Commonwealth leaders meet in Rwanda amid criticism of host's rights record

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson visits Flame of Hope with (L) Freddy Mutanguha, Executive Director for the Aegis Trust at the Kigali Genocide Memorial, on June 23, 2022 in Kigali, Rwanda. Leaders of Commonwealth countries meet every two years for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), hosted by different member countries on a rotating basis. Since 1971, a total of 24 meetings have been held, with the most recent being in the UK in 2018. Dan Kitwood/Pool via REUTERS

Commonwealth leaders meet in Kigali on Friday to discuss cooperation on topics from trade to health to climate, against a backdrop of criticism of the host Rwanda's human rights record and of a British policy to deport asylum seekers there.

The Commonwealth, a club of 54 countries most of which are former British colonies, encompasses about a third of humanity and presents itself as a network of equal partners with shared goals such as democracy, peace and prosperity.