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Visit
of the Hon’ble Speaker to IPS
On
5th June 2000, the Hon’ble Speaker formally visited
the Institute of Parliamentary Studies to assess its
development. Escorted by Senior Officials of the
Parliament Secretariat and consultants of the
‘Strengthening Parliamentary Democracy’ Project
(Parliament/UNDP), the Hon’ble Speaker received a
detailed briefing on the activities of the Computer
Centre of the IPS, which initiated its activities on the
14th May, 2000.
This
was followed by a guided tour of the facilities of the
IPS, including the Offices for the Institute, the
Seminar Room and the Parliamentary Printing Press.
The Hon’ble Speaker expressed his satisfaction
at what had been achieved to date, while also urging
that further activities be launched as soon as possible
and requesting a wide dissemination of information on
activities to the Hon’ble MPs.
Computerisation
of Bangladesh Parliament
As
one first step towards the computerisation of the
Bangladesh Parliament, the IPS computer orientation
courses were launched on 14 May 2000. Beginning with the
Secretariat Staff, batches of twelve students have been
selected, and three batches have now successfully
completed the three weeks course.
The course contains 9 modules including MS Word,
Ms Excel, Power Point, Internet, and E-mail. All
sessions are designed to impart both theoretical and
practical training. The participants of the first batch
represented class II and III support staff of Library,
Printing and Publication, and Administration Departments
of the Parliament Secretariat. A second batch included
class I officials of different Departments of the
Secretariat ranging from Assistant Secretary to Deputy
Secretary. Besides class sessions, each participant has
been able to utilise practice sessions for upto two
hours per day.
Computer
Orientation for MPs
The
computer orientation for Hon’ble MPs was initiated on
11th June 2000, following an invitation sent to all
Members from the Hon’ble Speaker. Thirty Members have
so far enlisted for the programme. For MPs, six Modules
have been selected: an introduction to personal
computer, MS word, MS Excel, Internet, E-mail, and Ms
Project. Any
Hon’ble MP wishing to know more information on the
programme are encouraged to contact the IPS (tel:
8124128).
Computer
User’s Centre
One
of the priority needs expressed in the recently
completed survey on the computerisation of the
Parliament was the need to enhance access of Hon’ble
Members and their staff to computer facilities.
As one means of meeting this need, a Computer
User’s Centre has recently been established in the
Bangladesh Parliament Library. Modern computer and
printing equipment is now available for use by Hon’ble
Members. All
Hon’ble Members can utilise free access to the
Internet from these computers and, in the near future,
will be provided with a personal e-mail account.
For
further information on the use of the Centre and for any
guidance needed, Hon’ble Members are kindly requested
to contact the Director (Library and Research, tel:
9116514) or the IPS
(tel: 8124126).
First
IPS Monograph
Rulings
of the Speakers of Bangladesh Parliament
The
first of the IPS Monographs has recently been completed.
The Monograph is edited and compiled by Mr. Harunur
Rashid, Law Officer of the Parliament Secretariat, with
the assistance of Mr. Kazi Tauhid Hasan, Director
(Library & Research). The volume contains the
Rulings of the Speakers which have been gathered
following extensive library research, with the Hansard
from the Sangsad Library acting as the main source of
information. As a methodological tool, Mr. Rashid and
Mr. Hasan examined the contextual relevance of the
Rulings and provided footnotes to make reference to such
relevance.
The
publication of this Monograph will enrich the available
knowledge-base on parliamentary democracy in Bangladesh.
The Rulings of the Speakers are widely regarded by the
legislators as the "highest legislative judgement".
In parliamentary democracy, Legislative Rulings are also
known as "Case Law", which cannot be altered
or reviewed, because Rulings become parliamentary
precedents and, as such, precedents have the force of
law. The Rulings, which become binding upon the Hon'ble
MPs, therefore need to be thoroughly studied and
conceptualised by its users - the parliamentarians.
Publications on Rulings of Speakers are made almost in
all parliamentary democracies.
The
Monograph of Mr. Rashid will be first book of its kind
in Bangladesh and it is hoped that it will prove to be
of considerable benefit to the Hon'ble MPs.
It will soon be published and presented by the
IPS, both in Bangla and English versions.
Orientation
on IPS Audiovisual Media
The
IPS will shortly be launching an Audiovisual
Communication Orientation Programme for MPs, in
collaboration with Ekushey Television. The orientation
will provide guidance for senior political leaders on
the specific skills needed for participating in
television interviews, press conferences, debates or
round-table discussions. This will be achieved through
short courses, encompassing theoretical instruction with
a large portion of practical interactive demonstrations,
utilising both mobile electronic news gathering (ENG)
units and the television studio.
