The Commonwealth and its relations with the other international organizations

The Commonwealth and its relations with
the other international organizations

Historical Background to the Commonwealth

The origins of the Commonwealth The Commonwealth has its origins in the early nineteenth century when British governments began to grant select British colonies to move towards selfgovernment. In due course these colonies rose to dominion status, which allowed them not only internal self-government but also independence in foreign affairs. The use of the term Commonwealth in this relationship is usually traced to the Earl of Roseberry, who first used the term in Australia in 1884 to refer to the British Empire as a Commonwealth of Nations. But a series of declarations and international commitments brought the Commonwealth to its current status. The first of these agreements is the Balfour Declaration of 1926. In the Balfour Declaration at the Imperial Conference in 19264 , Britain and its Dominions agreed that they were equal in status in no way subordinate one to another in any aspect of their domestic or external affairs, though united by common allegiance to the Crown, and freely associated as members of the British Commonwealth of Nations. The parliament of the United Kingdom then passed the Statute of Westminster in 1931 to give the necessary legal backing to dominion arrangements. Canada, Australia, the Irish Free State, South Africa, New Zealand and Newfoundland were dominions under the Statute of Westminster. The Irish Free State left the Commonwealth in 1949 and Newfoundland joined the Canadian Confederation in that year. Meanwhile other moves had taken place in the less Europeanized of the British colonies, leading to independence for India and its partitioning into the two countries of India and Pakistan in 1947. Sri Lanka, under its former name of Ceylon, followed a few months later in 1948. There were to be immediate constitutional repercussions for the British 4 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balfour_Declaration_of_1926_The Balfour Declaration of 1926, issued by the 1926 Imperial Conference of British Empire leaders in London, was named for Lord President of the Council (and former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom) Arthur Balfour.Commonwealth as the new India, while keen to remain a member of the association, had decided that its form of government should place the power with its citizens, or become republican, and not remain monarchical. Clearly this did not fit the model of the Balfour Declaration and at a Meeting of Commonwealth Prime Ministers in 1949, the London Declaration came into being, allowing for countries with republican constitutions to remain members of the Commonwealth while accepting the British Monarch as a symbol for free association of independent member nations and as the head of the Commonwealth. The declaration had two main provisions: It allowed the Commonwealth to admit and retain members that were not Dominions, so including both republics and indigenous monarchies, and it changed the name of the organisation from the British Commonwealth to the Commonwealth of Nations. And it gave India the opportunity to remain a member on becoming a republic. The former term included the device of terminology that would reflect both the developing political independence and the right of countries in the Commonwealth to be republics and the commonality of Allegiance that was the cornerstone of the Balfour Declaration of 1926 and the Statute of Westminster of 1931. The Commonwealth of Nations had been created but no constitution was proposed either then or later for the governance of the association. Membership of the Commonwealth expanded steadily as other countries attained independence. However, not all former colonies joined the Commonwealth: For instance Burma, then Myanmar, became independent in 1947 but like some Middle Eastern countries it did not join the association. Samoa (then Western Samoa) and the 15 Maldives became independent in 1962 and 1965 but joined the Commonwealth only in 1970 and in 1982 respectively. 5 There were other comings and goings. South Africa decided not to make the necessary reapplication for membership upon changing its constitutional status when it became a republic in 1961. Pakistan left in 1972 after Commonwealth members recognized the new state of Bangladesh, which had been carved out of the original Pakistan, and Fiji, like South Africa allowed its membership to lapse after the declaration of a republic following a coup in 1987. All of these have returned to membership, though, in late 2003, Zimbabwe decided to quit the Commonwealth. One country alone, Mozambique, joined the Commonwealth without having previous constitutional links to Britain or any other Commonwealth nation in 1995. This was permitted as a special case in recognition of the contribution of Mozambique to the freedom struggles in southern Africa where it was closely allied, and consequently suffered alongside, its Commonwealth neighbors in that region. Today the Commonwealth has a membership of 53 countries. Over twothirds of these do not recognize the British Monarch as their head of state. Some countries became Commonwealth Republics (a member state of the commonwealth whose government is a republic), and others became Commonwealth Realms (a member state of the Commonwealth of Nations which recognizes Queen Elizabeth II as their head of state known as the dominions). In terms of population, the Commonwealth now represents some 1.7 billion people of diverse cultures across the globe. It was able to say that the Commonwealth bore no resemblance to the empire of the past, but is an entirely new conception built on the highest qualities of the spirit of man: friendship, loyalty and the desire for freedom and peace.

