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Commonwealth's competing agendas

Posted by CaribShout on November 23, 2009 at 9:46pm

As Commonwealth Heads of Government prepare for the summit in Trinidad later this week, there are fears that climate change could overshadow the meeting's agenda. Less than a month before they gather in Copenhagen, Denmark to negotiate a cut in carbon emissions, world leaders are yet to reach consensus on a replacement treaty for the Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012. In another bid to settle the issue, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the Presidents of Denmark and France are due to meet with their Commonwealth counterparts in Port of Spain this week for further talks. Host Prime Minister Patrick Manning has said that their presence will raise the profile of the meeting. But Commonwealth Secretary General Karmlesh Sharma told BBC Caribbean that the voice of the smaller countries could easily be drowned out by the developed nations. "We are a small states organisation. Thirty-two out of 53 are small states. "There's actually no scenario which I see in which the strength of ours is not going to be affected here as well," Secretary General Sharma said. Promoting democracy Another talking point during the November 27 - 29 talks is likely to be the findings of a new report released on Monday, which said that Commonwealth countries have failed to encourage open political competition. The report was commissioned by the Commonwealth Policy Studies Unit, and a democracy assistance organisation, Electoral Reform International Services. The document has also said that it is time for new impetus in the 53-member grouping's commitment to promoting democracy. According to the report, the struggle for democracy in the 21st century is not about imposing any particular model, but about moving, often painfully, towards progressively more just and open societies. The report's authors say that although the Commonwealth has committed itself to making democracy a way of life, political competition - rather than taking place among parties - is too often between the state and the opposition. It says that in this unequal contest the state media, the public service, the police and the judiciary and the intelligence service are all enlisted in pursuit of victory. One of the recommendations of the report is for a "health check" on the state of democracy in each Commonwealth country, at least every two years. People's forum Patrick Manning

Mr Manning has called for greater civil society involvement Talks leading up to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Trinidad began on Monday with Commonwealth People's Forum. Addressing the opening, Prime Minister Manning called for greater role for civil society, to foster continued development of democracy. Mr Manning said that democracy would suffer if citizens were not allowed to participate fully in the development of their countries. "The voice of the people must be continuously heard and influence felt. "The direction adopted by the nation must be in accordance with the wishes of the people. Democracy must therefore be guarded an nurtured by all stakeholders; civil society is fundamental to this process," Mr Manning said. More than 700 representatives of civil society are attending the People's Forum, but a smaller group has teamed up with trade unions to plan two days of protest action leading up to the Commonwealth meeting. The pressure group, called the People's Democracy, is upset over what it considers to be government's extravagant spending on huge buildings, the hiring of Chinese workers and the introduction Its members have also called on employees to stay off the job for the next two days to send a message to the government. However the business community says the planned protest will not be in the workers' interest, as they stand to lose pay.
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