A
Force for the Rule of Law in Support of
Democracy and Human Rights
Notes for
a speech by Hon. David Kilgour, Secretary
of State (Latin America & Africa)
to a luncheon meeting of the Commonwealth
High Commissioners in Ottawa
Le Cercle Universitaire, Ottawa, December
17, 1998
Your Excellencies,
Thank-you
for inviting me to attend this Christmas
lunch. It is always a pleasure to meet with
friends in the Commonwealth club, which
is now a family of 54 countries and 1.7
billion persons.
Just as you
as High Commissioners have freely chosen
to spend time together once a month to share
perspectives and to cooperate among yourselves,
our respective nationals have freely chosen
to participate in the Commonwealth.
For various
reasons, our countries value their Commonwealth
connection. Whether it be historical associations,
shared values of democracy and respect for
human rights, similar political and legal
institutions, common language, or flexible
mechanisms for technical cooperation, all
of our countries and many of our citizens
invest considerable human and financial
resources in the Commonwealth ties.
Canadians
are proud of our long association with the
Commonwealth.
The promotion
of democracy and good governance continue
to be a defining feature. In addition to
the Commonwealth's advocacy of democratic
and human rights values, there are a number
of practical actions the Commonwealth has
undertaken to make the 1991 Harare Declaration
a reality everywhere. These are important
to Canadians. They are among the reasons
that we continue to value our Commonwealth
membership.
There are
four in particular I would like to mention:
- the Secretary-General's
"good offices"
- Commonwealth
election observation missions
- Commonwealth
seminars and technical assistance
Good Offices
The Secretary-General's
"good offices" work can play an
important role in helping Commonwealth members
make the transition to democracy and in
overcoming crises that threaten their national
stability. Chief Anyaoku reports that in
the last year he has been involved in such
efforts in Guyana, Lesotho, St Kitts and
Tanzania. While such quiet diplomacy seldom
generates headlines, the very absence of
headlines often is an indication of success.
As one pundit put it, "success is a
media disaster". The personal intervention
of someone such as Chief Anyaoku at the
highest levels can sometimes help countries
avoid conflict and civil strive with the
consequent strengthening of democracy and
human rights in these nations.
Election Observation
The Commonwealth
continues to play a significant role in
election observation in countries making
the transition to democracy. There have
been 25 observer missions since 1991, with
missions to Guyana, Seychelles and Lesotho
in the past year alone.
It is anticipated
that next year will see such missions not
only in Nigeria but most likely also in
South Africa, Antigua & Barbuda, as
well possibly Malawi and Mozambique.
Deepening Democracy
Democracy
is more than the holding of free and fair
elections. The real challenge is entrenching
the concept in the minds and hearts not
only of parliamentarians but also in also
in those they seek to represent. To assist
here, the Commonwealth Secretariat organizes
courses, seminars and workshops to bring
together those who are engaged in making
democracy in Commonwealth countries work.
There is currently a new series of meetings
underway on the theme, "Deepening Democracy"
on such topics as the role of the opposition.
The Commonwealth
Fund for Technical Cooperation (CFTC) facilitates
Commonwealth countries learning from each
other to strengthen their governments in
a variety of ways. This contributes to good
governance and the deepening of democracy.
As you know, most Commonwealth countries
contribute to this fund and a large portion
of the expertise comes from the developing
country members themselves. Following a
commitment made by Prime Minister Chretien
at the Edinburgh CHOGM in 1997, Canada was
able to increase its funding to CFTC this
fiscal year by one million dollars to $12
million. We are currently second in contributions
after Britain.
CMAG
All of these
actions are valuable in promoting democracy
and human rights throughout the Commonwealth.
One of the most innovative measures was
the establishment of the Commonwealth ministerial
Action Group -- CMAG to the Commonwealth
initiates -- by the 1995 Commonwealth Heads
of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in New Zealand.
Its purpose was to generate ministerial
attention to Commonwealth action in support
of the Harare principles of democracy and
human rights.
Since becoming
the Secretary of State, I have, together
with Minister Axworthy, regularly attended
CMAG meetings and also participated in the
CMAG mission to Sierra Leone in March 1998.
As you know,
CMAG has focussed on the situations caused
by military dictatorships in Sierra Leone,
the Gambia and Nigeria. In all these cases,
I think you will agree that democracy has
now either been restored or a credible process
put in place to do so. I believe that CMAG
has played a major role in encouraging constructive
change in these countries.
Nigeria has
rightly been the primary focus of CMAG concern
since its inception three years ago coincided
with the suspension of Nigeria's Commonwealth
membership by the Heads of Government at
Auckland.
In October,
1998, CMAG had the pleasant task of discussing
not further sanctions against Nigeria, but
rather how the Commonwealth could assist
with the transition to democracy put in
place by the new military ruler, General
Abubakar. We had a very productive meeting
with Foreign Minster Olisemeka and his impressive
team.
In London,
the Nigerian delegation outlined the plans
of their government for the transition process,
leading to the installation of a democratically
elected civilian government on May 29, 1999.
To support
this process, CMAG endorsed Commonwealth
plans for practical assistance to the Nigerian
Independent National Election Commission.
Commonwealth teams should monitor each of
the five sets of elections over the next
four months. I was able to announce an additional
Canadian contribution of $100,000 to support
Commonwealth election experts providing
direct assistance to the Nigerian election
commission. Such people in have already
provided training/logistics advice.
It is gratifying
to learn that the efforts of Nigerians to
organize fair elections have not been in
vain. Reports from many sources, including
the Commonwealth observation team, indicate
that the local council elections were carried
out successfully on December 5.
In recognition
of the changes being made in Nigeria, the
CMAG ministers recommended to Commonwealth
member governments that sanctions in existence
against Nigeria "forthwith" begin
to be lifted. Canada is moving in this direction,
as well, the Nigerians and Canadians re-opened
our respective missions in early November.
CMAG also
decided that Nigeria should be allowed to
participate in Commonwealth activities that
will directly assist its transition to democracy.
It is anticipated that the elections and
the subsequent transition process will go
well, at which point we expect that CMAG
at its April 1999 meeting will recommend
to Heads of Government that Nigeria resume
its full Commonwealth membership when an
elected government takes office on May 29,
1999.
I think most
countries would agree CMAG has made a major
difference during the past three years.
Now that Nigeria has begun its return to
democracy, and Sierra Leone and the Gambia
have already done so, it may be time to
reflect further on the future of CMAG. For
Canada, CMAG has been a flexible instrument
for encouraging a return to the principles
of democracy when these have been abandoned.
We consider that it should remain so.
Conclusion
Today, I have
concentrated on one aspect of the Commonwealth
of interest to Canada's foreign policy:
support for our common values of democracy
and human rights.
This is not
to deny much of the valuable work of the
Commonwealth in many areas. The Commonwealth
is many things to many people. I know that
Ministers of finance, law, education, youth,
and health, among others, find the Commonwealth
valuable forums to discuss policy issues.
Our heads of government do so too. Professional
associations and non-governmental organizations
likewise find common ground on many issues
with their counterparts from Commonwealth
countries.
All of these
groups report to the biennial Commonwealth
Heads of Government Meeting. In November,
1999, CHOGM will take place in South Africa.
At the Senior Officials Meeting last month,
it was agreed that the theme for the next
CHOGM will be " the impact of globalization,
not only in its economic terms but also
with respect to it political, human and
people-centred ramifications." This
will be refined over the course of the next
year by the Secretary-General, the South
African Government and other Commonwealth
governments. As in all of your capitals,
we will be reflecting upon this in the months
to come.
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