Commonwealth: A Wealth of Irrelevance

Republic of Zimbabwe 33rd independence celebrations in Harare. The country has struggled since 1980 to maintain its sovereignty in the face of attacks by world imperialism., a photo by Pan-African News Wire File Photos on Flickr.

Commonwealth: A wealth of irrelevance

November 14, 2013 Opinion & Analysis
Tichaona Zindoga Senior Political Writer
Zimbabwe Herald

A couple of years ago, one British writer described the Commonwealth, that club of former British colonies which the Queen superintends over, as “sleep walking towards” irrelevance. Of course, to Zimbabwe the club is irrelevant, which point the country demonstrated by pulling out from the Commonwealth in 2003 and never looking back.

But the club is losing sleep over the uninterested Zimbabwe. Early this week it was reported that for the second time in as many years the Commonwealth sought back Zimbabwe, which saw scions of the deflated British Empire, Lord David Hugh Alexander Hannay and Baron Hannay of Chiswick, saying the British government should “not abandon hope” of Zimbabwe rejoining.

Only six weeks ago, The Gambia pulled out of the Commonwealth announcing that it “will never be a member of any neo-colonial institution and will never be a party to any institution that represents an extension of colonialism”.

David Blair, a top British establishment journalist in Africa, conceded the “sudden departure of one of the Commonwealth’s African members is an unexpected blow . . .”

Apart from this unravelling wealth of irrelevance, there is something which will show just how the crown will not sit easily on the Queen’s head, who will not be in Colombo to preside over the last vestiges of imperial pride, anyway. There is no commonality in the Commonwealth today.

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has announced that he won’t be attending the meeting citing alleged human rights abuses by the host government. The government has managed to put down secessionist Tamil rebels after 27 years of civil strife and the discourse in the West points to sympathy with the rebels in solidarity with which Canada is boycotting, of course, amid couching democracy and human rhetoric.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has also decided to boycott the summit.

(Close neighbours Sri Lanka and India who are separated by a channel, are described by one columnist as “really distant neighbours” because of territorial disputes and Indian support for Tamil separatists.)

Meanwhile, British Premier David Cameron has laboured over attendance justification, suggesting he would otherwise be eternally grateful to be free from the controversy.

One Sir Ronald Sanders, former Caribbean diplomat, is quoted by the Times of India as saying: “It’s a shame the Commonwealth has come to this.”

Tellingly he is said to be part of a Commonwealth panel “charged with recommending reforms in the organisation”. Sri Lanka is not happy with the criticism and irreverent, too.

“There is no room for judgmental positions, for some countries to sit in judgment over other countries,” its foreign minister GL Peiris was quoted as saying.

There we go: is this not an attack on the waning hegemony of the British Empire, where its dominions like Canada and Australia usually behave like brats and teaser bulls? The world saw that on Zimbabwe.

The same dominions continue to be so angry that Britain lost hegemony in Zimbabwe and had its ill-gotten landed and propertied interests wiped out for distribution to the poor black majority, who had been displaced, robbed and raped by British colonialism.

The indignant and indefatigable Canada continues to seek ways to hurt Zimbabwe for the mortal sin of breaking the British chains of colonialism and servitude and has been part of efforts to bar Zimbabwe from exploiting and trading its diamonds on the world market.

Sri Lankan officials accuse journalists and Western-sponsored “human rights” organisations of fabricating allegations of atrocities.

Sri Lankan journalist Kalinga Seneviratne notes that, “Britain’s Channel 4 television has produced the now customary anti-Sri Lanka video clip before a major international forum involving Sri Lanka, focusing on alleged human rights violations by the Sri Lankan regime.

Their salvo has been followed up as usual by the supporters of the vanquished Sri Lankan terrorist group LTTE based in Britain.”

The script reads familiar, doesn’t it, especially where the gospel of democracy and human rights has been used as the new civilising tool by erstwhile colonisers who once used the Bible to conquer lesser peoples.

Things are no longer as easy as ABC, symbolically.

The Commonwealth, which used to be dominated by the ABC countries (Australia, Britain and Canada) is now bereft of any material economic wealth by the ABCs dictate the terms.

Daniel Howden of the UK Independent in 2009 dismissed the Commonwealth as follows: “Once every four years it provides England with the false impression that it can win things in the sporting arena.”

Suffice to say, “mighty’’ England has fallen from grace in the sporting arena and has to salvage its pride by competing with countries it underdeveloped and subjugated and impoverished by stealing their resources.