The 21st Commonwealth Summit

The 21st Commonwealth Summit focuses on Climate Change
The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting 2009 was the twenty-first meeting of the heads of government of the Commonwealth of Nations held in Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago between 27 November and 29 November, 2009 and was hosted by that country’s Prime Minister, Patrick Manning. The 83-year old queen and her husband, Prince Philip stayed 48 hours in Trinidad’s capital Port of Spain. She opened the three-day Commonwealth summit by saying the organization mostly made up of former British colonies, had an opportunity to lead the fight against climate change. The 2009 CHOGM is the first opportunity for countries to accede to the Commonwealth after the 2007 CHOGM accepted the report by the committee on Commonwealth Membership that established the current membership criteria. The summit was dominated by the issue of global warming as it was held just before the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, Denmark. The counties agreed a $6 billion a year climate change fund to promote low-carbon emission development and adaptation in developing countries, to be funded by developed Commonwealth members and France. It is the first CHOGM to be attended by President of France, Nicolas Sarkozy, who was attempting to rally support in the build-up to the Copenhagen summit. It is seen as an indication of reconciliation between France and the Commonwealth, particularly over the issue of Rwanda’s prospective membership of the Commonwealth. The meeting was also attended by UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Danish Prime Minister Lars Lokke Rasmussen.
Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper had a private meeting with the Queen before she officially opened the Commonwealth summit . In her opening remarks, the Queen told the 53 heads of state that the Commonwealth has an opportunity to regain its relevance by leading the battle against global warming. The event is the last main international conference before next month’s UN conference on the issue. Leaders including Mr. Harper have the task of drawing up a draft treaty to replace the Kyoto Protocol on Climate Change. The governing body of the International Atomic Energy has voted unanimously to censure Iran for developing a uranium enrichment site in secret. It also demanded that Iran must freeze the project immediately. The resolution by the 35-nation governing board had the rare support of China and Russia. But it’s not clear whether the measure, sponsored by six world powers, would mean eventual Russian and Chinese support for further western sanctions against Iran if it does not reduce its nuclear program.
According to Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister Patrick Manning , Ban, Sarkozy and Danish Prime Minister Lars Loekke Rasmussen were invited as non-members over concern about ‘ the way negotiations were going ahead of Copenhagen December 7-18.He said he, “categorically rejected the idea and said it was a convenient argument for countries with large populations. The Commonwealth meeting brought together leaders representing more than two billion people worldwide and this year’s meeting was expected to focus on debate between developed and developing countries on climate change. Countries like Britain, India, Australia, South Africa and Canada seated alongside smaller island nations such as the Bahamas, Kiribati and the Maldives.
The France-Brazilian agreement called on rich nations to commit themselves to a radical cut in greenhouse emissions by 2050. “I will go to the Commonwealth conference to try to build a consensus between rich countries like Australia and ourselves and some of the poorest countries in the world about how we can finance climate change for developing countries as well as developed countries” British Prime Minister Gordon Brown told parliament in London before be came to the summit. He hoped to win backing for his proposal to raise 100 billion pounds of funding for climate change by 2020 from contributions from the European Union, the US and some of the world’s richest countries.
Though Common wealth represent two billion people of the globe, it has often been dismissed by critics as a ‘ post colonial club’ with a poor human rights record and hailed as an ‘ ideal soft power network ‘ by its supporters, needs a ‘ democracy health check’ at least every two years,. The struggle for democracy in the 21st century is not about imposing any particular model-it is about moving often painfully, towards progressively more just and open societies .’ The Commonwealth, is a ‘ strange rather casual hybrid body which has no formal constitution and does not offer its members any significant economic benefits. ‘The leaders of its 53members , meeting this weekend on the island of Trinidad attended out of tradition and duty- a school reunion for a class that has grown up since graduation, but whose former headmistress still enjoys getting her old boys and girls together every couple of years. ‘ Nor does Commonwealth membership bring any special assistance from the former colonial master: Britain has rather neglected the Commonwealth , closing high commissions in small states and generally treating the body as a slightly awkward part of its past. Commonwealth leaders must give serious importance to these allegations otherwise this important world body will become just a ‘white elephant’.
In spite of criticism from various corners, the Commonwealth’ strength lies in its informality, a body of massive states and microdots, north and south, rich and poor, all, at least in theory , given equal status. It is the only important global political group that does not include the US or China, or Russia- a club of mostly democratic , largely well-intentioned non-superpowers. Britain with other international alliances might not need it. But it proved a useful channel between the developing world and the developed, focusing on climate change. The organization represents two billion people , a third of the planet’s population, and is a forum for the debates between developed and developing countries that are expected to surface at Copenhagen, politically and industrially hefty countries such as Britain, India, Australia, South Africa and Canada have seats alongside states such as Vanuatu, Tuvalu and Lesotho, whose points of view are often ignored on the international stage- but which are directly threatened by rising sea levels and other global warning phenomena. It comes with the weight of so many countries and so many people, that therefore; we feel it can have some effect on influencing the way that the discussions will go in Denmark.

Burning issues of climate change, the global economic crisis and human rights were on the minds of Commonwealth heads of states and government when they got together in a luxury hotel in Port of Spain. A proposed timetable for the possible re-admission of Zimbabwe to the grouping by 2011 also discussed along with range of human rights issues in other countries.
The importance attached to this year’s emphasis on climate change is underlined by the participation in the conference of French President Nicolas Sarkozy, whose invitation as a special guest marks a first in the history of the biennial Commonwealth summit. Obama has already announced that he would go to Copenhagen with an offer to curb US emissions by 17 percent by 2020 and China spoke of suing 40-45 percent less carbon per unit of gross domestic product. China and the United States are the world’s two biggest emitters of greenhouse gases, so the statements were seen as significant , even if questions remained over how effective they would be. The latest statements by Barack Obama and China’s leaders are extremely encouraging in making Copenhagen a success and it originated from the discussion of Commonwealth summit among the participating leaders.



Md. Masum Billah
Senior Manager: BRAC Education Programme, PACE
Cell: 01714-091431, 9355253 (res)
Email: mmbillah2000@yahoo.com