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February 11, 2004
Bl**dy Republicans
Back on Australia Day (26 Jan), when I was enjoying myself wandering around the city I was accosted by a young women who pushed a brochure at me that read (on the visible part) "Australians all let us rejoice, for we are young and free...". Great I thought while trying to balance a child and a drink and some sandwiches and a map. She shoved it in my pocket for me and went of to bother someone else. I checked out the brochure today when emptying my bag. Down the bottom of the page it says "Australian Republican Movement" (ARM).
Before any of the Americans reading this get confused, this has absolutely nothing to do with your republicans. You have two parties over there - Democrat and Republican. We have two (main) parties - Labor and Liberal. Here, democrats are a minor (inconsequential) party of extreme liberals and the republicans are a (supposedly) apolitical body arguing for an Australian republic.
The brochure is basically a call for members to join up and donate money for the cause but I refuse. I will not have anything to do with them. Is this because I like the Queen? Not really. She isn't a bad old bird but the English in general have a lot to answer for and I am not in favour of Australia being even remotely associated with the future King Willy. So why don't I support the ARM?
The problem is one of meddling with a political process. We have a political system that, by and large, works. There are some problems (like 1974) but these tend to demonstrate that the system of checks and balances work. The Prime Minister (and government) are restrained by the governor-general who has absolutely no effective power except to be able to dismiss the parliament and force an election and even then he (or she) has no governing power (a caretaker government is appointed).
The ARM is not just about being a republic and having a president. It is about how that president is elected and how the power is controlled. The current claims that it is about the "right of every Australian child to aspire to the highest office in the land" is complete and under codswallop. The governor-general is Australian and every child can wish to be the governor-general - no worries mate. The model of a republic that the ARM has pushed in the past has the position of the president controlled by the prime minister. What a farce. The only publicly acceptable option is to have the president elected by the people. The problem with that, from the perspective of the ARM, is that the people might not choose the right president. After all, how could old branch-stacking Mal get to be president when he can't even take over a federal seat. Obviously the people have just a little more common sense than the ARM.
Here is the punch-line: The ARM lost the referendum for proposing this model but still refuse to accept the need to change it. The pro-Monarchists did not win the referendum, the ARM lost it by insisting on a model of presidential election which was not popular (and never will be).
I'll vote for a republic but only when I can vote for the president. Until then, keep your dirty, rotten, power grabbing hands off our constitutional system.
Posted by Ozguru at February 11, 2004 07:02 AM
