King Kamilo in Canada!

'Together let us go where the green pennant flies and friendship's banner raise, Together Unafraid'

On a clear Autumn day in 1980, The Coldstream Guards wheeled into the forecourt of Buckingham Palace playing 'Together Unafraid' (a Commonwealth March arranged by the Director of Music of the 2nd KEO Goorkhas) to honour a promise to 900 children of the Chase High School in Malvern who gave up their spare time to rehearse and record the song for later broadcast on the Asian Service of the BBC. Meanwhile, the 10th Commonwealth Expedition, Comex 10, was gearing up for a rendezvous 6000 miles away with African, Canadian and Indian contingents of in Delhi. The prize that lay ahead was The Green Pennant Awards 'identifying the spirit of adventure with crossing the barriers that divide people' to be inaugurated by His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh, in London. That ceremony took place on 18 December 1980 at the Commonwealth Institute, hosted by Times Newspapers. The band of the Goorkhas and The Chase High School were in attendance.

'The challenge now, is for the spirit of Comex to keep the Commonwealth ideal of 'the brotherhood of man, of peace and co-operation' (in Prince Philip's words) 'shining brightly: like the beam from a lighthouse on a stormy night.' The Green Pennant Awards is an accomplished fact, made possible by the example of 3000 men and women of the Commonwealth who were prepared to take the risk and adventure, and the many more thousands of hospitable people who welcomed them with uninhibited enthusiasm. Its future lies in the hands of their leaders.

Relevant references:

CRYING DRUMS: Foreword by Prince Philip (George Allen & Unwin 1972)

TOGETHER UNAFRAID: Foreword by the late Professor Arnold Smith CH OC, first Secretary General of the Commonwealth and patron of Comex in Canada (Hale 1979)

JOURNEY OF A LIFETIME: From the Blue Mountains to Devon, Ten Tors and Comex (Northcote House 1997)

 www.comex40.org.uk (40th anniversary website)

THE BEGINNING

Responding to a personal request in 1963, Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India, authorised his Government to host a Commonwealth Youth Festival dedicated 'to organising a new consciousness in the Commonwealth by bringing together selected groups of young men and women to meet in cultural and intellectual activities as well as in common adventure'. It was a bold, imaginative initiative discussed on and off for over two years in Delhi, by a government committee within the Ministry of Education, with representatives from all Commonwealth missions in the capital. But the problems that emerged seemed insurmountable, and it was left to the Commonwealth Expedition, Comex, under the patronage of Prince Philip, to carry forward the spirit of Nehru's initiative. Comex 1, with five contingents of 42 each from Oxford, Cambridge, London, Cardiff and Edinburgh, was launched in 1965, with Commonwealth students studying in those universities on board. There have been fourteen expeditions (the largest of 525 from 21 universities) identified wherever they went by a Green Pennant ('the little green flag or nannhey harey dhwaj') with HRH's Cypher and the Asoka Wheel embroidered in gold. It was destined to become The Green Pennant Awards. (See www.comex40.org.uk:  Ch4, 'Where the Sands of the Desert Touch the Sky)'.

PROGRESS

His Royal Highness's prescient words at the inauguration of The Green Pennant Awards in 1980 can be heard in the original recording included at the end of this proposal. Fifteen years on, following the first Comex on African soil (Comex 13/14 – see below) and at the request of the then President of Zambia, Dr Kenneth Kaunda, the Awards were brought to the attention of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in New Zealand for endorsement. Two years later, courtesy of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, and the Lord Provost's Office, the most recent Awards took place during a reception for Heads of Government at the Edinburgh CHOGM of 1997. On that occasion Heads of Government were invited to act as the guardians of these Awards in order to secure their future. This event represented a remarkable achievement by young men and women from many countries over 32 years.

THE FUTURE

Comex 14 (Africa) was preceded by an African-British-Indian reconnaissance (Comex 13) sent to Lusaka to help prepare the programme. At President Kaunda's personal invitation, participating contingents came from Botswana, Britain, Canada, Cyprus, India, Kenya, Malaysia, Nigeria, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, and the host country Zambia (the majority sponsored by their governments). The Presidential train was made available for the exclusive use of Comex 14 supplemented by local transport at every stopping place from Kitwe through the Copperbelt to Victoria Falls, to entertain local people and enthusiastic audiences of children. The final entertainment and The Green Pennant Awards took place at State House, Lusaka, hosted by the President and attended by the diplomatic corps.

