Commonwealth report calls for repeal of anti-gay laws

[Fintan]

Globe and Mail: Commonwealth report calls for repeal of anti-gay laws
28 October 2011

A report to Commonwealth leaders says there is “overwhelming support” for its core recommendations, including a human rights commissioner and the repeal of laws against homosexuality still found in 41 of the 54 member states.

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard opened the Commonwealth’s biennial summit in Perth on Friday morning by noting 2011 marks the 80th anniversary of the original British Commonwealth – supplanted by the modern iteration in 1949.

“The world has changed and a wise institution changes too,” Ms. Gillard told the assembled dignitaries, including the Queen and Prime Minister Stephen Harper, at an elaborate opening ceremony.

“So as the Commonwealth journeys towards its centenary, it’s time for renewal.”

The organization’s long-stated commitments to human rights, the rule of law and political freedoms have been sorely tested by member states, with fingers pointed most recently at Sri Lanka and Gambia.

Even the Queen alluded directly to the reform recommendations in her speech that formally opened the summit Friday.

“I wish heads of government well in agreeing further reforms that respond boldly to the aspirations of today and that keep the Commonwealth fresh and fit for tomorrow,” she told the assembly.

The key report, written by an 11-person panel appointed in 2009 that includes Conservative Senator Hugh Segal, a former Australian high court judge and a former British foreign minister, does not pull its punches.

The Harper government has already committed to pushing for the reforms, and Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird said before arriving in Perth that the repeal of laws against homosexuality would be on the table at the summit.

Gay rights are just one aspect of the called-for reforms.

Sri Lanka has come under heavy international scrutiny for its brutal eradication of the long-standing Tamil insurgency in the island nation that culminated in a 2009 bloodbath.

Mr. Harper publicly stated last month that he would boycott the 2013 Commonwealth summit, scheduled to take place in Colombo, if Sri Lanka did not investigate and address its human rights abuses.

Britain, Canada & Australia among others are pushing for these reforms.