Report

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) held its 32nd General Assembly from September 18 to 24, 2011, in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. The Canadian Parliament, which has observer status to AIPA, sent a joint delegation of the Canada-Japan Inter-Parliamentary Group (CJIG) and the Canada‑China Legislative Association (CCLA). The CCLA was represented by its Co‑Chair, the Honourable Joseph A. Day, Senator, and the CJIG was represented by Hon. Suzanne Fortin-Duplessis, Senator. The Secretary to the delegation was Mr. Roger Préfontaine. SAMDECH AKKA MOHA PONHEA CHAKREI HENG SAMRIN, President of the National Assembly of the Kingdom of Cambodia and AIPA President, presided over the 32nd AIPA General Assembly.

The 32nd  AIPA General Assembly was attended by delegations from member countries: Cambodia led by H.E. Mr. NGUON NHEL, First Vice-President of the National Assembly; Brunei Darussalam led by H.E. PEHIN DATO HAJI ISA BIN PEHIN DATO HAJI IBRAHIM, Speaker of Legislative Council; Republic of Indonesia led by H.E. Dr. MARZUKI ALIE, Speaker of the House of Representatives; Lao People’s Democratic Republic led by H.E. Mrs. PANY YATHOTOU, President of the National Assembly; Malaysia led by H.E. Mr. Tan Sri PANDIKAR AMIN MULIA, Speaker of the House of Representatives; Republic of the Union of Myanmar led by H.E. Mr. KHIN AUNG MYINT, Speaker of the Pyidaungsu Hluttaw; Republic of the Philippines  led by H.E. Mr. FELICIANO BELMONTE, Speaker of the Parliament; Republic of Singapore led by H.E. Mr. ABDULLAH TARMUGI, Speaker of the Parliament.  The Kingdom of Thailand led by H.E. Mr. SOMSAK KIATSURANONT, President of the National Assembly; and the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam led by H.E. Dr. NGUYEN SINH HUNG, President of the National Assembly.

Observer delegations from Australia led by Hon. Mr. MIKE SYMON, Member of Parliament; from Canada led by Hon. Mr. JOSEPH DAY, Senator; from the People’s Republic of China led by Hon. Mr. ZHA PEIXIN, Member of the Standing Committee of the NPC and Vice Chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the NPC; from the European Union Parliament led by Hon. Mr. WERNER LANGEN, Chairman, European Parliament Delegation for Relations with ASEAN, Member of the European Parliament; from India led by Hon. Mr. NINONG ERING, Member of Indian Parliament; from Japan led by Hon. Mr. SAITO YOSHITAKA, Member of the House of Councilors of Japan; and from the Federation of Russia led by Hon. Mr. ISKUZHIN RUDIK, Deputy Chairman of the Commission for Control of the Activities of the Federation Council of the Russian Federation, also participated in the General Assembly.

The Canadian delegation attended the first plenary session which incorporated statements by the leaders of all member countries, followed by those from all observer countries. The statement by Canada was delivered by the Honourable Senator Joseph A. Day, Leader of the Canadian delegation. The speech highlights may be found in Appendix A of this report.

The conference held individual Committee sessions on the following subjects:

1.    Political Matters

2.    Economic Matters

3.    Social Matters

4.    Organizational Matters

Each observer nation’s delegation participated in a dialogue meeting with representatives of the ASEAN member nations. The Canadian delegation met with their counterparts from the AIPA nations on Wednesday, September 21, 2011. The agenda for the dialogue meeting was the following:

1.    Cooperation between ASEAN and Observer Countries

2.    Integrated of Water Resource Management for Sustainable Development in the region

3.    Necessity for ASEAN and the International Community’s Commitment to Disaster Management and Emergency Responses

4.    Toward ASEAN Free of Land Mines and Unexploded Ordnance (UXO)

The dialogue was chaired by the Hon. Mr. Ung Huot with the appointment of Rapporteur, Hon. Mr. Chiep Sivorn. His report summarizing the discussion’s main points was presented at the Second Plenary Session and is attached as Appendix B to this report.

The Canadian delegation participated in the Second Plenary Session, which took place on the final day of the conference. During this session, all of the reports of the committees and observer dialogues were presented to and adopted by the plenary as well as the joint communiqué for the conference which is attached as Appendix C.

The 33rd General Assembly of the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) will be held in Mataram, Lombok, Indonesia from September 16 to September 22, 2012.

Conclusion

The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) is one of the world’s fastest growing economic regions. Collectively, the economies of the ten ASEAN countries are approximately 10% larger than that of Canada and just slightly larger than that of Brazil. Moreover, the ASEAN nations have been identified as one Canada’s priority markets. Canada’s partnership with ASEAN nations dates back to 1977 and is committed to issues such as human rights, health, security, trade and investment. In July 2010, the adoption of a new 5-year Plan of Action did much to further cooperation on issues surrounding human rights, counterterrorism, and disaster management.  Observer participation by Canada at conferences of this nature are a tremendous opportunity for Canadian Parliamentarians to be apprised of significant issues affecting ASEAN nations and to continue in exercising support while demonstrating Canada’s commitment  to the prosperous development of this most significant region.

Respectfully submitted,