The Commonwealth structure 

Meetings of the Heads of Government Commonwealth Heads of Government meetings (CHOGM) are held every two years to discuss international development and consider ways in which cooperation between members can be improved. The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meetings are the successor to the Meetings of Commonwealth Prime Ministers and earlier Imperial conferences and colonial conferences dating back to 1887. A number of declarations have also been issued on the occasions of these meetings which are the main decisions-making forum of the organization. The head of government hosting the Head of Government Meeting is called the Commonwealth Chairperson-in-office, and retains the position until the following Commonwealth Head of Government Meeting. No votes are taken; decisions are reached by consensus among members. And a number of the declarations of the Commonwealth are issued on these occasions, the most important are: the Declaration of Commonwealth Principles in 1971; the Gleneagles Agreement on Sporting Contacts with South Africa in 1977; the Lusaka Declaration on Racism and Racial Prejudice in 1979; the Commonwealth Accord on South Africa in 1985; the Vancouver Declaration on World Trade and the Okanagan Statement on South Africa in 1987; and the declarations on environment( Langkawi Declaration) and on South Africa in 1989; and the Harare Declaration on the Future of the Commonwealth in 1991.6 Important Declarations accompanying the communiqués for the Commonwealth over the last fifteen years have included:  This declaration reaffirmed Commonwealth principles originally set down in 1971 in the Singapore Declaration and made a robust stand against terrorism, promised to pursue measures to make the equality of women and their full participation in public life a reality, made specific decisions related to the promotion of sustainable development, and stressed the promotion of democracy. The Millbrook (New Zealand) Declaration of 1995: In this declaration, Commonwealth leaders decided that firm action would be taken against members who did not uphold the Harare principles, even by suspension of participation at Commonwealth meetings or with complete suspension from the Commonwealth. As a result, a rapid action force was set up under the name of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG). The Limassol (Cyprus) Declaration of 1993, The Edinburgh (Scotland, UK) Declaration of 1997, and the Fancourt (South Africa) Declaration of 1999: These declarations dealt with economic matters, globalization and peoplecantered development. The Coolum (Australia) Declaration of 2002: This document gave new vision and structure for the Commonwealth in the 21st Century. The Aso Rock (Nigeria) Declaration of 2003: A meeting of high-powered experts on development and democracy stressed the necessity for development efforts to take a pro-poor stance. CHOGM gave its support for such matters as a successful conclusion to the Doha Round of negotiations on multilateral trade. CHOGM also asked Commonwealth countries to continue to take action in support of the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goals. The Malta Declaration of 2005, entitled ‘Networking the Commonwealth for Development’, recognized information and communications technologies as instruments of development rather than as ends in themselves and affirmed the resolve of Heads of Government to bridge and close the digital divide.  The Commonwealth Secretariat 19 The responsibility for putting the instructions of CHOGM into action falls on the Commonwealth Secretariat. This is a small body, in international terms, comprising just over 250 staff. It is nonetheless the largest such entity in the Commonwealth. Apart from servicing CHOGM, the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) and the regular ministerial meetings, it functions to aid all aspects of human endeavour in Commonwealth countries. The Secretariat runs consultative events and training and development activities that are conducted in fields ranging from political affairs and diplomacy to economic affairs and education, from health, gender equality, and youth matters to management development. The Secretariat has been able to recruit specialized staff of high calibre, often by secondment of senior government officials familiar with international operations at high levels. One of the most visible activities of the Secretariat has been the organization of Commonwealth Election Observer Groups (COGs). These missions to monitor the transparency of elections are undertaken with the agreement of the country where elections are being held and, most often, it is on a request from that country that these are initiated. An assessment mission before the election establishes that the observers can go wherever they want and have access to all stages of the process, which is vital to making judgements on the election’s credibility. The observers look to see whether there is free expression by the electors and determine if the election results reflect the wishes of the people, and the election is considered in the context of the democratic process as a whole. The Secretariat also runs a development assistance scheme known as the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation (CFTC). This scheme arranges for sharing Commonwealth skills for the common good through training schemes, expert placements and many other innovative approaches developed over its 30 years of operation. CFTC works with a small budget coming from the contributions made by the association’s members to achieve its 20 goals. Particular attention is given by the Secretariat to the problems of the Small States of the