It is now proposed that Commonwealth countries take it in turn to organise Comex as an ongoing Commonwealth Expedition, CHOGM to CHOGM, in an adventurous relay across the barriers that divide people that could  last 100 years –  the Commonwealth acting as the ideal starting point - and host The Green Pennant Awards in the presence of the Head of the Commonwealth.  Details set out in this proposal are based on the experiences of over 3,000 men and women over many years and modelled on Comex 14 Zambia. Their achievements have been well documented in the references given above.  However, while this proposal is relevant and exciting, the fact remains that only a few countries have had direct experience of Comex and would find coming to it cold daunting.

Alternatively, therefore - for informal discussion at the 2009 CHOGM - Canada, as the largest country in the Commonwealth, and a staunch supporter of Comex, might shoulder the challenge of reviving India's historic decision of 1963 (see reference above), while preserving the original form and methodology, and bowing to the experiences (good and bad) of fourteen expeditions through the wilderness of human relations – uniquely expressed in The Story of Comex in Song. (See Story in Song 1 and 11 on the website). Built into the Canadian initiative could be the long overdue gesture of inviting guest contingents from non-Commonwealth countries that welcomed Comex so beautifully over the years despite bitter disputes, conflicts and military engagements in their own homelands.   It would be an appropriate tribute to the late Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of India – the largest democracy in the world – and the late Professor Arnold Smith, the first Secretary-General of the Commonwealth and patron of Comex in Canada – as may be seen in his foreword to Together Unafraid.

THE FOLLOWING FACTORS ARE INTENDED FOR CLARIFICATION

In view of the contribution made by Comex and its supporters over 40 years, the cost to host and participating countries might now be incorporated within CHOGM budgets. (See Appendix to Together Unafraid),

In addition to formal invitations – as exemplified by the President of Zambia in hosting the first expedition in Africa - the host country would be responsible for (a) drawing up the overall plan; (b) providing the base camp for briefing, preparation and training; (c) arranging transport and essential camping facilities; (d) making suitable provision for security and medical cover; (e) commissioning The Green Pennant Awards from Zambia and India; and finally (f) hosting The Green Pennant Awards ceremony at the conclusion of CHOGM

Every contingent (including guest contingents) would receive The Green Pennant Award on behalf of its country.

It would be the responsibility of the expedition (as a whole) to use these arrangements with care and consideration. Participating contingents of 10 to 25 each - selected and sponsored by their governments - would be expected to make their own travel arrangements to the base camp, and share in the cost of catering.

While at the base camp an entertainment would be put together, modelled on The Story of Comex in Song with appropriate local/regional extras. The theme song would be 'Little Green Flags' (The Green Pennant), and the closing chorus 'Together Unafraid'. These songs were recorded on the road not to entertain, but to make the telling of the story as entertaining as possible.

A special feature could be the formal adoption of TOGETHER UNAFRAID and LITTLE GREEN FLAGS as A COMMONWEALTH MARCH and A COMMONWEALTH RAGA respectively. The lyrics and melodies are entirely suitable and have already been performed as such: Together Unafraid by the Band of the Coldstream Guards at the Changing of the Guard at Buckingham Palace, and by the Band of the late 2nd KEO Goorkhas at the inauguration of The Green Pennant Awards by Prince Philip. The Raga began with Little Green Flags (the name taken from His Royal Highness's speech at the inauguration of the Awards) played on bagpipes by the late Pipe Major Angus MacDonald MBE, from Edinburgh Castle, performed as a raga (Nannhey Harey Dhwaj) on Tabla and Sarod by Kamal Kant Sharma and Promod Shanker at the Post Graduate Institute of Medicine in Chandigarh, Punjab, and thereafter at The Green Pennant Awards ceremony in Lusaka along with the Heritage Singers of Zambia.

As Ten Tors and Comex were founded at the same time in Devon with the patronage of Prince Philip, and as 2009 marks the 50th Ten Tors, the Ministry of Defence, who now supervise this annual event on Dartmoor, might be interested in organising the British contingent for Comex in Canada drawn from leaders and traditional participating organisations in the Southwest, with strong representation from the rest of the United Kingdom. (The aim of Ten Tors - which has captured the imagination of the Southwest as an ongoing annual adventure for young people - was to find an outlet for the spirit of adventure in an overcrowded island;  and Comex an extension of that spirit abroad across the barriers that divide people.

POINTS OF INTEREST

Comex 1 was sponsored by Massey Ferguson.

