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COOLUM (Australia), March 2: Commonwealth leaders agreed at their summit in Australia on Saturday to expel any member state that aided, financed or harboured terrorists.
In the first major announcement of their four-day meeting, the leaders said they had agreed on a “terrorist action plan” under which members would also act to stop abuse of financial systems and freeze and confiscate the assets of terrorists.
They also called for the promotion of democracy, but showed no sign of taking any action against Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe over allegations that he is intimidating voters and rigging the result ahead of a March 9-10 presidential election.
“The Commonwealth is not a police force,” one southern African leader said, adding it would be premature even to consider what action to take until the elections were over.
British Prime Minister Tony Blair, who has been leading a campaign to suspend Zimbabwe from the 54-nation group, said the Commonwealth’s credibility was on the line.
“If, after the elections in Zimbabwe, the Commonwealth observers report there was malpractice and intimidation...then it is essential we take action against Zimbabwe if Mugabe is still in power,” he told reporters.
Mugabe, who has led Zimbabwe for 22 years, faces a stern challenge from Morgan Tsvangirai, the leader of the Movement for Democratic Change.
The European Union has already imposed sanctions on Mugabe’s inner circle and withdrawn its election observers after Zimbabwe refused to accredit their head. Washington has followed suit.
Opening the summit with Commonwealth head Queen Elizabeth, Secretary General Don McKinnon called on rich nations to adopt more humane globalisation policies to cut the gap between rich and poor, which provided fertile ground for instability.
“No one in the world can have a secure future when half the world has no future at all,” he said. “In the Commonwealth, we want to have a spirit of generous globalization.”
The Commonwealth groups 1.7 billion people, about a third of the world’s population. It includes some of the poorest nations, such as Bangladesh and the Pacific island of Tuvalu.
STRENGTH IN DIVERSITY: Many question the relevance of such a varied group, but in her opening address Queen Elizabeth said it was just such diversity which made the Commonwealth relevant after last year’s hijacked airliner attacks in the United States.
“The events of 11th September have reminded us all of the need to build bridges between different cultures based on greater knowledge and understanding of our differences,” she said.
Communal violence in India and Sri Lanka has prevented heads of both nations’ governments from attending the summit.
South Africa, once the pariah of the Commonwealth during its apartheid years, said that for the Commonwealth to remain relevant it must not only promote democracy but also be at the forefront of the fight against racism and discrimination.
“Perhaps because of the diverse nature of the Commonwealth, we are better placed than many to lead the struggle against racism, racial and gender discrimination and xenophobia,” President Thabo Mbeki said at the opening.
The summit, postponed after last year’s attacks in the United States, is being held under fortress-like security, with 6,000 police and army guarding the venue and air force jets patrolling the sky with orders to shoot down threatening planes.
On Saturday, a small band of protesters gathered outside to demonstrate about a range of issues, from human rights abuses to the US-led “war on terrorism”.
But the protesters were outnumbered by police and even local residents who had gathered to see the arrival of the queen.—Reuters