The
partnership with ETV has been developed given the
importance placed on increasing opportunities for
balanced and fair political dialogue in the media,
particularly in the run-up to election campaigns. This
will considerably increase the opportunities MPs have to
relate directly with the public and also to debate their
political positions in a public forum. Individual
programmes will be made available to the Hon. Prime
Minister, Hon. Leader of the Opposition and Hon. Speaker
and small-group programmes will be available for Hon.
Ministers, Committee Chairmen, Chief Whips, Whips, and
female MPs.
Update
on the IPS Activities
Following
the completion of the Needs Assessment (see June
Newsletter), a Pilot Programme of Activities for the
Institute of Parliamentary Studies (IPS) has recently
been approved. The purpose of the Pilot Programme is
two-fold:
(a)
to begin a process towards building an environment in
which Hon'ble MPs can interact on issues of governance
and parliamentary democracy, and
(b)
to enhance knowledge and skill
of
Parliamentary Staff to enable them to effectively
support Parliamentarians to discharge their
responsibilities in the House and the Committees.
With
these goals in perspective, the IPS Pilot Programme
focuses on distinct activities for the Hon’ble MPs and
for the Staff of the Parliament Secretariat.
Programmes
for Hon'ble MPs
With
an aim to provide the Hon'ble MPs the opportunities for
dialogue and cross-country interaction, the IPS will
organise International Conferences as a regular
activity. The
first of these was held in May 1999 and a further
Conference is scheduled for October 2000. The
Conference, which will be jointly organised by UNDP and
the World Bank, is tentatively entitled: ‘The
Bangladesh Parliament in the 21st Century’.
In
addition to the series of Conferences, eminent
personalities will also be invited to deliver evening
lectures and participate in round table sessions to
which all Hon'ble MPs will be invited, as well as
selected representatives of academia, civil society, and
general public, providing opportunities to exchange
experiences on a range of topics with local and
international resource presenters.
Foundation
Training for Staff
The
core objective of the Pilot Foundation Training
Programme is to acquaint the Parliamentary Staff with
Parliamentary Practices and Procedures. The Parliament,
as the siege of people’s sovereignty, needs to be
supported by staff who have a thorough knowledge of not
only the Constitution of the country and the unique role
of the Parliament, but also specialised skills for the
effective discharge of their duties. With these
objectives in mind, the Foundation Training has been
designed in nine modules, spread over a total of 39
sessions.
The
start of the Foundation Programme is tentatively
scheduled for August 2000. Resource Persons for
delivering training will be drawn from the Hon'ble MPs,
senior officials and academics.
Communicative
English Course
Addressing
the needs of the Secretariat Staff, the IPS will also
shortly offer a Communicative English Course. The
Institute is currently reviewing modules used in
different language institutes and training academies. A
suitable English Language Training Module will be
prepared and the institutional arrangements for
delivering the training will then be finalised.
Legislative
Information Centre
The
Legislative Information Centre (LIC) of the Bangladesh
Parliament Secretariat is being established through the
modernisation of the current Bangladesh Parliament
Library. This modernization process will have a direct
effect on the availability of the access to information
for the Hon’ble Members and supporting staff.
Activities in the library were initiated early this year
and will conclude by the end of the year with a fully
modernised and computerised Legislative Information
Centre for the Bangladesh Parliament Secretariat.
One
of the most immediate and visible modernization steps
has been procurement of computer equipment and
peripherals for the LIC, including a powerful network
server. Less visible is the user-friendly and
internationally recognised graphical library software,
which is being installed. The software is able to deal
with ordering, cataloguing, circulation and other
necessary library process simultaneously and by multiple
users.
Following
the installation of the equipment, the library staff,
under the guidance of their Director, Mr. Kazi Tauhid
Hasan and with the support of the UNOPS Consultant, Dr.
Fazlul Alam, are involved in an intensive process of
converting the current manual cataloguing system into a
computerised and bar-coded catalogue system. To assist
in this process, a four-month training program for the
staff has been initiated. The result will be an easily
accessible and up-to-date catalogue, allowing all users
to immediately determine what books exists in the
library and if the books are currently available for
borrowing. For the library staff, the result will be
more accurate and up-to-date catalogue, allowing them to
more effectively assist their clients, to more easily
maintain the catalogue, and to closely monitor
acquisitions and requests for procurement of volumes.
