Commonwealth defies doomsayers

By KEVIN NORQUAY


If you wanted to design an international body bound to fail and fall apart then the Commonwealth would be a pretty good blueprint, yet it has defied predictions of its imminent doom to be seen as a worthwhile organisation.

With only a shared past as a colonial outpost of Britain in common, the Commonwealth has forced together 54 countries ranging from vast to tiny, from populous to almost uninhabited, developed to Third World, from Muslim to Christian.

Its leaders meet every two years at the Commonwealth Heads of Government (CHOGM) meeting where any decisions -- get this -- have to be made by consensus, with the view of each country holding equal merit.

No wonder CHOGM has been labelled an irrelevant talkfest incapable of decisive action by its critics, a label Commonwealth Secretary General Don McKinnon bristles at on the week of CHOGM 2003, in the Nigerian capital Abuja.

Mr McKinnon, a former New Zealand foreign minister, argues the diversity pointed to as a Commonwealth weakness is in fact its strength.

"Because it embraces such a great diversity of states ... the Commonwealth is uniquely placed to ensure that the voices of its smaller and developing members are not ignored by the big players," he said.

"What other organisation provides the same opportunity to a leader from a small state and the head of a G8 country to sit at the same table and discuss issues of common concern as equals?"

All but four members are developing countries, while 32 members are vulnerable small states given a voice through being part of an organisation that represents 1.7 billion people, about a third of the world population.

Sometimes the English language and institutions that glue the 54 members together gives way, as it has in the case of Zimbabwe, suspended for its human rights and electoral failings.

Some African countries have misgivings instigating democracy in the form of free and fair elections, as required by the Commonwealth.

But unlike Zimbabwe they have not threatened to quit, as to them the Commonwealth is a steady and reliable source of crucial aid and expertise in an overwhelming world.

Mr McKinnon has led a battle against developed world trade barriers on their behalf, a battle which if won stands to be of great benefit for the least developed nations.

"We live in a world of great inequalities and paradoxes -- where the income of the world's three richest people is greater than the combined income of the world's least developed countries," Mr McKinnon has said.

"Our world is out of kilter and often threatens to keel over. That is why multilateral organisations have such a crucial role to play.

"The only way to 're-balance' the world is by creating genuine global dialogue, where the voices of the weak and vulnerable are not excluded from decisions affecting their future."

The West's "appalling" farm subsidies and trade protectionism were distorting markets and strangling poor nations, he said.

"Until you get massive changes in Europe, the United States and Japan on these things, the rest of the world just can't move."

NZPA found senior New Zealand politicians, except former associate foreign affairs minister Matt Robson, considered the world was better off with the Commonwealth in place:

* "I regard the Commonwealth as New Zealand's window into much of Africa, the Caribbean and the India sub-continent because we don't have many high commissions or embassies in those areas. We are thin on the ground in Africa and the Indian sub-continent, and we're not there at all in the Caribbean" -- Prime Minister Helen Clark.

* "It is a very useful international forum. It has a future and New Zealand should continue to play a role in it" -- United Future leader Peter Dunne.

* "New Zealand has been able to draw on the Commonwealth to promote issues or achieve goals in a way we could not do on our own. The Commonwealth is also an avenue through which to contribute to regional stability in many parts of the world" -- Foreign Minister Phil Goff.

* "It's getting harder and harder all the time to keep the Commonwealth relevant, and with a coherent philosophy. That is the challenge for it. There is still value there, but it is getting harder and harder keeping it together as an entity" -- ACT foreign affairs spokesman Ken Shirley.

* "It's a platform for the smaller nations -- there's a big gap between rich and poor in the world and the Commonwealth does provide a bit of a forum for those poorer countries. Alongside the United Nations and some other international organisations it's quite crucial for collective action" -- Green Party foreign affairs spokesman Keith Locke.

* "The body itself lacks relevance to most of the people in the member countries. There are some worthwhile activities within it ... but in the main I think it is seen as very ineffective" -- Progressive Coalition MP, Mr Robson.

* "If it was the only organisation New Zealand was involved with I'd be worried. It does bring developing and developed worlds together as a family of English speaking nations, so it does have still value. Without the Commonwealth, Zimbabwe could have got even more out of control" -- National Party foreign affairs spokesman Lockwood Smith.

- NZPA