AIPA ACTIVITIES F.Y. 2008/2009


1. AIPA’s attendance at the ASEAN Meeting of Senior Officials on Drug Matters (ASOD) in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam, 24 – 28 August 2008.

The Secretary General of AIPA, Dato’ Md. Yusoff bin Md. Zain attended the 29th Meeting of the ASEAN Senior Officials on Drug Matters (ASOD) in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam from 24 – 28 August, 2008. AIPA has been invited on a regular basis in recent years to attend the ASOD meetings as an Observer. To prepare and submit proposals to the ASOD meetings as well as to exchange information on the progress being made at the regional level in combating the drug menace, AIPA established the AIPA Fact-Finding Committee (AIFOCOM) to Combat the Drug Menace which meets once a year. To date AIFOCOM has held five meetings, the last meeting, the Fifth AIFOCOM, being held in Singapore from 22nd to 25th June, 2008 with a focus on the control of synthetic drug and illicit drug crop production.At the 29th ASOD Meeting the AIPA Secretary General officially handed over on behalf of the President of AIPA the Report of the Fifth Meeting of AIFOCOM which was held in Singapore as referred to above as well as AIPA Resolution Res. 29GA/2008/Soc/07 on the Control of Synthetic Drug and Illicit Drug Crop Production adopted at the 29th AIPA General Assembly which was held in Singapore from 19th to 24th August, 2008. (AIPA Secretary General’s presentation at the 29th ASOD Meeting)
2. AIPA Seminar on Enhancing Parliamentary Training Cooperation, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, 1-2 December 2008

An AIPA Seminar on Enhancing Parliamentary Training Cooperation was hosted by the National Assembly of Vietnam from 1 to 2 December, 2008 in Ho Chi Minh City. The seminar was held pursuant to Resolution Res29GA/2008/Org/04 of the 29th AIPA General Assembly. The objective of the seminar was to establish a regional inter-parliamentary mechanism for the purpose of sharing parliamentary knowledge and training programs for AIPA elected representatives.
Attendance at the seminar was confined to AIPA Member Parliaments. The Training Center for Elected Representatives of the Office of the National Assembly of Vietnam (TCER) provided technical and logistic support to the seminar. The World Bank, UNDP, Parliamentary Academic Support Department of King Prajadiphok’s Institute, the Ottawa-based Parliamentary Training Centre, La Trobe University, Monash University and the University of Sydney as consultants to the seminar made presentations on parliamentary training.

3. Dialogue Session between AIPA and High Level Panel on an ASEAN Human Rights Body, 14 January 2009 in Brunei Darussalam

At the invitation of ASEAN, a six-member delegation of Parliamentarians and officials from AIPA attended a dialogue session with the High Level Panel on the establishment of an ASEAN Human Rights Body. The dialogue session was held on 14 January, 2009 in Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei Darussalam. The High Level Panel was set up by ASEAN to prepare the draft Terms of Reference (TOR) of the proposed ASEAN Human Rights Body, and the dialogue session with AIPA was among several consultations that were being held to seek the views of relevant stakeholders.

AIPA was represented by the following Members of Parliament and officials:

  1. Hon. Niramit Sujaree, Member of the Thai Parliament – Leader of AIPA Delegation
  2. Hon. Mr. Khim Saman, Member of the National Assembly of Cambodia
  3. Hon. Dato’ Paduka Awang Haji Yunos Bin Noh, Member of the Legislative Council of Brunei Darussalam
  4. Ambassador Dato’ Md. Yusoff bin Md. Zain, Secretary General of AIPA
  5. Mr. Monton Noppawong, Director of AIPA Division, Inter-Parliamentary Organization Bureau, Secretariat of the House of Representatives of Thailand
  6. Mr. Heang Thul, Deputy Director of International Relations, National Assembly of Cambodia

4. Informal Meeting between AIPA and ASEAN Heads of Government, 28 February 2009, Hua Hin, Thailand

An informal meeting between AIPA and the ASEAN Heads of Government was held on 28 February, 2009 in Hua Hin, Thailand during the 14th ASEAN Summit. At the informal meeting, AIPA as the elected representatives of the peoples of ASEAN offered its cooperation in the efforts to bring “the Charter for the ASEAN Peoples” to the doorsteps of the ASEAN citizens. AIPA also called for the informal meeting with the ASEAN leaders during the ASEAN Summit to be continued. AIPA also called for the high-level presence of ASEAN at the meetings of the AIPA Caucus as well as for the regular exchange of information and closer working relationship between the Secretariats of the two organizations.

5. AIPA Secretary General attended 120th IPU Assembly

The Secetary General, Dato’ Md. Yusoff bin Md Zain represented AIPA at the 120th  IPU Assembly in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia from 5 to 10 April, 2009. AIPA is an accredited Observer of the IPU.

6. The First AIPA Caucus, 26 – 28 April 2009, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

The First AIPA Caucus was hosted by the Parliament of Malaysia in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from 26 to 28 April, 2009. At this first meeting, the Caucus discussed the possible areas of the laws of ASEAN countries on the drug menace and human trafficking which could be possibly harmonized to further facilitate regional cooperation in their enforcement.

7. The Sixth Meeting of AIPA Fact-Finding Committee (AIFOCOM) to Combat the Drug Menace, 10 – 14 May 2009, Chiang Rai, Thailand

The Sixth Meeting of the AIPA Fact-Finding Committee (AIFOCOM) to Combat the Drug Menace was hosted by the National Assembly of Thailand in Chiang Rai from 10 to 14 May, 2009. The meeting focused on the control of precursors and the seizure of the assets of drug offenders.