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Secretary-General Concludes Trip To Asia

4 November 2004

Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon with President Gayoom, Maldives October 2004
Commonwealth Secretary-General with President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom of the Maldives.
Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon has recently returned from visits to four Asian countries; Pakistan, Singapore, Maldives and India.

Pakistan, 22-23 October 2004:

The Secretary-General met with President Pervez Musharraf, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and Foreign Minister Khurshid Mehmood Kasuri. He also met the Chairman of the National Assembly and the Deputy Chairman of the Senate, as well as Opposition representatives. In his discussions, the Secretary-General explored areas for expanding the Commonwealth Secretariat's programme of technical assistance for Pakistan, including support for the education of girls and the strengthening of the media.

Mr McKinnon noted the progress achieved in return of democracy to Pakistan in recent years and welcomed Pakistan's engagement with the Commonwealth since the lifting of its suspension from Commonwealth councils by the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group on the Harare Declaration (CMAG) in May 2004. At the same time, while acknowledging the position of the Pakistan Government that it had decided to take a parliamentary route to dealing with the question of separation of the offices of the President and Chief of Army Staff, the Secretary-General noted that recent developments in this regard were a matter of Commonwealth concern. He delivered three key messages on this issue. He stressed, firstly, that the current step, although being advanced through the parliamentary processes, falls short of CMAG's expectations. Secondly, that the Commonwealth expects the supremacy of Parliament and the Constitution to be upheld at all times. Finally, he made it clear that it is for CMAG to determine the Commonwealth position on this issue. 

While in Pakistan, the Secretary-General also delivered a lecture on 'The Commonwealth in the 21st Century' at the Institute of Regional Studies in Islamabad. 

Singapore, 24-25 October:

Mr McKinnon met the new Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, and Foreign Minister George Yeo. They discussed Singapore's role in the Commonwealth and the Secretary-General appreciated the contribution of that country in terms of training personnel from a large number of Commonwealth developing countries through the Singapore-Commonwealth Third Country Training Programme.

Mr McKinnon also addressed the 10th anniversary conference of the Commonwealth Association for Public Administration and Management; and awarded prizes for the Commonwealth Essay Competition, organised by the Royal Commonwealth Society.


Maldives, 26-27 October:

The Secretary-General was in Maldives on 26 and 27 October, where he raised Commonwealth concerns about recent political developments in that country with President Maumoon Abdul Gayoom and Foreign Minister Fathulla Jameel. Mr McKinnon encouraged the Government to pursue actively its proposed constitutional reforms. It was agreed that the Commonwealth will, at the request of the Maldives Government, remain engaged on issues relating to the process of democratic reform in Maldives, and Mr McKinnon discussed ways in which the Commonwealth could assist Maldives in this regard. The Secretary-General confirmed that, in response to an invitation from the Maldives Government, he was proposing to constitute a Commonwealth team to observe the forthcoming parliamentary elections in Maldives. An assessment mission is to be dispatched shortly to prepare for the election observation exercise. 

The Secretary-General also met the Chairman of the Human Rights Commission of Maldives, Ahmed Mujuthaba.

India, 28-29 October:

Mr McKinnon concluded his Asia trip with a visit to India, where he met with the Prime Minister, Dr Manmohan Singh, External Affairs Minister Natwar Singh and Finance Minister P Chidambaram. The Secretary-General welcomed India's role in the Commonwealth and urged that this be further enhanced, including through increased contributions to Commonwealth technical assistance programmes to assist developing member countries. 

Mr McKinnon also exchanged views with the Prime Minister on taking forward the Report of the Commonwealth Expert Group chaired by Dr Singh in 2002-2003, 'Making Democracy Work for Pro-Poor Development'.

During his visit, the Secretary-General also met the Speaker of the Lok Sabha (Lower House of the Indian Parliament), Somnath Chatterjee, and the Leader of the Opposition, L K Advani. Finally, he met business leaders under the auspices of the Confederation of Indian Industry and the Commonwealth Business Council.

 

CNIS - the Commonwealth News and Information Service Issue 208  3 November 2004

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