Syed Naveed Qamar

The United Nations needs to become more democratic and representative. With this goal in mind, member states have been debating a reform of the Security Council for more than three decades and still there's no agreeable solution in sight. For those who want to see progress, it's time to consider a complementary step: the establishment of a UN Parliamentary Assembly. This assembly would represent the world's citizens, not the governments, and may achieve more in making the UN more inclusive than any expansion of the Security Council ever could.

World government researchers discuss "the practical politics of global integration"

World Government Research Network hosts workshop in Brisbane / World Parliament one of the topics

Last week, around twenty researchers and practitioners met for two days at Griffith University in Brisbane, Australia, to discuss "the practical politics of global integration" at a first event hosted by the World Government Research Network that was established last year.

According to the convenors of the network, Luis Cabrera of Griffith University and James Thompson of Hiram College in Ohio, "over the past two decades, some of the world's leading International Relations theorists, normative political theorists, international law scholars, economists and sociologists have turned their attention to the concept of world government. They have assessed the prospects for full global integration, and in many cases identified reasons to support it."

A main purpose of the workshop in Brisbane was to address "the challenges which stand in the way of the kinds of suprastate integration these researchers analyze or advocate, and the means by which global security, democracy, and justice could plausibly be advanced from present global circumstances." 

One of the seven sessions of the event was devoted to "the project of a world parliament and its role in global political integration." Speaking as a practitioner, the co-founder of the Campaign for a UN Parliamentary Assembly, Andreas Bummel, said that "the creation of a global parliamentary body is the single most important element in any viable strategy to steer the process of global state formation. There are two reasons for this," he added. "First, a global parliament constitutes an indispensable feature of the institutional architecture of full global political integration. Second, a parliamentary body may also be the key force and cultural innovation that is required to advance successive political integration at the global scale."

Other presentations revolved mainly around the desirability, extent, and realization of a world state from an academic perspective. Among other things there was a vivid discussion on the definition and main characteristics of a state in general and a world state in particular. It was also debated whether the European integration process and the development of the European Parliament actually constitute good examples.

Presenters included, among others, Alexander Wendt of The Ohio State University, Daniel Deudney of Johns Hopkins University, Chris Hamer of the University of New South Wales, Joseph Preston Barattta of Worcester State University, Joel Trachtman of Tufts University, Shirley Scott of the University of New South Wales, Mark Beeson of The University of Western Australia, and Richard Shapcott of the University of Queensland.

According to Luis Cabrera, "it was a great first event for the network. It brought together some of the people who have been central to the resurgence in world government theorizing over the past two decades, as well as some key practitioners, world federalists and skeptics. We had a very productive dialogue, and we look forward to posting the presentations on the network's website, as well as getting some of the more theoretically oriented pieces out as a symposium in a peer-reviewed journal. Overall, I think this event was a powerful momentum builder for the network."

Website of the World Government Research Network

Democratization of the United Nations discussed at an event in Lyon

On the occasion of the UN's 70th anniversary last year, a public event was held at the Political Sciences Institute in Lyon, France, on 11 May 2016 to discuss perspectives for making the world organization more effective and more democratic. Around 70 participants attended the event that was organized by the Young Europeans and the Union of European Federalists Rhône-Alpes.  

As a first speaker, Jean-Francis Billion, president of the UEF Rhône-Alpes and a council member of the World Federalist Movement presented the history of the federalist movements in the world and in France. He explained that the European federalists fought for the election of the European Parliament by direct universal suffrage, a European currency and a real European constitution. The world federalists on the other hand promote a UN Parliamentary Assembly, UN reforms and regional integration across the world as a key towards effective and credible global governance.

Subsequently, Sylvain Schirmann, university professor and director of the Political Sciences Institute of Strasbourg, spoke about the history of the League of Nations as important precursor of the UN. The League of Nations was weak because its membership was not universal. In particular, the United States did not join and the Soviet Union did so only very late. Other countries in Latin-America as well as Japan were reluctant, too.

Finally, Pierre-Yves Maurice, vice-president of the UEF Rhône-Alpes and a former UN employee, elaborated on the strengths and weaknesses of the UN. Among the major problems that he mentioned was the veto right of the five permanent members of the Security Council, ineffective coordination between the myriads of UN institutions, and the lack of democratic representation of the world's citizens. According to Mr. Maurice, "the most important perspective is the establishment of a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly taking in account the positive experience gained from the Inter-Parliamentary Union."

