Luanda — The Angolan Head of State, João Lourenço, Monday in the Province of Luanda emphasised the importance of parliamentary diplomacy as a mechanism for intervention and advocacy on the main issues of global interest.
João Lourenço said so at the opening session of the 147th General Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), which is taking place in the Angolan capital until Friday (27), in the presence of more than a thousand delegates representing parliaments from all over the world.
According to the Angolan President, the IPU has now become a world authority of reference in the promotion of democratic institutions, global security, the defence of human rights and gender equality, sustainable development, the defence of the environment, as well as young people's empowerment, adding that this trajectory has led the organisation to become a permanent observer member of the United Nations System, as a form of recognition for the mission and contribution it has made to stability, fraternity and solidarity between all the peoples of the world.
For João Lourenço, holding the event in the country is a tribute to the dynamism of Angolan parliamentary diplomacy with international organisations and countries in the global inter-parliamentary network, whose merit is due to the national parliamentarians.
He said that the country is hosting the event as a way of contributing to solving the problems of the world related to peace, social justice and promoting exchange between the peoples and nations.
To him, democracy in Angola has been a process of constant evolution and improvement, developed through the various democratically elected state institutions.
He went on to advocate that national reconciliation and political stability are the greatest achievements of Angolans, which allows it to pass on and share these principles and values with other countries, especially in the Great Lakes and Southern regions of the continent, where there are some situations of instability, violations of constitutional normality and the weakening of society and the economy of the countries under conflict.
"As president pro tempore of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and also Chairman of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), we have intensified our efforts to find definitive joint solutions for the normalisation of some of the conflicts on the African continent through intense diplomatic action," he said.
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With regard to the global context, João Lourenço said that there were also other worrying and unfavourable situations for world security, namely the war in Europe and the proliferation of conflicts elsewhere, the refugee crisis in the Mediterranean, international terrorism and transnational organised crime, climate change, the growing humanitarian, food and energy crises.
Founded in 1889 on the initiative of Englishman William Randal Cremer and Frenchman Frédéric Passy, the IPU is one of the oldest political organisations in the world and currently has more than 46,000 members from 179 national parliaments, promoting peace and democracy.
The event is a centre for dialogue and parliamentary diplomacy between legislators representing all political systems and the main political ideologies at global level, providing a unique platform for observing political opinions and trends around the world.
The IPU is the UN's main parliamentary interlocutor and brings the voice of parliaments to the decision-making processes of the United Nations, regularly presenting its resolutions to the General Assembly, making statements, participating in debates and organizing parliamentary meetings on the main issues of the UN agenda.
