The Commonwealth, for the 56 countries and more than 2.5 billion people that comprise it, is more a matter of nostalgia, identity, recognition of history and culture, moral authority or membership in a club than diplomatic influence and commercial benefits. , which are rather few. For each member it means a different thing. In the case of Great Britain, which acts as master of ceremonies, they are the embers of an imperial past of which almost nothing remains.
The death of Elizabeth II and the accession to the throne of Charles III are likely to accelerate the transformation into republics of some of the 14 countries that continue to recognize the British monarch as head of state, following in the footsteps of Barbados a few months ago. The main candidate to take the initiative is Jamaica, which has already said that it wants to end "the legacy of colonialism" as soon as possible and asks London for financial compensation for the slave trade (more than half a million arrived in the country from Africa) . A domino effect could drag down the rest of the Caribbean nations (Belize, Bahamas, Grenada, Saint Kitts and Nevis, the Virgin Islands, and Antigua and Barbuda, which is already considering a referendum). Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago embraced republicanism in the 1960s.
If this happens, Carlos III will take it with all sportsmanship, as his mother did. When, during his reign, the ex-colonies proclaimed independence or became republics, he not only did not object (it would have been of no use to him), but also attended the events commemorating the event and wished them good luck. And furthermore, of all the members of the club, the only ones that really matter to London are Canada, Australia and New Zealand, with which it is linked by cultural and security ties, and South Africa as the biggest economic power in Africa.
The proximity of the United States raises identity issues in Canada (cultural penetration is very important) and makes many people want to have the British monarch as head of state to differentiate themselves from the republican neighbor to the south. Another factor in favor of the status quo is that it would be necessary to reform the Constitution, an issue complicated by the complex balances between the differential fact of Quebec and the rights of the aborigines.
The biggest blow to the United Kingdom would be for Australia and New Zealand to become republics, a scenario that does not seem immediate but is very feasible in the medium term, as Anthony Albanese and Jacinda Ardern, the respective prime ministers, have admitted. Mehreen Faruqi, a Green Party senator in Parliament in Canberra, declared after the queen's death that she could not mourn the passing of the leader of a "racist empire built on the foundations of stolen lives, and the land and wealth of colonized populations. The Labor government last June established a ministry for "the transition to a republic". A referendum in 1999 decided to leave things as they were by 55% to 45%, curiously the same result as in Scotland fifteen years later. But Isabel generated a reverence that Carlos will find difficult to inspire.
Although some of the Commonwealth's members have no cultural ties to Britain, most are former colonies and dependencies. The organization took its current structure after the independence of India and Pakistan, and traces its origins to the "imperial conferences" of the 19th and early 20th centuries, when some former members of the empire began to gain autonomy. The leadership is not hereditary, and does not necessarily correspond to the British king, but in 2018 it was decided "voluntarily" that, after the death of Isabel, Carlos would be as "symbol of the voluntary nature of the association". The executive arm is a secretariat based in London, charged with implementing decisions.
The club lacked a constitution until 2012, when it adopted a Charter that commits its members to "the values of democracy, racial and gender equality, sustainable development, good governance, human rights, security and peace." international". But words are one thing and facts are another. In the 1980s he was the focus of a campaign against apartheid in South Africa, in 1995 he suspended Nigeria for the death sentence of activist Ken Saro-Wiwa, in 2000 Fiji for overthrowing the government, and in 2002 Zimbabwe – who is no longer a member – because of the violence and intimidation in the elections. The Gambia left in 2013 denouncing a “neo-colonial institution”, only to apply for readmission five years later.