In the discussion, Mr. Billion asked: "Who is utopian? The person who thinks that a divided planet will regulate itself or someone who envisions global democracy?"

Valter Mutt

We need to strengthen the peace dialogue in the world, the conversation between individuals on the one hand and between peoples on the other. A UN parliament is an indispensable platform to make such a dialogue possible beyond national mindsets. Therefore I am happy that the Swedish Green Party supports the establishment a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly.

Green party of Sweden supports a UN Parliamentary Assembly

National congress adopts resolution, calls on government to take action

At its national congress in the city of Karlstad from May 13-15, the Swedish Green Party Miljöpartiet de gröna adopted a motion calling "for a democratic United Nations." The motion was accepted by an overwhelming majority of the congress delegates. It expresses the party's support of the international campaign for a UN Parliamentary Assembly and  for the proposal to "establish and gradually develop a democratic UN Parliament."

According to the document, a first step towards a future UN Parliament could be to establish a UN Parliamentary Assembly that only has advisory powers at the beginning. Within the limitations of the UN Charter, this could be done through a decision of the UN General Assembly. An approval by the UN Security Council would not be required. Furthermore, the text of the motion calls on the Swedish government to start a coalition of progressive UN member states in order to promote the idea within the UN system.

In the national elections of 2014, the Green party received 6.89% of the votes, resulting in 25 of the 349 seats in the Riksdagen. The Swedish government is formed by a coalition between the Social Democratic Party and the Greens.

The foreign policy spokesperson of the Green Party, Valter Mutt, was present at the congress. In a statement for the UNPA Campaign he underlined the potential role of a UN Parliament as a peacemaker:

We need to strengthen the peace dialogue in the world, the conversation between individuals on the one hand and between peoples on the other. A UN parliament is an indispensable platform to make such a dialogue possible beyond national mindsets. Therefore I am happy that the Swedish Green Party supports the establishment a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly.

The UNPA Campaign's international appeal has been signed also by the two leaders of the Swedish Green Party, Gustav Fridolin and Isabella Lövin. Since 2014, Lövin has been serving as Minister for International Development Cooperation in the Swedish government. In a statement from July 2013, when Lövin was a Member of the European Parliament and putting a special focus on a more sustainable fishing policy, she said:

We must not be silent when the Oceans are dying because short-sighted national interests make effective global rules impossible. Through a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly a platform could be established that finally makes the voice of humanity heard in support of the global interest and sustainable life on Earth.

Growing Green support around the world

Through its supportive motion, the Swedish Greens join a growing global green movement for the establishment of a United Nations Parliament. The Global Greens, the umbrella organization for Green Parties around the world, have continuously expressed support for the proposal, for example at their latest congress in Dhakar 2012. In addition, the German Green Party Bündnis 90/Die Grünen is supporting the UNPA proposal. Only a few weeks ago, this was reaffirmed by a statement of its chairman Cem Özdemir.

Ibrahim Gambari

Global governance is in crisis. The UN is in urgent need of institutional reform. A UN Parliamentary Assembly should be established in order to create a democratic connection between the world organization and the world's citizens. The international efforts towards this aim deserve broad support.

Pan-African Parliament calls on African Union to support the creation of a UN Parliamentary Assembly

Plenary of the continental parliament adopts resolution, wants African Union to take action

Yesterday, the Pan-African Parliament called on the African Union and Africa's governments to support the creation of a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly, in short UNPA.

In a resolution adopted by the plenary by consensus, the parliamentary body of the African Union states that "a UNPA is necessary to strengthen democratic participation and representation of the world’s citizens in the UN" and that the new assembly would "contribute to strengthening democratic oversight over UN operations, particularly in Africa."

Noting its "concern that the creation of a UNPA is currently not part of the official UN reform agenda," the document calls on "the African Union and its Member States to support the creation of a UNPA and to take necessary steps to advance this goal at the UN by triggering and initializing a preparatory intergovernmental process for the purpose of establishing a UNPA."

The president of the Pan-African Parliament, Nkodo Dang from Cameroon, stated last week that "more than 70 years after the establishment of the United Nations, global interdependence has made us all world citizens. It is long overdue that 'We, the Peoples,' as the UN Charter begins, have more say in global affairs. For this purpose, a UNPA needs to be established."

