User:Peter Ormond/Monarchy of Mauritius

Elizabeth II was Queen of Mauritius from 1968 to 1992 when Mauritius was a sovereign state and an independent constitutional monarchy. Mauritius shared the Sovereign with the other Commonwealth realms, with the country's monarchy being separate and legally distinct. The Mauritian monarch's operational and ceremonial duties were mostly delegated to her representative, the governor-general of Mauritius.

The Mauritian monarchy was created by the Mauritius Independence Act 1968, which transformed the British Crown Colony of Mauritius into the independent sovereign state of Mauritius of today. The only Mauritian monarch to reign from the independence of Mauritius to the monarchy's abolition was Queen Elizabeth II. As such, the monarch was officially titled Queen of Mauritius and, in this capacity, she and other members of the Royal Family undertook functions domestically as representatives of the Mauritian state. The Crown primarily functioned as a guarantor of continuous and stable governance and a nonpartisan safeguard against the abuse of power.

In 1991, Prime Minister Sir Anerood Jugnauth announced that Mauritius would become a republic on 12 March 1992, coinciding with the 24th anniversary of Mauritian independence. With the installation of a president as head of state, Mauritius became a republic within the Commonwealth on 12 March 1992.

History


At the 1965 Mauritius Constitutional Conference in London, the Mauritius Labour Party expressed its desire to attain independence as a constitutional monarchy within the Commonwealth of Nations, with Queen Elizabeth II as Queen of independent Mauritius, who would be represented in Mauritius by a governor-general. Mauritius became an independent country and a constitutional monarchy by the Mauritius Independence Act 1968, which transformed the British Crown Colony of Mauritius into an independent sovereign state.

12 March 1968 was chosen as the day for Mauritian independence, as a tribute to the Salt March which started in British India on 12 March 1930.

Unusually, no member of the Royal Family attended the independence ceremony on the island because of security concerns. Princess Alexandra was due to attend as the Queen's special representative, but after communal violence, the British minister of state for the Commonwealth, Lord Shepherd, advised that her visit be cancelled.

Princess Alexandra's planned functions, such as the opening of the Mauritian Parliament on 12 March, was instead carried out by Sir John Rennie, the new governor-general, as the vice-regal representative of the Queen of Mauritius.

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The Mauritian Crown and its aspects
The sovereign was equally shared with other monarchies in the Commonwealth of Nations, with the monarch's relationship with Mauritius completely independent from her position as monarch of any other realm. The Mauritian monarch was represented by a viceroy—the governor-general of Mauritius]]—in the Mauritian realm.



Since Mauritian independence in 1968, the pan-national Crown had both a shared and a separate character and the sovereign's role as monarch of Mauritius was distinct to her position as monarch of any other realm, including the United Kingdom. The monarch held her sovereignty over Mauritius in virtue of her "Mauritian Crown", and was advised only by Mauritian government ministers on matters of the Mauritian state. The monarchy thus ceased to be an exclusively British institution and in Mauritius became a Mauritian, or "domesticated" establishment.

This division was illustrated in a number of ways: The sovereign, for example, held a unique Mauritian title and, when she was acting in public specifically as a representative of Mauritius, she used, where possible, Mauritian symbols, including the country's national flag, unique royal symbols, and the like.

In Mauritius, the legal personality of the state is referred to as the "Crown in Right of Mauritius".

Constitutional role


passports

Mauritius was one of the realms of the Commonwealth of Nations that shared the same person as Sovereign and head of state.

Effective with the Mauritius Independence Act 1968, no British government minister could advise the sovereign on any matters pertaining to Mauritius, meaning that on all matters of the Mauritian state, the monarch was advised solely by Mauritian government ministers. All Mauritian bills required Royal assent. The Mauritian monarch was represented in the country by the governor-general of Mauritius, who was appointed by the monarch on the advice of the Mauritian Prime Minister.

The Mauritian government was known as "Her Majesty's Government of Mauritius".

Executive
One of the main duties of the Crown was to appoint a prime minister, who thereafter headed the Cabinet and advised the monarch or governor-general on how to execute their executive powers over all aspects of government operations and foreign affairs. The monarch's, and thereby the viceroy's role was almost entirely symbolic and cultural, acting as a symbol of the legal authority under which all governments and agencies operate, while the Cabinet directed the use of the Royal Prerogative. However, it is important to note that the Royal Prerogative belonged to the Crown and not to any of the ministers, though it might have sometimes appeared that way, and the constitution allowed the governor-general to unilaterally use these powers in relation to the dismissal of a prime minister, dissolution of parliament, and removal of a judge in exceptional, constitutional crisis situations.

There were also a few duties which were specifically performed by the Queen, such as appointing the governor-general.

The governor-general, to maintain the stability of government, appointed as prime minister the individual most likely to maintain the support of the House of Assembly. The Queen was informed by her viceroy of the acceptance of the resignation of a prime minister and the swearing-in of a new prime minister and other members of the ministry, she remained fully briefed through regular communications from her Mauritian ministers, and she held regular audiences with them whenever possible.

Parliament
The sovereign, along with the Mauritian House of Assembly, was one of the two components of the Parliament of Mauritius.

The monarch did not, however, participate in the legislative process; the viceroy did, though only in the granting of Royal Assent. The viceroy additionally summoned, prorogued, and dissolved parliament; after the latter, the writs for a general election were usually dropped by the governor-general.

The new parliamentary session was marked by the State Opening of Parliament, during which the monarch or the governor-general read the Speech from the Throne.

