Over to CHOGM, Anyone Listening
By Ferial Haffajee

AS THE Commonwealth Peoples Forum moves into its final days, attention will shift to the International Convention Centre when the Commonwealth Heads of Government meeting meeting begins today.

CSOs Look Within Too
By Zarina Geloo

CIVIL SOCIETY should not wait until it is under attack before it puts its house in order, Kumi Naidoo chairperson of Civicus told a meeting discussing legitimacy, accountability and transparency in civil society on Thursday night.

Canadian Disconnection
By Sanjay Suri

FOR A while everyone thought the cynics were wrong. Heads of government were coming to the Commonwealth people’s village after all.

Invisible People Ask to be Seen
By Ukpong E. Ukpong

INVISIBLE PEOPLE across the Commonwealth are asking to be seen and recognized. And there are around 150 million of them.

The official word for the invisible is “indigenous”. That refers broadly to the original people of a land, often with language and customs of their own, and usually lacking political power.

So Who’s Been Saying What

“DEMOCRACY AND development are the twin engines of social progress. The two are inseparable. A country cannot achieve long-term growth if its citizens are not free to play their full part in the democratic process,” Don McKinnon, Commonwealth Secretary-General.

It’s Another Abuja Outside the City
By Ferial Haffajee

Abuja, where the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting begins today, appears to be a boom city. Grand buildings that house government offices and corporate investors dot the skyline, their windows gleaming in the hot sun.

Just Who is a Nigerian
By Zarina Geloo

TO THE outside world Nigeria has always been regarded as one entity. Yet in reality, it is a country characterised by a diversity of cultures and religion which has called into question the volatile issue of citizenship.

Netting Them Young
By Ferial Haffajee

YOUNG PEOPLE want representation at the Commonwealth Heads of Government, the youth forum which has met in Abuja since November 25 has resolved. Presenting its final statement to the peoples’ forum yesterday, the forum also said “we strongly believe that links with young people’s civil society organisations from suspended Commonwealth nations should be maintained”. It added that “Mechanisms should be created to ensure the appropriate selection and safety of any representatives at Commonwealth for a.”

Around Abuja

NOW THAT the leaders are here, so are the guns. No, nobody is blaming those carrying them, or the governments they carry them for. But after days of seeing people connect with people, they come as reminder how out of place they are, and how tragic is the need now to carry them...

TERRAVIVA 05/12/2003
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