(Commonwealth)_ A lively group of 100 young Bangladeshis recently came together in a bid to grasp better the values enshrined in the Commonwealth Charter. The workshop, whose participants were drawn from various sectors including media, civil society, minorities, and academia, aimed to create awareness about core Commonwealth values like democracy, human rights, freedom of expression, and acceptance of diversity.
These young changemakers were already making a significant impact in their community, and the workshop served as a catalyst to advance their initiative. Case studies, interactive dialogues, and group activities empowered participants to apply Commonwealth values innovatively within the Bangladesh context. The training allowed them to critically examine challenges confronting society and strategize actual people-oriented solutions.
Perhaps the most significant output of the workshop was the setting of concrete action plans within each and every participant’s sphere of influence. Among the commitments were mobilization of energies to register more first-time voters, particularly the young people, to vote; setting up representative forums that are able to give expression to excluded communities, especially women; and acting as impartial mediators in an attempt to quell conflicts at local levels. Others pledged to advocate for inclusive policymaking, ensuring that marginalized communities received due consideration.
The sessions allowed the majority of attendees, who were experiencing the Commonwealth Charter for the first time, to make the Charter’s principles personal so they could relate them to their current work and values. Among the highlight spots was placing emphasis on tolerance, respect, and understanding between different people, values considered most applicable in the modern-day socio-political environment. All attendees pledged to apply these principles not only in their professional lives but also in their online interactions and everyday conflict resolution.
The adviser formally opened the workshop to Bangladesh’s Youth and Sports, who referred to the charter as a moral compass or guidance document for the 2.7 billion people of the 56 Commonwealth member countries. He also emphasized the consequences for those nations that fail to uphold these values and the necessity to prepare young people for nation-building efforts in skills and knowledge.
The Secretariat of the Commonwealth was attended by Assistant Secretary-General Professor Luis Franceschi, who urged the attendees to express their consciousness and bring it into productive, enduring action. He informed them that their leadership, public service, activism, entrepreneurship, and education are already the Commonwealth spirit. His presentation urged people to apply these principles in everyday life and make decisions based on them. It reiterated the principle that change is beginning at an individual level.
Zaid Ekram, a co-founder of the Bangladesh Liberty and Rights Forum, was among the participants at the workshop. He focused on mobilizing youth for environmental rights campaigns, aiming to incorporate them into the national Constitution. His commitment demonstrates how Commonwealth values can provide a foundation for emerging social movements and policy actions.
The Commonwealth Charter, adopted in 2013, is the foundation on which the common political, social, economic, and environmental values of the member states are based. It is the standard for the governance, rights, and duties of the Commonwealth community. Through initiatives such as this workshop, the Commonwealth is once again demonstrating its commitment to the education of the next wave of leaders so that values within the Charter are not merely familiar but, indeed, lived by individuals who can influence the path of their country’s future.
