ARM
Media Statement - 23 October 1999
No
case is lying again - there is no complete rewrite
of the Constitution at November republic referendum
The Australian Republican Movement
today labelled as more lies claims by the No campaign
that the republic referendum on November 6 will mean
a complete re-write of the Australian Constitution
because there are "69 changes."
There simply will not be a re-write. Most of the changes
involve changing the words "Queen" and "Governor General"
to the word "President."
The changes are simple and have been supported by
people such as the former Governor General Sir Zelman
Cowen, former High Court Chief Justices Sir Anthony
Mason and Sir Gerard Brennan and Australians as varied
as John Newcombe, Hazel Hawke, Steve Waugh and Nobel
Prize winner and Australian of the Year, Professor
Peter Doherty.
The facts, which the No case will do anything to ignore
to try and frighten Australians and make sure that
Prince Charles instead of an Australian is our next
Head of State, are:
-
43
of the 69 proposed changes to the Constitution
involve deleting of the words "Queen" or "Governor-General"
and replacing them with "President";
-
These
simple word changes represent 63 per cent
of all the changes;
-
The
remaining proposals allow all Australians of voting
age to nominate candidates for president; dilute
the power of the Prime Minister by making him
account for his actions to Parliament if he ever
dismisses a President; and makes the longest serving
State Governor the immediate Acting President
if the President dies, is dismissed or retires.
There is no bogeyman in the changes to be put at the
referendum. They are available for anyone and everyone
to see.
The changes can be obtained from the federal Attorney
General's department or from the Australian Electoral
Commission brochure now being distributed to households
across Australia.
The No campaign's lies about the "69 changes" are
designed to scare people about the extent of change,
when in fact the changes proposed are simple, sensible
and have very wide community support.
Telling lies about the changes proposed is a very
nasty tactic, and instead of giving people information
as the No case says it wants to, it is designed to
worry people about what is a very simple choice: a
Yes vote for an Australian as Head of State; or a
No vote to keep the system as it is today, with a
British monarchy irrelevant to life in Australia at
the top of our constitutional tree.
Authorised
by Malcolm Turnbull, Australian Republican Movement,
60 Park Street, Sydney NSW 2000
