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Euro - Arab Parliamentary Dialogue: Item 1 of the Agenda
Report of the AIPU General Secretariat
on
the Union's Activities and the Relations
with the PAEAC since the Damascus Meeting of the Euro - Arab Parliamentary Dialogue
(July - 1998)
Four years have now passed since the last meeting of the Euro - Arab Parliamentary Dialogue (EAPD) which was held in Damascus in July 1998.
The Final Communiqué issued by the meeting reflected the common concerns and interests which unite the Arab and the European parliamentarians, members of both the AIPU and the PAEAC.
On the Arab side considerable attention was paid to the meeting and its results. The General Secretariat of the AIPU circulated the meeting's Final Communiqué among all the Union's member groups, the Arab organizations interested in Euro - Arab relations. It also allocated to the meeting a special file in the Union's Quarterly " THE ARAB PARLIAMENT ". The file contained a thorough survey of the meeting's opening ceremony, the speeches made there, the memoranda presented, a briefing of the discussion, the full text of the Final Communiqué and the list of participants.
As for the AIPU the four past years since the Damascus Meeting were very rich in activities and developments. I am pleased to present to you very briefly the outlines of those activities and developments:
I. THE AIPU'S INTERNAL ACTIVITIES:
- Through the four past years the AIPU's Presidency passed from the Egyptian Section to the Algerian Section at the end of the year 2000. In February this year the Presidency passed to the Sudanese Section represented by H.E. Mr. Ahmad Ibrahim Al.Taher, Speaker of the Sudanese National Assembly, who was very keen to attend our present meeting.
- The AIPU held several sessions of its Councils. Some of them were Statutory and others were Extraordinary. It also held two Conferences:
- In December 1998 the AIPU's council held its 33rd Extraordinary Session in Amman to express its solidarity with Iraq against the American - British aggression.
- The ordinary 34th Session of the Council was held in Damascus (June - 1999). The main item on its agenda was strengthening Arab solidarity.
- In February 2000 the Algerian capital witnessed a great Arab parliamentary manifestation on the occasion of the convening of 35th ordinary session of the Union's Council and its IX th Conference. Several issues were discussed such as: the developments of the Palestinian cause, the common Arab Market and Dialogue with different organizations in the world.
- Since July 2000, when Israel began its dodgery and its attempts to slip away from its obligations vis-à-vis the Middle East peace process, the AIPU directed most of its activities to the Palestinian Cause and its repercussions. The Union's Council held its 36th extraordinary session in New York to defend the holy city of Al-Qods against the Israeli projects of Judaization and annexation.
- After the eruption of the Intifadah in September 2000, backing the Intifadah and providing regional and international support to the Palestinian people have become the Union's first concern and the main activity in its movements.
- In support of and solidarity with the Intifadah, the Union held several Council Sessions which were respectively as follows:
* The 37th extraordinary session (Jakarta- October 2000).
* The 38th statutory session (Abu Dhabi- February 2001).
* The 39th extraordinary session (Sanaa- July 2001).
* The 40th statutory session and the Xth Conference (Khartoum- February 2002).
The Union also organized two international Symposiums on AL-Qods: one in Rabat (in November 1998) and the other, which was an Afro-Arab Symposium, in Amman (November 2000).
The resolutions adopted by these meetings and activities supported the legitimate struggles of the Palestinian people and their heroic Intifadah and called upon the international community to put an end to the brutal war launched by Israel against them and to ensure international protection for them.
II - THE AIPU'S REGIONAL AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
- The AIPU took part in the IPU 's Conferences which were respectively held in the following capitals: (Moscow - sept. 1998 - Brussels - April 1999 - Amman - May 2000 - Jakarta - Oct. 2000 - Havana - Apr. 2001 - Ouagadougou - sept.2001 and Marrakech- March 2002). It also took part in the CSCM which was held in Marseilles - April 2000.
In several of these conferences the Arab delegations succeeded in including a supplementary or emergency item in the agenda concerning the situation in the Middle East and the Palestinian cause. The Resolutions adopted contained support of the right of the Palestinian people to self-determination and the establishment of an independent state with Al-Qods as its capital. The resolutions also denounced the Israeli aggression against the Palestinian people, and called for the resumption of the peace process.
