Amsterdam Commonwealth
Amsterdam Commonwealth | |
|---|---|
 Flag
 Logo
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 Member states of the Amsterdam Commonwealth | |
| Headquarters | Amsterdam, Netherlands |
| Working language | English |
| Type | Voluntary association |
| Leaders | |
• Head | Alexandra |
| Yesa Taligatus | |
• Chairman | Maurits Wildeboer |
| Establishment | |
| 20 March 2000 | |
| Area | |
• | 3,825,326 km2 (1,476,967 sq mi) |
| Population | |
• 2021 estimate | 374,805,862 |
• Density | 97/km2 (251.2/sq mi) |
| GDP (PPP) | 2021 estimate |
• Total | $7.21 trillion |
• Per capita | $19,245 |
| GDP (nominal) | 2021 estimate |
• Total | $3.43 trillion |
• Per capita | $9,175 |
| HDI (2021) |  0.738high |
The Amsterdam Commonwealth, better known as the Dutch Commonwealth, is a political association of six member states, namely the Netherlands, Suriname, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Indonesia, and Papua New Guinea, all of whom, except for the Netherlands itself, were formerly colonised by the Dutch throughout the 15th to 20th centuries. Formed on 20 March 2000 by the Amsterdam Proclamation, the Amsterdam Commonwealth is overseen by a ceremonial head, currently Queen Alexandra, while the Secretary-General and the Chairman manage the organisation's day-to-day operations.
Considered and seen by many to be the Dutch version of the United Kingdom's Commonwealth of Nations, uniquely enough, unlike the latter, none of the Amsterdam Commonwealth's six member states, with the exception of the Netherlands itself, have the Queen as its head of state, although they nonetheless recognise the monarch as the ceremonial head of the organisation. In addition, the organisation's working language is officially English instead of Dutch, given the scarcity of fluent Dutch speakers in the non-Dutch speaking member states.
Much like the Commonwealth of Nations, member states possess no legal obligations to one another but are nonetheless connected through their historical ties. Centrally, the organisation strongly upholds the values of liberty, equality, and fraternity, with member states often encouraged to promote and practice such values to the fullest extent.
Coincidentally, given that South Africa and Sri Lanka were previously colonised by both the British and the Dutch in the past, both countries are simultaneously members of both the Amsterdam Commonwealth and the Commonwealth of Nations.