9 May

At the ceremonies commemorating a century of Australian parliamentary democracy in Melbourne, women spoke about the republic. Democrats leader, Senator Natasha Stott Despoja in her first major public speech as leader of the party, singled out the republic as a coming issue for Australia. Guest speaker, Hayley Eves 15, South Korean by birth and adopted by an Australian family as a baby, said Australia should have its own head of state. “I also hope one day in the future our head of state is one of us – he’s [sic] amongst us – and is determined by the Australian people.” She said that she had a free hand in writing her speech and believed that a republic would come. WfaAR notes that any future Australian head of state could well be a woman now among us and that steps should be put in place to ensure that the head of state of the republic alternates between women and men.