- During the past four years, and in coordination with our colleagues in the African Parliamentary Union, the IXth conference of the Afro-Arab Parliamentary Dialogue was held in Tunisia. The Conference adopted a Final Communiqué which called for the strengthening of the Middle East Process, condemned the Israeli government policies which are hostile to peace and to the national rights of the Palestinian people. With our African colleagues we are preparing now for the Xth conference which will be held in Ethiopia in October or November this year.
III - RELATIONS WITH OUR COLLEAGUES IN THE PAEAC:
At the end of Damascus meeting it has been agreed that the following Dialogue meeting would take place in Rome during 1999.
However, owing to the difficult financial circumstances which the PAEAC had passed and to the changes in the administrative staff, including the appointment of a new Secretary General, the Dialogue annual meeting was delayed until now.
But in spite of the suspension of the Dialogue meetings the contacts between the AIPU and the PAEAC did not stop. The exchange of documents and statements on the main event and developments, particularly concerning the Middle East, the peace process and the Euro-Arab cooperation continued between the two sides.
The IPU Conferences provided a suitable opportunity for the exchange of views and coordination between the two organizations. Several meetings were held during the IPU meetings between the Presidents and Secretaries General of both organizations, where the resumption of the Dialogue meetings and the coordination vis-à-vis some IPU's questions were discussed.
The coordination between the two secretariats General was also very good and effective in preparing the current Dialogue meeting in Brussels.
IV - ON FUTURE COOPERATION
I have already mentioned that Arab and European parliamentarians engaged in the Dialogue process believe in the importance of this process and are keen to continue and promote the Dialogue. I am also convinced that you share me the opinion that the current international circumstances and the events and developments which the world is witnessing nowadays are serious motives to continue and develop our Dialogue.
The final communiqué adopted by the Damascus Meeting of 1998 contained two recommendations which have political and organizational dimensions at the same time:
a) To set up a permanent Euro-Arab Parliamentary committee whose task would be to follow up the development of the issue of peace in the Middle East.
b) To set up a committee with the task to honor the pioneers of the Euro-Arab Dialogue from both sides in appreciation of their efforts in giving momentum to the Dialogue.
Issuing from the common desire to continue the Dialogue process and provide the necessary mechanisms for its continuity, we propose the following:
1- We confirm the contents of the two recommendations adopted by Damascus Meetings, i.e the setting up of one committee to follow up the Middle East developments and another committee to honor the pioneer of Dialogue form both sides.
2- To facilitate the work of the above mentioned committees we suggest to merge both committees in one called " Follow-up Committee of the Euro-Arab Parliamentary Dialogue ". This committee shall consist of six members (two parliamentarians from each side, plus the two Secretaries General of the AIPU and PAEAC). The task of the Committee shall be :
a - Work to implement the recommendations of the Dialogue meetings , to follow-up the new developments of the Middle East situation between two Dialogue Meetings and take untied stands vis-à-vis these developments ;
b - Prepare for the Dialogue next Meeting ;
c - Offer suggestions concerning the honoring of Dialogue pioneers.
The committee shall hold one meeting in the interval between each two meetings to discuss and agree on what deems necessary for the continuity of cooperation and coordination between the two sides. It is also possible, if agreed, to change the committee members periodically every year or every two years in order to give room for a wider participation of representatives from both sides.
In conclusion, I would like to express our satisfaction -as Arab Parliamentarians- for the resumption of the Dialogue march which we began together in 1974.
I would also like to assure you, dear friends, that we shall do our best so that this dialogue be developed and promoted.
On this occasion I would like to express our deep thanks and gratitude to the PAEAC Belgian section which facilitated the organization of our meeting. My thanks also go to my dear colleague Mr. Pol Mark, who was appointed in the post of the PAEAC Secretary General. I extend to him my warm congratulations and thank him for the fruitful efforts he exerted in the organization of this meeting.
Thank you
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