H.M. The Queen, Head of the Commonwealth, highlighted the Commonwealth’s Relevance in its 60th Anniversary Year during her 2009 Christmas Broadcast.  Her speech also featured video interviews with delegates at the Commonwealth Youth Forum in Trinidad and Tobago.

It is sixty years since the Commonwealth was created and today, with more than a billion of its members under the age of 25, the organisation remains a strong and practical force for good. Recently I attended the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Trinidad and Tobago and heard how important the Commonwealth is to young people. New communication technologies allow them to reach out to the wider world and share their experiences and viewpoints. For many, the practical assistance and networks of the Commonwealth can give skills, lend advice and encourage enterprise.

It is inspiring to learn of some of the work being done by these young people, who bring creativity and innovation to the challenges they face. It is important to keep discussing issues that concern us all – there can be no more valuable role for our family of nations.

I have been closely associated with the Commonwealth through most of its existence. The personal and living bond I have enjoyed with leaders, and with people the world over, has always been more important in promoting our unity than symbolism alone. The Commonwealth is not an organisation with a mission. It is rather an opportunity for its people to work together to achieve practical solutions to problems.

In many aspects of our lives, whether in sport, the environment, business or culture, the Commonwealth connection remains vivid and enriching. It is, in lots of ways, the face of the future. And with continuing support and dedication, I am confident that this diverse Commonwealth of nations can strengthen the common bond that transcends politics, religion, race and economic circumstances.

The Commonwealth Conversation is a global public consultation on the future of the Commonwealth which, so far, has engaged tens of thousands of people worldwide. Emerging findings were published last week ahead of the CHOGM in a report entitled ‘Common What?’. The report called for the Commonwealth to be bold in rebuilding its worryingly low profile, by focusing on three Ps: Principles, Priorities and People.

In the Trinidad & Tobago Affirmation on Commonwealth Values and Principles released yesterday, leaders took note of many of the major findings of the Conversation:

• They recognised the need to ‘enhance the public profile of the organisation’ and underscored ‘the importance of coherence in order to protect the Commonwealth’s image and credibility’.

• They restated the core values and principles of the Commonwealth, recognised the vital role of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) as their custodian, and called on CMAG ‘to explore ways in which it could effectively deal with the full range of serious or persistent violations of such values by member states’.

• They called for the Commonwealth Secretary-General to ‘consolidate and further strengthen ongoing efforts to improve the Secretariat’s governance [and] its responsiveness to changing priorities and needs’.

• They recognised the importance of the people in the Commonwealth and they ‘committed to securing a greater level of coordination and collaboration between all Commonwealth contributors and stake-holders, particularly including governments, civil society, business, the diversity of commonwealth professional and other associations that bring together our citizens, academia and others’.

The full declaration can be downloaded here

Read the Press Release that accompanied the launch of the Commonwealth Conversation Emerging Findings 

The one time we were supposed to hear what was going on – at a press conference with Prime Minister Manning and the Commonwealth Secretary-General – was cancelled yesterday evening. Many people are saying that this is because leaders and officials have not reached agreement on the sensitive issues at the summit which seem to be climate change, Rwanda’s membership, and whether Sri Lanka will be hosting the next CHOGM. In fact, I hear that Rwanda’s membership was supposed to have been announced on Thursday. If President Kagame is, as rumoured, lounging incognito by a pool in Port of Spain, he will have to wait some more.

The highlight for many on Friday was the presence of France’s President Sarkozy. This is being spun as great news for the Commonwealth. I am not so sure. In his press conference, the only real reference Sarkozy made to the Commonwealth was to say how happy he was to be here. The rest of it was about climate change and French domestic matters. This has the potential to distract leaders and the media. In fact, I hear that Sarkozy met the Indian Prime Minister for lunch yesterday. That’s great but it does mean that Dr Singh has one less hour to spend with Commonwealth leaders.

I am told that there’s another press conference scheduled for today. Let’s hope they actually turn up this time. In the meantime, I am off to see what civil society says to Foreign Ministers.

The day started with a bang, after one of the local papers ran a front page headline saying “Commonwealth Irrelevant”. Unfortunately, the headline writer must have missed the critical words “risks becoming” in our press release. You can’t win them all.

The big day looms tomorrow, with the official opening due to start at 10am. The only hitch is that we’re supposed to be seated by 7.30am!! For those of you who follow us on twitter (DannyRCS), I promise you up-to-the-minute coverage of what goes on in the 2.5 hour wait. Unless I’ve fallen asleep that is…

The bad news is that all Commonwealth institutions share the burden of raising the Commonwealth’s profile. Member states need to invest more time or money, leaders need to come up with bold statements at their summits, the Secretary-General needs to be out and about more, intergovernmental institutions need to show they are effective and civil society organisations need to devise innovative programmes that have a wider appeal.

Meanwhile, the stream of leaders arriving in Trinidad is turning into a flood. I am told that there were no fewer than 13 motorcades waiting outside the BA plane that arrived here last night. And true CHOGM groupies can keep track of who’s on the red carpet via a live video feed from the airport that’s being aired at the conference venue. Riveting stuff.

But there’s apparently one leader who has shunned the formalities on arrival. Rumour has it that the Rwandan President Paul Kagame has been in Trinidad since Monday lounging anonymously by a pool somewhere until Rwanda’s membership application is considered by CHOGM on Friday. So watch out for a magically appearing 54th leader tomorrow.

I have been struck by two things. First, that the scale of what will transpire over the next few days in Port of Spain is unimaginable, at least by local standards. The Commonwealth will deliver some 50 leaders with entourages, delegates for Business, People’s and Youth Forums, and a whole range of associated events. After only a day in Trinidad I get a sense of how big the Commonwealth really is.

The second is the ‘shopping list syndrome’ that seems to afflict many in the Commonwealth. Even in these few hours, I have heard from prominent speakers that the Commonwealth must focus on every issue under the sun. While I agree that the Commonwealth has to be flexible to deal with the issues of the day, do we really want our leaders to examine small business development or talk about counter-terrorism in their short time together? No, I hope this CHOGM will be focused on clear goals.

But, then again, it is the end of day one of CHOGM one…

This post is written for the Commonwealth Conversation by journalist Derek Ingram

At the last Commonwealth summit in Kampala in 2007 heads of government endorsed a report that updated the rules for countries wanting to join the Commonwealth.

So far the only country admitted that has no historic connection whatever with the UK or any other Commonwealth member is Mozambique, which was a Portuguese colony, joined in 1995, and has been a successful model.

Cameroon, also admitted in 1995, had before independence been part British and part Nigerian. Namibia, once German and then a trust territory under South Africa, became a member in 1990, even before South Africa’s return.

The membership report, produced under the chairmanship of former Jamaica prime minister P.G. Patterson, laid out more explicitly, and even tightened, the qualifications for applicants without historical connections, but in accepting it the Heads added some leeway. They said that “in exceptional circumstances” applications could be “considered on a case-by-case basis.”

However, applicants had to comply with the values, principles and priorities set out in Commonwealth declarations made over the years. They must show a commitment, inter alia, to democratic processes, free and fair elections and representative legislatures, the rule of law, protection of human rights, and freedom of expression.

For many years now several countries have been knocking on the Commonwealth door. Even Algeria has shown interest. 

The most pressing case is Rwanda, which before independence was under German and then Belgian rule.

It is adjacent to Tanzania, Kenya and Uganda, is now teaching English in its schools and has even started playing cricket. But it hardly adheres to Commonwealth standards as required. It is not democratic and its people do not enjoy freedom of expression.

Rwanda has a champion in neighbouring Uganda. Presidents Yoweri Museveni and Paul Kagame of Rwanda are longtime comrades in arms. Museveni, as host of the last CHOGM, is until the November one in Trinidad, chairperson of the Commonwealth.

The most fervent supporter of  Rwanda’s membership is the UK for reasons that are still not entirely clear.

The Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) sent the eminent international lawyer Yash Ghai on a mission to Rwanda to discover whether it fulfils the Commonwealth requirements. 

His thorough report finds Rwanda does not satisfy the test of Commonwealth values. It says its government “has not hesitated to use violence at home and abroad when it has suited it.”

The reaction of many people is to point out that some member countries of long-standing still do not measure up to these values.

This is no answer. There is no point in the Commonwealth adding to its problems.

In fact, Cameroon was admitted too early and for years now the Secretary-General’s envoys have been trying to get a more democratic situation there. (Paul Biya has been president for 27 years and wants to stand next year yet again).

No member will every have totally clean hands, but there is only a handful such as The Gambia, Sri Lanka, Swaziland that present real problems.

Recently years of Commonwealth diplomacy brought to the Maldives good elections and the end of a president who had ruled for 27 years. In this work the Commonwealth does a great job.

On Rwanda it should wait for next year’s presidential elections, send a strong observer group to decide whether they are fair (the last ones were not) and then consider the application at the next CHOGM in 2011.

Anyone who has been a frequent visitor to these pages should have a good idea of the sorts of the things we will be saying. Our report is unashamedly provocative, not because we want to undermine the Commonwealth, but because we believe the Conversation so far should be a wake up call. In the spirit of public consultation, we also believe in reporting what we have been told, even if the truth hurts.

I suspect that our report will ruffle some feathers next week, but I hope it will be received in the constructive spirit we embarked on at the start of this process.

Having engaged tens of thousands of people in thinking about the future of the Commonwealth, for us it would be hugely disappointing if our findings are ignored by leaders in Trinidad. We believe the Conversation should lead to real action, not just a paragraph in a long communiqué, or the renaming of a division in the Commonwealth Secretariat.

Several members of the Conversation team will be in Trinidad, trying to get people to pay attention to our findings. We promise to give you a blow by blow account of how we get on. Watch this space…

This post is taken from an article written by R. Iniyan Ilango, a consultant with the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative. The full article is found here.

He writes that, despite almost every CHOGM since the 1970s making a strong commitment to human rights, the association has consistently failed to fulfil its promises:

“While the 2007 CHOGM at Kampala and the 1999 Law Ministers Meeting underlined the importance of access to information, so far only 15 Commonwealth countries have access to information laws in place.

Twelve years ago in 1997, the CHOGM at Edinburgh expressed the belief that the International Criminal Court (ICC) would be an important development in the international promotion of the rule of law, yet 23 Commonwealth countries have yet to ratify or accede to the Rome Statute.

Two years ago in 2007 at Kampala, the heads of government pledged to end impunity for perpetrators of genocide, crimes against humanity and war crimes. Throughout 2008 and most of 2009 numerous allegations of serious international humanitarian law violations were made against Sri Lanka… despite these doubts the country continued to sit as a CMAG member.

The 1999 CHOGM at Durban, the 2002 CHOGM at Coolum, the 2003 CHOGM at Abuja, the 2005 CHOGM at Malta and the 2007 CHOGM at Kampala have all reiterated the importance of civil society participation. However…Human rights defenders in particular find their activities restricted and curtailed by sometimes subtle, sometimes draconian, legal regulations that target their ability to engage in activities to promote and protect human rights.”

He concludes:

“2009 to 2011 is a historic time for the Commonwealth as 2009 marks the 60th anniversary of the organisation and 2011 marks the 20th anniversary of the Harare Declaration, and the Commonwealth should use this period to demonstrate that its human rights promises really do hold water.”