135 YEARS OF MEMBERSHIP OF HUNGARY
IN THE INTER-PARLIAMENTARY UNION
 

Hungary, one of the nine founding countries of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, celebrated a round anniversary of its membership in the IPU on 30 June 2024, on the 135th anniversary of the founding of the world organisation of parliaments.
 
The Hungarian legislature has been active in international parliamentary diplomacy and cooperation since the beginning, guided by the conviction that dialogue between the world's legislators is key to tackling global challenges. Hungarian legislators have played a proactive role in the establishment and successful functioning of the IPU since its inception. So far, eight Hungarian MPs have been elected to the Executive Committee, the apex body of the IPU. In the period 2019-2022, Hungary's delegate chaired the IPU's Committee to Promote Respect for International Humanitarian Law, and between 2019-2023 Hungary was a member and then Vice-Chair of the IPU's High-Level Advisory Board on Terrorism and Violent Extremism.
 
The Hungarian National Assembly has hosted the General Assembly of the IPU three times since its foundation in 1889: the 7th IPU Conference in Budapest in 1896, the 32nd in 1936 and the 81st (centenary) IPU Conference in March 1989, held on the occasion of the 100th anniversary of the founding of the international organisation.
 
In addition to the world conferences, Budapest has also hosted a number of IPU political events: in 2004, the Preparatory Committee of the World Conference of the Speakers of Parliaments held its meeting in Budapest, while in 2009 the Hungarian legislature hosted the Bureau of the Global Centre for Information and Communication Technologies in Parliament. Meetings on international security issues were held in Budapest in 1983, on the global situation and rights of children in 1993, and on the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with a particular focus on climate change and water in 2017. On the occasion of the latter, the Hungarian IPU Group published the IPU "Parliamentary Action Plan on Climate Change" in Hungarian. A Hungarian poster exhibition entitled "Youth for Sustainable Development" was presented at the 136th IPU General Assembly in Bangladesh.
 
In June 2019, the President and the Secretary General of the IPU paid an official visit to Hungary to participate in the parliamentary commemoration and the issue of a parliamentary stamp block to mark the 130th anniversary of the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the IPU membership of the National Assembly. Following its opening in Budapest, a photo exhibition in Hungarian and English on the IPU's history and the National Assembly's activities in the IPU was also presented at the UN Headquarters in New York in July 2019.
 
On the occasion of the 135th anniversary of the IPU and Hungary's membership of the IPU, a celebratory meeting and IPU exhibition will be held in the Parliament House in the autumn of 2024 with the participation of the President of the Inter-Parliamentary Union.
 
The core principles of the IPU - democracy, strong parliamentary institutions, peace and security, and international cooperation - remain as relevant today as they were 135 years ago.
Hungary has been a strong and active supporter of the core values of the Inter-Parliamentary Union since its inception to leave a better world for future generations, and has been a key supporter of the full implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and solid and effective action against climate change. National parliaments, as the primary representative bodies of the people, must work for a sustainable planet and a more liveable world, always bearing in mind the interests of the most vulnerable.
Dialogue between the world's parliamentarians is an opportunity to find common answers to the most pressing problems of our time. This cooperation between parliaments - and their permanent forum, the Inter-Parliamentary Union - and the exchange of experiences using all the possible tools of parliamentary diplomacy guarantees our future.

THE HUNGARIAN NATIONAL ASSEMBLY

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The Hungarian Parliament is unicameral; 199 members are elected every four years in a mixed election system of party lists and single-member constituencies. Representatives are elected directly in single-round elections. Hungarian citizens living abroad also have the right to vote in the parliamentary elections. National minorities living in Hungary are represented in Parliament by their right to stand for election and for their representative to obtain a priority mandate, failing which they may delegate a national minority advocate.

The National Assembly exercises classic parliamentary powers: in addition to adopting the Constitution, legislation and the budget, it elects civil servants and exercises democratic government oversight. Members of parliament work "full-time", with few exceptions no other form of employment is allowed.

The last parliamentary elections were held on 3 April 2022; 9 parties secured seats in Parliament. One German nationality MP obtained a mandate, while 11 nationality advocates represent other nationalities (Bulgarian, Greek, Croatian, Polish, Armenian, Romanian, Ruthenian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovene, and Ukrainian) living in Hungary. The next parliamentary elections will take place in the spring of 2026.
 