The inauguration of The Green Pennant Awards was hosted by Times Newspapers.

The Master model of the Awards (by Garrard of London) was commissioned by Devon County Council.

In proposing a Commonwealth Youth Festival in 1964, the Government of Jawaharlal Nehru voted £100,000 for the purpose, in addition to providing base camp facilities and travel concessions.

The Indian contingent of Comex 14 Zambia was sponsored by the Government and organised by the ICCR (Indian Council for Cultural Relations); the African contingents by their Ministries of Youth and Sports.

The British contingent for Comex 14 Zambia, was organised and administered by Devon County Council with a financial contribution from the government.

The Singapore Comex to Britain was initiated by Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew in response to Comex 4 (overland to India - transported to Malaysia and Singapore from Calcutta in the Landing Ships Sir Lancelot and Sir Galahad courtesy of the MOD) - and organised by the People's Association.

The Prime Minister of Singapore received a Green Pennant at the Awards ceremony in Delhi.

The first Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Professor Arnold Smith of Carleton University, Ottawa, received a Green Pennant at the Awards ceremony in Lusaka.

THE AWARDS

Hitherto The Green Pennant Awards were organised by Comex and funded by a few individuals. But because Comex was conceived in Devon at the same time as the annual Ten Tors, Devon County Council commissioned the model for the Awards: 'the little green flag' on a silver pole mounted on a wooden base . Its first public outing was to 10 Downing Street, courtesy of Malcolm Rifkind (later Foreign Secretary), a member of the Edinburgh contingent of Comex 1. Margaret Thatcher (then Prime Minister) expressed her appreciation in a letter to the Chairman of Devon County Council (Ref: Journey of a Lifetime, Ch8, pp 205/211).

To mark the involvement of Africa, the model was re-designed in copper by Hamilton and Inches of Edinburgh with an African eagle on the base - thus bringing together the oldest and largest democracies in the world and the African continent. It was on display during the Edinburgh International Festival of 1995, before being handed over to the High Commissioner of Zambia for safe keeping: the Government of Zambia having offered to act as the custodians.

The stands would henceforth be manufactured in Kitwe, and the 'little green flags' embroidered in India. In all, 81 Awards have been presented to people, places and organisations considered to have made a positive contribution to the success of Comex. The full list is given below. (Lack of resources meant that a much larger number of 'Old Hands' could not be included in that list; but without them there would have been no Awards.)

CONCLUSIONS

With the passage of time, countries may qualify for more than one Green Pennant Award in which case a bar (as on the ribbon of a military medal) on the wooden base might serve the purpose, or the additional Awards could be passed on to sponsoring organisations.

From past experience there is no guarantee that Commonwealth countries will respond with alacrity and enthusiasm to the proposal set out above, and may even argue that it is too difficult - as happened in 1963/4. But since then there have been 14 Commonwealth Expeditions (Comex 1-14) – trained by Comex old hands, the Services and industry - and many countries have taken part. At the 1997 Awards in Edinburgh, it was suggested to Heads of Government (who enthusiastically applauded the proposal!) that they might act as the  guardians of the Awards.

The world is bedevilled by violence of many kinds: Afghanistan and Iraq (both on the Comex route more than once) are not happy places; and yet Comex made many friends in those countries. There are lesser examples elsewhere, all pointing in the same direction: towards the barriers that divide people as the greatest single challenge of the day; but just talking about them is not enough.

Comex did not spend its time talking about those barriers, but in trying to do something about them at every point, and in all circumstances, along ancient land routes picked out by camels and donkeys centuries ago.

'A Himalayan Odyssey'

At the present time Comex men and women in India are working on a presentation for broadcast of 'Let's Put the Little Things Right'. The concept was adapted from an entertainment presented by members of Comex 9 at The Gaiety Theatre in Simla. The programme includes: Little Green Flags (performed as a Raga);  Kenaki (an anagram from Ki Kehna an expression of excellence); Gaon Ki Jyoti or Village Lights; My Friend (the bullock-cart drivers of India);  Tabla Wallah; River of Destiny' and Silver Train (the Queen's Silver Jubilee). The latest addition is: 'No Problem La Bole Juga' (No Problem We Can Do It).

