By Brett Manning, Trustee of the New Aussie Constitution Trust - 27 March 2022
The draft New Aussie Constitution is a proposed replacement for the current Australian Constitution that has been developed independently of government. Please to a few moments to look around the New Aussie Constitution Trust website.
In the days leading up to the Russian invasion, Ukraine faced a choice. President Putin of Russia was demanding a range of concessions from the Ukrainian government and if they had been prepared to subjugate the governing of their own country to the wishes of an individual from a foreign country, both then and in the future, they could have probably avoided war. The result would have been a democracy at one level but always requiring the approval of this foreign entity at any time the Russian President decided he wanted a different decision to the democratically elected government.
Not surprisingly the Ukrainian government said ‘no’ and the Ukrainian people have said a resounding ‘no’ since the military invasion at an incredible human and material cost that is still being paid to this day. Ukraine was an independent, democratic nation with clearly defined and undisputed borders before 2014. Having true sovereignty is absolutely fundamental to the people of Ukraine, to the point that they would put their way of life at risk, in fact their actual lives at risk to maintain it.
Are we any different in Australia? We are an independent democratic nation too, but unlike Ukraine we do give a foreign individual the final say in our Australian Constitution. Our sovereignty is not absolute. Now I hear you screaming at me that there is a world of difference between being subservient to Vladimir Putin and being subservient to Queen Elizabeth. I totally accept that the contrast could not be more stark. However, that is the reason why we have not seen that having a foreign Head of State in Australia has been a problem up until now. Queen Elizabeth’s performance as our Head of State, from an Australian point of view, has been stella and if she could remain in her role forever I might not be so keen to see the Australian Constitution re-drafted.
Unfortunately, holding office for eternity is not an option and Australia needs to recognise that the Australian Constitution gives the Monarch undisputable powers that trump our democracy. The laws passed by our elected Parliament only become law with the consent of the Monarch. The Monarch forms and can dissolve our governments. The Monarch’s representative, the Governor General, could if they chose, run the executive government of Australia without any Prime Minister and with the Ministers of their choosing. What if a future Monarch makes a decree of some form or other? We are obliged to follow it, just as our Military, and our Politicians swear their allegiance to the Monarch and not to the Australian people.
Remember the Ukrainians are prepared to fight and die to preserve their sovereignty. All Australia needs to do is start planning for a new Australian Constitution. One with an Australian Head of State, who is chosen by the people. We cannot know, any of us, what a future Monarch of Australia will say or do. We are vulnerable because our law, the Australian Constitution, gives ultimate power over our sovereignty to a foreign person and Australians have no say over who that person is and what they might propose in the future.
I am promoting the New Aussie Constitution as an alternative and it is a complete draft that is open for discussion, refinement and input from ordinary Australians.
We need to recognise now that sovereignty is absolutely fundamental to our nation and we need to prepare our peaceful campaign bring it back ‘inhouse’, so that Australia can be truly independent.
If you want to learn more about the proposed draft New Aussie Constitution, visit the website at https://www.newaussieconstitution.com.au or you can throw your support behind the not-for-profit New Aussie Constitution Trust by liking and sharing this Blog. Please feel free to comment or email us directly because this draft is very much a consultative process, where we want to hear from as many Australians as possible.