National Assembly Chairman attends opening of Inter-Parliamentary Union Assembly

On the evening of April 6 (local time - early morning of April 7, Hanoi time), the 140th Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU - 140) Assembly solemnly opened in Doha, Qatar, chaired by IPU President Gabriela Cuevas Barron and Chairman of the Shura Council (Parliament) of Qatar Ahmad Bin Abdullah Al Mahmoud. His Majesty the King of Qatar - Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani attended and delivered a welcoming speech.

National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan; Parliamentary leaders, heads of delegations of 160 member parliaments, more than 1,600 parliamentarians and representatives of international organizations attended the opening ceremony. The theme of the General Assembly is “Parliaments as platforms to enhance education for peace, security and the rule of law”.

In his welcoming speech at the 140th IPU General Assembly, His Majesty the King of Qatar Sheikh Tamim Bin Hamad Al Thani highly appreciated the specific contents discussed in the IPU agenda this time; emphasizing that the contents are all aimed at the progress of humanity.

Referring to the topic of education, the Emir of Qatar stated that education has become one of the basic human rights and social rights of the people and has been included in the fourth goal of the sustainable development goals. Investing in education aims to achieve prosperity for all people, so education must become the top goal of the countries.

Citing the fact that in some parts of the world young people are still being denied access to education, the Emir of Qatar stressed that promoting education also promotes universal human values ​​such as tolerance and not turning a blind eye to communities in need.

Speaking on the topic of the rule of law, the Emir of Qatar emphasized the idea of ​​building a rule of law state as paramount. Because without the rule of law state, countries will face chaos from opposing ideologies, leading to social instability.

“Building a rule of law state is one of the top goals. Besides building a rule of law state, countries must ensure justice and fairness in society as a fundamental principle and basic content of a rule of law state,” the Emir of Qatar stated.

In the spirit of His Majesty the Emir of the State of Qatar, a rule of law state will make a positive contribution to supporting disadvantaged communities, vulnerable groups and contributing to preventing and resolving outstanding problems in society as well as in the region.

Within the framework of international cooperation, building a rule of law state will create a foundation to further promote the priorities of each country, especially priorities in building a rule of law system.

For members of the UN Security Council, the goal of building a rule of law state will contribute to protecting the basic principles of the UN Charter such as protecting human rights, fighting violence and also contributing to reducing the situation of big countries influencing small countries. If each country has a strong rule of law, it will help ensure the principles of international law.

The Emir of the State of Qatar emphasized that in the current context, there is no better solution than to further promote strong dialogue mechanisms within the multilateral framework and international cooperation to find solutions to combat conflicts, ensure justice and raise the will to fight against injustice, violence and conflicts occurring in the region and the world.

To do this, according to the Emir of Qatar, countries must commit more closely to adhering to universal values ​​recognized by humanity, ensuring that no institution has the right or allows itself to impose on other institutions; ensuring respect for human dignity, respect for peoples. No people should be isolated from common achievements.

This is also the guideline for promoting trade exchanges and international cooperation to combat the negative impacts of climate change, terrorism and environmental pollution.

IPU President Gabriela Cuevas Barron stressed that this General Assembly marks the 130th anniversary of the IPU and continues to develop the efforts and achievements that the IPU has made over the past time. This is also an opportunity for the IPU to act with greater responsibility towards sustainable growth.

Believing that the world is at a very important time because conflicts and terrorist attacks are on the rise, threatening the security of each country, the IPU President affirmed that the General Assembly has done a lot, but it is not enough, and must make more efforts.

“The challenges we face require greater efforts from member parliaments around the world to work together more closely. Every second, we must mobilize the initiatives and contributions of all IPU member parliamentarians around the world. All our member parliaments need to harmonize their goals, speak with one voice and make a common effort to find solutions. Not only in allocating budgets for activities to achieve sustainable development goals, but also ensuring that priorities are given to overarching goals for our society and our planet,” the IPU President stated.

On the occasion of the 130th anniversary of the IPU, the IPU President called on countries to take advantage of the current moment to address and overcome challenges, turn solutions into reality to support and respond to people's rights, and protect people. Parliamentarians are the people's representatives, representing the voice and interests of the people, so in the Agenda, we must strive to leave no one behind.