Well that's not much help. So the Constitution is old, in some places irrelevant, and hard to change. Thankfully. So we have to live with it and, if in the process that provides fodder for political barbs like this, we should just bite our tongues. Of course much of the law is like that. For example right now we have the wonderful legal spectacle of a fellow having allegedly killed several people with a car in full view of millions of witnesses around the world. Allegedly. Would I wish to change this very irritating way of avoiding damaging a court case? No. Just bite my tongue, as usual, because the benefits of having laws and constitutions outweigh the disadvantages.

Binoy: Often, these contain laws that are irretrievably archaic, and resist change by virtue of being embedded in a document deliberated over in another age.

The section 44 in Question:
Any person who is under any acknowledgment of allegiance, obedience, or adherence to a foreign power, or is a subject or citizen or entitled to the rights or privileges of a subject or a citizen of a foreign power shall be incapable of being chosen or of sitting as a senator or a member of the House of Representatives.

The first Phrase say it all. "under any acknowledgment of allegiance. etc."

If present History is anything to go by, there may be a few in Parliament now, who, although they maybe Australian citizens, may already have allegiances to Foreign Powers. Making it legal would make matters worse. Can you imagine some one with Allegiances to Iran, Egypt ;-) or even Saudi Arabia.

The immigration from Islamic Countries would triple over night & then there would be the demand for Sharia Law to be implemented to work alongside Australian Law, until Australian Law ceased to exist.

In fact if you have a Child & fail to Register that child, then the Child has no Nationality. I know two ladies in the Town I live in that have all sorts of trouble, Getting Married or a Drivers Licence, Bank Account, etc., because they were never Registered when they were born.

You know where you were born. It shows on your Birth Certificate, one of the requirements of getting Married, a Drivers licence, a Passport & a Bank Account. Even on the Census it asks you if you are Dual Citizen.

No, deleting this Section would be a bad idea. It's supported by the extreme Left because they hell bent on destroying Australia's Democracy.

cont
Binoy: It is a provision that nabs the unsuspecting member of Parliament.

Unsuspecting? Crap! You know weather or not you have Dual Citizenship. Being born in a foreign country doesn't automatically give you Citizen Rights. Except America, maybe. If this were so then I know of thousands of children who are citizens of Malaysia, having been born in Malacca or Butterworth between 1945 & 1969. Then there's New Guinea, & Japan. These children "are not" Dual Citizens. They were Registered as Australian Citizens at the Australian Embassies.

A bill of irrevocable rights could include a passage, that in essence says, that official Australian citizenship and taking an oath of allegiance, all that is required to terminate other alleged dual citizenship!

Without which, migrating Brits, Kiwis and Canucks etc/etc, should be obliged to renounce their British, NZ, Canadian citizenship etc, after or inside a four year window. Then be subject to the same written and spoken english test, as applicable to other, non english speaking migrants, seeking citizenship!

Furthermore, an irrevocable bill of rights, should remove other archaic discrimination, like that which prevents anyone receiving a government provided stipend/pension from nominating for a government position/representation?

It's completely ridiculous, these laws were crafted for us by an overseeing Monarchy/Crown! Thus we have Crown land and common laws guaranteed by the Crown etc/etc.

And should have been rewritten when we became Australian citizens, in 1943! To remove any and all archaic anomaly!

Another thing, our head of state should not only be one of us, but an ethnically authentic original Australian, whose status could be confirmed by DNA testing.

And our flag ought to changed, so as to include the official aborigine flag in the corner currently occupied by the union jack. The flag of a country that no longer recognizes us as the Brits we were until 1943, but treats us as aliens, with fewer rights than common former enemies, when we visit our alleged head of state. Who goes in to bat for them and against us, whenever there is a trade related conflict of interest!
Alan B.

This question should never arise,

There should be no Australian citizenship granted to anyone who has not renounced any other citizenship. Dual citizenship should not ever exist.

Further, no one who has ever held citizenship of any other country should be eligible for election to any representative body, or any court, tribunal or any such body that adjudicates on Australian law.

It takes a lifetime to become an Ozzie, & more than a lifetime to undo being something else.

It takes just a few minutes to become an Anzac and stand beside other Anzacs, as immovable obstacles. Like NZ pack howitzers and a Kiwi Maori lieutenant, forward spotter. Who called fire down on his own position to save many young lives and Nui Dat, Aug 18th.

Even as senior officers allegedly/reportedly, cowered inside their tents? Only to appear after the fighting was done to take the kudos, credit and rationed medals?

At the end of the day Has, what matters is what is in your heart, not were you were born.

Like say, Benedict Arnold and sell it for a song to the highest bidder egoistic quislings with loyalty only to the might dollar, themselves and their immediate family!

Many of who patently occupy your (born to rule) nationals by birth only, preferred positions? [I'd apply it to all real estate sales!]

And almost as sensible as selecting officers by virtue of privileged birth, demented or otherwise, rather than tried and tested field competency.

J B Petersen was a NZ born Norwegian! one of our earliest/more competent PM's was an NZ'er. Tony Abbott was born in (Mother) England!

I could go on, but the list is very long and this site still has word limits.

There's a story of a Christmas truce in the trenches during WW 1, that only ended when one high ranking, demented fool said, right oh chaps, party's over, back to the trenches.

Or Gallipoli, when some new chum knee deep in human excrement and human remains, under a hail of shrapnel, and the crack of high calibre long arm's fire, piped up, this must be what hell is like?
To which some stiff upper lip replied, yes, but at least their are no flies.
Don't forget your meds.
Alan B.