Uganda: Consultations on UN Parliamentary Assembly

18. februari 2009

The establishment of a parliamentary body at the United Nations was subject of consultations in Kampala this week, held on the occasion of a visit of the head of the Secretariat of the Campaign for the Establishment of a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly (CEUNPA), Andreas Bummel, to the Parliament of Uganda and local activists. At an official courtesy call on Monday, broadcasted on national television, the Speaker of Parliament, Hon. Edward Ssekandi, reiterated his support of the objective to create a UN Parliamentary Assembly. Two years ago Hon. Ssekandi was one of the first Speakers of a national parliament in the world to endorse CEUNPA’s appeal.

Hosted by Hon. Johnson Bartile Toskin, MP in Uganda and member of the Pan-African Parliament, meetings with MPs were held. At courtesy calls on the leader of the opposition, Hon. Prof. Morris Ogenga-Latigo, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Uganda, Hon. Benjamin J. Odoki, both welcomed the initiative for a UN Parliamentary Assembly and expressed their support. The visit was concluded on Wednesday with a briefing of the parliament’s Commission on Foreign Affairs.

The local delegation was headed by Prince Joseph Simbwa, President of the African Federalist Association based in Kampala. In the coming days, further consultations of parliamentarians, local activists and the CEUNPA Secretariat are scheduled in Kigali and Nairobi.

Tags: Uganda