On 16 June, 2021, PAM President Hon. Gennaro Migliore addressed the opening ceremony of the newly established UNOCT’s Programme Office on Parliamentary Engagement in Preventing and Countering Terrorism in Doha, Qatar. The new Office will serve as a global hub to support parliamentarians worldwide in their efforts to counter terrorism through the United Nations Global Programme on Parliamentary Engagement in Preventing and Countering Terrorism.
The event was hosted by H.E. Mr. Ahmad bin Abdulla bin Zaid Al Mahmoud, Speaker of the Shura Council of the State of Qatar, and co-chaired by Mr. Vladimir Voronkov, UN Under-Secretary-General, and head of UNOCT. Among guests and key note speakers were high-level representatives of the IPU, OSCE PA, PACE, IPA CIS, UNDP, UN CTED, and UNODC.
In his speech, PAM President Migliore stressed the crucial role of parliamentarians, to tackle terrorism and its manifestations. He added that MPs must safeguard the rule of law and international human rights obligations. He also underlined that MPs must ensure that the institutional bodies involved in counterterrorism obtain the appropriate legal, material and financial support.
PAM Member States have been deeply affected by terrorism, and addressing this issue has always been a key priority for the Assembly. PAM has a long history of close collaboration with the UN on issues such as harmonization of counterterrorism legislation in the region and legislative implementation of UN Security Council resolutions on counterterrorism.
PAM President, Migliore praised the close cooperation between PAM and UNOCT, which has recently culminated in the signature of an MOU between the two organizations.
The President also took the opportunity to brief the audience on some of the relevant outcomes of the PAM 15th Plenary Session, including recommendations to address the issue of terrorist recidivism, exploring options for ISIL survivors held in battle field detention in North East Syria, and calling for greater political action to reinforce counterterrorism efforts in the Sahel.
It was agreed that PAM and UNOCT will work on a joint plan of action to be implanted with the support of the newly established office in Doha.