REFERENDUM:
Vote for a REPUBLIC

On November 6, Australians will be voting on two referendum 
proposals. One is to change the Constitution to make Australia a 
Republic and the other concerns a Preamble to the Constitution. 
Each question requires a "yes" or "no" vote.

The proposed changes have already been passed by Parliament (on 
August 12) in the form of two Bills to alter the Constitution — 
one to establish a republic and the other to insert a preamble.

If these changes are supported by a majority of voters across the 
whole of Australia and a majority in at least four States, 
the Governor-General will give Royal Assent to the Bills and 
Australia would become a Republic at 3pm on January 1, 2001 — 
exactly 100 years after becoming the Commonwealth of Australia in 
1901.

Long struggle for a republic

The Communist Party of Australia supports the aim of achieving a 
republic in Australia by the year 2001.

The republican cause has a long history; its roots go back to the 
earliest days of colonial occupation.

A great number of the new settlers were also victims of the 
oppression of the British ruling class or were the dispossessed 
from England's conquests in Scotland, Ireland, Wales and 
Cornwall. They had taken part in republican struggles in their 
former homelands.

The Irish rebels transported to New South Wales demanded 
independence from British landowners and the British Crown and 
fought for it at Toongabbie (Sydney) in 1804.

The British convicts and settlers brought with them a republican 
tradition, for England had been a republic from 1649 to 1660. 
Many other settlers who were refugees from oppression in other 
European countries also carried republican sentiments. The 
Diggers on the goldfields of Ballarat sought a republic at the 
time of the Eureka Stockade when they first raised the Eureka 
flag.

These pioneers had a vision of an independent, democratic and 
republican Australia.

Throughout Australia's modern history, working people have 
championed the long struggle of the States and then a Federated 
Australia for self-government and independence, a struggle which 
has increasingly limited the power of the British Crown and 
Government over Australia.

The monarchy is an unwanted relic of feudalism in England and 
colonialism in Australia. It has become irrelevant. The 
Aboriginal people, the majority of migrants and many young 
Australian born women and men have no historical or cultural 
association with the British monarchy.

In reality, the only function that the Queen performs today in 
respect to Australia is to appoint the Governor-General on the 
advice of the Australian Prime Minister and to dismiss the 
Governor-General on the advice of the Australian Prime Minister.

The Governor-General at present has several functions:

ceremonial duties such as the opening of Parliament and 
receiving letters of accreditation from foreign diplomats;

non-reserve (executive) powers where the Governor-General 
acts on the advice of the Prime Minister (e.g. makes treaties, 
dissolves Parliament, gives assent to Acts of Parliament);

reserve powers where the Governor-General acts without, or 
even contrary to, the advice of the Prime Minister (e.g. sacks 
the Prime Minister) or does not take the advice of a Prime 
Minister to dismiss parliament and hold an election.

Minimal change

The republican model being put to the Australian people in the 
referendum only involves replacing the Queen and Governor-General 
by a President.

The President (or head of state) would be an Australian citizen, 
holding and exercising the same powers as presently held by the 
Queen and Governor-General.

He or she would be appointed by a two-thirds majority of a joint 
sitting of both Houses of Federal Parliament for a five-year 
term, after consideration of nominations from the public. He or 
she would be proposed by the Prime Minister and the leader of the 
opposition.

The Prime Minister could remove the President at any time by a 
formal notice in writing which becomes effective immediately.

The Prime Minister is required to seek approval for this 
dismissal from the House of Representatives within 30 days, 
unless an election is about to be held. But even if the House of 
Representatives does not approve the PM's actions in sacking the 
President, the dismissal stands. This means that a Prime Minister 
can exercise a sole arbitrary power to dismiss.

The present Constitution is written to protect the interests of 
the capitalist ruling class. Most of the real levers of power lie 
with the owners of the banks and insurance companies, the mining 
conglomerates and big industries, the transnational corporations 
and the billionaire media barons.

It will remain that way under the proposed changes but 
nevertheless we must vote "Yes" in November to win a republic and 
an Australian head of state.

The basic question before us in November is not so much the 
method of election of the new Head of State but whether or not we 
want a republic. This is the fundamental issue.

Having a popularly elected Head of State and Parliament would 
lead to the formation of two possibly conflicting centres of 
power. The Parliament, elected by the people, must remain the 
prime institution in our political system.

