PERTH: Leaders will have a tough time deciding whether the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) needs to appoint a Commissioner for Democracy, the Rule of Law and Human Rights as part of efforts in rebranding CHOGM.
While a few countries strongly support the Eminent Persons Group's (EPG) recommendation, a significant number has strong reservations over the idea. Malaysia is in the former.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak said the question was whether there would be a consensus to the issue.
“It is a bit contentious at this stage and there are a lot of divergent views about the appointment,” he said.
“We had some discussion on this today and the meeting could see differences in opinion around the table. But we will try to resolve this tomorrow,” he told the Malaysian media yesterday.
Najib said if no decision arose in the end, they would leave the matter to be discussed by the foreign ministers.
It was among 106 recommendations made by the EPG on how CHOGM could stay relevant.
The 10-member EPG, led by former prime minister Tun Abdullah Ahmad Badawi, presented their recommendations to the Commonwealth leaders yesterday.
India was one of the countries that frowned on the idea. It felt that the group should focus on development challenges rather than human rights.
Australia and Canada are in the forefront of those supporting the EPG's recommendation.
Najib, who held bilateral talks with South African President Jacob Zuma, said he had been invited to attend the 100th anniversary of the African National Congress on Jan 8.
“Africa wants to take its good relations with Malaysia to another level,” he said.
Najib also met his Pakistani counterpart Yousuf Raza Gilani and their discussions revolved around how the two countries could further strengthen bilateral relations.
Yousuf, too, extended an invitation for Najib to visit so that he could look at boosting trade and also Malaysia's participation in the banking industry in Pakistan.
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