THE HOUSE OF THE NATION
Budapest, Hungary

The Parliament House, the home of the Hungarian legislature, is one of the most beautiful buildings in the world.

Built between 1885-1902 to the design of Imre Steindl, the huge neo-Gothic palace is a testimony to the greatness of the Hungarian spirit and domestic industry.

For over one hundred and twenty years, the House of Parliament has been the home of the nation's legislature, the National Assembly. The building, which has experienced happy and uplifting moments and a century of turbulent and tragic events, presents itself to visitors in all its splendour.

The design of the building represents a conscious choice of symbols, carrying important historical and political messages. The neo-Gothic building, built at the end of the 19th century, is one of the most prominent sights of Budapest's panorama, with its waterfront location and size. The Parliament House is the third largest parliament building in the world, and not only the most visited building in Hungary but also one of the ten most popular attractions in the world according to Tripadvisor in 2018. The Hungarian Holy Crown and the coronation regalia, one of Europe's oldest coronation jewels, have been displayed in the Parliament since 1 January 2000.

THE INTER-PARLIAMENTARY UNION (IPU)

The Inter-Parliamentary Union is the world's oldest international political organisation, a forum for exchanging views and dialogue between parliaments. It currently comprises the legislatures of 180 sovereign states and their 46,000 members.

British pacifist William Randal Cremer and French pacifist Frédéric Passy founded the IPU.

The first conference, held in Paris on 29-30 June 1889, was attended by delegates from 9 countries (Belgium, Denmark, France, Liberia, Hungary, Italy, Great Britain, Spain, United States). Dr. Viktor Hagara of Magosliget, the MP for the district of Nagyszőlős, an eminent jurist and humanist thinker who spoke five languages, attended the founding conference on behalf of the Hungarian Parliament of the time. In addition to the French and English founders, six other prominent IPU leaders have been awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. In 2018, the United Nations General Assembly designated 30 June as the International Day of Parliamentarism, also known as World Parliament Day.

The primary mission of the IPU is to strengthen democracy in the world through the development of parliamentarism and parliamentary institutions. It expresses its views on international issues that can be resolved through parliamentary action and takes action when a member country arbitrarily restricts its members from exercising the rights related to their mandate. In addition to political and security issues, it also deals with human rights, regional, environmental, population and health issues. The Inter-Parliamentary Union works closely with the United Nations, supporting its objectives and efforts. In addition to the UN, there is regular cooperation with other parliamentary and intergovernmental organisations whose activities are inspired by similar principles and ideals.

The Inter-Parliamentary Union is a predecessor to all existing parliamentary and intergovernmental organisations, having initiated, for example, the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague. Multilateral negotiations in the IPU format, aimed at consolidating peace, gave rise to the League of Nations, the forerunner of the United Nations.
 

THE HOUSE OF PARLIAMENTS –
The Inter-Parliamentary Union headquarters
in Geneva, Switzerland

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The first headquarters of the IPU was in the Swiss capital, Bern, before moving to the Grand-Saconnex district of Geneva at the end of 2002. The building, known as the "House of Parliaments", offers a unique architectural blend of modernity and tradition.

Originally called Villa Gardiol, the mansion was constructed in 1908 by architect Marc Camoletti. Its huge Germanic roof with truncated corners attests to a Swiss classicism that was somewhat foreign to local Geneva traditions.
 
When the IPU acquired the building and started its renovation with the help of the Swiss authorities, every effort was made to preserve the exceptional features of this compact but spacious building. Reconstruction plans were the creation of Lausanne-based architects Ueli Brauen and Doris Waelchli, who adapted an existing mansion to the contemporary requirements of the IPU offices. The villa was given a careful facelift that respected both its history and materials. A contemporary split-level annexe was built adjacent to the base of the villa to house meeting rooms, a foyer, a library and other facilities. This architectural solution evokes the Inter-Parliamentary Union itself, with its establishment more than a century ago, its evolution, and finally, the current global expansion, which in no way alters its foundations.

The compound also includes an annexe building which hosts the IPU Archive Centre. The Centre was restored with the support of the French Parliament and bears the name of Frédéric Passy, a French parliamentarian and pacifist who was one of the two co-founders of the IPU.