PARLIAMENT OF MALAYSIA, 27 APRIL 2015 - The ASEAN Inter-Parliamentary Assembly (AIPA) has proposed that the interface meeting between AIPA and ASEAN leaders to be made official to strengthen the cooperation, coordination and collaboration between the legislative and executive branches in the region.
 

The Speaker of the House of Representatives cum 36th President of AIPA chaired the meeting.
With him was Datuk Roosme Hamzah, Secretary of the House of Representatives and Mr. P.O Ram, Secretary General of AIPA.

The 36th AIPA President H.E. Tan Sri Pandikar Amin Mulia said an annual ASEAN-AIPA Leaders meeting was crucial for the formation of ASEAN Community.

"Turning the ASEAN-AIPA meeting into a regular official meeting will help to  improve AIPA's participation in ASEAN related affairs," he told the reporters after attending the inaugural ASEAN Leaders' Interface Meeting with representatives of AIPA, which was held in conjunction with the 26th ASEAN Summit here today.

The meeting was held as part of the "people centred ASEAN" to engage with various segments of society, youths, civil society, business community and parliamentarians.

Pandikar Amin, who is also the Speaker of the House of Representatives, said that ASEAN and AIPA could also discuss policies and actions that formulate agreements or resolutions for better cohesion by giving focus to those matters during the ASEAN Summit and AIPA General Assembly meetings.

Of which, he said, would help ASEAN and AIPA to avoid overlapping and contradiction in their decision-making process.

In the 20-minute closed-door meeting, Pandikar Amin said AIPA has also urged ASEAN member states to give their commitment to combat trafficking in persons, illicit drugs, cyber-crimes and money laundering.

He noted that to make ASEAN a people-centred and inclusive community, AIPA supports the efforts in promoting gender equality, and protecting human rights, particularly the rights of women, children and older persons.

Established in 1967, ASEAN comprises 10 countries, namely Brunei Darussalam, the Philippines, Indonesia, Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam.