June 15, 1215, saw the sealing of the Magna Carta at Runnymede by King John, by which the English barons won a charter of liberties.
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Over the centuries Magna Carta has come to stand for the rule of law, for the fundamental guarantee of rights and privileges and for transparency in government.
Every British primary school is to get a copy of the Magna Carta and a guide explaining the “800 years in the fight for freedom” which explains the legacyof Magna Carta, taking in the US Declaration of Independence, the abolitions slavery, suffragettes and the civil rights movement, the Leveson inquiry, the Arab Spring, Malala Yousafzai winning the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize and Edward Snowden’s leak of classified US intelligence.
Meanwhile, in Australia, we have a government which feels free to secretly negotiate the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement; to vilify the president of the Australian Human Rights Commission when she speaks unpalatable truths; to destroy isolated communities; to treat asylum seekers in ways which contravene the International Covenants Australia has signed; to give unconscionable assistance to destructive mining companies and to alienate Australian territory for US military purposes.
Perhaps we should have a wake rather than a celebration.
Elizabeth O’Hara
Armidale