Suspension from the Commonwealth of Nations is the most serious punishment that can be administered to members of the Commonwealth. In the absence of any mechanism by which to expel countries that breach its rules, the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) may choose to suspend members from the 'Councils of the Commonwealth', which amounts to the suspension of their formal membership of the organisation, although their participation in activities of the Commonwealth Family of organisations is not necessarily affected.
Five countries have ever been suspended from the Commonwealth since the inception of the device in 1987. It was first applied to Fiji during the 1987 Fijian coups d'état which resulted in its democratic institutions being overthrown. Pakistan has been suspended twice, Fiji three times, and Zimbabwe withdrew from the Commonwealth.
List of suspensions Member Suspension began Suspension ended (first time)19871 Oct 1997 11 November 1995 29 May 1999 (first time) 18 October 1999 22 May 2004 (second time) 6 June 2000 20 December 2001 19 March 2002 7 December 2003 by leaving the Commonwealth (third time) 8 December 2006 26 September 2014"Fiji", Commonwealth Network (second time) 22 November 2007 22 May 2008 18 September 2023 15 July 2025
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