Full list of recipients of The Green Pennant Awards in chronological order

His Excellency the Governor of Karnataka, India

His Excellency the President of Kenya

St Edward's School, Simla, India

Anne Murray, Comex 1-10, Edinburgh, UK

Robert and Cally Gregory, Comex 3, 4, 5 and 6, Derbyshire, UK

Christopher and Mary Nichols, Comex 3 and 5, Surrey, UK

Judith Parkinson, Comex 5, 6, 7 and 13, London, UK

Peter Wheatcroft, Comex 4, Yorkshire, UK

Alan Severn, Comex 5, New South Wales, Australia

Kevin and Shirley Lacy, Comex 5 and 6, Hertfordshire, UK

Graham and Jane Collins, Comex 7 and 9, Suffolk, UK

Desmond and Lina Waite, Comex 4 and 8, Buckinghamshire, UK

Colonel Peter Davis, Comex 7, Nottinghamshire, UK

The Royal Marines, Comex 8, Deal, Kent, UK

The Chase High School, Comex 10, Hereford and Worcester, UK

His Excellency the Governor-General of Canada

His Excellency the President of Zambia

2nd King Edward VII's Own Goorkha Rifles, Hong Kong

The Commonwealth Institute, London, UK

Mahendra Kaul, BBC Asian Service, Birmingham, UK

Kamaljit Singh Garewal, Comex 10, Punjab, India

Bunty Bidie, Comex 5 and 12, Ontario, Canada

Mary Abendroth, Comex 3, 7 and 8, Minneapolis, USA

The Bolton School, Girls' Division, Lancashire, UK

His Excellency the Prime Minister of Singapore

British Rail, Comex 9, London, UK

Prithi Singh, Himachal, India

Pritam Singh Sandhu, Delhi, India

Ramaswamy Iyer, Delhi, India

Air India, Comex 1, Delhi, India

Kamal Kant Sharma, Comex 7, 8, 10 and 13, Delhi, India

Rowena Dique, Tamil Nadu, India

Bansi Mehta, Maharastra, India

Colonel Vasant Deshpande, Kolhapur, Maharastra, India

Post Graduate Institute of Medicine, Chandigarh, Punjab, India

Sarjit Singh and Davinder Garewal, Himachal, India

The Agricultural University, Ludhiana, Punjab, India

Dr Pramjit Singh Grewal, Amritsar, Punjab, India

The Town of Simla, Himachal, India

The Greater Manchester Police, UK

Norman Leigh, Comex 2, 3 and 11, Lancashire, UK

Dr Charles Holme, Comex 4, Somerset, UK

Sydney Williams, Comex 5, 11, 12 and 13, Devon, UK

Ron Hall, Comex 6 and 11, London, UK

George Brew, Comex 7 and 11, Cheshire, UK

Habinder Kaur, Comex 10, Punjab, India

Chander Prakash, Tamil Nadu, India

LSL Sir Galahad, Comex 4, RNFA, UK

Fr Joshua Sterk, Karachi, Pakistan

Mohammed Saleem, Comex 7 and 8, Lahore, Pakistan

Jane Boston, Comex 7 and 13, Sussex, UK

Marjory Lyon, Comex 9 and 13, London, UK

John Mwesa, Comex 10 and 13, Lusaka, Zambia

The Heritage Singers, Comex 10 and 13, Lusaka, Zambia

Zambia Broadcasting Services, Comex 13, Lusaka, Zambia

Tom Booth, Greater Manchester, UK

David Burchfield, Devon, UK

Dr Edward Nickerson, London, UK

Promod Shanker, Comex 11 and 13, Delhi, India

Professor Arnold Smith, first Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, Canada

His Excellency, the President of The Republic of South Africa

The Rt Hon Sir Malcolm Rifkind, Comex 1 – Edinburgh, UK

Elisabeth Rowell, Comex 6 – Northumberland, UK

Gillian Corson, Comex 3 and 4 – Durham, UK

Tim Sage, Comex 3 – Southsea, UK

Michael Wilson Comex 3 and 5 – Powys, UK

Michael King, Comex 4 – London, UK

Brenda Stevens, Comex 5 and 6 – London, UK

Michael Parish, Comex 5 and 6 - North Wales, UK

Alan Waters, Comex 9 and 13 – Essex, UK

Zambia, Comex 13/14 *

Botswana, Comex 13/14 *

Cyprus, Comex 13/14 *

Kenya, Comex 13/14 *

Malaysia, Comex 13/14 *

Nigeria, Comex 13/14 *

Tanzania, Comex 13/14 *

Zimbabwe, Comex 13/14 *

Nedjelko Ivancevic, Lawyer, Croatia **

Nikola Vrbos, Postman, Croatia **

A Replica for the Office of The Lord Provost of Edinburgh host to Heads of Government at the 1997 Awards **

* The Ministries of Youth, Culture and Sport

** Special Awards

From: Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew of Singapore

'There is room and enough to spare within the Commonwealth for all the energies and idealism of young men and women who wish to make a contribution towards better understanding between nations; between rich and poor; developed and developing; young and old. Comex expeditions have proved to be one of the most realistic and worthwhile programmes devised to foster such goodwill. It is with pleasure that I accept the Green Pennant Award which you have chosen to extend to me and my country. The Singapore High Commission in New Delhi will accept the Award on my behalf. My I take this opportunity to wish Comex 11 every success in its endeavours. It is my hope that the excellent traditions of Comex will be maintained in the years to come.'

From: Vasant Deshpande. Parashuram Niwas, Kolhapur.

'I feel as proud as the proverbial cat with two tails in receiving the Green Pennant Award which singular honour you have awarded to a thoroughly unworthy person. My association with Comex has been since its inception (1962); and before that I was an admirer of the Ten Tors expeditions which struck me even then as a wonderful effort to keep up the Englishman's (in which genre include Scots - they were the Empire Builders) spirit of adventure and discovery. My nostalgia for the British Raj revolves around the Britishers who climbed Everest because it was there, crossed the Empty Quarter simply to find out what is fear. If Comex has fired some of our youth with the same spirit, it has served its purpose. I am sure the occasional Indian who goes to the Antarctic, or sails in a dinghy, does draw inspiration from it. I think this is absolutely magnificent that the pennant reached me via Bangalore. I am sorry that I could not in person meet the gentleman who brought it, along with a case of wine with the compliments of Shaw Wallace; but I have invited General Thorat and a few other friends here for a get together on Sunday, 3rd December when we will drink to you and our other friends of Comex.'

From: Fr Joshua Sterk, Franciscan Priest and Headmaster of St Francis School in Quetta, Pakistan (written from St Anthony's Church in Karachi)

'I have been in hospital with a massive infection in my leg and have to be very careful, and do a lot of resting. Things were very low but, in this gloom, whence did a little ray of sunshine come? From the good old Commonwealth Expedition. How well I recall the first expedition (Comex 1) nosing into the Grammar School. We enjoyed having you stay in the school. Do I get the honour of a Green Pennant for having you as my guests? For an honour it is, and I am proud of it, and show it off to anyone stepping into my room. It is a pity you are not known in Karachi. I wish I could invite you here to show them. But you are not coming to Pakistan any more, and I am only a poor parish priest with not enough showers. But if Pakistan rejoins the Commonwealth, you must come. I thank you for the honour you do me with this Green Pennant. The boys in the School always remembered, and now they have grown up they will still remember. When they come and see me I will show them the sign of your appreciation, which is for them too. Thank you once more, I am not a very good "thanker"; but what can a man say more?

Contents of the Recording made at the Inauguration of The Green Pennant Awards by
His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh at the Commonwealth Institute in London
on 18 December 1980. PLEASE CLICK THE INAUGURATION TO DOWNLOAD  

Editor's Note: This is the original recording of the inauguration of the Green Pennant Awards and as such is an historic document. There are 34 individual, inter-connected tracks incorporating speeches, commentary and entertainment on which the Story of Comex in Song was subsequently based. The total playing time is about 81 minutes. Copies may be obtained from Malcolm Macgregors of Mactrak (email: mactrak@ednet.co.uk ).

Track No Track Name/Description Playing Time 1 Little Green Flags, on bagpipes, played to welcome the arrival of HRH The Duke of Edinburgh 1:46 2 Introduction Pt 1 Tiyende Pamodzi – Comex Zambia 2:54 3 Introduction Pt 2 Do It In Style (for the West Indies) – Mary Abendroth USA 2.42 4 Introduction Pt 3 Silver Train (The Queen's Jubilee Comex 8) Comex & the Chase High School, Malvern 3:16 5 Welcome Speech by Sir Denis Hamilton, Times Newspapers 2:17 6 Address by HRH The Duke of Edinburgh 2:49 7 Commentary by Lionel Gregory 3:25 8 Faith, Hope and Charity (for Africa) Celia Congdon 2:07 9 Faith, Hope and Charity (alternative version) Lydia Lufungulo & Comex Zambia 3:59 10 Announcement of Awards to HE the President of Zambia and to Time Newspapers 2:05 11 Gaon Ki Jyoti (for India) Band of the 2nd KEO Goorkhas, Celia Congdon & Marjory Lyon 4:27 12 Introduction to On Wings of Love 0;25 13 On Wings of Love (for New Zealand) Brenda Stevens & Chris Nicols 1:54 14 Announcement of Award to Chase High School 1:14 15 Announcement of Award to Kamaljit Singh Garewal 0:40 16 Introduction to Gregory's Frolic 0:56 17 Gregory'sFrolic (a jig) piper & dancers 2:11 18 Introduction to Kenaki 0:50 19 Kenaki (for Punjab) Chris Nicols & Celia Congdon 2:42 20 Announcement of awards to Bunty Bidie of Canada, & Mary Abendroth of the USA 1:54 21 The Living The Chase High School led by Chris Nicols 2:55 22 Announcement of Award to Nikola Vrbos 0:57 23 Nikola's Song (Life is Empty Without Love) Mary Abendroth & Chris Nicols 2:52 24 Announcement of Awards to Mahindra Kaul and Bolton High School, & introduction to My Friend 3:10 25 My Friend (a ballad dedicated to the bullock-cart drivers of India) Chris Nicols 3:46 26 Introduction to Another Day 0:51 27 Another Day (for Canada) Brenda Stevens, Chris Nicols & the Band of the 2nd KEO Goorkhas 2:49 28 Announcement of Awards to Ben Bently, Director of Music 2nd KEO Goorkhas & to the Commonwealth Institute 2:26 29 Acceptance & vote of thanks from Sir David Hunt, Chair of the Board of Governors of the Commonwealth Institute 2:30 30 Baba Noma (Crying Drums – adapted from a Ghanaian folk song) Comex Singers 0:59 31 Baba Noma (alternative version) John Mwesa & Comex Zambia 1:44 32 How Many (the natural events of every day) John Mwesa & Comex Zambia 3:20 33 Together Unafraid (Theme song of Comex 10 played at the Changing of the Guard outside Buckingham Palace before departure) Comex and the Chase High School 6:19 34 Little Green Flags (Nannhey Harey Dhwaj) a Raga for the Commonwealth, played by the late Pipe Major Angus MacDonald (bagpipes) Promod Shankar (sarod) Kamal Kant Sharma (tabla) & Comex Zambia – compiled by BBC Radio Scotland 1:31

EDITORIAL COMMENT

The tentative plan that Canada, a staunch partner in Comex, might take on the challenge of reviving the inspired initiative of the Government of India in 1963/4, seen as too difficult at the time (see www.comex40.org.uk - The Comex Story – Ch4 'Where the Sands of the Desert Touch the Sky'), by building on the experience of fourteen expeditions has distinct advantages: (1) It would be hugely popular, and a fitting tribute to the first Prime Minister of India, the late Jawaharlal Nehru, and the first Secretary General of the Commonwealth and patron of Comex in Canada, the late Professor Arnold Smith CH OC, (2) As the largest country in the Commonwealth, with a huge Asian Commonwealth community, Canada is well placed to keep alive the Commonwealth ideal of 'the brotherhood of man', (3) It would begin the process of Commonwealth countries taking it in turn to organise Comex and host The Green Pennant Awards in the presence of the Head of the Commonwealth – coinciding  with the biennial CHOGM, (4) It would be inviting guest contingents for the first time (a gesture long overdue) from non-Commonwealth countries who welcomed Comex so beautifully over the years – all of whom would receive The Green Pennant Award on behalf of those countries, (5) The United Kingdom contingent for Canada could bring together for the first time the twin projects of Comex and Ten Tors founded in Devon under the patronage of Prince Philip. (6) The adoption of Together Unafraid and Little Green Flags as a Commonwealth March and a Commonwealth Raga respectively could be announced (Canada has some excellent military and pipe bands), and (7) It would provide the occasion to present each guest contingent with a recording of The Story of Comex in Song (incorporating the songs now being rehearsed in India) in which they all played a part.'

[To read the full text of the Inauguration of The Green Pennant Awards by HRH The Duke of Edinburgh on 18 December 1980 go to www.comex40.org.uk - The Comex Story – Ch1 'An Historic Event Remembered'. It can be heard on the same website at Little Green Flags, click The Green Pennant Awards and then THE INAUGURATION].

IN THE END IT ALL COMES DOWN TO EVERYONE PLAYING A PART - WITHIN THEIR OWN SPHERES OF INFLUENCE – HOWEVER GREAT OR SMALL