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| 60 yrs of the Commonwealth | | |
Rup Narayan Das
The Commonwealth has to go beyond the rhetoric of democracy and address today's challenges.
This year, the Commonwealth completes sixty years of its existence. During the six decades it has proved its efficacy as an effective multiracial and multiethnic forum and as a soft power to grapple with international issues and problems afflicting the world and the Commonwealth in particular. From its very inception India has its historical long association with the Commonwealth.
At a time when the Non-Aligned Movement is defunct and has lost much of its sheen, the Commonwealth offers a very good opportunity to India, especially when India has emerged in the global arena, to take the leadership role of the Afro-Asian countries who are members of this organisation. The Commonwealth encompasses within its rubric almost a quarter of world’s population spread over six continents. India is definitely qualified to play the lead role.
In the first place, it is one of the most important members of the 53-member organisation. Independent India’s decision to become a member of the Commonwealth was one of the major foreign policy decisions of the country, which also encouraged the non-white countries of the erstwhile British Empire to become members. In order to facilitate India’s continued membership of the Commonwealth, it was decided to drop the prefix British before Commonwealth.
An anglophile and a democrat, Nehru’s vision, statesmanship, sagacity and cosmopolitanism defined India’s ties with the Commonwealth. India epitomises the values of the Commonwealth in more senses than one. Its cultural, linguistic, religious and ethnic diversities is like a microcosm of the Commonwealth.
Nothing can be more illustrative than India’s commitment to democracy, the bench mark of the Commonwealth than the periodic and peaceful elections to the representative bodies starting from the Panchayat to Parliament. The smooth and orderly transition of power from one regime to another has been the beacon of hope to many countries in the Commonwealth trying to contend with the transition to democracy.
The Commonwealth has traversed a great distance after the Second World War. India has played a significant role in various fields in the Commonwealth. In the fight against the abhorrent practice of apartheid, India’s active support and involvement will always be remembered.
Apartheid has ended in South Africa and so have the remnants of colonialism. With the end of cold war, disarmament, which the Commonwealth espoused, has also lost much of its steam. Globalisation and concomitant economic reforms have also pushed the issues of the North-South dialogue and new international economic order to the background.
The world today and the Commonwealth is confronted with the after effects of development such as climate change, environmental degradation, and the ill-effects of globalisation. The Commonwealth thus has to go beyond the rhetoric of pious platitude of democracy and human rights and address these challenges.
Electoral challenges
On the top of this, there are challenges of a third wave of democracy and electoral challenges also. India’s success with electoral politics has enabled it to extend the same to many countries under the aegis of the Commonwealth. Parliamentary procedures and the electoral practices as evolved in India are much more relevant to the countries of the Commonwealth having similar problems than the prototype of West-Minister model. India’s experiences of superintendence of election have thus been fruitfully availed of by many countries of the Commonwealth.
India’s technological and economic prowess posits her in a comfortable position to help and assist the Commonwealth countries of the Afro-Asian region, and earn their goodwill. The Commonwealth Fund for Technical Co-operation to which India is one of the major contributors also offers very good opportunity for India in helping the capacity building of members countries by providing relevant technical advice.
Compared to China, India is in an advantageous position because of English, the linguafranca of the Commonwealth countries in Africa. Slots available under Commonwealth African Special Assistance Plan and Colombo Plan can also be used for this purpose. India’s edge in IT also offers great opportunities to forge a bonding with the member countries in the Commonwealth.
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