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The Canadian delegation was composed of the following members: From the Senate: the Hon. Donald Neil Plett, head of delegation; the Hon. Joseph A. Day and the Hon. Percy Mockler. From the House of Commons: the Hon. Geoff Regan, Daryl Kramp, David McGuinty, Mike Wallace, Earl Dreeshen and Terrence Young. The delegation was assisted by Michel Marcotte, Executive Secretary of the Canada-Japan Inter-Parliamentary Group and the Canada-China Legislative Association. The Hon. Donald Neil Plett led the Canadian parliamentary delegation that participated in the 22nd Annual Meeting of the Asia Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF), held in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, from January 12 to 15, 2014, at the invitation of the President of the Mexican Senate, Senator Raùl Cervantes Andrade. The Forum, held annually, is one of the most significant and diverse gatherings of parliamentarians from the Asia-Pacific Region. One hundred and fifty‑one delegates from 21 APPF Member States and one Observer State (Brunei Darussalam) attended the Annual Meeting in Puerto Vallarta. Representatives of the Parliaments of El Salvador, Honduras and Panama, and of the Universidad De Colima (Mexico), FOPREL and PARLECEN also attended the meeting as guests. The list of participating countries and organizations is attached as Appendix A. During the 22nd Meeting, delegates exchanged views on a number of agenda items which were grouped into four broad categories: 1) Political and Security Matters 1.1 Peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region, strengthening of democracy, respect of national sovereignty and possibility of building a collective system of regional security 1.2 Combating terrorism, drug trafficking and organized crime 1.3 Social and political movements in the Middle East and their possible impact on world and regional security 1.4 Achievements of the ASEAN Regional Forum 1.5 Parliamentary initiatives for transparency and combating corruption 2) Economic and Trade Matters 2.1 Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation 2013; report by Indonesia 2.2 Green economy and sustainable tourism 2.3 Food and energy security (renewable energy, energy efficiency and energy infrastructures) 2.4 Knowledge economy and innovative growth 2.5 The parliamentary dimension of economic and trade cooperation, and the processes of integration in the Asia-Pacific region taking into account WTO rules and procedures 3) Regional cooperation in the Asia-Pacific 3.1 Cooperation to face climate change (outcomes of COP 19) and the prevention and handling of natural disasters 3.2 Cooperation for poverty eradication, strengthening of social cohesion, migration flows, further participation of youth in development projects and empowerment of women 3.3 From ODAS to the new development agenda post 2015 3.4 Cooperation in education (including exchanges of students, professors and research projects), culture, science and technology 3.5 Best practices in parliamentary diplomacy; cooperation in and among parliamentary assemblies 4) Further activities of the APPF 4.1 Date and venue of the 23rd APPF annual meeting 4.2 Miscellaneous The program of the conference is attached in Appendix B. The Canadian delegates made various interventions on the three main topics throughout the forum and were able to individually express their views on at least one topic. Furthermore, the Canadian delegation actively participated in the debate in the Drafting Committee and its subcommittees and our expertise was often sought to resolve roadblocks in these forums. With regard to political and security matters, Canadian parliamentarians were most interested in the fight against terrorism, drug trafficking and organized crime, and proposed strengthening cooperation among Asia-Pacific countries to address these problems. Economic and trade matters certainly captured the interest of the Canadian delegates, who intervened on most sub-topics to promote TPP and bilateral agreements aimed at lowering trade and promoting Canadian practices in the field of food security. Four Canadian delegates also intervened on most sub-topics related to regional cooperation, to promoting cooperation in all fields, but with special respect to climate change, poverty eradication, migration flows, cooperation in education and parliamentary diplomacy. The APPF allowed for lively discussions between parliamentarians, which led to the adoption of a joint communiqué and 22 resolutions on a wide range of subjects. The text of the joint communiqué can be found at http://www.appf.org.pe/meeting/twenty-second/Joint_Communique_22APPF.pdf. The list of adopted resolutions is available at http://www.appf.org.pe/meeting/twenty-second/resolutions.htm. While attending the conference, the Canadian delegation was also able to participate in bilateral meetings with the Mexican and Japanese delegations. Five Mexican parliamentarians, namely Senator Teófilo Torres Corzo, head of the delegation; Senator Margarita Flores Sánchez; Deputy María Carmen López Segura; Senator José Ascensión Orihuela Bárcenas; and Senator Alejandro Encinas Rodríguez, all exchanged views and ideas with the Canadian delegation on the importance of parliamentary diplomacy and of more regular meetings between Canadian and Mexican parliamentarians, NAFTA’s 20th anniversary, the visas issue between Canada and Mexico, as well as the environment and anti-dumping clause (mostly to prevent strategic devaluation from countries to boost their trade). Nine Japanese parliamentarians, namely Hirofumi Nakasone, head of the delegation; Takuji Yanagimoto; Masahiro Imamura; Akira Sato; Yoshitaka Ito; Yuichi Goto; Hiroshi Nakada; Koji Hata and Mikishi Daimon, later met with the Canadian delegation to discuss the latest highlights of Canada-Japan relations, the next bilateral meeting of the two parliamentary associations in Canada (probably in Saskatoon and Ottawa), water issues and security issues with China (Sendaku Islands, East China Sea and South China Sea). Mr. Nakasone, who knows well Canada since he worked for paper companies in Saskatchewan and New Brunswick and for Quebec Maple Syrup exporters in Japan, asked the Canadian delegation if Canada could host the APPF annual meeting in the near future. Upon return to Canada, the delegation will inquire as to the feasibility of hosting the APPF in January 2016 and will report back to Mr. Nakasone. Conclusion The Canadian Parliament attaches great importance to the work of the Asia‑Pacific Parliamentary Forum (APPF) and is proud to be one of its founding members. The APPF has allowed Canadian parliamentarians to engage in dialogue with their international counterparts throughout the Asia‑Pacific region. Given the global economic situation, the need to guard against protectionist tendencies and this region’s growing political and economic influence, it is of increasing strategic importance for Canada to maintain an active presence in the APPF. The Canadian Section of APPF looks forward to participating in the 23rd Annual Meeting in Quito, Ecuador, in January 2015.