The
LIC has also established Internet services, with a main
Internet server and a Remote Access Server (RAS). The
main Internet server is connected to the library server,
as well as to the Institute of Parliamentary Studies (IPS)
and computer User’s Centre. Through the Internet,
users will be able to access the LIC Websites, which is
directly linked to the existing Bangladesh Parliament
Website. The Website provides users access to the
catalogue of the LIC, to select digitised documentation
and links to other websites from any remote site via the
Internet.
In
addition to the cataloguing, a number of priority
documents are currently being transformed from paper
copies to digitised copies. This will allow these
volumes to be easily available in computerised form and
will ensure that they are safely preserved for the
future.
A
final step in the conservation of the Bangladesh
Parliament Library into a Legislative Information Centre
will be the installation of new furniture, allowing the
library to be organised in a more user-friendly style. A
reception hall will be established, providing the
central Information Desk of the LIC. Access to computer
terminals and Internet will be possible from convenient
locations through out the library and Hon’ble MPs will
have their exclusive terminals available within the MPs
reading room.
The
Czech Parliamentary Institute
After
return of democracy in Czechoslovakia, a Parliamentary
Institute was established as the research department of
the Czechoslav Parliament. The Institute began its
activities on November 6, 1991 by the Order, January 1,
1991 of the Presidium of the Federal Assembly of
Czechoslavakia. The Institute aims to provide
information, conduct research activities and provide
advisory support to
the Federal Czechoslav Assembly. After the Federal
Czechoslav Republic was divided into Czech and Slovak
Republics, the activities of the Institute and its human
resources were transfered to the Czech Parliament. From
March 1993 the Institute was recognized as part of the
Office of the Chamber
of Deputies (MPs) .
Organization
and Human Resource
In
September 1995 the Parliamentary Institute was
recognized as an individual department as per the Rules
of Procedures 90/1995, which was passed on April 19,
1995. At present there are six officials in the
Institute. Among them are two lawyers, two economists
and two research assistants, who are carrying out the
activities of the Institute.
Resources
In
the Assembly Building of the former Federal Republic of
Czechoslavakia, there exists a small reference library
where a total of 20 Daily Newspapers and Magazines are
kept for the Members of the Parliament. Besides,
Parliamentary Institute avails of all the facilities of
the Czech Parliamentary Library.The Institute also uses
the computer network of the Chamber of the Deputies.
Through this Network, the researchers of the Institute
get access to various books, documents, research papers
and reports of the West European Parliaments, European
Union, Non- Governmental Research Organizations,
Libraries, Foreign Missions, Universities and Czech
Ministries, which they use for their own research
activities.
Contribution
The
Institute regularly publishes reports on the Czech
economy, which are used by the Deputies of the
Parliament. Apart from this, the researchers of the
Institute also produce research papers and database
information at the request of the Deputies. The
important documents are published on the computer
network established for the Chamber of Deputies, which
the Deputies and Parliament Officers get access to
through their own computers. Any new report or
information is disseminated to the Deputies through the
Notice Board of the Institute, the computer Network and
through the Parliamentary Library. Along with this, all
the research work and documents are sent to the Deputies
at the end of each year. In some cases external
researchers or experts are assigned to do some work. The
establishment of the Institute particularly benefits the
Committees, Deputies and Officers of the Czech
Parliament.
Visit
of Hon. Speaker of Malaysia to IPS
The
Hon. Speaker of Malaysia, Mr. Tun Mohamed Zahir bin Haji
Ismail, accompanied by the Hon. High Commissioner of
Malaysia in Bangladesh and the Malaysian Parliament
Delegation, visited the Institute of Parliamentary
Studies on 6th June.
Escorted by the Additional Secretary
(Implementation) of the Bangladesh Parliament
Secretariat and the Project Staff of the
‘Strengthening Parliamentary Democracy’ Project, the
Hon. Speaker was informed about the activities of the
Institute. In
particular, he appraised the set-up of the Parliamentary
Printing Press and commented that, in the Malaysian
House, there exists a similar service allowing
parliamentarians to receive hard-copies of the
proceedings of the Parliament of the day before.
The distinguished guest included the visit of the
IPS following his courtesy call on the Hon. Speaker of
the Bangladesh Parliament and prior to his call on the
Hon. Prime Minister, Sheikh Hasina.
If you want to
contact the IPS Newsletter, please write to:
Board of
Editors
Institute of
Parliamentary Studies
Jatiya Sangsad
Sher-e-Bangla
Nagar, Dhaka-1207
Fax: 8124126 -
Tel: 8124127
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