ESTHER ANATOLITIS When Australia Became A Republic. Reviewed by Braham Dabscheck

Esther Anatolitis reveals just how closely Australia’s constitution ties us to the whims of the English monarch, and makes the case for change.

It is a safe bet that, other than constitutional lawyers and the odd eccentric, most Australians have not, and probably never will, read the Australian Constitution. It contains provisions that enshrine rule by a foreign sovereign and undemocratic governance. These include (with emphases added):

Section 1. The legislative power of the Commonwealth shall be vested in a Federal Parliament, which shall consist of the Queen, a Senate and a House of Representatives …

Section 2. A Governor-General appointed by the Queen shall be Her Majesty’s representative in the Commonwealth, and shall have … such powers and functions of the Queen as Her majesty shall be pleased to assign to him.

Section 5. The Governor-General may appoint such times for holding the sessions of the Parliament as he thinks fit, and may also from time to time by Proclamation or otherwise, prorogue the Parliament, and may in like manner dissolve the House of Representatives.

Section 59. The Queen may disallow any law within one year from the Governor-General’s assent, and such disallowance on being made known by the Governor-General … shall annul the law from the day when the disallowance is so made known.

Section 62. There shall be a Federal Executive Council to advise the Governor-General in the government of the Commonwealth, and the members of the Council shall be chosen and summoned by the Governor-General and sworn as Executive Councillors, and shall hold office during his pleasure.

Section 64. The Governor-General may appoint officers to administer such departments of State of the Commonwealth as the Governor-General in Council may establish.

Such officers shall hold office during the pleasure of the Governor-General.

These sections of the Constitution give unfettered power to the sovereign of the United Kingdom and to his or her appointment as Governor-General. Section 5 underpinned the dismissal of the Whitlam Labor government by Sir John Kerr in 1975; Sections 62 and 64 explain how Scott Morrison was able to be (secretly) appointed to five extra ministries during his period as prime minister during the COVID pandemic.

These provisions are of major concern to Esther Anatolitis. She points out that ‘[l]ike it or not, constitutionally we remain a British realm’. The major message of her monograph is that it is only by renouncing monarchy that Australia can become democratic.

Monarchy personifies authoritarianism by giving it a human face that demands respect and dismisses criticism. It normalises elitism by glamorising its inherent inequities to make them desirable … Without a democratic constitution guaranteeing a democratically appointed head of state and a democratically functioning government, Australia’s only protection from undemocratic rule is luck.

She also maintains that, by becoming democratic, by securing legitimate independence, Australia will become ‘a more honest society’:

This means engaging meaningfully with never-ceded First Nations sovereignty; ambitiously neutralising the toxicity that permeates our national conversation; venturous civics education for a new era of empowered citizenship and ultimately, constitutional change – because monarchy and democracy are irreconcilable.

In advancing her case for constitutional change, Anatolitis examines major turning points in Australian history that have enhanced the growth of democracy and moved Australia along the path of becoming a republic. In doing this, she pays particular attention to white Australia’s troubled history and relationship with First Nations peoples. ‘There can be no republic without understanding and respecting unceded First Nations sovereignty in all of its complexities.’

Anatolitis highlights Australia’s adoption of electoral reforms to enhance the development of democratic rule. These include the secret ballot, votes for women and universal suffrage (but not for First Nations peoples until much later), compulsory voting, preferential voting and independent electoral commissions. She also documents major ways in which Australia became independent from Britain. These include the appointment, over the objections of the King, of an Australian-born Governor-General in 1930; Australia’s adoption of an independent military strategy during World War II following the fall of Singapore; the ending of Britain as a preferential trading partner in 1972 when it joined a European trading bloc; and legislative changes in 1986 which ended Britain’s ability to pass laws that affect Australia and removed Australians’ right to appeal to British courts.

Anatolitis also provides an account of the dismissal of the Whitlam government in 1975, the failed referenda of 1999 (to establish a republic) and 2023 (to establish a Voice to Parliament for First Nations peoples). She draws particular attention to the Mabo decision of the High Court in 1992 that granted (limited) land rights to First Nations peoples.

Anatolitis has a broad-based interest in the arts. At various points she highlights the ways in which culture and specific events, such as the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games, have enhanced a distinctively Australian, if not republican, way of life.

The major strength of When Australia Became A Republic is the fundamental questions it raises: are we an independent people able to forge our own path, or are we simply an outpost of an old colonial power that enshrined undemocratic practices in our Constitution? At a minimum, Esther Anatolitis has drawn attention to what the Australian Constitution actually says.

It is to be hoped that this thought-provoking monograph will generate a debate about the nature of our Constitution and its need for revision in order to advance Australia’s development as an independent republic.

Esther Anatolitis When Australia Became A Republic Monash University Publishing 2025 PB 90pp $19.99

Braham Dabscheck is a Senior Fellow at the Melbourne Law School at the University of Melbourne who writes on industrial relations, sport and other things.

You can buy When Australia Became A Republic from Abbey’s at a 10% discount by quoting the promotion code NEWTOWNREVIEW.

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Tags: Australian constitution, Australian government, constitutional monarchy, democracy, English monarch, Esther | Anatolitis, First Nations sovereignty, republics