Sri Lanka’s chance at CHOGM

Monday, 29 April 2013 03:22 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

The much anticipated Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group Meeting (CMAG) ended with Sri Lanka’s position as the host of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) secure and intact. It is a significant diplomatic victory and presents an unprecedented chance for the country to gain lost ground on the international stage.

With international challenges mounting over Colombo’s human rights record and recent impeachment of the Chief Justice, Sri Lanka’s crucial role as host of the CHOGM and CHOGM Chair for the next two years has been in focus. The Government has engaged in extensive diplomatic lobbying to ensure Sri Lanka stays officially off the CMAG agenda, but some CMAG members were keen to raise the issue.

Despite strong efforts by Canada to put Sri Lanka on the CMAG agenda, which proved unsuccessful, did not deter them from discussing the country’s human rights record under “other business” at the meeting, showed that much still remains to be done to win over detractors.

Canada remarked it is “appalled” that Sri Lanka has been chosen to host the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in November, its foreign minister had told BBC after the meeting. John Baird said Sri Lanka had failed in the fundamental Commonwealth values of “freedom, democracy, human rights, the rule of law and good governance.”

South India, ever the thorn on the side of the Sri Lankan Government, made a heated last minute appeal to other members of CMAG to bring pressure on the island and throw a shadow over Sri Lanka’s chairmanship, but the move proved unsuccessful. But it is unlikely that the poor showing at CMAG will deter these parties putting more onus on the Sri Lankan Government to make significant progress on reconciliation and human rights issues on the ground. Key in this endeavour is implementing the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) recommendations that were also highlighted by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and the US.

Following the meeting Commonwealth Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma confirmed that his organising would assist Sri Lanka in practical ways through his Good Offices engagement. This includes the provision of technical support to enhance the independence of the Human Rights Commission and the Electoral Commission, including internationally accepted standards for appointing and removing judges.

The Commonwealth operates in a different way to other organisations, by co-operating with member countries in partnership, Sharma had stressed, insisting that it would encourage and monitor Sri Lanka’s dedication towards imbibing Commonwealth principles to democracy, human rights, the rule of law, separation of powers, freedom of expression, good governance, tolerance, respect and understanding and the role of civil society.

Australia’s Foreign Minister Senator Bob Carr also echoed this sentiment insisting that a boycott would be counter-productive as it would simply isolate Sri Lanka and render it defiant of international opinion. So far, the Sri Lankan Government has certainly proven that it can be defiant but now the world will be looking for tangible evidence that it will not rest on its laurels and will take up the opportunity provided by the Commonwealth to achieve sustainable peace within the country and thus prove to the world the validity of its standpoint.