Common values for a nation born without violence

This is reflected in the requirement for both a national and a federal vote in support of the change proposed. Equally, republicans must understand and demonstrate they understand the system of government which they wish to change. It became clear in the 1999 referendum campaign that the republicans were less informed than they should have been. For example, even the minister in charge of the process did not seem to appreciate the way in which a republican Australia could continue in the Commonwealth of Nations.

Today, few republicans seem to appreciate the role of the Crown in the Australian constitutional system. Not so long ago, a former head of two government departments, criticising the governor-general in an opinion column in a leading newspaper, demonstrated that he did not understand the role and function of the Executive Council.

The fourth pillar the British brought is in our Judeo-Christian values. This was expressed in powerful terms in the very first sermon delivered in this land. In it, the Reverend Richard Johnson said:

I do not address you as Churchmen or Dissenters, as Roman Catholics or Protestants, as Jews or Gentiles, but I speak to you as mortals though yet immortals. The Gospel proposes a free and gracious pardon for the guilty, cleansing for the polluted, happiness for the miserable, and even life for the dead.

This eloquent and poetic theme has resounded through the history of our nation and is deep in the hearts of the people. It is there offering spiritual strength in times of trial and reinforcing our lives today. As Edmond Burke said: “We know, and what is better, we feel inwardly, and that religion is the basis of civil society.”

That theme that Richard Johnson enunciated is seen again at the time of the achievement of that last great pillar of our nation, our federation. In the meticulous drafting and approval of our constitution, the Australian people were more involved than had ever occurred in the formation of any other nation.

It is appropriate to recall that the theme that caught the greatest interest and strongest expression of public support was that the constitution should be adopted with a reference that what man does is done under God. This does not mean that Australians must belong to any particular religion, or indeed, any religion. But those values are at the basis of our legal social and ethical system. The obligations we have to one another come essentially from these values - honesty, compassion, charity and the acceptance of personal responsibility. They must be preserved.

But before I discuss federation, I should refer to the fifth pillar, which came as a gift from the British. They were the only colonial power which gave this to their colonies, indeed most imperial powers did not enjoy it at home. This was responsible government under the Westminster system. This brought self-government to each of the Australian colonies. Even today, it is unlikely that Australians will move away from this system.

The only realistic alternative is the American system, which has never been successfully exported. The greatest challenge to the Westminster system comes from republicans who wish to preserve it but also wish to remove the Australian Crown from it. The model they preferred was not approved by the Constitutional Convention, but the prrime minister still allowed it to be the subject of a referendum in 1999. While it was strongly supported by the media and the political establishment, it was rejected nationally and in every state. The alternative model, that of an elected presidency would in the view of conservative republicans, sabotage the Westminster system by changing the head of state into a political rival of the prime minister.

In any event, it is through the Westminster system that our common law right to free speech is constitutionally entrenched, at least to the extent that there is a constitutionally implied freedom of political communication. This is not a personally enforceable right, but one which acts a constraint on the law making by our parliaments.

The final pillar of this nation is federation. Not only is federation a pillar, the way it was achieved is unique and is testimony to the political sophistication of the Australian people, the freedoms which they had inherited, and of the wisdom of the colonial authorities.

Our nation was born without war, loss of blood or violence. That great founding father, Sir John Quick, who played a crucial role in achieving federation, wrote (with lawyer Robert Garran) that: