|
|
Australia
Quick Overview:
Australia has come a long way since the days when Captain Cook stumbled ashore to find an aboriginal way of life that went back for tens of thousands of years. Even the outdated images of Crocodile Dundee types swilling beer around the Opera House have long been replaced by a forward-looking attitude that embraces Australia’s Pacific Rim location and a growing reputation for first-class cuisine and high fashion notable in its cosmopolitan, twenty-first-century metropolis, Sydney. The high quality of life in the country’s effervescent largest city is enhanced by one of the world’s great harbours, but there is far more to Australia city-wise than just Sydney. Its big rival, Melbourne, is blessed with a more European ambience, with trams and pavement cafes as much a part of the experience as the buzzing sports and cultural scene, while coastal Darwin, Perth and Brisbane offer other worlds to explore. Away from the cities, Australia’s stunningly diverse landscape boasts everything from vast, barren deserts, where kangaroo and emu bound through the arid surroundings, to tropical rainforests, rugged mountains and pristine beaches, such as world-class Bondi, Cable Beach and Whitehaven. Then, of course, there’s the epic monolith of Uluru (Ayers Rock) and the Great Barrier Reef, where another undiscovered world opens up beneath the surf. With tourist numbers up and interest in Australia never higher, this is the perfect time to bury those anachronistic Crocodile Dundee clichés and discover the real Australia.
Geography:
The colonies were widely separated and far from the motherland, and governing them directly from the crown was administratively difficult. Self-government became an objective of the colonists and, in 1823, New South Wales was granted the first constitutional charter by a British law authorizing creation of a councils with limited legislative power. Two years later Tasmania, which had been tied to New South Wales since settlement, formed similar councils in 1838 and 1842. In 1842 Britain extended the New South Wales Legislative Council's powers and allowed two-thirds of its membership to be elected on a restricted franchise. The British Government's Australian Colonies Government Act of 1850 empowered the colonies to establish legislatures, determine the voting rights for legislation, and frame constitutions. In 1851, Victoria gained its legislature under this Act. New South Wales was the first to draft a constitution, in 1855. All other colonies except Western Australia became self-governing in 1859. Western Australia's decision to become a penal colony in 1850 delayed responsible government until 1890. The need to protect and promote common interests led to a series of inter-colonial conferences of premiers held at irregular intervals from 1863. A draft federal constitution was drawn up in 1891, and after intense debate at a colonial conference in 1898, it was submitted to the British Parliament for approval. The British Parliament ratified the constitution, and after the Australian People had shown their support for federation and the Constitution in a series of mini state-wide referendums, the Commonwealth of Australia came into being on January 1, 1901.
Related Links:
|
News Australian News Sydney Morning Herald Australian News Net |
Offical Sites Australian Government Australian parliament |
Country Guides Visiting Australia Walkabout Guide |
Education Australia Education Study in Australia |