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THE COOLUM DECLARATION
THE COMMONWEALTH IN THE 21ST CENTURY: CONTINUITY AND RENEWAL
At the outset of this new millennium we, the Heads of Government
of the Commonwealth of Nations, meeting at Coolum, Australia, renew
our enduring commitment to the values and principles which we share.
We stand united in:
- our commitment to democracy, the rule of law, good governance, freedom of
expression and the protection of human rights;
- our respect for diversity and human dignity; our celebration of the pluralistic
nature of our societies and the tolerance it promotes; and our implacable
opposition to all forms of discrimination, whether rooted in gender, race,
colour, creed or political belief;
- our determination to work to eliminate poverty, to promote people-centred
and sustainable development, and thus progressively to remove the wide disparities
in living standards among us and overcome the special challenges facing our
small state and less developed country members; and
- our collective striving after international peace and security, the rule
of international law and the elimination of people-smuggling and the scourge
of terrorism.
We reiterate in the strongest terms our condemnation of all forms and manifestations
of terrorism. In the aftermath of the events of 11 September 2001 and following
our statement of 25 October 2001, we solemnly reaffirm our resolve as a diverse
community of nations individually and collectively to take concerted and resolute
action to eradicate terrorism. We pledge to work together in fulfilling our
international obligations to deny any safe haven for terrorists.
We cannot accept that nearly half the world's population should live in poverty,
nor that disease, illiteracy and environmental degradation should continue to
blight the lives of many of our people, nor the fact that in too many societies
women continue to face discrimination. The benefits of globalisation must be
shared more widely and its focus channelled for the elimination of poverty and
human deprivation. We stress the importance of equality of access to economic
opportunities and the need to apply new international standards such as the
OECD Harmful Tax Initiative evenly, equitably and without exception.
The Fancourt Declaration and the UN Millennium Declaration have laid a firm
base for us to push back the frontiers of poverty and under-development. In
pursuit of the Millennium Development Goals, we call on governments to seize
the opportunities presented by the Financing for Development Conference (Monterrey,
Mexico, 18-22 March 2002) and the World Summit on Sustainable Development (Johannesburg,
August/September 2002) to chart a more sustainable and equitable growth path
for the world. We also welcome the groundbreaking proposal from Africa to tackle
poverty through the New Partnership for Africa's Development, and will use our
best efforts to support similar partnerships in other regions of the Commonwealth.
More broadly, we call on all nations to work to reduce the growing gap between
rich and poor, and to enhance international support to democracies fighting
poverty.
Recognising the links between democracy and good governance on the one hand,
and poverty, development and conflict on the other, we call on the Commonwealth
Secretary-General to constitute a high-level expert group to recommend ways
in which we could carry forward the Fancourt Declaration. This group should
focus on how democracies might best be supported in combating poverty, and should
report to the next CHOGM.
We are deeply conscious of the threat HIV/AIDS poses to hard-won social and
economic progress in much of Africa and elsewhere. As leaders committed to each
one of our citizens developing their human potential to the full, we pledge
ourselves to combating this pandemic and the spread of other communicable diseases.
We urge both the public and private sector, and international organisations,
to join with us in a renewed effort to tackle the challenge HIV/AIDS presents
to our countries and their people, and to humanity itself.
We recognise the particular vulnerabilities of small states, as well as the
need for concerted action by the international community to address their special
needs. We further appreciate the importance of systemic changes to respond to
these needs, and we commit the Commonwealth to pursue innovative and practical
support mechanisms for small states.
Many other challenges confront us daily. As leaders guiding our nations into
the 21st century, we need a Commonwealth that both builds on our enduring values
and adapts to our evolving needs. We seek a Commonwealth in tune with the future:
an organisation which draws on its history, plays to its strengths, vigorously
pursues its members' common interests and seizes the opportunities open to it
to shape a better world for our children.
We envisage a modern and vibrant Commonwealth working to serve its peoples,
with a simplified structure and a clear focus on what it does best. We want
the Commonwealth to be an effective defender of democratic freedoms and a peacemaker
in conflict, and to work tirelessly in promoting people-centred economic development.
We have adopted the attached High Level Review Group (HLRG) Report which charts
a clear future course for the Commonwealth in line with this vision. The HLRG
Report sets out concrete steps to build a Commonwealth for the 21st century:
- we determine materially to strengthen the Commonwealth's capacity to
support its members' pursuit of democratic values and the rule of law.
We have clarified the conditions under which the Commonwealth Ministerial
Action Group will in future address serious or persistent violations of the
Harare Principles, which go beyond the unconstitutional overthrow of member
governments. A clear set of procedures - in which the Secretary-General and
the Chairperson in Office will have an important part to play - will help
ensure transparent and effective dealing with any member state concerned.
We are committed to strengthening the Good Offices role of the Commonwealth
Secretary-General and have agreed to strengthen the Commonwealth's work in
supporting democratic practice, in resolving tensions, in conflict prevention
and resolution, and in post-conflict rebuilding, working in consultation with
regional organisations as appropriate.
- in pursuit of a more equitable distribution of the benefits of globalisation
and in pursuit of the Millennium Development Goals, we are committed to
forging new opportunities for our members in trade, in investment and in private
sector development. We have agreed steps which will help our organisation
better identify and promote its members' economic and development needs in
an increasingly competitive international environment. We recognise the importance
of enhancing market access in the global trading system, particularly for
the poorest and smallest countries. To this end, we welcome and give our strong
support to the agreement reached in Doha on the World Trade Organisation's
new multilateral trade negotiations. Through an enhanced facilitation role,
we want our organisation to help member states get better access to international
assistance, and to focus the Commonwealth's own related programmes more effectively
on the assistance it is best-equipped to provide. We support the HLRG's strategy
to bridge the information and communications technology gap between rich and
poor.
- recognising that the Commonwealth's future lies in the hands of its youth,
we have agreed to create a pan Commonwealth "Youth for the Future"
initiative composed of four related components for technology and skills
transfer, and for fostering youth enterprise. We seek to engage youth, young
professionals and youth volunteers more closely, harnessing their skills and
enthusiasm to make a major practical contribution to the work of the Commonwealth.
- we seek to rationalise and streamline the Commonwealth's governance and
organisation to provide a simplified structure capable of responding more
quickly and effectively to members' needs.
- we call on the many intergovernmental, professional and civil society bodies
which help to implement our Commonwealth values, to join with us in building
closer Commonwealth "family" links, and strengthening consultation
and collaboration. We are convinced of the need for stronger links and
better two-way communication and coordination between the official and non-governmental
Commonwealth, and among Commonwealth NGOs. This will give Commonwealth activities
greater impact, ensuring that every programme produces lasting benefit.
We cherish our shared history and are proud of what we have achieved together
over the years. We are convinced that acting on the recommendations of the HLRG
Report will better equip the Commonwealth to meet the challenges of the future.
Our common values and unique ways of working together provide a special strength
in this, which we treasure. We call on our Secretary-General to work assiduously
with the Chairman in Office, the new governing mechanisms and the wider Commonwealth
family to translate the outcomes of the review into a practical reality which
benefits all our people.
As we plan for our future, we congratulate Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on
her completion of fifty years as the Head of the Commonwealth. We are grateful
for her dedication in the service of the Commonwealth and her strong commitment
to the association for over half a century.
Coolum, Australia
5 March 2002
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