GENEVA (ILO News) - The International Labour Office (ILO) and the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU) today signed an agreement to strengthen cooperation between them, and take practical steps aimed at promoting social justice, democratic principles and human rights.

Under the terms of the accord, signed by ILO Director-General Juan Somavia, the IPU Inter-Parliamentary Council President Miguel Angel Martínez and IPU Secretary-General Anders B. Johnsson, the two organizations agreed to work to promote ratification and implementation of international legal instruments adopted by the ILO's International Labour Conference, including a Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work approved by the Conference last year. ^*

"The Inter-Parliamentary Union helps ensure that laws remain modern, dynamic instruments that lead to positive change by responding to the changing social needs of the people," Mr. Somavia said. "In political terms, this agreement gives us greater access to thousands of parliamentarians and millions of freely-expressed votes with a view to furthering the pursuit of social justice, improving the protection of workers and conditions of labour, and promoting democratic principles."

Mr. Johnsson said: "In the age of globalization, the Inter-Parliamentary Union offers national parliaments a means of reaffirming the universality of social policy standards." He added that, as underscored by article IV of this Agreement of co-operation, "the promotion and implementation of the Principles and Rights recalled in the ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at work (...) [are an] essential factor of parliamentary democracy and development".

The agreement is designed to strengthen future joint action to promote legislative consideration of a host of ILO Conventions and Recommendations on such issues as abolishing child labour, assuring the right of workers to freedom of association and collective bargaining, and eliminating discrimination and all forms of forced or compulsory labour, among others. It will also forge new links between the two bodies in terms of consultations and exchanging of information and mutual representation at conferences and meetings.

The ILO was created in 1919 and brings together governments, employers and workers of its 174 member States to improve social protection and conditions of life and work throughout the world. The International Labour Office, in Geneva, is the permanent Secretariat of the Organization.

The IPU was established in 1889 and is the world organization of parliaments of sovereign States. The Union brings together the representatives of 138 parliaments for the study of political, legal, economic, social and cultural issues of international significance, and works for peace and co-operation among peoples and for the firm establishment of representative democracy.

* In 1998, the International Labour Conference adopted a solemn ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, reaffirming the commitment of the international community to "respect, to promote and to realize in good faith" the rights of workers and employers to freedom of association and the effective right to collective bargaining, and to work toward the elimination of all forms of forced or compulsory labour, the effective abolition of child labour and the elimination of discrimination in respect of employment and occupation. The Declaration underlines that all ILO member States have an obligation to respect the fundamental principles involved, whether or not they have ratified the relevant conventions.