Commonwealth rejects EPG proposals

by Dinesh WEERAWANSA reporting from Australia

PERTH, Oct 29 – The Commonwealth is set to reject the proposals by its Eminent Persons Group (EPG) advising the Commonwealth to appoint a Commissioner for Human Rights and also refused to publish its controversial report which political observers say is based only on the interests of a few countries.

Instead, the Commonwealth nations empowered their foreign ministers to intervene if its’ member states deny their citizens of human rights or threaten the media or judiciary.

The Commonwealth leaders bowed to pressure from South Africa and Namibia and declined to publish the EPG report, which proposes the creation of a new commissioner on the rule of law, democracy and human rights.

The concerns of the African nations, shared by India, feared what one Commonwealth source described as the “imperial overtones” in the report’s 106 recommendations.

The Commissioner would be given a mandate to speak out on human rights, unlike the Secretary General of the Commonwealth who can only condemn abuses with the approval of foreign ministers.

The Commonwealth ministerial action group will also be empowered to pressure and condemn nations over cases of election rigging, detention of political leaders or postponement of elections. Australia praised the leaders for agreeing to all 35 reform proposals presented by the action group of nine foreign ministers, which is chaired by Australia’s Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd.

“This will enable the Commonwealth to act, when a country has been veering off course in terms of democratic values and the rule of law, rather than waiting until it has gone over the cliff to a grossly unacceptable state, and the leaders would only have the options of suspension or expulsion,” the Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard said.

During the second day of CHOGM 2011, the leaders had not authorised the publication of their report, the EPG, including former Australian High Court Judge Michael Kirby’s, renewed call for the appointment of an independent Commonwealth Commissioner for Human Rights and the Rule of Law to focus attention on democratic and human rights abuses. This was a major setback for LTTE sympathisers who have been targeting Sri Lanka through the EPG proposals.

The Tiger sympathisers have been coming out with concocted stories on alleged human rights violations during the country’s relentless battle against terrorism.

The EPG members complained that the Commonwealth leaders had responded to only two of their 116 recommendations. However, the Commonwealth leaders last night declared that they had acted to secure the Commonwealth’s ongoing relevance.

The leaders lifted the powers of the Commonwealth ministerial action group comprising foreign ministers of member nations to intervene if a member country violates human rights. It was only two years ago that CHOGM in Port of Spain appointed the seven-member panel to propose ways and means to renew the Commonwealth amidst claims that it had become too timid and had eroded since its glorious days in the 1980s. The panel was concerned that its report had not been published. However the Commonwealth leaders were more concerned about more sensitive issues, such as HIV-AIDS levels that were twice as high in Commonwealth nations compared to Non-Commonwealth nations. Meanwhile, Australia, the UK and Canada have pledged to set up efforts to eradicate polio in war-ravaged Afghanistan. The Commonwealth leaders agreed during the second day’s sessions of HOGM 2011 to step up efforts to eradicate polio from the four countries where it is endemic.

British Prime Minister David Cameron joined the leaders of Canada, Australia and Nigeria, in committing tens of millions of pounds towards eradicating polio in India, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Nigeria. The campaign will have the financial backing of Microsoft magnate Bill Gates.

Gillard said that while polio remains anywhere in the world, it is a threat to everyone. “We’re here today to demonstrate our commitment to ending the fight against polio, that is, ending polio for all time,” she said. Gillard met her British counterpart Cameron on the sidelines of CHOGM to talk about Afghanistan, the global economy and development aid, before announcing $50 million for a program to help eradicate polio.

A day after officially opening CHOGM yesterday morning, Queen Elizabeth II wrapped up her tour of Australia attending a barbecue and public farewell along Perth’s Esplanade.

Rwanda has been officially welcomed as the newest member of the Commonwealth during the 21st Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting here. Rwandan President Paul Kagame said that his country is pleased to be part of and it contribute to the organisation as it adapts to global challenges.

Deputy Commissioner Chris Dawson told newsmen yesterday that he was pleased that Perth could peacefully handle the protests and the Queen’s Great Aussie Barbecue event, sans any incidents.

“It’s been an outstanding success in terms of the behaviour of a large numbers of people and indeed those demonstrators and protesters,” he said. He said three elderly people needed medical assistance yesterday following the barbecue after they suffered heat exhaustion, but all have recovered well.“The police presence was significant but that was necessary given that we were protecting the royals and there were 100,000 people present,” he said.

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[Lankan editors’ request turned down]

A request by two Editors to facilitate a press conference against unfair media criticism against Sri Lanka was turned down by GHOGM officials in Perth.

Though the CHOGM conference related publicity material states clearly that press briefings could be given by those who are accredited to attend the CHOGM sessions in Perth, a joint request for a press briefing by Chief Editor of Lakbima News Rajpal Abeynayake and Deputy Editor of The Island Shamindra Ferdinando was turned down yesterday.

Abeynayake and Ferdinando applied after filling the relevant forms to host a press briefing about what they termed the breach of media ethics by Australian media

However, the application was turned down by the GHOGM Media Secretariat which took up the position that anybody can give press briefings except the media! No rationale was given for this position.

“If the media cannot speak about the ethics of the rest of the media — something they know about or at least they should know about — then who could?” they questioned.

Besides, what is the media freedom that CHOGM offers, if it allows the Australian media to go berserk — and those interested in the Sri Lankan media in countering, no forum at all in which to do so?, they questioned.

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