GENEVA, Oct. 18 (Xinhua) -- Parliamentarians from 155 countries and regions on Wednesday committed to pursuing cultural pluralism and peace through interfaith and inter-ethnic dialogue, the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) said in a statement Wednesday.
The Geneva-based organization said that at the close of the its 137th Assembly in St. Petersburg, Russian Federation, IPU Member Parliaments issued a declaration calling for transparency, accountability and respect for human rights and the rule of law to serve as the basis for building sustainable and peaceful diversity.
According to IPU, actions the world MPs have agreed to take include preventing discrimination and human rights violations related to religion and ethnicity, promoting national and local dialogue to create multicultural and inclusive societies, enhancing civic education, and strengthening parliaments.
"Over 800 MPs have one ambition to promote tolerance, and have said with one voice that hate speech and divisive words have no place in peaceful societies," said the outgoing IPU President Saber Chowdhury.
"I presume it is necessary to push the discussion on the main topic of the Assembly, the cultural pluralism, to a global level at a world conference promoting inter-religious and inter-civilization dialog with the participation heads of state and leaders of world religions", said the President of the 137th IPU Assembly, Ms. Valentina Matvienko.
During the assembly IPU Members also elected a new President, which was described as a historic vote as for the first time two women presented their candidacy for the post.
The newly elected President is Gabriela Cuevas from Mexico. "It is an honor to follow in the footsteps of Saber. I am committed to continuing the work he began, and taking the IPU to new levels of achievement and global influence," said Ms. Cuevas.
The IPU has also welcomed Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Vanuatu, and the Marshall Islands as new members, increasing its membership to 177 Member Parliaments.
