The Commonwealth: what are the benefits of membership?

misskool

Commonwealth citizens resident in the UK can vote in General Elections and can choose to serve in the armed forces.

Not sure what else there is really.

purch

misskool wrote: »

Not sure what else there is really.

They also get to stick a mini union flag in the top corner of their own national flags if they so choose.

FTBFun

chewmylegoff wrote: »

don't england, scotland, wales and northern ireland all have separate membership of the commonwealth? i'm basing this entirely on the fact that the compete separately at the commonwealth games.

I have no idea! Maybe.

vivatifosi

Kennyboy66 wrote: »

I thought that replacing the Queen as head or state and actually leaving the commonwealth were 2 separate issues.

That goes to show how poor my knowledge on this subject is:o. Another good reason to have started the thread.

chris_m

Kennyboy66 wrote: »

I thought that replacing the Queen as head or state and actually leaving the commonwealth were 2 separate issues.
India (as well as a few West Indies isles, Trinidad & Tobago) are Republics but still in the Commonwealth.

There are 54 Commonwealth States at present, of which 16 are Commonwealth Realms with HM Queen as monarch and 5 are separate monarchies with their own monarch. The remainder are all republics.

Interestingly, not all members were formerly part of the British Empire. Some were part of the empire as part of another country, eg Pakistan and Bangladesh were part of the Empire as regions of India and became countries in their own right at partition, initially as one and later two when Bangladesh (formerly East Pakistan) gained independence from Pakistan.

Others were never under British rule at all yet have joined the Commonwealth - for example Mozambique, which gained independence from Portugal in 1975 and joined the Commonwealth in 1995 and Rwanda, which was Belgian until 1962.

oldvicar

In the case of Jamaica I suspect they believe that their economic interests, and indeed military/security interests, are best served by being good friends with America.

If maintaining a 'special relationship' with the US means being a bit cooler towards the former slave-owners, then what better time than now being exactly 50 years since achieving independence from the British Empire.

All that lovely USAID has to be encouraged somehow. Here is what America is doing for Jamaica: http://www.usaid.gov/locations/latin_america_caribbean/country/jamaica/

Jamaica is the U.S.’s third largest trading partner in the Caribbean. Over the last five years, the U.S. has also accounted for the largest share of foreign direct investment in the country. Jamaica attracts over 1 million travelers from the U.S. each year. Hence, the country’s political, economic, and social conditions directly affect U.S. national interests

FTBFun

oldvicar wrote: »

In the case of Jamaica I suspect they believe that their economic interests, and indeed military/security interests, are best served by being good friends with America.

If maintaining a 'special relationship' with the US means being a bit cooler towards the former slave-owners, then what better time than now being exactly 50 years since achieving independence from the British Empire.

All that lovely USAID has to be encouraged somehow. Here is what America is doing for Jamaica: http://www.usaid.gov/locations/latin_america_caribbean/country/jamaica/

That's fair enough - although its a bit odd to describe the UK as "former slave owners" in comparison to the US though, which of course kept hold of slavery longer than Britain.

Jennifer_Jane

Why are countries queuing up to join, I wonder? Wikipedia (thanks for the thread, Vivatifosi) says that Sudan, Algeria, South Sudan, Somaliland, and Yemen have applied to join the Commonwealth. There is discussion about non-ex British colonies or protecterates being allowed to join. So, what are these countries seeing that there is such a benefit to them. I understand that it's a meeting of equals, which poorer countries might enjoy (a bit of economic 'social climbing') - is that it?

And other countries were desperate to come back - Pakistan who came out after the establishment of Bangla Desh, which they were against, and South Africa who came back in 1994 when Apartheid formally died (hooray).

Apparently, rumours of Israel wanting to join are unfounded.

FTBFun

Israel (and Palestine for that matter) have more of a connection to join than Algeria, for instance, considering the British controlled that part of the world up to 1948.

Jennifer_Jane

FTBFun - agreed, Britain's meddling, dishonest, shame!