5 days ago
Malaysia Says AIPA Will Drive ASEAN's Peace And Development Agenda
AIPA acknowledges that women are playing an active role in multi-sectors in ASEAN. (Photo Credit National Assembly of Cambodia)
Dewan Rakyat Deputy Speaker Datuk Dr Ramli Mohd Nor says AIPA's role in ASEAN is indispensable. (Photo Credit National Assembly of Cambodia)
By Vijian Paramasivam
PHNOM PENH, July 16 (Bernama) -- Malaysia said that the ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) Caucus will be pivotal in driving the region's peace and stability, with lawmakers at the forefront.
Dewan Rakyat Deputy Speaker Datuk Dr Ramli Mohd Nor, who attended the 16th AIPA Caucus in Phnom Penh, said the body will remain an integral part of the 10-member grouping that sets the regional agenda for trade, security, and community building.
bootstrap slideshow
'In the framework of ASEAN, AIPA will remain an important mechanism because each country's parliament will decide on laws, policies and way forward and this will have an impact on ASEAN.
"This caucus includes discussions, methods and resolutions that can be accepted by the entire ASEAN community.
'We recognise that dialogue is important to avoid conflicts with neighbours, within ASEAN or outside ASEAN,' Ramli told Bernama on the margins of the meeting that ended on Wednesday (July 16).
The regional parliamentary body, established in 1977, held the meeting under the theme 'Peace Through Dialogue: The Parliamentary Path Forward.'
AIPA leaders from the regional bloc were in attendance at the caucus that commenced on Monday in Cambodia's capital, except for Myanmar and Timor-Leste (which is set to be admitted as the 11th member at the 47th ASEAN Summit in October).
'Malaysia continues to show a strong political commitment in strengthening ASEAN connectivity as well as regional peace, in line with the active role played at the global level.
