Commonwealth Day not a cause for celebration

Written by Ndumiso Ncube

Commonwealth Day, previously known as Empire Day, takes place on the 8th of March of this year.

The theme this year is Delivering a common future for the Commonwealth countries. Organisers of the event say the 54 member states are “innovating, connecting and transforming to help achieve some of its biggest goals, such as fighting climate change, promoting good governance and boosting trade”. They also argue that the 54 independent states voluntarily joined and are working together to promote peace, prosperity, democracy as well as amplifying the voice of small states and protecting the environment. 

However, evidence is contrary to these claims. Since its formation in 1931, the purpose of the so-called Commonwealth has been to keep former colonies in the firm grip of the British monarchy. Human rights and the environment are severely abused in the process of producing profit for the ruling elites. This has led to high political instability and poverty being prevalent among commonwealth member states.

Rather than working to improve peace, Britain continues to support corrupt regimes responsible for crimes against humanity. In Southern Cameroon civilians have been massacred by government forces, in Nigeria the same has occurred in the #EndSARS movement to name but a few examples. Yet, Britain chooses to focus on making trade deals in order to maximize profit. Most members of the Commonwealth are among the poorest countries in the world. The poverty endured by these countries is a direct result of the process of the former British Empire stripping resources from them and exploiting the cheap – and often slave – labour during the colonial period. 

The reality is that the Commonwealth is an illusion. It is a mask behind which the imperialists hide. It is the modern-day continuation of colonialism. Previously colonized countries have not benefited from being part of it, and will not benefit in the future. The objective of the Commonwealth is not to address problems such as corruption, environmental degradation, human rights abuses, inequality or political instability. These problems arise as a result of the political and economic order imposed by the imperialists. The Commonwealth exists to ensure Britain remains in control of former colonies, from a distance. It is a firm example of neo-colonialism. 

Colonized peoples fought against colonialism until the early system became too costly and difficult to maintain for the imperialist nations. Particularly in Africa, struggles for national liberation resulted in armed conflict. Britain and other imperial powers, like France, were forced to relinquish direct control of their colonies. However, through neo-colonialism, these former colonies largely remain under the thumb of their former colonizers. Those in government openly collude with the former colonizing states and captains of industry in order to establish themselves as emerging capitalists. Leon Trotsky warned that this would be the fate of the “liberated” colonies in an imperialist world: the leaders of the colonial liberation struggles will have to decide whether they side with a strong working class and fight imperialism on an international scale, OR, whether they will saddle up with the international ruling class and partake in the oppression – and repression – of the working class in their countries.

The Commonwealth was established towards the end of formal colonial rule and has served as a tool for strengthening neo-colonial structures. Despite Africa’s overwhelming abundance in natural resources and a large labour force, much of the wealth has escaped the continent leaving the masses in poverty. Meanwhile, the international ruling class has continued to benefit at the expense of the working class in Africa. Ultimately, the Commonwealth is a system that keeps the wealth divided unequally.

Coinciding with International Women’s Day this year on March 8, organisers are focusing on “women’s leadership” throughout the Commonwealth playing a key role, and “achieving an equal future in a COVID-19 world”. The leadership spoken about here is of the ruling class variety. The toxic mixture of racism invented to justify colonisation, and sexism that has existed for thousands of years, means that women in the neo-colonial world suffer extraordinary exploitation. This takes the form of severe gender based violence, being forced into prostitution for survival – often by occupying imperialist forces, human trafficking, massive wage inequality compared to male counterparts, disproportionate representation in precarious and non-unionised jobs, etc. The mere fact that the United Kingdom is one of the worst hoarders in the world of Covid vaccines is a clear indication there is no honest pursuit of “an equal future” by those in power. The UK has secured vaccinations that would cover the population almost four times over, while the entire African Union has less than one third of doses necessary for its population. 

The reality is that the Commonwealth and other imperialist structures like the UN that enable extreme exploitation of people are the same structures that allow and perpetuate the conditions for the oppression of poor and working class women in the neo-colonial world. 

A system that thrives on inequality at such an extreme level must be challenged. Britain has plundered unimaginable wealth from Africa and other regions, and caused catastrophic damage to cultures, the environment and societies. Entire civilizations were wiped out in the name of the British Empire. The Commonwealth serves to diminish these crimes against humanity and the natural world, and dress these brutal conquests in language and ceremony of “working together towards a noble goal” and “reconciliation”. However there is nothing “common” about continued stolen wealth and dignity. The class war waged on working people by the capitalist class means we are in fact not fighting for a “common” goal – while the capitalists are working to extract as much profit as possible from the environment and the working class in every last place on earth, we are fighting for our own survival and to save our planet.   

The 8th of March should not be a day to commemorate an empire that has a history of slavery, colonialism and causing suffering to several generations across the world. The demands for true freedom from Britain and the clutches of capitalism must continue. Without abolishing all traces of neo-colonialism, there will be no escape from poverty for the masses living in the former colonies. Capitalism is incapable of addressing the problems faced by the poor all over the world because it is driven by an unending need to accumulate profit no matter the cost. Under capitalism, the natural world and people are resources to be exploited for wealth “creation”. Only when the people who are currently oppressed have democratic ownership and control of the commanding heights of the economy shall they be free. It is only within a socialist framework with an internationalist approach that such freedom can be achieved.