All laws in Mauritius were enacted only with the granting of Royal Assent by the governor-general on behalf of the sovereign. The Royal Assent, and proclamation, were required for all acts of parliament, usually granted or withheld by the governor-general.

Courts


Within the Commonwealth realms, the sovereign is responsible for rendering justice for all her subjects, and is thus traditionally deemed the fount of justice. In Mauritius, criminal offences were legally deemed to be offences against the sovereign and proceedings for indictable offences are brought in the sovereign's name in the form of The Queen versus [Name]. Hence, the common law held that the sovereign "can do no wrong"; the monarch cannot be prosecuted in his or her own courts for criminal offences.

The governor-general, on behalf of the Mauritian monarch, could also grant immunity from prosecution, exercise the royal prerogative of mercy, and pardon offences against the Crown, either before, during, or after a trial. The exercise of the 'Prerogative of mercy' to grant a pardon and the commutation of prison sentences is described in section 75 of the 1968 Constitution.

All judges of the Supreme Court were appointed by the governor-general.

All Mauritian judges had to swear that they would "well and truly serve" the monarch of Mauritius, on taking office. Under the Constitution, the Judicial Oath was:

"'I, (name), do swear that I will well and truly serve Our Sovereign Lady Queen Elizabeth II, Her Heirs and Successors, in the office of the Chief Justice/judge of the Supreme Court and I will do right to all manner of people after the laws and usages of Mauritius without fear or favour, affection or ill will. So help me God.'"

Title
Following Mauritian independence, the prime minister of Mauritius requested the Queen to adopt a separate title and style in relation to Mauritius. On 25 April 1968, the Queen issued a proclamation by which she adopted the following title and style in her role as monarch of Mauritius:


 * Elizabeth the Second, Queen of Mauritius and of Her other Realms and Territories, Head of the Commonwealth

This style reflected Mauritius's status as an independent monarchy, highlighting the monarch's role specifically as Queen of Mauritius, as well as the shared aspect of the Crown throughout the Commonwealth realms. Typically, the sovereign was styled "Queen of Mauritius", and was addressed as such when present in Mauritius.

Oath of allegiance
The oath of allegiance in Mauritius was:

"'I, (name), do swear that I will be faithful and bear true allegiance to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Her Heirs and Successors, according to law. So help me God.'"

Cultural role
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Queen's Personal Flag for Mauritius
Queen Elizabeth II had a personal flag for use in Mauritius. It was used when she visited the nation on 24–26 March 1972, when she first opened the Mauritian Parliament in Port Louis in person. The flag consisted of the coat of arms of Mauritius in banner form: quarterly azure and or, in the first quarter a lymphad of the last in the second, 3 palm trees eradicated vert, in the third, a key in pale the wards downwards gules, and in the issuant, from the base a pile, and in chief a mullet argent. A blue disc of the letter "E" crowned surrounded by a garland of gold roses defaces the flag, which is taken from the Queen's Personal Flag.



Royal tour of 1972


Queen Elizabeth and her husband, Prince Philip, visited Mauritius for three days (24–26 March) in 1972, as part of a tour of Asia and Africa. They arrived in Port Louis on the royal yacht Britannia after visiting the Seychelles. They were met by a crowd of nearly a quarter of a million people, and rode through the city in an open-topped car. During the visit, the Queen opened the sixth session of the third Mauritius Parliament. The royal couple left Mauritius for Nairobi by air. It was the first ever visit to the island by a reigning monarch.

Abolition
In 1982, the short-lived MMM/PSM Government, led by Prime Minister Anerood Jugnauth, proposed to transition Mauritius to a republic within the Commonwealth of Nations. Soon the government collapsed and the issue of republican status fell into abeyance.

After his victory in August 1983 election, Jugnauth revived the republic debate and accordingly moved in the Legislative Assembly the necessary amendments to the Constitution. The motion needed a majority of 75% in the Assembly to pass. The MMM opposition, led by Paul Bérenger, opposed the motion arguing that the government did not have a mandate to make Mauritius a republic. Unable to muster the required majority, Jugnauth was forced to withdraw the motion.

Following the 1991 Mauritian general election, it appeared that the government had the required majority to pass the relevant amendments to the Constitution. On 23 October 1991, on his return from the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Harare, Jugnauth told reporters that he had advised the Queen of Mauritius of the government's intention of making the country a republic. He said that the Queen had reacted positively to the decision, and announced that Mauritius would transition to republican status on 12 March 1992, the 24th anniversary of independence.

Accordingly, on 9 December 1991, Jugnauth moved the Constitution (Amendment No. 4) Bill in the Legislative Assembly proposing to make Mauritius a republic, loosely modelled on the Indian presidential system. The president would replace the Queen as Head of State, and would have mostly a ceremonial role with limited executive powers over parliament and cabinet. The president would be elected by the Assembly on the recommendation of the prime minister for a five-year term.

The MLP/PMSD opposition was against the government's proposed amendments to the Constitution, arguing that the issue had to be put to the people through a national referendum—a proposal which the government rejected. During the final vote, the entire opposition of seven members abstained, and the bill was passed 59-0 by the Assembly.

Mauritius became a republic within the Commonwealth on 12 March 1992. Sir Veerasamy Ringadoo, governor-general and president-designate, addressed the nation on Republic Day, and said that 12 March 1992 "was a renewal of 1968" when the Mauritian nation "undertook to unite around our country in peace, justice and liberty".