Politicians constituted one major front, met by an army of law enforcement, witnessed by thousands of celebrating citizenry and all covered in digital detail by a battalion of media. The official code name of this action? The Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting or CHOGM (pronounced as a word, not a series of letters.) It is a biennial meeting of the British Commonwealth nations led by Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth II. The voluntary congress talks about issues of mutual interest (trade, immigration, polio eradication, climate change) and individual gain (nuclear power/weapons, resource attainment, operating funds to keep the country going.) Two related forums immediately precede these foreign Heads of State meetings: the Business Conference [where the host country is likely to gain some benefit from all the hoopla] and the Young People's Conference [where 21 year-olds tell themselves that they should be running countries and companies.]
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| Police guard VIP hotels |
So what does this mean to the citizens of Perth hosting this event this year? The added security (police brought in from all states and New Zealand) especially around the ministerial hotels guarding delegations and hovering like raptors seemed a bit much. Barricades, street closures, burly men with earwigs "magging and bagging" (magnetometer and bag check) everyone and rooftop snipers being vigilant every time the Queen surfaced gave this otherwise laidback city the look and feel of being occupied by a military force.
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| staff security |
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| CHOGM Festival corner |
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| press conference prep |
There were plenty of detractors to this whole event (we won't mention the objectors to individual rulers) usually about the amount of money spent for so little outcome. Politicians would have us believe that all this would put Perth on the real world map. I have to agree, in part, with the negative assessment. Just about everyone paid to plan and organize CHOGM was imported from the east coast, including the lowest tier people like graphic artists, volunteer liaisons and venue managers. And those folks had to be fed and housed. Yes, the CHOGM Taskforce needed 500 WA people to volunteer to help save money for their six months hotel bill. Many people started to rename CHOGM as Chaps Holidaying On Government Money. Heaven knows the state paid enough money for the Festival and additional police hours not covered by CHOGM security budget. But all that said, I hope people availed themselves of some of the culture offerings laid out for them. The party was paid for, they may as well attend.
SOME FACTOIDS
The Commonwealth:
The world’s largest and smallest, richest and poorest countries make up the Commonwealth, which is home to two billion citizens of all faiths and ethnicities – over half of whom are 25 or under. Member countries span six continents and oceans from Africa (19) to Asia (8), the Americas (2), the Caribbean (12), Europe (3) and the South Pacific (10). Some island countries have 10,000 (or less!) inhabitants.
The Commonwealth has grown from just eight members in 1949, to 54 members in 2010
The Commonwealth countries are:
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