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Fourth IEPFPD Council meeting, 1-4 April 2004, Ankara

Women in Society - Towards the Tenth Anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women

The IEPFPD held its Fourth Council meeting in the Senate Hall of the Grand National Assembly of Turkey on 1 and 2 April 2004 in Ankara upon the invitation of His Excellency, Hon. Bülent Arinç, and the Chair of the Turkish Parliamentary Group, Hon. Dr Mahfuz Güler, MP. Parliamentarians from over 25 European countries met and discussed the subject of “Women in Society - Towards the Tenth Anniversary of the Fourth World Conference on Women”

The meeting was opened by His Excellency, Hon. Bulent Arinç, Speaker of the Grand National Assembly, Dr Imelda Henkin, Deputy Executive Director of UNFPA, Dr Steven Sinding, Director General of IPPF who called on European parliamentarians to continue taking leadership in reaffirming the Cairo Programme of Action.

The Hon. Güldal Aksit, Turkish Minister of State Responsible for Women and Family and Hon. Recep Akdag, Turkish Minister of Health both addressed the delegates and reaffirmed Turkey’s commitment to the Cairo Programme of Action and the Beijing Platform of Action. A panel of the leaders of the women’s branches of the main political parties in Turkish politics debated the issue of women’s empowerment and women’s participation in political life. Keynote speakers included the Head of the UN CEDAW, Dr Feride Açar, the Vice-President of the European Women’s Lobby, Ms Denise Fuschs, the President of Catholics for a Free Choice, Ms Frances Kissling, the President of the International Women’s Health Coalition, Ms Adrienne Germain, Dr Lori Heise of the Global Campaign for Microbicides, Dr Sema Kut, President of the Turkish Family Planning Association and Dr Rob Chase, Senior Economist at the World Bank.

The IEPFPD Council welcomed Parliamentary Groups on Population and Development from Bosnia-Herzegovina, Latvia as well as Germany as a new member groups in the IEPFPD, bringing the total number of IEPFPD member groups to 21. The Council members elected the Hon. Carina Hägg, MP (Sweden) as the new First Vice-President of the IEPFPD and the Hon. Anne Van Lancker, MEP (Belgium-European Parliament) onto the Executive Committee.  The Executive Committee also bid farewell to Hon. Ulla Sandbaek, MEP and out-going IEPFPD Vice-President who has decided not to stand in the next European Parliament elections and inducted Hon. Sandbaek, MEP as an Honorary Member of the IEPFPD in recognition of their commitment and devotion to population and development issues. The IEPFPD Council also extended a warm welcome to Ms Safiye Cagar recently appointed to head up UNFPA Division of Information, External Relations, Resource Mobilisation and Executive Board. The IEPFPD Council unanimously amended the organisation’s Statutes changing the legal headquarters of the IEPFPD to 23 Rue de Luxembourg where the offices of the independent Secretariat will be established by end April 2004.

The Executive Committee presented the IEPFPD Activities over the past year and announced the activities scheduled for 2004, including participation in the Global Roundtable on ICPD at 10, hosting the International Parliamentarians Conference on ICPD Implementation, holding a meeting for Central and East European Parliamentarians, strengthening the Young Decision-Makers Initiative and continuing to play a leading role in defending and reaffirming the ICPD PoA in UN regional meetings. 

The meeting was attended by parliamentarians from 25 parliaments in Europe, representatives of parliamentary networks in Asia, Africa and the Arab World, the Parliamentary Network of the World Bank (AFPPD, FAAPPD, PNoWB), UNFPA, IPPF, the World Bank, international NGOs and inter-governmental organisations as well over 40 Turkish civil society representatives and NGOs, in total over 120 participants.

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• Programme (EN)
• List of Participants (EN)