Republic of New Zulland?

The insightful Republican Roundup newsletter from the Australian Republican Movement alerted me to a slow awakening of the Republican spirit in New Zealand. Historically, republicanism has been lacking in New Zealand, with deference to the monarch most common, even amongst enlightened progressive types.

The thrust of NZ republicanism seems to be a little different from its Australian counterpart, at least according to the the Republican Movement of Aotearoa New Zealand:
We believe that a New Zealander should be our head of state. They should be elected democratically and be accountable to all New Zealanders. These ideas are the heart of republicanism – where power comes from the people.


Note that the focus is very much on democracy and accountability, a more radical position than that taken by the ARM, who focus almost exclusively on the need for an Australian as a head of state. No doubt this is a legacy from the Referedum on '99, and in line with the ARM's non-commitment to a particular model. It seems, however, that the RMANZ might be making the same mistake as the ARM did the first time around.

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