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The Forum > General Discussion > Should Australia become a republic?

Should Australia become a republic?

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Also, on the question of religion so far as the Constitution is concerned, allow me to quote Professor Denise Meyerson of Macquarie University :

« Section 116 of the Australian Constitution states that the Commonwealth “shall not make any law for establishing any religion”. There is no such restriction on the legislative power of the States and Territories.

The neutral state is not founded on belief in the non-existence of God and it does not attack religious beliefs as false or irrational. Instead, it refrains from taking any position on religious matters, leaving people free to believe and act as they please in their private lives, provided only that they do not violate the rights of others.

Although the Australian Constitution appears to entrench the principle of separation between religion and the state, the guarantee is of little practical importance, given the High Court’s view that section 116 does not prohibit the state from encouraging or giving aid to religion and that there is no constitutional obstacle to laws that indirectly assist the religious to further their religious goals.

In my view, the state neutrality approach is preferable because it is of the essence of separating the state and religion that governmental acts should not serve interests whose value is evident only on the basis of personal insights and revelation. The exercise of state power should be confined to serving interests whose value can be supported by evidence and arguments that everyone can understand, regardless of their religious views. »

Allow me to add that it is my firm view that the Australian Constitution should be couched in terms such that it is crystal clear to all that it is subservient to the Australian sovereign people exclusively, without reference to any so-called higher authority or superior entity of any nature whatsoever.

The wording of the Constitution should neither presume nor attempt to impose religious belief on anybody.

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Posted by Banjo Paterson, Wednesday, 21 October 2015 3:56:11 AM
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For those of us who have always enjoyed the Australian life-style and can see no reason why it should not be any different for our children and grandchildren, here are a couple of things worth considering :

1. Only 60% of Australian adults and just 42% of 18-29 year-olds consider that "democracy is preferable to any other kind of government", according to the 2014 Lowy Institute poll.

Those who do not see democracy as the preferable form of government consider that :

"democracy is not working because there is no real difference between the policies of the major parties" (45%)

"democracy only serves the interests of a few and not the majority of society" (42%)

Though most of us have only a fairly scrappy knowledge of the laws that govern us, we all have an acute sense of justice, innate or acquired, from an early age.

No need to ask for whom the bell tolls. It clearly sounds the death knell of the legendary egalitarian culture on which our nation was built. It rings out a warning for the privileged few to take their precautions in order to stay at least one step ahead of the clamour of the streets.

The human rights war against the so-called Islamic State (Isis) has caught Australia on the wrong foot as the only democratic country in the Western world without a bill of rights. Riding on a wave of revulsion for the atrocities committed, public support for human rights has never been so strong.

2. Here is an example of the practical advantages of building a good, solid Constitution for Australia :

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9kT2Kt8TVPU

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Posted by Banjo Paterson, Wednesday, 21 October 2015 8:03:49 AM
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Banjo Paterson,
Great post.
Posted by Josephus, Wednesday, 21 October 2015 8:38:16 AM
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Lets' s be clear about this: there is no logical reason for Australia becoming a republic. For those of you who have emotional attachments to the idea of a republic, the old adage applies - ' be careful what you wish for'. REMEMBER, this issue was mooted FROM ABOVE, by people claiming they know better than the rest of us do, and they did it for elitist, political reasons.
Posted by ttbn, Wednesday, 21 October 2015 9:03:55 AM
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I'd still like to hear some good reasons and advantages for a republic.
Posted by Is Mise, Wednesday, 21 October 2015 9:53:57 AM
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So Banjo, we'll put you down as not being in the minimalist camp :)

re :Section 51 (xxvi) I'd be very happy to see it removed. It was from another time and isn't really used these days - except to justify positive discrimination toward Aboriginals. And ending that would be very fine by me.

re: Section 25. This is often mistaken as being racist by those who don't understand its history. In fact it was the opposite of that. It was designed to encourage (force not being available) racist states to temper that racism. In detail its effect was to disadvantage those states which hadn't given their aboriginals the vote by reducing their popular representation.

Again its now superfluous to need and can go. But I'd hope it was done for the right reasons ie that the racism it was designed to oppose no longer occurs.
Posted by mhaze, Wednesday, 21 October 2015 10:04:59 AM
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