A global parliamentary body elected by and accountable to the world's citizens would increase understanding and solidarity across national borders in an unprecedented way and would contribute to the emergence of a real democratic world community. As a first step, a UN Parliamentary Assembly should be established.

Kansei Nakano, Former Vice-Speaker of the Japanese House of Representatives, 2013

Building on its strong democratic tradition and its long-standing involvement at the United Nations, Senegal needs to spearhead the initiative for the creation of a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly. The UN needs a body with universally elected representatives to become more democratic, more transparent and more legitimate.

Aimé Assine, Vice-President of the National Assembly of Senegal, 2013

The absence of a UN Parliament has left a wide gap in the architecture of global democratic governance and must be bridged as soon as possible. Representatives of governments alone do not sufficiently represent the people.

Alban Bagbin, Member of Parliament and Cabinet Minister in the Office of the President of Ghana in charge of Priority Projects, 2013

We must insist on behalf of our citizens that international organizations be open to public scrutiny instead of mysterious, secret diplomacy. I support the establishment of a UN Parliamentary Assembly within the UN system to allow for greater public participation in the activities of the UN.

Elmar Brok, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Commission of the European Parliament, 2013

A UN Parliamentary Assembly could be designed in more innovative ways than just as a copy of existing parliaments at the global scale. I conceive of it as a Cosmopolitan Congress that deals with all matters that concern humanity. In addition to elected representatives as core members it could also involve other international parliamentary networks as well as cities and local authorities, civil society, and representatives of indigenous peoples and nations.

Andreas Bummel, Co-founder and coordinator of the Campaign for a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly, 2013

Because parliament is the democratic institution par excellence and the cradle of true democracies, a democratic global order worth this name has to be based on a global parliament that represents humanity as a whole.

Rafael Domingo Oslé, Visiting Professor of Law at Emory University, Atlanta, and former Dean of the University of Navarra School of Law in Spain, 2013

Our global society needs a reformed United Nations: a democratically structured, global decision-making organization, that better mirrors our world of today. For this reason, I support the establishment of a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly.

Lars Engqvist, Former Minister of Health and Social Affairs and former Deputy Prime Minister of Sweden, 2013

The United Nations could become significantly more authentic and credible in promoting parliamentary democracy around the world if it were under parliamentary control itself, exercised by a UN Parliamentary Assembly.

Mátyás Eörsi, Secretary-General of the Parliamentary Forum for Democracy, 2013

Our world is facing ecological disasters and challenges that are systemic and global. The response has to be systematic and global as well. That's why genuinely global institutions such as a UN Parliamentary Assembly are required.

Sándor Fülöp, Former Parliamentary Commissioner for Future Generations, Hungary, 2013

We in India should support the creation of a global parliamentary assembly at the United Nations. Of course a lot of details need to be investigated. Still the government of India could express at the UN General Assembly that, in principle, it regards the proposal with favor.

Shashi Tharoor, Member of Parliament from India, former UN Under-Secretary General for Public Information, 2012