Support the republic

The Communist Party of Australia urges you to vote "YES" for an 
Australian republic while continuing the struggle for future 
progressive changes to the Constitution.

The CPA advocates a number of other changes to the Constitution.

We call for the inclusion of a Bill of Rights, the introduction 
of an electoral system based on proportional representation, 
Constitutional laws protecting the environment, reference in the 
Constitution to the rights of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait 
Islander people among others.

But these are not being considered in the coming referendum and 
will continue to be struggled for to make the Australian 
Constitution truly progressive.

Reject the preamble

The second referendum question deals with the addition of a 
preamble to the Constitution. The proposed new preamble reads:

With hope in God, the Commonwealth of Australia is constituted 
as a democracy with a federal system of government to serve the 
common good.

We the Australian people commit ourselves to this constitution 
proud that our national unity has been forged by Australians from 
many ancestries;

never forgetting the sacrifices of all who defended our country 
and our liberty in time of war;

upholding freedom, tolerance, individual dignity and the rule of 
law;

honouring Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders, the nation's 
first people, for their deep kinship with their lands and for 
their ancient and continuing cultures which enrich the life of 
our country;

recognising the nation-building contribution of generations of 
immigrants;

mindful of our responsibility to protect our unique natural 
environment;

supportive of achievement as well as equality of opportunity for 
all;

and valuing independence as dearly as the national spirit which 
bind us together in both adversity and success.

The preamble, if endorsed, would become an introduction to the 
Constitution.

There would also be a new section in the Constitution saying that 
the preamble has no legal effect and cannot be used to interpret 
the Constitution or any other law.

The proposed new preamble is, therefore, no more than a 
"motherhood" statement, but even as such it is inadequate and the 
Communist Party recommends its rejection by a "NO" vote.

Land rights ignored

The only term in the new preamble to the Constitution used to 
describe the relationship of Aborigines and Islanders to the land 
is "kinship".

The Aboriginal inhabitants were brutally dispossessed in the name 
of a foreign king and the new Australian state was founded on 
invasion, conquest and colonisation.

The proposed preamble ignores the fact that Aborigines and Torres 
Strait Islanders were the original owners of the land and 
resources.

"Kinship" is an inadequate term to describe the traditional 
relationship of Aboriginal communities with their lands. It also 
eliminates any concept of the rights of Aborigines and 
Torres Strait Islanders to their lands.

We cannot make a new start in Australia with a republic based on 
a lie which serves the interests of the pastoralists and mining 
corporations and denies history and justice.

A republican Constitution should recognise Aboriginal and Torres 
Strait Islander land rights. This should include communal, 
inalienable title to their traditional lands as well as all areas 
of sacred significance and include the right to own and control 
the natural resources in and on their lands and the sea.

The Constitution should also provide for the establishment — in 
accordance with the wishes of indigenous communities — of 
autonomous areas where Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander 
communities will be able to control the direction and pace of 
development of their economic, social and cultural life.

Non-secular

A further objection to the Howard draft preamble is its use of 
the words "With hope in God".

It is widely accepted that an Australian Bill of Rights should 
include the "right to freedom of religion and freedom from 
religion". The new preamble should therefore not include any 
reference to God.

Given that over 20 per cent of Australians are non-believers, 
according to the last census, and given the long acceptance of 
separation between church and state, a secular preamble would be 
more appropriate for the new Australian Republic.

The Communist Party of Australia recommends a NO vote on the 
question of the preamble.

Further information on the CPA's proposals for changes to the 
Constitution is available in the pamphlet, FOR AN INDEPENDENT 
AND DEMOCRATIC REPUBLIC OF AUSTRALIA, $2 (plus $1 p&p) from 
65 Campbell St, Surry Hills, NSW, 2010.

CPA recommends:

Question 1: Do you approve the proposed alterations to the 
Constitution to establish the Commonwealth of Australia as a 
republic with the Queen and the Governor-General being replaced 
by a President appointed by a two-thirds majority of the members 
of the Commonwealth Parliament?

The CPA recommends vote: YES

Question 2: A proposed law: to alter the constitution to insert a 
preamble. Do you approve this proposed alteration?

The CPA recommends vote: NO

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