A constitutive meeting of the Delegation to the Inter-Parliamentary Union was held on 18 December. The delegation elected National Council member Christian Lohr (CVP/TG) as its president for the next two years. The vice presidency will be held by Daniel Jositsch, Member of the Council of States (SP, Zurich).

Established in 1889, the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) is one of the longest-existing international organisations. It has been headquartered in Geneva since 1921. The IPU today comprises 179 member parliaments and 12 associate members. It works to promote democracy and help parliaments to strengthen and develop their means of action, to achieve greater gender equality and to represent the public in all its diversity. It also defends parliamentarians’ human rights, and has a committee dedicated to this purpose comprising parliamentarians from all regions of the world. Twice a year, the IPU holds an international assembly attended by more than 1,500 delegates and parliamentarians. It brings a parliamentarian dimension to the work of the United Nations and to the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals of Agenda 2030.

The Delegation to the Inter-Parliamentary Union represents Switzerland in the Inter-Parliamentary Union, which includes participation in its two annual assemblies. As the host state of the IPU headquarters, Switzerland has particularly close ties with the organisation, whose objectives – such as strengthening democracy and defending human rights – are also priorities in the Swiss Federal Constitution.

For the 51th legislative period, the Swiss Delegation to the Inter-Parliamentary Union will comprise the following members:

  1. Christian Lohr, National Council, Christian Democratic Party, Canton Thurgau (President 2020/21)
  2. Daniel Jositsch, Member of the Council of States, Social Democratic Party, Canton Zurich (Vice President 2020/21)
  3. Christine Badertscher, National Council, Green Party, Canton Bern
  4. Andrea Caroni, Member of the Council of States, FDP. The Liberals, Canton Appenzell A.-Rh.
  5. Laurence Fehlmann Rielle, Social Democratic Party, Canton Geneva
  6. Johanna Gapany, Member of the Council of States, FDP. The Liberals, Canton Fribourg
  7. Thomas Hurter, National Council, Swiss People’s Party, Canton Schaffhouse
  8. Laurent Wehrli, National Council, FDP. The Liberals, Canton Vaud

At its meeting, the Swiss delegation chose not to fill Switzerland's vacant seat on the IPU Executive Committee, which had so far been occupied by the outgoing National Councillor, Margret Kiener Nellen (PS, Bern).

The next IPU assemblies will be held in Geneva (16–20 April 2020) and Kigali (11–15 October 2020).

Further information on the IPU’s activities and related topics can be found on the organisation’s website: www.ipu.org.