OSCE Parliamentary Assembly
The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly , English Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCEPA) is an institution of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). The main task of the assembly with 323 members from 56 countries, who in turn are seconded members of their national parliaments, is to promote interparliamentary dialogue.
The meeting is presided over by an annual chairman; Giorgi Tsereteli has held this position since 2017 . The assembly is supported by a general secretariat based in Copenhagen.
aims
The objectives of the Parliamentary Assembly, according to its own rules of procedure, are to assess the implementation of the OSCE objectives by the member states, to discuss topics that are dealt with at the meetings of the Council of Ministers and the summit meetings of the heads of state and government of the OSCE; Developing and promoting mechanisms for conflict prevention and resolution; To support the strengthening and consolidation of the democratic institutions in the OSCE member states, as well as to contribute to the development of the institutional structures of the OSCE as well as the relations and cooperation between the existing OSCE institutions.
The Parliamentary Assembly of the OSCE uses a variety of means to pursue these goals. Every year, a final declaration and a series of resolutions and recommendations are adopted at the annual meeting. The Assembly also designs various programs, including a comprehensive election observation program and various seminars, designed to develop and strengthen democracy. In the case of latent and active crises, the Parliamentary Assembly also sends delegations to special missions in such areas by resolution.
history
The Parliamentary Assembly was originally set up at the Paris Summit in 1990 to encourage greater participation by the national parliaments of the member states in the CSCE. By adopting resolutions and issuing formal recommendations to the government of the OSCE and to the parliaments, it is intended to monitor the implementation of the CSCE goals by the member states, including through legislative measures.
In April 1991, at the invitation of the Spanish Parliament, high-ranking parliamentary leaders from all CSCE participating States gathered in Madrid with the particular aim of creating a Parliamentary Assembly of the CSCE, as requested by their respective Heads of State and Government. The result of the meeting was the “Madrid Declaration”, which laid down the basic rules of procedure, working methods, size, mandate and distribution of votes for the assembly.
In July 1992 the first formal session of the Parliamentary Assembly took place in Budapest. The assembly decided, among other things, to accept an invitation from the Danish Parliament to set up an international secretariat in Copenhagen.
At the annual meeting of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly in Helsinki in 1993, the then-incumbent Chairperson, Swedish Foreign Minister Margaretha af Ugglas, urged parliamentarians to actively participate in election observation and surveillance. In response, the Parliamentary Assembly developed a particularly active program of election observation within the OSCE. More than 5,000 parliamentarians of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly have observed around 140 elections since 1993 and used their experience as elected officials to increase the credibility and visibility of the OSCE's election observation work.
In 1994 the CSCE was renamed the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe due to the expanded role of the Organization.
The CSCE-OSCE Summits in Helsinki (1992), Budapest (1994) and Istanbul (1999) reaffirmed the interest of the participating States in the active participation of parliamentarians in the OSCE process and instructed the Chairman-in-Office to maintain close contacts with the Parliamentary Assembly, inform the Permanent Council of their recommendations and inform parliamentarians about the activities of the OSCE.
Structures
Committees
The Parliamentary Assembly has three parliamentary committees, which correspond to the three main sections of the Helsinki CSCE Final Act:
- the General Committee on Political Affairs and Security
- the General Committee on Economy, Science, Technology and the Environment
- and the General Committee on Democracy, Human Rights and Humanitarian Affairs.
The Standing Committee consists of the heads of the national delegations and the members of the Presidium of the Assembly. The Standing Committee and the Bureau prepare the work of the Assembly between sessions and ensure that the Assembly works efficiently. Several other committees and groups deal with specific issues or areas that may merit Parliament's attention.
Presidency of the Parliamentary Assembly
At each annual session, the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly elects a chair, known as the President. The person in office acts as the highest representative of the Assembly, appoints special representatives on important issues, recommends the OSCE Chairman-in-Office to lead OSCE election observation missions, and chairs the sessions of the Parliamentary Assembly. The president is elected for one year and can be re-elected for a further one-year term. In terms of protocol, the chairman has the same status as a national parliamentary speaker.
Eight vice-presidents support the chairman in carrying out his or her duties; they are elected for three years.
General Secretariat
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The Parliamentary Assembly is assisted by a General Secretariat based in Copenhagen, Denmark in the Folketing offices . In 1995, the Standing Committee of Heads of Delegation decided to fix the Secretary General's term of office at five years. Robert Spencer Oliver was General Secretary from 1992 to 2015 . He was unanimously re-elected and then re-elected three times for five years. At the end of 2015 he resigned from his position. Roberto Montella has held the position since 2016 .
The Parliamentary Assembly also has a liaison office in Vienna at the OSCE General Secretariat.
Chair of the Parliamentary Assembly
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| Surname | country | Term of office |
|---|---|---|
| Ilkka Suominen | Finland | 1992-1994 |
| Frank Swaelen | Belgium | 1994-1996 |
| Javier Rupérez | Spain | 1996-1998 |
| Bright Degn | Denmark | 1998-2000 |
| Adrian Severin | Romania | 2000-2002 |
| Bruce George | United Kingdom | 2002-2004 |
| Alcee Hastings | United States | 2004-2006 |
| Göran Lennmarker | Sweden | 2006-2008 |
| João Soares | Portugal | 2008-2010 |
| Petros Efthymiou | Greece | 2010–2012 |
| Riccardo Migliori | Italy | 2012-2013 |
| Wolfgang Großruck | Austria | 2013 |
| Ranko Krivokapic | Montenegro | 2013-2014 |
| Ilkka Kanerva | Finland | 2014-2016 |
| Christine Muttonen | Austria | 2016-2017 |
| Giorgi Tsereteli | Georgia | 2017– |
Web links
- Official website (English)
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d History. OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, accessed December 24, 2019 .
- ↑ Vice-Presidents. OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, accessed December 24, 2019 .
- ^ A b About the International Secretariat. OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, accessed December 23, 2019 .
- ^ R. Spencer Oliver. OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, accessed December 24, 2019 .
- ^ Roberto Montella, Secretary General. OSCE Parliamentary Assembly, accessed December 24, 2019 .