MS 9214
Records of the 1998 Constitutional Convention
Scope and Content Note
- Records
- 1997-1998
- 3.48m. (20 boxes)
- Available for reference
The records were collected by National Library Information Services
staff prior to the 1998 Constitutional Convention, and when located at Old
Parliament House during the Convention to provide reference services to
delegates. As the records were collected from a number of sources before
and during the Constitutional Convention, the series arrangement reflects
the source of the material and within this, pre-Convention and Convention
processes.
The records of the Constitutional Convention include lists of
candidates, how to vote information and publications of the Australian
Electoral Commission, and other material relating to the electoral
process. In the main, however, the collection comprises material collected
from delegates to the Constitutional Convention by staff of the National
Library, or issued by the Convention Media Centre. A full set of public
submissions to the Constitutional Convention are held. In addition a
significant quantity of website material, representing delegates and their
agents and the product of a variety of media servers is also of interest.
An extensive collection of news cuttings covering the period of the
Convention is also included.
Though Minutes of Convention proceedings held in this collection are
incomplete, VHS video-recordings of the plenary sessions are held. Full
details of the proceedings and details of the voting on final resolutions
will be presented to the Commonwealth Parliament and published in a report
of the Convention.
The Library also holds papers written and accumulated by the following
delegates to the Constitutional Convention:
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MS 9199 |
Chua Ka-Sing |
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MS 9216 |
Misha Schubert |
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MS 9217 |
Kenneth Gifford |
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MS 9224 |
Jim Bacon; |
and of unsuccessful candidate MS 9221 Colin Gourley.
The Library also holds literature and objects from the Womens
Constitutional Convention, held 29-30 January 1998 (MS 9230).
Historical note
The Convention met at Canberra from Monday 2 February 1998 until Friday
6 February 1998 and from Monday 9 February 1998 until Friday 13 February
1998.
The Convention considered three questions:
- whether or not Australia should become a republic;
- which republican model should be put to the voters to consider
against the current system of government; and
- in what time-frame and under what circumstances might any change be
considered.
Ian Sinclair presided as Chairman, with Barry Jones as Deputy Chairman.
The Convention was constituted by 152 delegates. Seventy-six delegates
were elected under the Constitutional Convention (Election) Act 1997. The
other seventy-six were appointed by the Commonwealth Government and
included forty representatives of the Commonwealth, State and Territory
Parliaments.
Three categories of model for a possible Australian republic were before
the Convention. They were: direct election, parliamentary election by a
special majority and appointment by a special council following Prime
Ministerial nomination. While there was significant support for models in
each of these categories, following an exhaustive balloting process the
Bipartisan Appointment of the President was endorsed by a majority of
delegates who voted for or against the motion.
The Convention also agreed to a range of resolutions relating to the
Preamble and to miscellaneous transitional and consequential issues
relating to a change to a republic.
The following specific matters were resolved by the Convention:
- Whether Australia should become a republic
- That this Convention supports, in principle, Australia
becoming a republic.
- That this Convention supports the adoption of a republican
system of government on the "Bipartisan Appointment of the
President Model" as set out below in preference to there being no
change to the Constitution.
- That this Convention recommends to the Prime Minister and
Parliament that the Bipartisan Appointment of the President Model, and
other related changes to the Constitution, supported by this Convention,
be put to the people in a constitutional referendum.
- Timing and circumstances of any change
- That a referendum for change to a republic or for the
maintenance of the status quo be held in 1999. If the referendum is in
favour of a republic, that the new republic come into effect by 1
January 2001.
Other resolution were passed in regard to a public education program
directed to the constitutional and other issues; implications for the
States; the nomination procedure, appointment or election, qualifications,
definition of powers, term and dismissal procedures for the office of
President; a Preamble to the Constitution and other issues.
Reference: Dept Prime Minister & Cabinet website
http://www.dpmc.gov.au/convention/
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Series |
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Description |
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1 |
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Electoral process |
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2 |
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Constitutional Convention Proceedings |
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3 |
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Delegates: position papers and commentary |
Series 1 Electoral process
The series comprises material collected by the National Library relating
to the nomination and election of candidates, and statements issued by
candidates and delegates prior to the Convention.
Included are the National List of Candidates issued by the
Australian Electoral Commission, how to vote and related
information, and copies of the AEC publication, Electoral Newsfile.
Some material issued by the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet is
also retained.
More significant are the electoral products of candidates, supporters
and commentators. These comprise statements printed from websites (whether
those of candidates and their supporters or 'party', or sponsored by a
variety of web-servers), and printed material: media-releases, circulars,
how-to-vote leaflets, advertisements and information kits. A
small number of miscellaneous press cuttings covering the period
October-December 1997 complete the series.
