Call to Action on the Creation of a UN Parliamentary Assembly
Call to action adopted at the inaugural meeting of the Parliamentary Group for a UNPA on 7 November 2018
The United Nations, the multilateral order and democracy are under attack. Business as usual and lofty rhetoric are not sufficient to counter this threat. Despite many warnings and recommendations, not much has been done to prepare the United Nations for this challenge. The time for complacency and complaints is over. Now courageous leadership is needed.
The Panel of Eminent Persons on United Nations–Civil Society Relations warned almost fifteen years ago that the United Nations must do more to strengthen global governance and tackle democratic deficits. The Panel stressed that more systematic engagement of parliamentarians, national parliaments and local authorities in the United Nations would strengthen global governance, confront democratic deficits in intergovernmental affairs, buttress representational democracy and connect the United Nations better with global opinion. Current arrangements are not adequate.
When the international Campaign for a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly was launched eleven years ago, the campaign’s patron, the late former United Nations Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali said that we need to promote the democratization of globalization, before globalization destroys the foundations of national and international democracy.
It is with great concern that we are now witnessing how this exact development is unfolding. As the former Secretary-General stated, the establishment of a Parliamentary Assembly at the United Nations has become an indispensable step to achieve democratic control of globalization.
We, the undersigning members of parliament, affirm our commitment to the goal of creating a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly in order to strengthen the democratic representation of the world’s citizens in global affairs and the UN’s decision-making.
We invite our fellow parliamentarians from across the world who are democratically elected to join our Parliamentary Group for a UNPA in order to strengthen and coordinate our efforts. Together we can help build the political momentum and pressure that is needed to achieve our goal.
We believe that the upcoming 75th anniversary of the United Nations in 2020 must be used as an opportunity to take stock and initiate far-reaching reforms, including the establishment of a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly.
We call on the United Nations Secretary-General, the President of the United Nations General Assembly, the heads of states and governments and their foreign ministers as well as the representatives of United Nations member states in New York to initiate and support necessary steps in preparation of a meaningful UN Reform Summit in 2020 and towards the creation of a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly.