Commonwealth

Commonwealth

10th Commonwealth Parliament Association India Region Conference was held.

  • A voluntary association of countries, mostly former British colonies, collaborating on various issues like democracy, trade, and climate change.
  • Genesis –
    • 1926 – British Commonwealth of Nations formed at the Imperial Conference.
    • 1947 – India’s independence; India wanted to remain in the Commonwealth as a republic.
    • 1949 – London Declaration allowed republics to join, establishing the Modern Commonwealth.
  • Current Members – 56, including India.
  • Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting – Held every 2 years (latest in Rwanda, 2022).
  • Key Organizations –
    • Commonwealth Secretariat (CS) – Supports members’ goals (HQ: London).
    • Commonwealth Foundation (CF) – Promotes democracy and development (HQ: London).
    • Commonwealth of Learning (COL) – Advocates for open learning (HQ: Burnaby, Canada).
  • Key Information –
    • No charter, treaty, or constitution.
    • Decisions by consensus; all members are equal.
    • Head of the Commonwealth chosen by member countries.
    • Suspension for human rights breaches (e.g., Fiji, Pakistan, Zimbabwe).
  • Major Initiatives –
    • 1971 Declaration of Commonwealth Principles, 1991 Harare Declaration – Related to democracy and human rights
    • Commonwealth Charter (2012) – Includes 16 core principles like Rule of Law.
    • Commonwealth Youth Programme (CYP).
    • Commonwealth Cyber Declaration (2018).
    • Clean Ocean Alliance, Blue Charter, Climate Finance Access Hub – Climate change initiatives under Commonwealth
  • Largest member state with 60% of the population.
  • 4th largest contributor.
  • Hosted CHOGM (1983) and CWG (2010) in New Delhi.
  • Commonwealth Sub Window (US$ 50 Million) under India-UN Development Fund established for SDG and Climate Action projects.

Source: The Hindu


Previous Year Question

Constitutional government means

[UPSC Civil Service Exam – 2021 Prelims]

(a) a representative government of a nation with federal structure
(b) a government whose Head enjoys nominal powers
(c) a government whose Head enjoys real powers
(d) a government limited by the terms of the Constitution

Answer: (d)


Practice Question

With reference to the Commonwealth, consider the following statements:

  1. The Commonwealth is an intergovernmental organization of countries that were mostly former territories of the British Empire.
  2. All member countries of the Commonwealth have the British monarch as their head of state.
  3. The Commonwealth Secretariat is the main intergovernmental agency and central institution of the Commonwealth.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

 
 
 
 

Question 1 of 1

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