A/HRC/40/65
society organizations, and especially migrants. Parliaments should contribute to
changing the public perception of migration as a negative phenomenon and highlight
the contribution of migrants to society. Parliaments must take measures to eradicate
discrimination against migrants, while taking into account a gender perspective and
the best interests of the child. Parliaments should help to address the root causes of
forced migration.
41.
Parliaments should share best practices for involvement in the implementation
of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. In this regard, they should also
draw on the existing international human rights framework to enhance accountability
in relation to, and monitoring of, the implementation of the Sustainable Development
Goals. Parliamentarians should regard oversight of the implementation of the
Sustainable Development Goals as their responsibility. Parliamentarians should
consider the ways in which proposed legislation would help implement the Sustainable
Development Goals. They should raise awareness about the Sustainable Development
Goals, their relevance to local needs and their potentially transformative impact.
42.
Parliament should discuss and approve national plans and targets under the
Sustainable Development Goals, and legislate and provide funding to meet the
relevant targets. Parliamentarians should monitor progress and setbacks in relation to
these targets and hold government to account for the commitments made under the
2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
V. Parliaments working with others: is there room for more
engagement?
A.
Discussions
43.
The discussion on agenda item 4 was moderated by Sergio Piazzi, Secretary-General
of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Mediterranean. The panellists were Irene Khan,
Director-General, International Development Law Organization; Sarah McGrath, Director
of International Engagement, Australian Human Rights Commission; Danilo Kalezic,
coordinator of the parliamentary programme at the Network for Affirmation of the NGO
Sector (MANS), in Montenegro; and Norma Morandini, Director of the Senate Human
Rights Observatory, Argentina. The discussions focused on existing practices to make
parliaments more transparent, open and accountable, and on how parliaments could better
interact with other State institutions. The discussions then turned to the relationship
between parliaments and the judiciary, and how those two institutions could complement
each other to ensure better protection of human rights and the rule of law, while respecting
their respective independence. The discussions examined cooperation between parliaments
and national human rights institutions, specifically how national human rights institutions
could help ensure that parliaments took into account human rights considerations during the
law-making process. The discussions also considered cooperation between civil society
organizations, the media and parliaments.
44.
Ms. Khan described the relationship between the judiciary and parliament as a
complementary one. She discussed the separation of powers and judicial oversight of
actions taken by the executive. Referring to judicial independence, Ms. Khan said that it
was included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant
on Civil and Political Rights and was a general principle of international law. Parliament
should protect the independence of the judiciary, and the judiciary should protect
parliament’s independence. There were challenges in the relationship between parliament
and the judiciary, especially in relation to national security cases. Where parliament had
failed to legislate, Ms. Khan described occasions where courts had exercised “judicial
activism” and pushed the boundaries of judicial interpretation so as to greatly widen
previous legal interpretations. Ms. Khan said the international community could nurture the
symbiotic relationship between parliament and the judiciary. She referred to the
International Development Law Organization’s work in Kenya supporting the constitutional
reform process, initially by working with the committee of experts in charge of drafting the
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