The Tribune

The events surrounding last week’s Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in London were remarkable for their grandeur and splendour, and, judging from the communique at the end of this biennial conference, it was notable for the wide range of issues covered during its deliberations over several days. No doubt, the warm spring-like weather contributed to the mood of goodwill and harmony enjoyed at the gathering.

One important question affecting the structure and operation of the Commonwealth as an international institution was the Queen’s eventual successor as its leader. Her Majesty had made it clear it was her “sincere wish” that her son, Prince Charles, should succeed her as Head of the Commonwealth. Following consensus that the British monarch should continue in this role, it was agreed he should take over at a time to be determined. This was a predictable development, not least for the practical reason that the Queen no longer undertakes long haul flights.

The Queen’s work over seven decades had been started by her father, King George VI, when the modern Commonwealth was formed in 1949, and she remarked that nobody could have guessed at the time of her accession to the throne in 1952 that what was then eight nations would later have grown to 53 with a combined population of 2.4 billion or about one third of the world’s total. Her devotion and commitment as a steadfast champion of the Commonwealth - including visits over the years to so many member countries - have provided essential long-term stability and continuity, so handing over authority as its leader must surely have been a bittersweet moment.

As a voluntary inter-governmental association of mostly former territories of the British Empire, the Commonwealth has been described as a “family of nations” held together by special bonds, with a shared history, values and language as well as common legal systems and institutional frameworks as well as close trading links. While being the world’s oldest political association of states covering many regions which co-operate in so many different ways for their mutual benefit, the emphasis is on the individual status of each country all of which are now considered to be equal. As a grouping, it constitutes a powerful diplomatic force providing smaller states an opportunity to have their say.

Somehow, however, as an institution it seems not to capture the public’s imagination – apart from the biennial Commonwealth Games – in so far as it is rarely in the world’s news headlines. Some say this is because the Commonwealth works so successfully in practical ways that are not newsworthy in the eyes of the international media. The exceptions have been major incidents like the expulsion of Zimbabwe at the height of Mugabe’s human rights abuses and the departure of The Gambia which called it neocolonial. There have also been rows over economic sanctions against South Africa during the apartheid years, notably at the CHOGM in Nassau in 1985.

While reiterating its commitment to world peace, democracy, tolerance, equality and individual liberty, this year’s CHOGM agreed on action in relation to major issues like trade and investment, security, the environment and climate change, sustainable use of resources, human trafficking and gender equality - and there was a welcome recognition of the vulnerability of Small Island Developing States to natural disasters like hurricanes and rising sea levels and the need for mutual assistance.

At the same time, there was the reminder that the Commonwealth Secretariat in London exists to provide technical assistance in many different areas; for example, strengthening democratic institutions and good governance, promoting the rule of law, trade negotiations and investment advice, social and economic development, human rights, the health sector and election monitoring. So this CHOGM was a success which demonstrated again the inherent worth of the Commonwealth and its beneficial effects on millions of people.

For some time, we have predicted in these columns that one result of Britain’s forthcoming departure from the European Union would be a strengthening of its ties with Commonwealth countries. This augurs particularly well for our nation as one of the 15 Realms (in addition to Britain) with whom there is a special bond because the Queen is their head of state.

This new approach has already been shown by the UK’s intention, recently announced, of plans to increase its diplomatic presence across the world in order to reflect a new “Global Britain” which will be outward facing, open for business and a champion of the rules-based international order. These include the re-opening of a diplomatic mission in Nassau. This is welcome news and, we believe, long overdue. It is encouraging for the future development of our country because it will mean enhanced bilateral co-operation in many areas of shared concern including the economy. We hope bthere will be a particular emphasis - to name just a few - on issues like security, drugs interdiction, human trafficking, migration, police and military training and educational exchanges, protection of the environment, climate change and disaster preparedness.

While the Commonwealth acquires greater strength and influence from Britain’s renewed interest and support, it is not too soon for us to start considering how to prepare for a new British diplomatic presence in The Bahamas which could benefit the country in so many ways.