Respectfully submitted,
Appendix A LIST OF PARTICIPATING COUNTRIES & ORGANIZATIONS Australia Kingdom of Cambodia Canada Republic of Chile People’s Republic of China Republic of Costa Rica Republic of Ecuador Republic of Indonesia Japan Lao PDR Malaysia Mexico Federated States of Micronesia New Zealand Peru Republic of Philippines Republic of Korea Russian Federation Republic of Singapore Kingdom of Thailand Socialist Republic of Vietnam Brunei Darussalam El Salvador Honduras Panama Universidad De Colima, Mexico FOPREL PARLACEN (Central American Parliament)
Appendix B PROGRAM Saturday & Sunday, January 11–12, 2014 Arrival of the delegations to the International Airport Licenciado Gustavo Díaz Ordaz International Airport in Puerto Vallarta Registration of the delegates and participants
Sunday, January 12, 2014 (Dress code: free, it is recommended not to wear high heels) 15:30 Briefing for secretaries of delegations 18:00 Executive Committee meeting 20:00 Welcome reception hosted by the delegation from the Mexican Senate in honour of the participants and guests of the 22nd Annual Meeting of the APPF
Monday, January 13, 2014 (Dress code: formal attire, national dress) 10:00 Opening ceremony Welcome address by Sen. Raúl Cervantes Andrade, President of the Mexican Senate and President of the APPF Welcome message by Yasuhiro Nakasone, Honorary President of the APPF or his representative Statement by Iliyas Umakhanov, Leader of the Russian delegation Opening message by H.E. Enrique Peña Nieto, President of the Mexico 11:00 Coffee break 11:00 Photo session for leaders of the delegations 12:00–13:30 First plenary session Section I: Political and Security Matters 13:30–15:00 Lunch 15:00 Drafting Committee meeting 15:00–16:30 First plenary session (continued) Section I: Political and Security Matters 16:30–16:45 Coffee break 16:45–19:00 First plenary session (continued) Section I: Political and Security Matters 20:00 Dinner hosted by Governor of Jalisco State in honour of the participants and guests of the 22nd Annual Meeting of the APPF
Tuesday, January 14, 2014 (Dress code: formal attire, national dress) 09:00–10:30 Second plenary session Section II: Economics and Trade Matters 09:00 Drafting Committee meeting 10:30–10:45 Coffee break 10:45–13:00 Second plenary session (continued) Section II: Economics and Trade Matters 13:00–14:30 Lunch 14:30 Drafting Committee meeting 14:30–15:45 Second plenary session (continued) Section II: Economics and Trade Matters 15:45–16:00 Coffee break 16:00 Drafting Committee meeting 16:45–17:30 Third plenary session Section III: Regional Cooperation in Asia Pacific 17:30–17:45 Coffee break 17:45–19:00 Presentation of issues of cooperation in Asia‑Pacific by invited institutions 20:00 Dinner hosted by Ministry of Tourism, in honour of the participants and guests of the 22nd Annual Meeting of the APPF
Wednesday, January 15, 2014 (Dress code: formal attire, national dress) 08:30 Meeting in the lobbies of the 3 hotel venues (delegates and participants) 09:00–11:00 Third plenary session (continued) Section III: Regional Cooperation in Asia Pacific 09:00–11:00 Drafting Committee meeting 11:00–11:15 Coffee break 11:15–13:45 Third plenary session (continued) Section III: Regional Cooperation in Asia Pacific 11:15–13:45 Drafting Committee meeting (to complete drafting of final documents) 13:45–15:15 Lunch 15:15–16:45 Fourth plenary session Section IV: Further work of the APPF 16:45–17:00 Coffee break 17:00–18:00 Final plenary session - Adoption of the resolutions and joint statement - Signature of the joint statement by leaders of delegations Closing ceremony 18:00 Press conference 19:30 Meeting in the lobbies of the 3 hotel venues (delegates and participants) 20:00 Farewell dinner hosted by the Mexican Chamber of Deputies in honour of the participants and guests of the 22nd Annual Meeting of the APPF
Thursday, January 16, 2014 Departure of the delegations
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