The adage, ‘Democracy, a rule of the people, for the people and by the people’, is increasingly losing its character amidst the rising fascism and authoritarianism globally. Instead of delivering people’s mandate, democratic institutions are being instrumentalised to serve the interests of the elite and powerful.
Parliamentarians as elected representatives hold the formal and moral obligation of promoting human rights, fundamental freedoms and justice for all. Their primary role in formulating and shaping the laws and policies is of crucial importance to protect and advance democracy. By using their unique positions, parliamentarians have the responsibility to intervene and demand greater accountability and transparency at national, regional and global levels. Thus, it is imperative to learn and understand about the forums and institutions available for possible engagement with the parliamentarians on issues of human rights, participatory democracy and gender justice. One of these institutions is the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) which is a global organisation of parliamentarians from 178 member countries having its core focus on ‘supporting democracy by strengthening parliaments’.
With the aim to equip human rights and democracy advocates with the knowledge to understand the IPU, the Asia-Pacific Forum on Women, Law and Development (APWLD) has developed the IPU Briefer. It offers valuable information and insights about the important components and political procedures of the IPU. It covers aspects like history of the IPU, details about its structure and governance, strategic plan, and the Forum of Women Parliamentarians. The briefer has been designed to act as a guiding tool to analyse the IPU from a feminist perspective and identify avenues of advocacy. Please find the full briefer here.
