12th Meeting of Heads of Governments of the Commonwealth 4.10.1993

In 1993 Cyprus hosted the 12^th Meeting of Heads of Governments of the Commonwealth.

Recognising the importance of the Commonwealth, the Department of Postal Services of Cyprus issued two special stamps, to honour this meeting. The designing of the stamps is based on motifs from the decoration of a Cypro-Geometric bowl (1050-750 B.C.) found at the locality of Agia Anastasia, Lapithos and now at the Cyprus Museum in Nicosia.

The Commonwealth is a voluntary union of independent states co-operating in the advancement of international understanding and peace for the common benefit of their peoples. The member countries of the Commonwealth were former colonies of Great Britain which gained their independence. The Commonwealth is characterized by a continuous development process and contributes in a positive way to the solution of problems currently facing the human race. The Commonwealth consists of 50 member countries with a population amounting to one fourth of the world population. It is spread all over the continents embracing peoples of different religions, languages and civilizations, united in their belief in the common principles of freedom, justice and equality irrespective of religion, colour or race. The developing relations between the Governments of the member countries supported and fostered by the Commonwealth Secretariat, the Commonwealth Institute and the Commonwealth Foundation as well as by the activities of a large number of non-Governmental Organizations contribute towards extending the Commonwealth's role to cover every aspect of life of these peoples.

Thank you Merja for this nice FDC.