Commonwealth. The secretary-general is elected by the Heads of Government at the Commonwealth Heads of Government meetings for terms of four years; previously, until 2000, a term was five years. The current secretary-general India’s Kamalesh Sharma, who replaced Don McKinnon as secretary-general on 1 April 2008. The Commonwealth Secretariat was founded in 1965. The five Commonwealth Secretaries General up to date have been Arnold Smith (1965- 75), Shridath Ramphal (1975-90), Emeka Anyaoku (1990-2000), Don McKinnon (2000-2008) and Kamalesh Sharma (2008- ). The secretary-general is assisted by two deputy secretaries-general: one responsible for economic affairs (currently Ransford Smith of Jamaica) and one for political affairs (Mmasekgoa Masire-Mwamba of Botswana). He is also assisted by an assistant secretary-general for corporate affairs Stephen Cutts. There are ten directors from the Commonwealth Secretariat. The secretarygeneral may appoint junior staff at his own discretion, provided the Secretariat can afford it, whilst the more senior staff may be appointed only from a shortlist of nominations from the Heads of Government. In practice, the secretary-general has more power than this; member governments consult the secretary-general on nominations, and the secretary-general has also at times submitted nominations of his own. And The Secretariat’s headquarter is at Marlborough House, in London, the United Kingdom. Marlborough House is located on Pall Mall, Westminster, next to St. James’s Palace, which is formally the location of the British Royal Court. Marlborough House was previously a royal palace in its own right, but was given by Queen Elizabeth II, the Head of the Commonwealth, to the British government in September 1959 for use for Commonwealth purposes. This was first realised three years later. Another three years later, in 1965, the building passed to the Secretariat upon its foundation. 21 The cost of the Secretariat is met by member governments: contributions are related to their capacity to pay and are based on population and national income. Britain makes the most important contribution, followed by Canada, after come Australia, India, New Zealand. The Commonwealth Secretariat can respond rapidly to request for short and long-term technical assistance, using the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Cooperation (CFTC) as a primary mechanism for delivering assistance. This provision is often used to deepen capacity in an area of work that the Commonwealth Secretariat has both developed and piloted or can otherwise offer expertise.  The Queen as head of the commonwealth At a Prime Ministers’ meeting in 1949, Commonwealth countries recognized Queen Elisabeth II as the Head of the Commonwealth: This formula was devised by Canadian Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent when India became a republic within the Commonwealth in 1950, recognising George VI as the symbol of the free association, but not as its head of state.7 Her role as « Head » of the Commonwealth can be perhaps best likened to that of a ceremonial president or chairman of any other international organization. The title is not vested in the British Crown, and the Commonwealth’s members may not agree that Charles, Prince of Wales, should automatically succeed the Queen as Head of the Commonwealth on his accession to the British throne. A title that is symbolic and represents the free association of member states and as such head of the commonwealth. However when the monarch dies the successor to the crown does not automatically become head of the Commonwealth. The position is symbolic representing the free association of independent members. This definition gave India and other independent states the opportunity to be 7http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Louis_St._Laurent_Louis Stephen St. Laurent, PC, CC, QC (Saint-Laurent or StLaurent in French, baptized Louis-Étienne St-Laurent), (1 February 1882 – 25 July 1973) was the 12th Prime Minister of Canada, from 15 November 1948 to 21 June 1957. 22 both republics or other constitutional variations and members of the Commonwealth in following years. Sixteen members of the Commonwealth recognise the Queen as Head of State known as the Commonwealth realms. When she took the Coronation Oath, Elizabeth II swore: to govern the Peoples of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the Union of South Africa, Pakistan, and Ceylon, and of her Possessions and the other Territories to any of them belonging or pertaining, according to their respective laws and customs. She added on this occasion: the Commonwealth bears no resemblance to the empires of the past. It is an entirely new conception built on the highest qualities of the spirit of man: friendship, loyalty, and the desire for freedom and peace.8 At present the Queen is head of state in Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Britain, Canada, Grenada, Jamaica, Mauritius, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, St Christopher and Nevis, St Lucia, St Vincent and the Grenadines, Salomon Islands and Tuvalu, which are known as Commonwealth Realms. And in countries other than Britain where the Queen is Head of State, she is represented by a Governor-General appointed on the recommendation of the government of the country concerned and wholly independent of the British Government. At a Prime Ministers’ meeting in 1952 they agreed that each member country should use a form of royal title which suited its own circumstances but retained a substantial element common to all. They also agreed that the common element should describe the Sovereign as Queen of her other Realm and Territories and as Head of the Commonwealth.