The Commonwealth Eminent Persons Group (EPG) would like to see the Commonwealth speaking more publicly and acting with greater authority on serious or persistent violations of Commonwealth values, including democracy, the rule of law and human rights. In an interim statement, issued after its second meeting held in London on 25-26 October, the Group said it would also be calling on leaders to endorse measures to strengthen the role and functions of the Secretary-General and the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group.
“We want the Commonwealth to continue to be a powerful voice with moral authority speaking out on major issues, but it needs the tools to do it,” said the Group’s Chairperson, Abdullah Ahmad Badawi of Malaysia. The EPG pointed out that quiet, ‘behind-the-scenes’ diplomacy was fully compatible with appropriate public pronouncements.
The meeting also considered the possibility of creating a Commonwealth Charter to strengthen commitment to Commonwealth values and set the organisation’s future direction, and it discussed the urgent need for the Commonwealth to address HIV/AIDS as a health, human rights and economic development priority.
