? The first ingredient is transparency. Transparency  in decision-making, information, budgeting and voting. Respect is another ingredient: respect for the word given, respect for the citizens and respect for common values. 

Do not promise what you cannot fulfil.

Video: Ali Larijani, Speaker of Parliament, Islamic Republic of Iran

Interview in Farsi and French

From the Secretary General’s diary – Tuesday

Why are we limited to five minutes asks a Speaker in the morning’s session?  Why are we not given more time?  Part of the answer is in the sheer number of Speakers who take part in the summit.

We get a taste of that throughout the day.  It is simply impossible to keep within time limits.  At the end of the morning, the interpreters turn off the lights, close the booths and leave for lunch.  The last Speaker of the morning session is left to deliver his speech with no translation.

I think this is rude.  I am reminded that I am at the UN and this is standard practice.

The debate continues on the floor and in the corridors.  The themes remain the same; global crises, democratic accountability, parliament’s role in international relations.

Quite a few Speakers intervene in the debate on the IPU’s future direction.

It is doubtful that an international convention on the IPU will strengthen the IPU say some; others argue the time has now come to give the IPU the status of an international organization through a convention.  Similarly, the IPU’s role in relation to the UN receives many comments and suggestions.

Of course, the conference is not meant to take any decisions in relation to the IPU.  That does not (nor should it) stop Speakers from expressing their views; some of them diametrically opposed.

That debate spills over into the preparatory committee which meets late in the afternoon.  It tries to resolve outstanding issues in the declaration which relate, precisely, to the IPU and its future development.

While all of this goes on, panel discussions take place in separate rooms.  These are discussions I miss; why is it not possible to be everywhere?  There is simply too much going on.

Anders B. Johnsson

Photo gallery: Speakers of parliament – Tuesday

Veronica Nataniel Macamo Dlhovo: Speaker of the Assembly, Mozambique

Democratic accountability should be an antidote for the world crisis, for it promotes the construction of a more liberated society, where the human being is the epicenter of our attention and where all of us are called upon to reverse the crisis of values before the superiority of the economic and financial power.

Fehmida Mirza: Speaker of the National Assembly, Pakistan

The structure of the world economy has changed considerably since the Bretton Woods Conference [in 1944]. Today, the developing countries and economies in transition account for half of the world’s output. Yet these changes are not reflected in the decision-making structure of the financial institutions. The governance and legitimacy of their decisions have become questionable.

Fernando La Sama de Araújo: President of the National Assembly, Timor-Leste

Today, the resources available to take poorer countries out of misery are more abundant than ever before. However, history shows that these resources have been more for the benefit of developed countries that managed to take advantage of the social and economic liberalization process.  Timor-Leste is striving to put an end to this logic. We wish to lead a movement to promote measures which allow countries such as ours to escape from the vicious spiral of international aid and to become truly productive.

Max Vuyisile Sisulu: Speaker of the National Assembly, South Africa

The time for paying lip service to the need for global democratic accountability is past.  Parliaments can no longer be mere chambers of debate and time worn speeches without bringing about change. We can not call for this change from the sidelines, but must take up the challenge and become activists for change within our parliaments. We do this not for ourselves, but for the people we serve and to whom we, as their freely elected representatives, owe a world where human dignity and human security are paramount.

Jorge Pizarro: President, Senate, Chile

In Latin America, authoritative polls show that only 48%  of citizens believe that democracy is the best form of government.  This phenomenon… is now reaching critical levels which political leaders need to confront.  We need to ensure the legimitacy and representativity of parliaments, which are today called into question by restricted electoral systems and low public participation in electoral processes. It is essential to work towards the adoption of legal norms which put in place electoral systems that are truly competitive and inclusive and, as a result, representative of all political, ethnic, geographic and social sensitivities of our countries. 

We should work with a view to making citizens feel genuinely associated to the legislative process.  We should not only listen to demands from civil society, but give them legal meaning, through clear legislation in response to concrete concerns of the population…We should confront questions of transparency, ethics and public morals, beyond institutional measures, such as the creation of parliamentariy ethics committees.  We should aspire, collectively and individually, to make parliamentary work fully accountable and transparent.

Panel discussion: Millennium Development Goals

Excerpts from the panel discussion:

There has been incredible progress towards implementing the MDGs.    More than I had expected when I was at the Millennium Summit.  Meeting the MDGs by 2015 is doable when governments act together and use aid wisely.   (Eveline Herfkens: Founder of the UN Millennium Campaign and Special Advisor to UNDP)

The effects of the various crises result in poor people developing coping strategies - dropping kids from schools, adjusting down standards of nutrition - all of which have long-term negative consequences. (Otavino Canuto, Vice-President for Poverty Reduction and Economic Management, World Bank)

MPs, parliament and governments are keen to follow people’s opinion, the attitudes of ordinary people is important.  It is true aid still comes with conditions, one also understands that donor countries must explain to their citizens what purpose their taxes serve. Therefore, it is also difficult to move away from project to general budget support because of less visible results. (Sauli Niinistö, Speaker of the National Assembly of Finland)

Rwanda has actively promoted equality between men and women in political life.  Women make up 56% of  the Rwandan Chamber of Deputies.  This was not a question of resources but of political will and a vision for development. (Rose Mukantabana: Speaker, Chamber of Deputies, Rwanda)

We should remember that meeting the MDGs is not only in obtaining help from the World Bank and others, it is much more up to countries themselves, at the national level to implement the MDGs.

At a recent meeting in West Africa, parliamentarians were in agreement that their role was not to negotiate with donors, this is the job of the executive.  However, parliaments have an oversight role in development aid received by national governments and need to receive information either from the executive or from donors on aid received.

40 to 45% of the aid for development is spent on international consultants, reports and studies. Donors should not impose this hiring of consultants.

MPs are not doing enough because of the problem of political patronage. We praise our governments rather than being critical of them.  This is an obstacle to meeting the MDGs in many countries.

Ene Ergma: Speaker, Riigikogu, Estonia

Internet has given politicians a channel to transmit directly unmediated information. As a result, citizens have been given the opportunity to participate in different stages of the decision-shaping process, allowing influence on the outcome… Virtual politics and social communication are still insufficient to replace traditional communication based on face-to-face social networking. Despite fast development and good statistical indicators, parliaments should not bask in today’s success and remain mere observers of these achievements.

Parliaments are left with not so many options – but to go where the public is and where the debate takes place.