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Folder |
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1 |
AEC, Election guides and overview |
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2 |
AEC, Electoral Newsfile |
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3 |
AEC, Candidate Information Kit |
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4 |
AEC, List of candidates |
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5 |
Department of Prime Minister & Cabinet, Republic yes
or no ? |
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6 |
Australian High Commission (London), media release and information
sheet |
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7-24 |
Candidates and supporters: printed material |
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25-35 |
Candidates and supporters: websites |
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36 |
Newspaper cuttings, October December 1997 |
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| Addition 4 June 1999 |
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| 37 |
Election material: Russel James Leneham
(Civic Responsibility, Queensland) |
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| Addition 30 July 1999 |
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| 37 |
Election material: Alistair Barros |
Series 2 Constitutional Convention Proceedings
This series documents proceedings of the Constitutional Convention from
Monday 2 February until the final session on Friday 13 February 1998. It
includes: invitational and introductory material issued to delegates,
rules of debate, order of speeches and other administrative material,
speeches relating to the opening of the Convention, minutes, notices of
motion, amendments and other proceedings of the Convention.
The series includes an incomplete set of material documenting Convention
proceedings: notice papers, speakers lists, speeches and records of
Convention proceedings and decisions on Working Group resolutions. The
Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet has undertaken to provide copies
of public submissions to the Convention, in addition to a set of minutes
of individual Working Groups considering Constitutional resolutions and
models. In addition to a complete set of printed transcripts (Hansard) to
the proceedings, the collection includes 37 VHS videotapes covering the
Convention's plenary sessions.
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Folder/piece |
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1 |
Invitations, passes and information for delegates |
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2 |
Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet: notes for media
representatives |
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3 |
Opening Session: agenda, delegates, seating plan |
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4 |
State Constitutional Councils and Committees: miscellaneous reports
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5 |
Opening Session: addresses |
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6 |
Convention rules and order of proceedings |
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7-18 |
Delegates: addresses |
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19 |
Resolutions Group: Procedures |
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20 |
Notice papers |
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21 |
Working Groups: Procedures |
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22 |
Working Groups: Reports and resolutions |
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23 |
Working Groups: proposed models |
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24 |
Recommendations, resolutions and proposed amendments |
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25 |
Amendments to resolutions |
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26 |
Resolutions adopted by the Convention |
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27-28 |
Draft minutes |
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29 |
Hansard proof |
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30-36 |
VHS videotape-recordings of plenary sessions |
Series 3 Convention delegates: position papers and commentaries
Material included in this series represents the public statements of
delegates and supporters addressing the Republican issue, disseminated
primarily during the Constitutional Convention. Comment is made on the
various Republican models that obtained support during the
Convention. The series includes media releases largely issued during the
Convention.
Included in this series are print-outs of website material issued during
the Convention by the Australian Electoral Commission, Department of Prime
Minister and Cabinet, and by various media servers, commercial, community
or regional, and individual sites. This includes a large amount obtained
from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation website, representing various
television and radio programs. Also included is a substantial quantity of
internet-based material issued by delegates, supporters and interest
groups. Of interest are a number of web-site discussion lists. There is
also a limited amount of published material and reports disseminated by
delegates collected during the Convention.
The Convention maintained a Media Monitoring service during the
Constitutional Convention. Daily bound newspaper cuttings volumes were
issued, and are held in the collection. Finally, a set of public
submissions to the Constitutional Convention collected by the Department
of Prime Minister & Cabinet were received by the Library.
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Folder/piece |
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1-4 |
Delegates: media releases |
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5 |
Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet website |
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6-13 |
Media servers (various) |
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14-17 |
Delegates: websites |
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18-19 |
Delegates: published matter and reports |
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20-31 |
Newspaper cuttings (bound volumes) |
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32-33 |
Miscellaneous newspaper cuttings |
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34-41 |
Public submissions |
Box List
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Box |
Series |
Folder/Piece |
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1 |
1 |
1-9 |
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2 |
1 |
10-17 |
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3 |
1 |
18-20 |
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4 |
1 |
21-27 |
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5 |
1 |
28-36 |
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18 |
1 |
37 |
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6 |
2 |
1-4 |
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7 |
2 |
5-12 |
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8 |
2 |
13-20 |
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9 |
2 |
21-29 |
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10 |
2 |
30-31 |
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11 |
2 |
32-34 |
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12 |
2 |
35-36 |
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13 |
3 |
1-7 |
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14 |
3 |
8-14 |
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15 |
3 |
15-19 |
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16 |
3 |
20-24 |
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17 |
3 |
25-30 |
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18 |
3 |
31-33 |
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19 |
3 |
34-37 |
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20 |
3 |
38-41 |
Guide prepared June 1998 / updated December 1998 |