The Commonwealth Conversation

Danny says sorry for his silence, and compares our interviews with the Australian and British Foreign Ministers.

The Hon. Steven Smith MP, Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs, tells the Commonwealth Conversation that the association shouldn’t be shy about focussing on its core strength – democracy. Do you agree?

Former Australian Prime Minister, The Rt. Hon. John Howard, talks about Zimbabwe and Fiji in an interview conducted by the RCS.

President Nasheed of the Maldives thinks the Commonwealth should be procatively encouraging democracy and redefining international relations in respect to climate change.

Sir Paul Reeves, the Commonwealth Secretary-General’s Special Representative on Fiji, says that the suspension of Fiji from the Commonwealth does not mean the expulsion of her people. In an interview just prior to his visit to Fiji on 8-9 September 2009, Sir Paul, who is the former Governor-General of New Zealand, said that he hopes the Commonwealth can continue to offer assistance in restoring democratic governance in Fiji.

On the day Fiji is fully suspended from the Commonwealth, Dr. Mere Tuisalalo Samisoni, legal elected member of Lami Open Consituency in 2006, gives his thoughts:

Considerable rumours circulated worldwide this week about the imminence of Fiji’s full suspension from the Commonwealth at the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) held today, Friday 31st July, in London. However at the meeting, CMAG’s 9 Foreign Ministers agreed to give the Fijian regime 1 more month to reactivate the President?s Political Dialogue Forum process, facilitated by the Commonwealth and the United Nations.

Have you read the Commonwealth’s 1991 Harare Declaration, which defines the association’s fundamental political values. Does your country live up to them?

Amitav Banerji, Director of Political Affairs at the Commonwealth Secretariat, says ‘promoting democracy is a powerful raison d’etre for the Commonwealth in the 21st century’.