Yesterday's resolution was introduced by Ivone Soares from Mozambique. "The resolution shows the aspiration of the Pan-African Parliament and the African citizens which it represents that the global order needs to become more democratic. It is time for governments to pay attention to this issue. They need to enter into serious deliberations on the establishment of a parliamentary body at the UN and African governments could take the lead," she commented.

The global coordinator of the international campaign for a UNPA, Andreas Bummel, said that the resolution was an important step forward. "We hope that African governments will play a leading role and the Pan-African Parliament's support is crucial to achieve this. The next step that we envisage in the international efforts is the creation of an informal group of open-minded governments at the UN in New York that looks into the proposal of a UNPA and how to proceed best," he said.

In an opinion piece published by the South African newspaper Mail & Guardian last week, the South African parliamentarians Stevens Mokgalapa and Heinrich Volmink argued that "Africans, perhaps more than anyone, know how urgently we need more capable and more democratic tools of global governance" and that the creation of a UNPA "would represent a watershed moment in the democratic reform of the UN."

According to a recent BBC World Service poll in 18 countries, "more than half of those asked (56%) in emerging economies saw themselves first and foremost as global citizens rather than national citizens."

In 2007, the Pan-African Parliament adopted a first resolution in support of a UNPA.

Read more

PAP Resolution of May 2016
PAP Resolution of October 2007

South African MPs: A more democratic UN isn't just about Security Council reform

In an opinion piece published here in the South African newspaper Mail & Guardian, two South African members of parliament with the Democratic Alliance - Stevens Mokgalapa and Heinrich Volmink - argue that making the UN more democratic cannot stop at expanding the Security Council, a subject that is high on the agenda of many governments.

Instead, they write that "a watershed moment in the democratic reform of the UN" would be the "establishment of a global parliamentary assembly."

In their opinion, South Africa could play a "pivotal role" in the project. As they point out, it wouldn't be the first time that South Africa supports the establishment of an international parliamentary body. When the African Union was created in 2001, it was South Africa that embraced the idea that a Pan-African Parliament should be part of the new continental organization.

The most prominent supporter of a world parliament from South Africa was Nelson Mandela.

Read the full article here

Roger Nkodo Dang

More than 70 years after the establishment of the United Nations, global inter­dependence has made us all world citizens. It is long overdue that “We, the Peoples”, as the UN Charter begins, have more say in global affairs. For this purpose, a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly needs to be established. I am happy to confirm my personal support of the international campaign that works towards this goal.

President of the Pan-African Parliament: African governments should back a UN Parliamentary Assembly

Meeting on the occasion of the parliament’s session in Midrand, South Africa

The president of the Pan-African Parliament, Nkodo Dang from Cameroon, voiced support for the establishment of a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly, in short UNPA, on the occasion of a meeting in Midrand, South Africa, during the current ordinary session of the continental parliamentary body.

At the meeting, PAP parliamentarian Ivone Soares from Mocambique presented Mr. Dang with the international appeal for a UNPA which is supported by numerous politicians, former UN officials, distinguished scholars, cultural innovators, and representatives of civil society organizations from all over the world.

In the conversation, it was recalled that in 2007, the Pan-African Parliament (PAP) adopted a resolution that called for the creation of a UNPA. "In this resolution, PAP recommended the establishment of a consultative UNPA within the UN system according to Article 22 of the Charter which enables the UN General Assembly to establish subsidiary bodies. It is our hope that African governments eventually will back this proposal," Mr. Dang said in a subsequent letter addressed to the UNPA campaign.

"More than 70 years after the establishment of the United Nations, global interdependence has made us all world citizens. It is long overdue that 'We, the Peoples,' as the UN Charter begins, have more say in global affairs. For this purpose, a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly (UNPA) needs to be established. I am happy to confirm my personal support of the international campaign that works towards this goal," PAP’s president wrote.

The Pan African Parliament was established as an organ the African Union to ensure the participation of African citizens in the development and economic integration of the continent. It was inaugurated in 2004. The agreed aim is to evolve it into a parliamentary institution with full legislative powers whose members are elected across the continent by universal adult suffrage.

"PAP was established in order to bring Africa’s 1.1 billion citizens closer to their continental organization, the African Union. Without this element, stronger regional integration and cooperation is no longer possible. In the same way, the United Nations must evolve and open its doors towards parliamentary participation," Mr. Dang stated.