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Changes in the Australian Oath of Citizenship
E-Brief: Research Note no. 20, 19 November 2002
Deirdre Mckeown,
Politics and Public Administration Group
The changes in the oath of citizenship over the last 50 years reflect
the evolution of Australia from British colony to independent multicultural
nation.
Background
Australian citizenship was vigorously debated at the Federation conferences
held during the 1890s. During this decade the word 'citizen' appeared:
again and again, in speeches, in the press, in the rules and charters
of organisations, and in debates about political entitlement.(1)
Surprisingly the final version of the Constitution did not reflect this
intense debate.
Although the final Constitution gave the Commonwealth the power to make
laws with respect to naturalisation and aliens, it did not mention or
define Australian citizenship. The closest statement in the Constitution
on citizenship is found in
s. 117 which uses the word 'subject' rather than 'citizen':
A subject of the Queen, resident in any State, shall not be subject
in any other State to any disability or discrimination which would not
be equally applicable to him if he were a subject of the Queen resident
in such other State.
Section 24 uses the phrase 'people of the Commonwealth', and s. 44 uses
the term 'citizen' in regard to persons who are 'subjects or citizens'
of a foreign power and therefore ineligible to stand for federal parliament.
The concept of Australian citizenship therefore did not existit was
not a formal legal term.(2)
In 1914 British nationality was, for the first time, defined in legislation.
Self-governing member countries of the British Empire passed nationality
acts based on the UK legislation and adopted a British nationality 'common
code' which provided British subjects with a common status.(3)
In 1947 Canada departed from this common code with legislation which
'gave Canadians their own Canadian citizenship status whilst continuing
to hold British subject status'.(4) Prompted by the 1947 Canadian
Act other Commonwealth countries, including Britain, Australia and New
Zealand introduced similar legislation.
Australians, who until 1949 had been British subjects, were now Australian
citizens and British subjects simultaneously. This situation remained
from 1949 until 1984.
Australian Citizenship
The legal status of Australian Citizen came into effect on 26 January
1949 with the passage through Parliament of the Nationality and Citizenship
Act 1948.(5) The Minister for Immigration, the Hon. Arthur
Calwell said:
This is an historic occasion in the life of our nation. The bill
seeks to establish for the first time the principle of Australian citizenship,
while maintaining the common bond of British nationality. this bill
will enable Australia to proclaim its own national citizenship and
establish the duties and responsibilities as well as the rights and
privileges that are inherent in it.(6)
Sir Ninian Stephen, former Justice of the High Court and former Governor-General
of Australia, has suggested that the notion of citizenship in fact made
very little impact on the Australian community:
Australian citizenship has none of the aura which surrounds the concept
of being a citizen of the United States nor [with] being a citizen
of France. This is, I believe, largely because our citizenship has not
had to be fought for but has come to us gradually, without fanfare and
without struggle.(7)
Since 1949 Australian governments have actively encouraged immigrants
to become citizens:
The great achievement of Australian citizenship lies not so much
with those of us who are Australians born and bred but, rather with
those millions who have of their own free will chosen to become citizens.(8)
Changes in the Oath of Allegiance(9)
The Australian Citizenship Act 1948 sets out the provisions by
which citizenship can be acquired. These are by birth, adoption, descent
or grant. One of the requirements of the grant provision was that all
new citizens take the oath or affirmation of allegiance (now the pledge).
This is an essential rather than a symbolic part of the citizenship process.
The changes from the first oath of allegiance to the current pledge are
listed below. They reflect the growing diversity of Australia's population
and the development of a more inclusive approach to citizenship.
1948 Nationality and Citizenship Act(10)
Oath of Allegiance
I, A. B; swear by Almighty God that I will be faithful and bear true
allegiance to His Majesty King George the Sixth, his heirs and successors
according to law, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of Australia
and fulfil my duties as an Australian citizen.
1966 Amendment: Insertion of renunciation
In his Second Reading Speech on the 1966 Bill, the Minister for Immigration,
the Hon. Hubert Opperman stated:
we have decided that the essential words of renunciation should now
be incorporated as part of the oath of allegiance to the Queen. The
change will simplify and shorten the naturalisation ceremony and enhance
its dignity, and will also, I believe, eliminate the emotional disturbance
felt by candidates due to their national and rightful love of their
homelands.(11)
Oath of Allegiance
I, A. B., renouncing all other allegiance, swear by Almighty God that
I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty, Queen Elizabeth
the Second, Her Heirs and Successors according to law.
