The Magic of Monarchy
Monarchy is a romantic concept. We see this when royalty comes to Australia and the attention this generates. Republicans seem to be affected by royalty, too. Professor David Flint, in a light aside to fellow constitutional monarchists, warns them never to stand between visiting royalty, even minor European royalty and republicans, especially Sydney republicans. “Otherwise, you will be at risk of being knocked over in the rush,” he says. During the 1999 referendum, republicans criticised monarchists for not arguing about the virtues of Queen Elizabeth II. But as ACM National Convenor David Flint said, “Everyone knows we have a marvellous Sovereign. Republicans agree. And The Queen is taking no part in the debate. Her Majesty says this is a matter for us to decide. The qualities of the monarch are not the issue – the referendum is about the Constitution.” “It is gracious of the Republicans to tell us how […]
Australia: A Crowned Republic
From the definition of the word “republic,” it can be seen that without some qualification, the word is so imprecise that it is almost meaningless. Opinion polls asking peoples’ opinions on whether Australia should become “ a republic” are of little use. Australia was created as an indissoluble Federal Commonwealth under the Crown – a crowned republic. The question should define precisely which sort of republic is being proposed. On this site, we distinguish between the two primary forms of republics. One group is “crowned republics” (constitutional monarchies). At the centre of these is an institution above politics, the Crown. The other category consists of “politicians’ republics”. In these, there is no similar institution which provides leadership beyond politics. In such a politicians’ republic, the head of state ( and any state governor) is an elected politician or one appointed by and controlled by the politicians. These categories are not exhaustive. […]
Ten Principles of Freedom
NATIONAL OBSERVERAustralia’s independent current affairs online journalNo. 83 By Professor David Flint AM To be free and to enjoy that freedom, man must live in an ordered society. We cannot live in a state of anarchy or a state of nature where, as Hobbes famously put it, life would be “solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short”.[1] An ordered liberal society allows mankind to lead a full life. This was recognised eloquently by the Founding Fathers of the United States when, believing that their rights as Englishmen were being denied, they declared: “We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”[2] For longer than most people, Australians and New Zealanders have lived in a liberal society ordered by democratic institutions whose members are elected under […]
Early Republican Movements
The Crown has been an established component of the Australian constitutional system since the country’s inception. Despite facing challenges such as the Second World War, it has endured and continues to serve as a crucial mechanism for checks and balances. The current campaign by the Republican party marks the fourth major effort to eliminate the Crown’s role, but its integral place in our language and culture cannot be denied. The first significant Republican movement was in the nineteenth century. Its aim was to establish a white racist republic free of the immigration policy of the British Empire. This faded away with the movement to the Federation, with the Commonwealth of Australia endowed with an express power to establish a national immigration policy. The second and longest campaign was to create a communist state similar to the East European Peoples’ Republics established after the Second World War. Its proponents never made […]
New Republican Movements
New Republican Movements In the 1960s, a group of intellectuals in Australia held the belief that the Australian Crown’s problem stemmed from the obligation felt by their social class to display deference towards Britain. However, this matter went unnoticed by the British. It is crucial to acknowledge that our constitutional system is entirely distinct from the personal psychological issues of a small number of Australian intellectuals. The rise of Republicanism was not primarily motivated by a sense of inadequacy towards Britain but rather stemmed from a cutthroat political battle that took place in 1975. Two politicians engaged in this struggle, both of whom were unwilling to compromise and make concessions. This intense power struggle ultimately gave rise to the prominence of Republicanism. The Leader of the Opposition, Malcolm Fraser, was impatient for government and not willing to wait the normal 18 or so months for an election to be held. […]
Republicanism Since The Referendum
Republicanism Since The Referendum The Republican movement said that whatever the result in 1999, it would close down. However, it has mounted the present and fourth major campaign for an Australian republic. The movement’s theme today could well be “We demand a republic…but we haven’t the foggiest idea what sort of republic we want…” Within the current Republican movement, there are really two movements. One favours a republic in which the federal politicians choose the president. How the governors are to be chosen will be either left to the federal politicians or the state politicians. The other movement wants to have regular elections to elect the president, vice presidents, governors, lieutenant governors and administrators. The significant differences now from the earlier movement, which led to the “Yes” case in 1999, are first, the movement is unwilling or unable to specify the model or any details of the change it wants. […]
Crowned Republics Compared
Crowned Republics Compared The HDI measures well-being through three major dimensions There are many reasons to remain a crowned republic. The Republic Will Stop the Brain Drain, Arthritis Etc. Sir David Smith has assembled the more bizarre reasons advanced for a republic in a paper to the Samuel Griffiths Society in 1998. Among those he listed are: There are other examples. Former Deputy Lord Mayor of Sydney Henry Tsang claimed: “People in Asia are confused. They want to invest here or start a new business in Australia but are confused and puzzled.” He finds it embarrassing explaining to Asian business people “why Australia clings to the Queen” and then “England is a small nation on its way down . . ” (City of Sydney Times, 27 January 1999). Simon Young, the Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra conductor, said: “I feel very strongly about it because I’m identified as belonging to […]
The Australian Flag
The Australian Flag If a republic is about symbols, what of our chief national symbol, the Australian National Flag? The origins of Australia’s National Flag go back to just before the Federation in 1900 when the Melbourne newspaper, the Evening Herald and then the Review of Reviews for Australasia sponsored national flag competitions. On 29 April 1901, the new commonwealth government announced its competition for the design of a national flag. It then was agreed to combine the Review of Reviews competition with the commonwealth government’s, with a total prize of two hundred pounds, a substantial sum in those days. Designs submitted to the Herald’s competition were also considered. The judges were to have been the six premiers, but they were replaced by seven men with appropriate qualifications. By the closing date, 32,823 entries had been received. The prize was divided between five contestants who submitted similar designs. Two were […]
Definitions
Definitions Three words are central to the current debate about whether Australia should move from its crowned republic. Those words are “constitution”, “republic”, “commonwealth “, and “head of state.” Constitution: This term may be used to refer to the basic law of the Commonwealth of Australia, as set out in the Constitution Act 1900. It can equally be used to refer to the constitution of a state. In a wider sense, the term can refer to the whole constitutional system, including various important statutes that came with the 1788 settlement and the conventions or customs that have evolved over the years. During the course of the 1999 referendum debate, the Constitution was sometimes criticised by those advancing the Yes case because it did not, for example, refer to the cabinet or the prime minister. Earlier, an unsuccessful attempt had been made to write down or codify the Reserve Powers vested […]
Crowned Republic: Introduction
The Dictionary According to the Macquarie Dictionary, a republic is a state where “the supreme power resides in the body of citizens entitled to vote and is exercised by representatives chosen directly or indirectly by them.”(For more detail from the dictionaries, go to Definitions.) Usage and political theory Sir Thomas Smith introduced the term “republic” to describe the English system as long ago as the sixteenth century. He was an English diplomat and one of the most outstanding classical scholars of his time. He studied at Padua and was made Regius Professor of Civil Law and Vice-Chancellor of Cambridge University. He was also a Member of Parliament, an ambassador to France and as a secretary of state, a very close and trusted confidante of Queen Elizabeth I. His book, “De Republica Anglorum; the Manner of Government or Policie of the Realme of England,” was published in 1583. He intended to […]