The World Briefly

February 03, 2023

Symbolic Absence

Australia

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Australia will remove depictions of British monarchs from its banknotes, a move that has sparked a fierce debate in the country where the monarch remains its head of state, the Associated Press reported Thursday.

The central bank said the new Australian $5 bill will feature an Indigenous design rather than the image of the new British king, Charles III. The current banknotes feature a portrait of Queen Elizabeth II – and is the only bill to still bear the image of the late royal.

Officials noted that the king’s portrait will appear on coins that currently bear the image of Elizabeth II. They added that the decision followed consultations with the center-left government of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

The bank explained that the change would honor “the culture and history of the First Australians.” Opposition politicians, however, said the move was politically motivated.

Like many other former British colonies, Australia has been debating whether to cut constitutional ties with the United Kingdom and replace the monarch with an Australian citizen as its head of state.

Albanese began laying the groundwork for an Australian republic after assuming office last year by creating a new position, the assistant minister for the republic.

However, calling a referendum to dissolve constitutional links with the UK has not been a top priority for the new government.

When the queen died last year, the government had already planned to hold a referendum to acknowledge Indigenous people in the constitution. It rejected a suggestion to put the question of a republic to a plebiscite as an unwanted distraction.

Australians voted in a referendum proposed by a Labor government in 1999 to keep the British monarch as the country’s head of state.

This story originally appeared in the February 03, 2023 newsletter, Held Hostage.