Secretary General of the IPU
Colleagues
Distinguished Guests
Ladies and Gentlemen 

I warmly welcome you to Cape Town also known as the mother city and to this joint parliamentary Conference, on an issue which UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon has called a “defining moment of our time”.

I wish to thank the leadership of the Inter Parliamentary Union (IPU) and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) who have partnered with the South African Parliament to prepare and host this joint event.

For years, organisations such as the IPU, UNHCR have struggled to put displacement on the global political agenda – not always successfully.

But after the dramatic events on the beaches and borders of Europe this summer, nobody is now able to ignore a refugee crisis that had been simmering for so long while others were turning a blind eye.

The world’s leaders must hang their heads in shame that it has come to this, but it is no surprise. Indeed, George Orwell’s words resonate when he said, and I quote: “All men are created equal, but some are more equal than others.” Sadly, this also applies to continents.

By shining a light on the most pressing challenge facing the world, this august gathering must not only increase awareness about statelessness but consider ways that Parliaments can contribute to preventing and resolving it to the benefit of individuals, communities, nation-states and the international community as a whole.

I trust that through our discussions over the coming days, we can identify innovative parliamentary strategies to support the UNHCR’s Campaign to End Statelessness within 10 years and its 10-point Global Action Plan.

The world as we know it has undergone an evolution of sorts. Several organisations, such as, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the World Bank reported that there has been meaningful economic growth. The number of the absolute poor has decreased to a record low and technological advances have brought many important benefits.

But sadly, it is also true that the world has become fragile. Conflicts have spread in unpredictable ways and the nature of conflict has grown highly complex.

One of the devastating consequences has been a shrinking of humanitarian space and the accompanied intolerance that we have all been witness to.

The interlinked mega-crises in Syria, Iraq, South Sudan, Burundi, Yemen, Turkey and Libya, amongst others, which have uprooted millions, are a striking example of this evolution.

Tens of thousands, many of them children, are fleeing horrific gang violence and abuse in Central America. And there has been little or no improvement in the crises affecting the Central African Republic, Nigeria, Ukraine or the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Increasingly, we are seeing more and more protracted emergencies. As a result, more and more people have embarked on the desperate journey to Europe and in our case South Africa, despite the enormous risks and cost this entails.

Mr Secretary General

There appears to be some progress to end statelessness but so much more needs to be done by all of us.

Amongst others, all nations must support the UNHCR’s global campaign to end statelessness by 2024. We must also endeavour to learn from states which have been successful in resolving protracted situations.

The South African Constitution establishes the rights and privileges that constitute fundamental human rights of people in the country, regardless of their status in the country. Section 28 (1) (A) reads “Every child has the right to a name and a nationality from birth”. Section 20 reads: “No citizen may be deprived of citizenship. Section 3 (2) and (3) reads: “All citizens are (a) equally entitled to the rights, privileges, and benefits of citizenship; and (b) equally subject to the duties and responsibilities of citizenship”.

In addition, South Africa has also determined stateless determination procedures and has introduced gender equality in its nationality laws.

We have also progressed well with changing traditional approaches to humanitarian assistance, including moving away from care and maintenance models to systems that are more professional, systematic to advocating self- reliance and livelihoods where that is possible.

Our efforts are, however, constrained by financial resources, as the explosion in humanitarian requirements inevitably outpaces available resources.

Mr Secretary General

The voices of Parliamentarians as the representatives of the people are the strongest voices of persuasion at local, regional and international level. We must use this leverage to bring about positive action and change.

As Parliamentarians we must ensure that we are the centre of the dialogue on ending statelessness.

In going forward, we must endeavour to understand and address the root causes of displacement - from conflict over resources, to poor governance; human rights violations or unequal access to development benefits, amongst others, and explore what governments, parliamentarians, the private sector, humanitarian organisations, civil society and others can do to address these pressing challenges.

This protracted crisis demands that Europe and Africa develop a new compact of common co-operation policies that better take into account human mobility, more so, those forced to flee their communities and countries. History teaches us the obvious - that a truly universal humane community cannot be achieved by translating perspectives from just one part of the world into a “one size fits all” approach.

It is also a fact that humanitarian budgets are wholly inadequate to cover the basics that humanitarian agencies and others require to alleviate the effects of these tragedies, leading to devastating results.

As Africans in particular, we continue to call for a rethink in the world’s financial architecture and the way the world finances the responses to the humanitarian crisis. In this regard, a closer link between humanitarian and development interventions supported by development budgets must prevent further conflict, support hosts countries and pave the way for durable solutions.

As Parliamentarians we must therefore appeal to all relevant partners to engage fora like the G7 and G20. International financial institutions should also be engaged so as to bring about the necessary policy changes to better support countries.

We as Parliamentarians must also ensure that our respective countries sign and ratify the 1954 UN Convention on the Status of Stateless People.

There is also a need for Parliaments to develop mechanisms for effectively overseeing issues pertaining to the lives of stateless people.  This should include tools to oversee and monitor the implementation of the looming Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

Mr Secretary General

The plight of so many stateless women, men and children has highlighted the human values that determine who we are as individuals and societies and how we respond to challenges.

Crucially, these tragedies have again and again underscored the importance of preserving the fundamental principles of tolerance, respect for diversity and solidarity with those in need.

It is indeed these principles that must guide us to manage some of the present and future challenges facing humanity.

In conclusion, allow me to warmly welcome you to Cape Town, South Africa. I trust that your stay with us will be enlightening and most enjoyable.

I thank you.