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Challenge on procedural grounds of the still unratified credentials of the parliamentary delegation of Andorra

Doc. 14475: compendium of written amendments | Doc. 14475 | 24/01/2018 | Final version

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Amendment 2 Amendment 1

Caption: AdoptedRejectedWithdrawnNo electronic votes

ADraft Resolution

1On 22 January 2018, at the opening of the Parliamentary Assembly session, the still unratified credentials of the parliamentary delegation of Andorra were challenged on procedural grounds, in accordance with Rule 7.1 of the Assembly's Rules of Procedure, on the ground that the delegation comprised no female representative in violation of Rule 6.2.a of the Rules of Procedure.

24 January 2018

Tabled by Mr Carles JORDANA, Ms Judith PALLARÉS, Ms Patrícia RIBERAYGUA, Ms Maryvonne BLONDIN, Mr Henk OVERBEEK, Ms Ingjerd Schie SCHOU, Mr Jokin BILDARRATZ, Mr Víctor NAUDI ZAMORA, Ms Melisa RODRÍGUEZ HERNÁNDEZ, Mr Egidijus VAREIKIS, Ms Anne BRASSEUR, Mr Damien THIÉRY, Mr Antonio GUTIÉRREZ LIMONES, Lord George FOULKES, Ms Adele GAMBARO, Mr Adão SILVA, Ms Nicole TRISSE

Votes: 23 in favor 1 against 0 abstention

In the draft resolution, after paragraph 1, insert the following paragraph:

"The credentials of the Andorran delegation were submitted to the President of the Assembly by letter dated 18 January 2018. Following receipt of the credentials, the Table Office of the Parliamentary Assembly contacted the delegation secretariat. On 19 January, a communication from Mr Vicenç Mateu Zamora, Síndic General (Speaker of the Andorran Parliament), sent to the Secretary-General of the Parliamentary Assembly, stated that the current composition of the Andorran delegation, approved "following an extraordinary election (on 18 January)", was the result of "an internal reorganisation of two parliamentary groups" and gave an assurance that the Consell General would take "the necessary measures to rectify the composition of the national delegation as soon as possible"."

2The Parliamentary Assembly once again reiterates its strongest commitment to promoting the balanced representation of women and men in political and public decision-making and to applying the principle of gender equality in its internal structures, in particular by encouraging balanced representation of women and men in national delegations. The Assembly also refers to its Resolution 2111 (2016) “Assessing the impact of measures to improve women’s political representation” and reasserts its support for the principle of gender parity as the ultimate goal of political representation.

24 January 2018

Tabled by the Committee on Equality and Non-Discrimination

In the draft resolution, paragraph 2, after the first sentence, insert the following sentence: "The Assembly also underlines that, in order to achieve genuine equality, the principle of equality should also apply to positions of responsibility."

3The Assembly therefore finds it regrettable that it must remind national parliaments, through the challenge of credentials procedure, of what, nonetheless, is a very minimal requirement as regards the representation of women in the Assembly, namely the presence of at least one woman as a representative in each delegation.
4The Assembly notes that the composition of the Andorran delegation does not fulfil the conditions laid down in Rule 6.2.a of the Rules of Procedure and that its credentials have been legitimately challenged. It notes that the delegation has stated that it undertakes to ensure full compliance with the condition laid down by the Rules of Procedure at the earliest opportunity.
5Accordingly, the Assembly decides to ratify the credentials of the Andorran parliamentary delegation, but to suspend the voting rights of its members in the Assembly and its bodies in accordance with Rule10.1.c of the Rules of Procedure, with effect from the beginning of the Assembly's April 2018 part-session, if the composition of the delegation has not been brought into conformity with Rule 6.2.a of the Rules of Procedure by then – and comprises, at a very minimum, one member of the under-represented sex as a representative –and until conformity is achieved.