European Parliament: Cross-party group of MEPs calls for UNPA

On the occasion of the opening of the 62nd session of the United Nations General Assembly this week, a group of four Members of the European Parliament from the four main political groups called for greater accountability and transparency at the UN – to be achieved through a UN Parliamentary Assembly (UNPA). At a press conference in Strasbourg, MEPs Graham Watson, leader of the liberal group ALDE, Pia-Noora Kauppi, from the conservative group EPP, Jo Leinen, from the Socialist group and Gérard Onestà, EP Vice-President from the Green group, presented a brochure on the topic co-authored by them. “A UN Parliamentary Assembly would be a decisive step towards democratizing citizen representation at the global level”, the MEPs agreed. “The strong, continued support by the European Parliament and individual MEPs is a significant driver for our efforts all over the world”, the representative of the UNPA-Campaign Secretariat, Andreas Bummel, commented. In 1994 and 2005 the European Parliament had passed resolutions in favor of a UNPA.