Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group
The Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) was established by Commonwealth Heads of Government in November 1995 to deal with serious or persistent violations of the Harare Declaration, which lays down the Commonwealth's fundamental political values.
The Group is convened by the Commonwealth Secretary-General and made up of foreign ministers from nine countries.
Their task is to assess the nature of the infringement and recommend measures for collective Commonwealth action aimed at the speedy restoration of democracy and constitutional rule.
The composition, terms of reference and operation of the group is decided and reviewed every two years and ministers generally serve two terms. CMAG was given an enhanced mandate at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Perth, Australia, in October 2011.
The current membership of the group is as follows: Australia, Bangladesh, Canada, Jamaica, Maldives*, Sierra Leone, United Republic of Tanzania, Trinidad & Tobago and Vanuatu.
*In situations where a member of CMAG is under scrutiny by the Group itself, its CMAG membership is placed in abeyance as long as it remains on the formal agenda of CMAG. Therefore Maldives is not participating in CMAG during this time.