The 17-member-country IPU governing council, led by IPU President Sergio Paez y Verdugo of Chile, elected Drilon as this year’s IPU president who will preside over all proceedings and related matters for the duration of the conference, considered to be the biggest international event the country is hosting for the past several decades.

"I am humbled to have been given the trust and confidence to head the premier international organization of parliaments which serves as the focal point for worldwide parliamentary dialogue that works for peace and cooperation among peoples," Drilon said.

Drilon expressed confidence of a positive and fruitful outcome of the assembly with himself at the helm of the six-day conference. "At the end of the assembly, we can come up with solid strategies in our pursuit for global peace and development," even as he stressed that the gathering will not result in "mere sound and fury signifying nothing, but one strong voice and quick resolute action."

By tradition, the IPU bestows the honorary presidency to the head of the parliament of the host country where the IPU session is being held. Drilon gets the plum post being the Philippines’ Senate president.

The hosting of the assembly is the culmination of persistent efforts in the Senate that began during the Senate presidency of the late Sen. Blas Ople. It was during the Ssenate presidency of Sen. Aquilino Pimentel Jr. that a formal bid to the Philippine hosting was made during the autumn IPU conference in 2003. The Senate’s bid to host this year’s conference was approved during Drilon’s Senate presidency in the 12th Congress.

The Philippines is an active member of the IPU. Its membership, however, was disrupted when Congress was dissolved during the martial law years. In 1987, the Philippines, reaffiliated with IPU and since then, has been represented in its bi-annual conferences and meetings of its subsidiary bodies.

Bellamy: Child trafficking a $10-B industry

United Nation Children’s Fund (UNICEF) executive director Carol Bellamy yesterday said child trafficking has become a $10-billion criminal industry and then challenged legislators from around the world to use their power in crafting legislation to fight child exploitation.

Speaking at the plenary of the 112th Inter-Parliamentary Union general assembly, the UNICEF official said she believes in the power of legislation to arrest the problem of child abuse and trafficking.

Bellamy, UNICEF’s executive director for the past 10 ten years, pointed out that parliamentarians have a choice to "make decisions that (could) ensure the protection of children."

She warned though that conversely, parliamentarians – the primary lawmakers of each country – could also make decisions that leave children vulnerable to being exploited and abused by not acting on the problem head on.

Although Bellamy pointed out that in general, "Asian countries are doing better than others" in legislating laws that address child exploitation and trafficking, she lamented that these efforts still fall short.

"I don’t think any particular government has done enough to fight trafficking, especially in Asia," she said.

Asked by reporters what should be done to address child exploitation, Bellamy said poverty reduction would significantly curb child exploitation.

"The best response is to reduce poverty," she said, adding that it is also important to address the vulnerability of women, who are, according to her, "the most marginalized and most vulnerable sector."

Bellamy said "parliamentarians are the most important leaders when it comes to children. Ministers and government experts are key players."

"You have incredible powers at your disposal. Establishing strong policy direction and enacting specific laws to protect children are only the most obvious. Equally powerful, from our point of view, is the parliamentary power of inquiry," she said in her speech.

In a press briefing right after the plenary session, Bellamy, together with IPU president Franklin Drilon, Sergio Paez, and IPU Secretary-General Anders Johnson, distributed copies of a handbook for parliamentarians called "Combating Child Trafficking" which contains UNICEF’s study on the matter and its recommendations.

The book outlined the factors that make children vulnerable to abuse, exploitation, and trafficking. Of the eight identified factors, poverty is the first item on the list, Bellamy said. (Jude Galford III)

Solons hopeful on IPU backing of inter-faith talks

By BEN R. ROSARIO

Members of the House of Representatives who are delegates to the 112th Inter-Parliamentary Union(IPU) conference yesterday expressed confidence that legislators from various countries will support Speaker Jose De Venecia’s call for an inter-faith dialogue to solve international terrorism.

Reps. Constantino Jaraula (Lakas, Cagayan de Oro City) and Rodolfo Bacani (LP, Manila) said De Venecia has won approval of his proposal at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) last year.

"Many delegates believe that the Speaker’s suggestion should be carried out immediately as part of the multinational campaign to end international terror," said Jaraula, chairman of the House committee on constitutional reforms.

Jaraula recalled that De Venecia had initially expressedd hopes of international support for an inter-faith dialogue during the conference held here by the Association of Asian Parliaments for Peace.

The Speaker later unveiled the need for a global inter-faith dialogue when the UNSC met last year. The proposal was approved by the General Assembly last November.

Bacani, vice chairman of the House committee on appropriations, revealed that the House delegation will also push for another De Venecia proposal – the creation of the Asian International Monetary Fund (IMF) that would help countries in Asia deal with crises similar to the 1997 Asian financial meltdown.

According to Bacani, the proposal will address the poverty issue that has started to affect bigger parts of the world.

"We are confident they will heed our appeal for the conference to address worldwide poverty through the solutions the Speaker is offering," Bacani said.

De Venecia revealed that the UN has set the goal of cutting global poverty in half by 2015.

"The IPU must adopt the UN’s Millennium Development Goals as its own. We call on each and every member-parliament of the IPU to allocate substantial amounts in our national budgets to fight and defeat poverty, ignorance, and disease," the Speaker stressed.

Also at the opening of the IPU general assembly last Sunday, De Venecia said international terrorism "has brought mankind to a new age of war." And it can be fought through an interfaith dialogue that "creates multi-cultural understanding," he added

The House leader warned that the "clash of religious:" lurks in the shadow of the nuclear age between nations and terrorist groups, undermining global security and threatening mankind with mass destruction.

"This is the clash that everyone fears – and that everyone must exert all efforts to avert," De Venecia said.