Charles stepping up to face Commonwealth challenges
Prince Charles is representing the Queen as the ceremonial head of the Commonwealth at the Chogm summit in Rwanda this week, where both the 54-nation bloc and the British monarchy face uncertainty.
Charles and wife, Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall yesterday visited a memorial to Rwanda’s 1994 genocide during their first appearance in the capital, Kigali, for the Commonwealth heads of government meeting.
Royal historian Ed Owens said the heir to the throne could find that when he succeeded his mother as the Commonwealth’s leader, ‘‘he finds himself in charge of a rapidly disintegrating organisation’’. However, he said Charles’s decades of commitment to environmental issues could be an asset with the bloc, which includes low-lying island states on the front lines of climate change.
This week’s summit will tackle challenges such as climate change and how to wrestle millions of people out of poverty.
Charles is standing in for the 96-year-old Queen at the summit for the second time, first doing so in Sri Lanka in 2013.
The Commonwealth itself is struggling to carve out a strong identity. It faces criticism for not doing enough to look after the economic interests of poorer members, including Rwanda itself. A weakness of the group of mostly former British colonies is that it’s not a trading bloc at a time when trade is what most nations want. With China as Africa’s largest trade partner, some critics say the Commonwealth risks becoming a largely ceremonial group.
‘‘The challenge for the Commonwealth was always how the developed nations can help the poor countries transform themselves economically,’’ said James Mugume, a retired diplomat in Uganda who helped to organise the Chogm summit in 2007. ‘‘When it comes to real issues, like how to increase trade and market access, that’s where the challenge is.’’
The need to benefit every Commonwealth member has emerged as a strong theme this week, with people demanding a more dynamic bloc. ‘‘We must ensure nobody is left behind, such as small and developing nations,’’ Rwandan President Paul Kagame said yesterday.
Rwanda joined the Commonwealth in 2009, after ties with former benefactor France frayed over its alleged responsibility for the 1994 genocide.
The Commonwealth, with member states ranging from vast India to tiny Tuvalu, faces a new challenge as some members discuss removing the Queen as their head of state. While countries can remain in the Commonwealth if they become republics, it adds to uncertainty around an organisation that the Queen’s strong personal commitment has helped to unite.
Questions also remain about the bloc’s value among poorer member states, with some critics scoffing at Africa’s ties with an organisation they see as tainted by the memory of slavery and colonialism.