The Commonwealth needs to be reformed

The biannual Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHGOM) was hosted by Malta from November 27-29, 2015. Surprisingly, the conference did not get enough media coverage and passed off unnoticed. The only news that came through was what Queen Elizabeth II did or said during the conference. 

The Heads of Governments of 53 Commonwealth countries deliberated upon the theme, "The Commonwealth - Adding Global Value". At the end of their serious (?) deliberations, the leaders issued two documents – the 53-paragraph Final Communiqué and a 13-paragraph Statement on Climate Action. 

The Communiqué summarises the deliberations of the leaders under 15 rubrics. Under "Peace and Security," the leaders affirmed that radicalisation, violent extremism and terrorism pose a serious threat to the world and called upon members to counter it. The leaders urged member states to promote and protect all human rights and fundamental freedoms. The Communiqué observed that migration, if properly managed, can deliver economic and social benefits. The heads reaffirmed their commitment to work together to create an enabling environment to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development Goals. The document is full of normative rhetoric.

The "Statement on Climate Action" expressed deep concern at the threat posed by climate change, which continues to grow. The leaders called for the need of an ambitious agreement at COP 21 in Paris  (November 30 – December 11). The leaders welcomed the Commonwealth Green Finance Facility (CGFF) which will support environmental projects in Commonwealth countries. The CGFF will start with a working group bringing together representatives from Australia, Britain, Canada, Malaysia, Nigeria and financial companies including HSBC and PricewaterhouseCoopers. The $1 billion facility will be capitalised initially through "green bonds" and is expected to be fully operational by the end of 2016. The leaders, however, refrained from committing themselves to limit CO2 emissions below 2˚ C. 

The meeting also reorganised the 9-member "Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group" (CMAG), which now includes Cyprus, Guyana, India, Kenya, Namibia, New Zealand, Pakistan, Solomon Island and Malta. Composed of foreign ministers of participating countries, CMAG is mandated to uphold the principles of the Commonwealth. It can punish a member state by suspending it from the Commonwealth for violating core principles. 

At the Malta conference, the leaders appointed the sixth Secretary General of the Commonwealth. There were five candidates from Dominica, Botswana, Guyana, Tanzania and Australia. Baroness Patricia Scotland (60) is the first woman to be chosen for the post. Born in Dominica and raised in Britain, she is a former Attorney General of Britain. The unofficial rule is that the nationality of the Secretary General should be from within the Commonwealth. This time it was the turn of the Caribbean. Patricia's candidacy was proposed by Dominica and she will take over from Kamalesh Sharma (India) in April 2016.

The Commonwealth of late has come under criticism for being irrelevant and unfamiliar to many member countries. For more than six decades, the organisation defined its objectives and mandates as it moved from summit to summit, until it adopted the Charter in December 2012. The charter identifies 16 core values and principles – for instance democracy, human rights, good governance etc.

Critics describe it as a talking club. Many have been questioning the existence of the "morbid" organisation. What is it good for?  "Unreformed, the Commonwealth deserves to die. Improved, it could be rather useful," was the refrain from The Economist following controversies surrounding the CHOGM in Colombo in 2013, when several leaders skipped the conference.

The significance of the activities of this organisation are no longer felt among many members. The primary reason for this is funding, which determines how far and how deep the organisation can involve itself in a member country. The budget is divided into three separate tranches – the Secretariat Fund, Commonwealth Youth Programme (CYP) Fund and the Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation (CFTC). 

The total budget was less than £50 million in 2012. With such small budgets, there is very little the organisation can do for its 53 members with diverse needs. Besides, only eight members – the UK, Canada, Australia, India, Nigeria, New Zealand, Brunei Darussalam and Kenya - are top contributors to the CFTC. Almost all the other members are developing countries in need of huge development assistance.  

The other criticism is about the leadership of the organisation. Inter-governmental organisations should be led by charismatic leaders who have the ability to bring together leaders of member states for a purpose. The Secretariat is also a deadweight because of its ineffective bureaucracy. Former secretary generals have all spoken of their disappointments about the incompetence of the Secretariat.

Since the organisation is hamstrung by paltry budgets, the CMAG has grown powerful, deciding which member has to be punished for violating Commonwealth principles. Nigeria, Pakistan and Fiji were suspended for overthrowing democratic governments. They, however, were readmitted. Zimbabwe, accused in 2002 of destroying democracy, withdrew in 2003 and never came back. Sri Lanka also came under heavy criticism for its alleged war crimes against the LTTE. The organisation has become more active about democracy, human rights, etc, rather than development. Interestingly, it talks about high ideals but compromises when confronted with reality.

The only time when members feel happy to project themselves as part of the Commonwealth is when the Commonwealth Games come up every four years. The number of medals member countries get becomes a matter of pride. A commentator remarked, "The Commonwealth is a group of nations designed to support international cricket matches."

When the decolonisation process gained momentum at the end of WWII, Britain, eager to maintain relations with its former colonies, created this club. Commonwealth of Nations was formed following the London Declaration of 1949. 

This diverse group of countries of 2.2 billion people (one-third of the world population) can do a lot if it is overhauled. To be effective, the Commonwealth has to be reformed. It needs to enhance its budget to strengthen CFTC, get an imaginative Secretary General and take some bold initiatives regarding world trade and climate change.   

The writer is former Ambassador and Secretary.