Joanna Bennett Dhananjayan Sriskandarajah Zoë Ware The Royal Commonwealth Society March 2010 ABOUT THIS REPORT ……………………………………………………………… This report presents the full findings of the Commonwealth Conversation, a public consultation about the future of the Commonwealth run by the Royal Commonwealth Society (RCS) from July 2009 to March 2010. It has been written by an RCS team comprising Joanna Bennett (Communications Manager), Dhananjayan Sriskandarajah (Director) and Zoë Ware (Commonwealth Affairs Manager). Project assistance was provided by Anushya Devendra and Alex Try. The RCS is grateful to the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) for their financial support and to countless people around the Commonwealth who have devoted considerable amounts of time, often on a voluntary basis, to making this undertaking a success. The views expressed in this report are those of its authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Trustees or Members of the RCS, or of the FCO. Defining the Commonwealth Given its long history and changing nature, ‘the Commonwealth’ is not always easy to define. In this report and throughout the Commonwealth Conversation, we have tried to be clear which aspect of the Commonwealth is being referred to, including: Member States: All 54 countries that are members of the Commonwealth Intergovernmental Commonwealth: The Commonwealth’s official organs funded by and serving member states (Commonwealth Secretariat, Commonwealth Foundation and Commonwealth of Learning) Commonwealth Civil Society organisations: The non-governmental organisations that work to promote the Commonwealth, often accredited to the inter-governmental Commonwealth. For a comprehensive list see: www.thecommonwealth.org Commonwealth ‘family’: All organisations, member governments and peoples who work on Commonwealth issues 2 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ………………………………………………………………. The Commonwealth Conversation would not have been possible without the help of numerous people who have given their time selflessly to this project, including, but by no means limited to, those listed below. Organisations Association of Commonwealth Universities BBC World British Council British Council Kenya British Council Tanzania British Council Zimbabwe British Youth Council Chancellor College, Malawi CM Insight Commonwealth Broadcasting Association Commonwealth Business Council Commonwealth Foundation Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative Commonwealth Journalists Association India Commonwealth Parliamentary Association Canada Commonwealth Parliamentary Association UK Commonwealth People’s Association of Uganda Commonwealth Policy Studies Unit Commonwealth Scholarships Commission Commonwealth Secretariat Commonwealth Student Welfare Group of India Commonwealth Trust, Wellington (RCS Branch) Commonwealth Youth Exchange Council Commonwealth Youth Organisation of Nigeria Commonwealth Youth Programme Dept of Political Studies, University of Cape Town Foreign and Commonwealth Office, UK Global Rights Institute of Commonwealth Studies Hope Enterprises Ltd, Jamaica Luvei Viti Community Group, New Zealand Institute of Security Studies, South Africa I-TECH Namibia Institute of International Relations, UWI, Trinidad Institute of International Studies, New Zealand Media Initiative for Public Policy, Bangladesh Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Maldives ModComms Ltd Obafemi Awolowo University, Nigeria One Tree Hill College, Auckland Otjozondjupa Regional Education Authority, Namibia Phat Reaction RCS Auckland Branch RCS Bath Branch RCS Cambridge Branch RCS Cameroon Branch 3 RCS Canberra Branch RCS Honorary Representative, Cayman Islands RCS Ottawa Branch RCS Queensland Branch RCS Saskatchewan Branch RCS Toronto Branch Redactive Print Management Routledge Journals, Taylor and Francis Group Royal Agricultural Society of the Commonwealth Shaaban Robert Secondary School The Round Table University of Engineering and Technology, Pakistan Westminster School, UK YouGov Individuals Abigail Trow, Adam Hassan, Ahmed Shiaan, Alastair Rabagliati, Alex Nuwagaba, Andrew Firmin, Andrew Tuggey, Andy Killen, Ann Hodkinson, Asad Mirza, Blackson Olaseni Bayewumi, Catherine Millican, Celia Watts, Charles Quin, Cheryl Dorall, Chris Harrington, Chris Nelson, Claire Anholt, Claire Hastings, Clare Mansfield, Conrad Bird, Cornelia Ndifon, Courtney Battistone, Daisy Cooper, Danny Andrews, Darryl Stevens, Datuk Feisol, David Howell, Derek Smail, Ed Matthews, Eduardo Del Buey, Ejazur Rahman, Elisapeci Samanunu Waqanivalu, Emily Fitzgerald, Frederick Kiapi, Gary Davis, Gavin Tench, Gordon Ross, Hari Om Dahiya, Hatty Cooper, Hugh Craft, Ian O’Reilly, James Ballantyne, Jason Rheinberg, Jean Philippe L’Eveque, Joany Grima, John