AIPA-31 Executive Committee opens in Hanoi
The Executive Committee of the 31st ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) convened a meeting on September 20 to adopt the operation programme and agenda of the 31st AIPA General Assembly, dialogue topics with observer nations and other issues.
Vietnam’s National Assembly Chairman and Chairman of AIPA-31 Nguyen Phu Trong briefed the participants on the outstanding activities of AIPA over the past year, including symposiums on women parliamentarians’ role in law-making and post-crisis and sustainable development.
Other AIPA activities include the 7th meeting of the AIPA Fact-Finding Committee to Combat the Drug Menace, the 2nd meeting of the AIPA advisory group and the policy consultation of G20 parliamentary speakers.
At the meeting, the delegates nominated the AIPA-31 General Assembly Vice Chairperson, approved the appointment of the AIPA Secretary General and discussed a number of other affairs.
*** The same day, the Meeting of Women Parliamentarians of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (WAIPA) took place in Hanoi, drawing the participation of 28 women parliamentarians from nine AIPA member delegations.
With Vietnam’s NA Vice Chairwoman Tong Thi Phong in the chair, AIPA female parliamentarians discussed draft resolutions on improving social welfare and development for women and children, the role of women in economic recovery after the financial crisis, women’s participation in the political field as well as the role of female parliamentarians in law making.
Regarding the draft resolution on strengthening social welfare and development for women and children, the delegates paid attention to ensuring education and health care for women and children, care services for children, and employment opportunities and vocational training for women, especially poor and immigrant women.
The women parliamentarians agreed to call on AIPA member countries to continue financial support for supervising the implementation of national policies and regional agreements on social welfare and development for women and children.
They also recommended that AIPA member countries strengthen cooperation, information and consultation in formulating and enforcing laws and policies relating to social welfare and development for women and children.
The AIPA women parliamentarians also voiced their support for the draft resolution on increasing women’s participation in the political field, which has been built on the basis of existing AIPA resolutions on strengthening the role and participation of women in political activities.
The delegates agreed to not set any specific target number of women parliamentarians for ASEAN countries, as each country has its own political regime and socio-cultural conditions. Instead, they emphasised the need to increase the number of women parliamentarians in each country in the future.
Regarding the draft resolution on the role of women parliamentarians in law making, the delegates agreed with the report and proposals of a Vietnam-initiated meeting on the role of women parliamentarians in the process of law making held in Hanoi from November 29 to December 3, 2009.
Speaking at the closing ceremony of the meeting, NA Vice Chairwoman Phong, who is also head of the Vietnamese NA delegation, said that social consensus is needed to increase women’s participation politics.
After the 31st General Assembly, AIPA should have more specific activities to put forward recommendations on policies that create more favourable conditions for women, she concluded.