How many of you know that this Monday
9th March is Commonwealth Day?

How many of you know that we are
celebrating it here on Sunday 8th March at St George's
Anglican Church on Courts Road, George Town at 4PM?

We have published today three items
relating to Commonwealth Day – HM The Queen's Commonwealth Message,
The Commonwealth Day Affirmation and the Commonwealth Day Message by
The Rt Hon Patricia Scotland QC, Commonwealth Secretary-General.

It would appear to be a very important
day in our calendar? Why?

What is Commonwealth Day?

Commonwealth Day is an annual
celebration of the Commonwealth of Nations – 53 countries that were
previously a part of the British Empire, as well as Britain itself
and its overseas territories.

Sixteen of these states still recognise
the British Queen as their monarch.

Altogether, it is celebrated by over 2
billion people, or about a third of the world’s population.

After Queen Victoria died in 1901, her
birthday (24 May) was anointed Empire Day. It was celebrated in
countries all around the Empire as a patriotic holiday, re-enforcing
the idea of the greatness of the British Empire.

In 1925, an Empire Day thanksgiving
service was held at Wembley Stadium and attracted 90,000 people.

It continued until 1958 when Prime
Minister Harold MacMillan announced that it would be renamed
Commonwealth Day.

When is Commonwealth Day 2020?

Rather than continuing to celebrate
Commonwealth Day on the fixed date of 24 May as they had with Empire
Day, the Royal Commonwealth Society determined that it would instead
be held on the second Monday of March each year.

For 2020, that means that Commonwealth
Day falls on Monday 9 March.

The day is not a public holiday in
Britain. It follows, therefore, it is not a Public Holiday in the
Cayman Islands.

Membership in the Commonwealth is
entirely voluntary.

Some people cannot understand why any
country that historicallyBritain made violent claim to, would want to
celebrate it.

However, Daniel Howard, writing in the
UK's Independent says the Commonwealth does offer “abusive regimes
a fig-leaf of legitimacy and a platform that they would otherwise
have to look for at the more crowded but equally grubby United
Nations. Considering that it confers no trade priveledges, has no
influence on defence or economic policy, no executive authority and
no sensible budget to play a global role it remains a talking shop at
best and at worst a costly junket.”

There is a queue of countries that want
to join the Commonwealth but not for the reasons that The Queen and
the Commonwealth Secretary-General have laid down in their separate
Messages..

It gives smaller nations the chance to
lobby for bi-lateral trade deals, to influence the positions of
bigger powers at forums with real bite like the World Trade
Organisation.

It also encourages developing members
to raise their standard of democracy, rights and governance.

I think it is a pity our Premier didn't
say anything at all about it.

In fact, there has been precious little said about it in our media, nor even our Islands' social media. Forgotten?