Zimbabwe turns full circle as CHOGM returns to Nigeria

11.45am - By KEVIN NORQUAY

History will turn full circle this week as the Commonwealth summit returns to Nigeria for the first time in 37 years.

In 1966 the first Commonwealth summit held outside London put just one topic on the agenda -- what to do about Rhodesia.

The same country - now called Zimbabwe - is still on the agenda in 2003, as the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) takes place in the Nigerian capital, Abuja.

In the 1960s the Commonwealth supported a black freedom fighter called Robert Mugabe in his bid to end white rule in Rhodesia.

White politicians committed to racial segregation took control of Rhodesia in 1963. When Rhodesian Prime Minister Ian Smith rejected rapid progress to majority rule, Britain broke off trading links and imposed economic sanctions.

Commonwealth efforts helped force the transition to broad elections in 1980, and the formation of an independent Zimbabwe with Mr Mugabe leader.

Mr Mugabe is now a Commonwealth pariah blamed for a range of human rights transgressions in his famine-striken homeland.

He is the one facing British sanctions, his fledgling nation suspended from a Commonwealth he lashes as being run by white racists.

Zimbabwe is an issue that has divided the Commonwealth, with some wanting it expelled and others pushing for readmission.

Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon has been caught in the middle, his reappointment to the top job under threat as a result.

Prime Minister Helen Clark will leave today to attend the summit, no longer certain Mr McKinnon will be appointed for a second four-year term.

African nations frustrated with what they call the patronising attitude of the "white Commonwealth" are said to be behind the bid of Sri Lankan Lakshman Kadirgamar to topple Mr McKinnon, a former New Zealand foreign minister.

Central to that frustration is the treatment of Zimbabwe, suspended from the Commonwealth in March 2002 after a presidential election which international observer groups said was flawed.

Already facing a test of credibility over how to handle Zimbabwe, the Commonwealth has now had the issue personalised in the form of a leadership battle.

Mr McKinnon has dismissed talk of a split in the unwieldy body of largely former British colonies.

"I've talked with pretty well all the African leaders on this issue," he said.

"I think there's probably about four different views in Africa on the way forward (on Zimbabwe)."

Mr Kadirgamar may simply be a means of giving allies of Zimbabwe a focus for their frustration, rather than a serious candidate.

His prospects of victory would seem to be bleak given the widespread support for the work Mr McKinnon has carried out since he was appointed in 1999.

In direct contrast to Fiji, Nigeria and Pakistan, who have in the past incurred Commonwealth wrath and suspension, Zimbabwe has refused to acknowledge Commonwealth concerns.

While New Zealand too favours Zimbabwe being expelled, it was not the premier issue Miss Clark had in mind for CHOGM when she spoke to NZPA.

She had wanted a focus on how to restart the World Trade Organisation (WTO) round that stalled so badly at Cancun this year, a topic that has been central to pre-CHOGM speeches by Mr McKinnon.

Mr McKinnon has hit out at the west's "appalling" farm subsidies and said trade protectionism was distorting markets and strangling poor nations.

"Trade access into Europe, the United States and Japan for the developing world could change the world. This is why Cancun was so important and it was so disastrous that it collapsed."

New Zealand also wanted to reach Commonwealth consensus on global issues, such as fighting terrorism and people smuggling.

Issues such as better governance were important in the counter-terrorism battle, as undesirable elements were able to fester in small weak states, Helen Clark said.

New Zealand would push for the need for decent legislation to fight terrorism, and for greater border control co-operation.

Helen Clark hoped to hold bilateral meetings with British Prime Minister Tony Blair, and with the leaders of Cyprus, Malta and India.

Mediterranean states Cyprus and Malta are among 10 countries who will next year join the European Union (EU), and New Zealand wanted to ensure its important linkages with the EU are not diluted.

Helen Clark will travel to Abuja, the modern purpose-built capital of Nigeria, on the RNZAF Boeing 757, stopping in Oman on the way and Bahrain on the way back.

Those Gulf state visits were part of a post September 11 2001 attempt by New Zealand to engage with the Middle East, she said.

"It's a signal of interest in the Islamic world," said the Prime Minster, who last month visited New Zealand troops in Afghanistan and Iraq.

- NZPA