Bradshaw, John Phillips, Joy Okech, Kareem Folajaiye, Kate Davies, Kevin Nellies, Laura Webb, Mandi Manga Obase, Marcie Shaoul, Margaret Russell, Mark Collins, Matt O’Neill, Matthew Albert, Michael McWilliam, Mmasekgoa Masire-Mwamba, Mong Marma, Nadia Hashmi, Neal Dalgleish, Nicky Baughen, Olalekan Oshunkoya, Patricia Alston, Patrick Wintour, Patsy Robertson, Paul Easton, Peter Kellner, Peter Marshall, Peter Williams, Petra Cooke, Philip Bolam, Philippa Norton, Purna Sen, Rajiv Bendre, Richard Bourne, Richard King, Richard Luce, Rita Payne, Rob Jordan, Robert Schrire, Ruth Dix, Sarah Barton, Sarah Lee, Sean Leno, Seth Lartey, Simon Atkinson, Simon Lever, Stefano Fabeni, Steve Cutts, Suzanne Livingston, Terry Barringer, Tim Shaw, Tom Baird, Vic Craggs, Victoria Bower, Wajahat Nassar, and Will Henley. 4 CONTENTS ……………………………………………………………… 1. Introduction 6 2. Methodology 8 1. Surveys 9 2. Online Activities 13 3. Offline Activities 18 4. Competition 28 5. Media 29 3. Recommendations 35 1. Live out principles 35 2. Lead from the front 38 3. Innovate and be bold 40 4. Prove worth 42 5. Exploit unique strengths 43 6. Invest 45 7. Communicate clearly 47 8. Short is sweet 49 9. Interact 50 10. Reach more people 51 4. Conclusion 52 Annex 1 Poll Results Annex 2 Online Discussion Group Summary Report Annex 3 Winning Commonwealth Chat Report Annex 4 My Commonwealth Competition Winners Annex 5 Opinion Pieces 5 1. INTRODUCTION ……………………………………………………………… In March 2009, to coincide with Commonwealth Day, the Royal Commonwealth Society conducted a nationally representative opinion poll in the UK to gauge the Commonwealth’s profile and reputation. Its results were alarming, but many people at the time told us the outlook was far bleaker in the UK than elsewhere. To put this oft cited theory to the test, we set about conducting six more opinion polls in Australia, Canada, India, Jamaica, Malaysia and South Africa. The results, published as part of the launch of the Commonwealth Conversation on 20 July 2009, did little to assuage our fears. Across these countries, we unearthed indifference and ignorance. The misperceptions and scepticism surrounding the Commonwealth seemed to point towards some deep-seated challenges and, in the association’s 60th anniversary year, we wanted to determine what they were. It was with this in mind that we embarked upon our consultation. The main aims of the Conversation were: • To gather views about the Commonwealth and its future • To identify key issues on which the Commonwealth should focus • To develop recommendations to present to Commonwealth leaders and policymakers • To help revitalise the Commonwealth and reconnect it to a new generation • To raise awareness about the Commonwealth In the pursuit of these aims, we adopted a wide range of online and offline consultation methods (for full details see Section 2 on Methodology) and deliberately set out to engage with the broadest cross section of participants, including members of the public, government officials, opinion leaders and Commonwealth experts. After four months, in November 2009, we published our emerging findings ahead of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Trinidad and Tobago. We called our report ‘Common What?’ (available to download from our website). The title echoed a phrase used by two participants in the Conversation: a journalist in South Africa and a Jamaican businesswoman in the UK. Both told us that, if they were to ask their friends and colleagues how relevant the Commonwealth was to them, this is the response they would get. The phrase also seemed to capture much of what we had found by that stage, including a widespread lack of awareness about what the modern Commonwealth is and an uncertainty about what exactly its member states have in common that sets the association apart from other international groupings. In trying to understand the reasons for the Commonwealth’s low profile, in our emerging findings, we identified several key challenges. We characterised these as the 3 Ps: principles, priorities and people. If the Commonwealth were to renew its focus on these three areas, we argued, it would rebuild its profile and become a stronger, healthier association, better equipped to prosper in the 21st century. We emphasised that the whole Commonwealth family, from member states to inter- governmental institutions, to civil society, shared a responsibility for this revitalisation. Our emerging findings were provocative and unashamedly so. We deliberately did not tone down what we had heard (nor did we pick the most sensationalist or critical comments as some people suggested at the time). We felt that we had a duty to accurately record what we had been told, even if it made for uncomfortable reading. But we also chose not to tone down