Asian lawmakers group proposes Asian parliament

The Association of Asian Parliaments for Peace (AAPP) moved yesterday to remake itself into a multi-nation parliamentary assembly as a precursor to the formation of an Asian body patterned after the European Union.

Speaker Jose de Venecia Jr., elected president of the AAPP in its fourth general assembly, said the organization will also work for the formation of an Asian Anti-Poverty Fund, push for an inter-faith dialogue among nations, and strengthen cooperation against terrorism.

"I believe fervently that such an assembly of Asia’s parliamentarians — from Tokyo to Istanbul — can have the same long-term catalytic effect as the formation of the 45-nation Parliamentary of the Council of Europe in 1949 had on the European Union," De Venecia said in his speech at the inaugural ceremonies of the five-day conference.

He said the AAPP should begin to look into the feasibility of eventually remaking itself into an Asian Parliamentary Assembly, based on existing models in the continents of Europe, Latin America and Africa.

The proposed "supra-national legislature" could be one of the "many practical achievements we can undertake together that will build up our own sense of common purpose," De Venecia said.

He added that the Asian Anti-Poverty Fund, proposed in Beijing during the group’s executive council meeting early this year, will be made of contributions from member countries and international donors.

Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) finance ministers have already discussed the proposal and will bring the matter up before the World Bank-International Monetary Fund meeting in Dubai next month, De Venecia said.

De Venecia added that the proposed fund would support the activities of micro-banks, non-government organizations, and people’s groups that lend working capital to the entrepreneurs among the poor. — Paolo Romero