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| Report of the 15th Executive Committee Meeting IntroductionThe 15th Executive Committee meeting of the Inter-Parliamentary Forum of the Americas (FIPA) was held on November 18th, 2006, in Bogotá, Colombia, at the kind invitation of Colombian Senator Nancy Patricia Gutiérrez Castañeda. The meeting preceded the opening of FIPA’s Fifth Plenary Meeting held in the Congress of the Republic of Colombia November 19 th-21 st, 2006. The meeting was attended by six of the ten Committee members, as indicated on the list of participants attached as Appendix 1. This meeting was mainly intended to update members on the latest arrangements connected with the Fifth Plenary Meeting, to adopt rules of procedure for the working groups, to review the nominations received for the elections being held during the Meeting, and to assess a series of draft resolutions aimed at amending FIPA regulations. Opening of the Meeting and Approval of the AgendaSenator Nancy Patricia Gutiérrez welcomed participants and explained to the Executive Committee members the reasons why the Meeting had been postponed, apologizing for any inconveniences this delay might have caused. The Chair of the Executive Committee, Canadian Senator Céline Hervieux-Payette, went on to read the agenda for the meeting, which was approved on a motion from Canada seconded by Grenada. The Executive Committee approved the report of FIPA’s 14 th Executive Committee meeting ( Washington, DC, April 11 th and 12 th, 2006) on a motion from Chile, seconded by Grenada. Administrative MattersThis meeting of the Executive Committee serves as an extraordinary meeting of FIPA’s executive members of the FIPA Corporation, since the Forum is a non-for-profit organization. Senator Céline Hervieux-Payette, in her capacity as Chair of FIPA’s Board of Directors, explained that several Board members had come to the end of their term of office and it was necessary to cover these vacancies. Canadian MP James Bezan and Mexican Senator Ricardo García were appointed to the Board of Directors on a motion from Grenada, seconded by Colombia. In addition, Senator Hervieux-Payette said that, once the accounting audit was finished, FIPA’s financial statements for the 2005-2006 fiscal year would be submitted to executive members for approval at the annual meeting. Afterwards, Chair Hervieux-Payette invited FIPA’s Secretary to present the annual budget for the 2006-2007 period, which was approved on a motion from Canada, seconded by Grenada. Senator Hervieux-Payette noted that this budget did not take into consideration indirect contributions from member parliaments, which include the cost of organizing the Executive Committee and Plenary Assembly meetings and travel expenses incurred by representatives to attend these meetings. There followed a discussion on the financing of FIPA. The Secretariat announced that notices regarding the annual dues to be contributed by member parliaments would be sent in upcoming weeks. The Colombian delegate announced that the Colombian Congress had authorized the payment of dues to FIPA. Hervieux-Payette encouraged other members to learn how to proceed in their respective Parliaments, further noting that Colombia had had to enact a law to authorize said payment. The Brazilian Deputy, Luiz Carlos Hauly, who attended the meeting as an observer, noted that the barriers that had hindered Brazilian contributions until then had been removed. The Chilean representative was concerned about FIPA’s financial dependence on Canada, particularly now that the Presidency of the Forum was in the hands of a new country. Report on the Preparations for the Fifth Plenary MeetingSenator Gutiérrez explained the latest changes to the Program of the Fifth Plenary Assembly. Among other things, she announced that the Colombian President would address delegates at an Extraordinary Session of the Plenary Assembly on November 20th. The Secretariat noted that there were nearly 90 participants registered from some twenty countries in the region. Report on the Preparations for Working GroupsAfter the Committee quickly reviewed the program for each working group, the Chair invited its members to have a look at the rules of procedure for these groups, which were adopted on a motion from Canada, seconded by Chile. Presentation of Draft Resolutions Intended to Amend the FIPA RegulationsThe President of the Committee presented nine draft resolutions aimed at amending FIPA regulations. These were based on the amendment proposals approved by the Executive Committee at its latest meeting. The President remarked that the proposal had minor changes vis-à-vis the last version submitted to Committee members, with the purpose of clarifying the proposed amendments to the provisions governing the formation of the Executive Committee and the inclusion of items in the Plenary Assembly agenda. The Executive Committee adopted the draft resolutions, which are attached as Appendix 2. Election Nominations ReviewThe Chair of the Executive Committee noted that at the First Plenary Session all participants would be provided with the form and directives to submit nominations for the following positions:
Since many countries were concerned about the succession of Canada in the Presidency of FIPA, Committee members discussed about potential nominees. Participants underscored that a committed and qualified nominee was necessary to strengthen the Organization and further noted that this was a democratic process concerning the Plenary Assembly. The Committee agreed on an Extraordinary Meeting to be held on November 19th after the closing time for nominations to assess the official nominations received. Discussions on the Parliamentary Confederation of the Americas (COPA) ProposalSenator Céline Hervieux-Payette informed the members of the joint meeting between FIPA and COPA representatives to be held in the morning of November 21 st, 2006. Committee members were in favour of the President’s proposal, i.e. the creation of a joint committee gathering FIPA and COPA representatives to analyze the goals, composition and structure of both organizations as well as to assess potential integration formulae. Other IssuesTrade Knowledge WorkshopThe Canadian delegate told participants that the Canadian Section of FIPA intended to organize a workshop on trade knowledge for parliamentarians of the hemisphere with a view to enabling interested legislators to broaden their skills and knowledge on this subject. This proposal was enthusiastically received, in particular by the Colombian representative, who explained that free trade issues were currently subject to important discussions in the Colombian Congress. New Draft ResolutionsThe Brazilian representative, who attended as an observer, submitted a recommendation project to define a global action plan for the Forum for the 2006-2008 period. The President of the Executive Committee said that she wished to submit a recommendation project to support the ratification of the UNESCO Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions. The members decided to examine both proposals at the extraordinary meeting on November 19th. The President then adjourned the meeting. Appendix
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