Doha

06 April 2019

Secretary-General's video message for 140th Interparliamentary Union Assembly

António Guterres, Secretary-General

Dear friends,
 
As a former member of the IPU, it is a pleasure to greet the 140th Assembly of the Interparliamentary Union, which comes so soon after our time together at your parliamentary hearing in New York in February.
 
I welcome your focus in Doha on education for peace and the rule of law, and on advancing our joint efforts to counter and prevent terrorism and violent extremism.
 
These are just some of the many challenges on which the United Nations and the Inter-Parliamentary Union enjoy fruitful cooperation.
 
Parliaments play vital roles as defenders of democracy, agents of accountability, and crucial links between the local and the global, bringing the concerns of people into the international arena.
 
Today we need you more than ever to help build a fair globalization, to combat rising intolerance and to advance gender equality and the representation of women in parliament.
 
In the face of climate change, the most important systemic risk facing humankind, we need you to help increase ambition on mitigation, adaptation and finance.  I will convene a Climate Action Summit in September, and I count on your support.
 
And at this time of declining trust in political establishments, parliamentarians and the United Nations have a shared duty to show that multilateralism can deliver progress and solutions.
 
As a former parliamentarian myself, I have felt the weighty responsibility of representing people and trying to advance their aspirations.  Today I am committed to ensuring a strong parliamentary voice in the work of the United Nations.
 
Thank you for your commitment and partnership.  I wish you fruitful discussions.