Affirmation of Allegiance
I, A. B., renouncing all other allegiance, solemnly and sincerely promise
and declare that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her
Majesty, Queen Elizabeth the Second, Her Heirs and Successors according
to law.
1973 Australian Citizenship Act: insertion of reference to Queen
of Australia(12)
Oath of Allegiance
I, A. B., renouncing all other allegiance, swear by Almighty God that
I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Elizabeth
the Second, Queen of Australia, Her heirs and successors according to
law, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of Australia and fulfil
my duties as an Australian citizen.
Affirmation of Allegiance
I, A. B., renouncing all other allegiance, solemnly and sincerely promise
and declare that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her
Majesty Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Australia, Her heirs and successors
according to law, and that I will faithfully observe the laws of Australia
and fulfil my duties as an Australian citizen.
1986 Amendment: removal of renunciation(13) and removal
of requirement that candidates state their names when taking the oath
or making the affirmation
The Human Rights Commission reviewed the Australian Citizenship
Act 1948 in 1982 and recommended that the oath or affirmation of allegiance
should not include renunciation of all other allegiance.
In 1986 the Minister for Immigration and Ethnic Affairs, the Hon. Chris
Hurford MP, described renunciation as 'ambiguous and unnecessary'.(14)
Oath of Allegiance
I swear by Almighty God that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance
to Her Majesty Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Australia, Her heirs and
successors according to law, and that I will faithfully observe the
laws of Australia and fulfil my duties as an Australian citizen.
Affirmation of Allegiance
I solemnly and sincerely promise and declare that I will be faithful
and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Elizabeth the Second, Queen
of Australia, Her heirs and successors according to law, and that I
will faithfully observe the laws of Australia and fulfil my duties as
an Australian citizen.
1993 Amendment: introduction of a Pledge of Commitment(15)
to replace the oath or affirmation of allegiance and removal of reference
to the Crown
In 1993 the ALP made a commitment to 'replace the old Oath of Allegiance
with a Pledge of Commitment as a Citizen of the Country of Australia'.(16)
Introducing the legislation the Minister for Immigration and Ethnic Affairs,
Senator the Hon. Nick Bolkus said:
we need to have an oath of allegiance which reflects the core
values of Australia and which is a bonding instrument, and we can do
this without any disrespect to our sovereign (17)
Pledge of Commitment
Form of Pledge No. 1
From this time forward, under God, I pledge my loyalty to Australia
and its people, whose democratic beliefs I share, whose rights and liberties
I respect, and whose laws I will uphold and obey.
Form of Pledge No. 2
From this time forward, I pledge my loyalty to Australia and its people,
whose democratic beliefs I share, whose rights and liberties I respect,
and whose laws I will uphold and obey.
The Pledge came into effect in January 1994. There have been no changes
since.
Endnotes
- Helen Irving, 'Citizenship before 1949', Individual Community Nation,
Kim Rubenstein (ed.), Australian Scholarly Publishing, Melbourne, 2000,
p.10.
- Kim Rubenstein, Australian Citizenship Law in Context, Lawbook
Co., 2002, p. 47.
- The British Nationality and Status of Aliens Act 1914. Australia
passed the Nationality Act 1920
- Australian Citizenship Council, Australian citizenship for a new
century, Canberra, 2000, p. 31.
- In 1973 the Nationality and Citizenship Act 1948 was renamed
the Australian Citizenship Act 1948.
- House of Representatives, Debates, 30 September 1948, p. 1060.
- Sir Ninian Stephen, 'Australian citizenship: past, present and future',
Monash University Law Review, vol. 26, no. 2, 2001.
- ibid.
- For more details of legislative changes see Sarah O'Brien, 'Dual citizenship,
foreign allegiance and s. 44(i) of the Australian Constitution', Background
Papers, no. 29, Department of the Parliamentary Library, 1992, Appendix
A.
- Commenced 26 January 1949.
- House of Representatives, Debates, 31 March 1966, p. 833.
- The Australian Citizenship Act 1973 (Cwlth) effective 1 December
1973, also sought to remove the renunciation in the oath but this was
defeated in the Senate.
- Repeal of renunciation on oath by Australian Citizenship Amendment
Act 1986, effective 20 August 1986.
- House of Representatives, Debates, 19 February 1986, p. 868.
- Australian Citizenship Amendment Act 1993.
- Australian Labor Party, Advancing a Multicultural Australia,
Immigration and Ethnic Affairs Policy, 1993 federal election.
- Senate, Debates, 29 September 1993, p. 1439.
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