Events

The Interparliamentary Assembly of Member Nations of the Commonwealth of Independent States developed and approved 11 model laws during its spring session

Chair of the Council of the IPA CIS and Chair of the Federation Council Valentina Matvienko held the 49th plenary session of the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly.


The 49th plenary session of the IPA CIS took place at Tavrichesky Palace, St Petersburg, which is the headquarters of the Interparliamentary Assembly of Member Nations of the Commonwealth of Independent States.

Chair of the Federation Council and Chair of the IPA CIS Council Valentina Matvienko chaired the session.

The event was attended by heads of parliamentary delegations to the IPA CIS, representatives of legislative bodies of the Commonwealth countries, members of the Federation Council, the IPA CIS standing committees, representatives of federal and regional authorities, as well as scientists, specialists and experts.

The Head of the IPA CIS Council noted that the Assembly carried out a tremendous amount of useful work during the reporting period resulting in developing 22 model laws last year. Eleven more laws were developed during the spring session and approved at today's meeting. “The total number of model laws and other regulatory documents developed over the entire period of the IPA CIS activities comes to 557,” she said. ‘We have a lot to accomplish this year, and I’m confident that our plans will be successfully implemented.“

According to Valentina Matvienko, the expert community, in particular, the newly created Expert Council on Economy designed to assist the Assembly standing commissions, is making a significant contribution to this work. “We hope that it will become a popular and useful platform for discussing matters that are relevant for the CIS in the economic sphere.”

Valentina Matvienko noted that the CIS Council of Heads of State declared 2020 the Year of the 75th Anniversary of Victory in the 1941–1945 Great Patriotic War in the CIS, adding that the IPA CIS Council had approved the plan of the main events dedicated to this occasion.

The Chair of the IPA CIS Council spoke about the most significant events of the period under review. She said that the International Conference, The 150th Anniversary of the St Petersburg Declaration Renouncing the Use, in Time of War, of Explosive Projectiles: New Context, Undiminished Relevance“ hosted by the Interparliamentary Assembly of Member Nations of the CIS and the International Committee of the Red Cross, was one of the most important events.

Speaking on behalf of the city government and residents of the northern capital, Acting St Petersburg Governor Alexander Beglov welcomed the plenary session participants and guests. He noted the IPA CIS’ special contribution to promoting integration processes.

Alexander Beglov spoke about the relations St Petersburg has with the CIS countries.

The acting head of the city noted that representatives of almost all ethnicities took part in defending Leningrad during WWII, and many current CIS states provided accommodation to evacuees from Leningrad during the war. “We share the memories of our ancestors’ heroic deeds,” he said, adding that St Petersburg is willing to assist in doing this work. “For the sake of this memory and our common victory, I propose opening branches or creating museums dedicated to the siege and the Leningrad residents who found a home in your republics.”

The plenary session participants reviewed and approved the documents prepared by the IPA CIS permanent commissions, including model laws On Mortgage, On the Right to Inheritance, On the Bar and Legal Counsel Activities, On Forensic Activities, On Civil Protection, On Pricing, the third part of Tax Administration of the model Taxation Code for the CIS member states and the model Inland Water Transport Code for the CIS member states, a revised model law On Scientific and Technical Information and recommendations On the Ethics of Nanotechnology, as well as recommendations to create and promote youth parliamentary bodies in the CIS countries.

All model laws will be made available to the parliaments of the IPA CIS member states for use in national legislation.

Coordinator of the Youth Interparliamentary Assembly of the CIS Member States and member of the Federation Council Committee on Social Policy Tatyana Lebedeva presented recommendations on creating and promoting youth parliamentary bodies in the CIS member states. “The purpose of developing draft recommendations is to improve the procedural and institutional regulation underlying the creation and activities of youth parliamentary bodies in the form of a youth parliament at a legislative (representative) body of state power as the most effective form of promoting youth parliamentarism.”

According to the senator, the document outlines basic terms and concepts, types of youth parliamentary bodies, the procedure for creating youth parliaments and legal framework for organising their activities. It includes priority spheres of support accorded by the state to youth parliamentarism.

Member of the IPA CIS Permanent Commission on Science and Education, First Deputy Chair of the Federation Council Committee on Science, Education and Culture Lilia Gumerova presented a revised version of the model law On Scientific and Technical Information.

The senator noted that 19 years have passed since the CIS Interparliamentary Assembly adopted a model law of the same name. Taking into account the current trends, there’s a need to further develop the system of scientific and technical information and to improve the legal regulation of relations connected with creating, accumulating, identifying, obtaining, storing, processing, distributing and using scientific and technical information. Along with updating the concepts, major changes and additions to the law were made. ”Above all, it is the positioning of the centralised scientific information system as the critical component of the mechanisms underlying state administration and development of the state.“

Lilia Gumerova said that the revised edition outlines the competencies of the national government and authorised state bodies in the sphere of scientific and technical information and provides for legal regulation of the digital information technology use. The text includes clauses governing the provision of scientific and technical information.

The senator also presented recommendations On the Ethics of Nanotechnology. “The aim of the draft recommendation is to increase the awareness of the importance of assessing the social and humanitarian challenges and risks associated with the development of nanotechnology, and responsibility involved in decisions taken in this field. The recommendations contain proposals for establishing responsibility and obligations of the participants in nanotechnology research. Special attention is given to the education and the training of scientific and technical personnel, as well as the provision of legal regulation and the management of nanotechnology.”

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