Chairman Senate Mian Raza Rabbani, while sharing his views and ideas about the Asian Parliament, said that it would be the voice of the people of Asia that it should be taken as ultimate goal of the Asian Parliamentary Assembly.
According to a message received here, the chairman Senate was speaking on the occasion of 9th Plenary Session of Asian Parliamentary Assembly (APA) being held in Siem Reap,Cambodia. Pakistan chaired the APA Special Committee on the creation of an Asian Parliament which was attended by all the member parliament countries.
The Secretary Senate on the occasion presented a plan of action drafted by the Senate of Pakistan for deliberation, as a road map.
Members of Parliament of 14 countries spoke on the concept and proposals given by Pakistan. Most were appreciative of the Pakistani proposals and efforts. Pakistan will host three meetings in Islamabad during 2017 to firm up these ideas and proposals. Pakistan proposed 5 subgroups of the APA member countries. These sub-groups are being formed with the sole purpose of facilitating the discussion on creation of the Asian Parliament. The sub-groups shall meet on the sidelines of the meetings of the four APA Standing Committees, two Executive Council Meetings and also additional meetings, as convenient to them, during the year. The sub-groups shall provide consensus-based input of their region to the Standing Committee on Political Affairs (SCCAP)
Speaking on the occasion Mian Raza Rabbani said that the forum of an Asian Parliament would provide better opportunities for resolution of issues and overcoming challenges hampering the progress of the Asian region. He underscored the need for enhanced parliamentary linkages to help adopt common agendas for the betterment of the people of Asia.
The Senate of Pakistan appreciated the work being done by all APA Members and especially acknowledged the President APA for electing Pakistan as the Vice President of APA SCCAP for the year 2017. Being Chair of the Political Affairs Committee, the Senate of Pakistan will host independent meetings of the SCCAP before it submits concrete proposals to the Political Affairs Committee.
The Senate of Pakistan will host the first meeting of SCCAP during February 2017. The SCCAP meeting will deliberate on the modalities and requisites of an Asian Parliament such as composition, bureau, membership, defining its power, and the mode of election. The SCCAP shall also discuss various existing models of regional parliamentary platforms and shall propose the desired model of the Asian Parliament. As part of generating consensus amongst APA states, poverty alleviation, human rights, environment issues, and other issues of common interest will be on the agenda of SCCAP during 2017.
