Beneath the

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seemingly tran quil and happy exterior of the tiny island kingdom of Tonga throbs a heart of unrest. A heart whose beat has gained rhythm and momentum in re cent months as the un thinkable for mod ern times anyway is happening. The King is being opposed.

In the 1770 s during his voyages to Tonga Captain James Cook dubbed the kingdom “The Friendly Islands”. Cer tainly modern Tonga seems to fit that description smiling people living a laid-back slow-paced life. However, in November this sleepy kingdom was shaken awake as people were jolted out of their routine life.

On November 24-27 the country’s pro-democracy movement formed in August this year held a public convention on democracy, the consti tution and political change in Xuku’alofa. It aimed to explain to the people of Tonga what a democratic government was and how the consti tution had to be amended to allow for a more democratic style of government basically, why power should be taken away from the country’s near-absolute monarch, King Taufa’ahau Tupou IV, and the noble ruling class, and given to

the people.

It will not be easy. Nowhere in history have the people in power handed over the reins just because they were asked to.

The royal family have held power for generations and this power was guaran teed under the 1875 constitution. The King and his nobles have no reason to relinquish power. They have every thing to lose.

The pro-democracy movement want the King to be a constitutional monarch.

He doesn’t seem interested in their suggestion even though they guarantee he will retain his privileges.

Some speakers at the convention suggested there could be trouble if the people did not get what they want in two or three years. Tongan academic Pro fessor Futa Hclu said political change could occur either through the shedding of blood in a revolution or by peaceful and legal democratic means.

He cited examples of the French and Russian revolutions saying in both cases the need for change had been ignored or suppressed until revolt was inevitable.

Most see as unlikely the possibility of violence and bloodshed because, with a population of less than 100,000, and many of them related through blood or marriage, everyone knew every one else.

As one speaker commented, it would be like brother killing brother.

However, Tonga’s traditional kingship has a history of murder and assassination and the country has a bloody civil war to its credit.

At present the Tongan parliament is made up of nine people’s representatives (representing the 94,000-plus population), nine nobles elected from the 33 noble titles and 12 cabinet ministers appointed for life by the King giving the nobles almost complete power.

As Australian academic Dr Guy Powles explains, one fundamental right found in most written constitutions is missing in Tonga. This is the right of every adult citizen to vote for elected

representatives in the legislature.

Dr Powles, an Associate Professor of Law at Melbourne’s Monash University and a student of the Tongan constitution, was invited to speak at the November convention. But in October Tonga’s Immigration and Police Minister ’Akau’ola a noble said visas would

be denied to foreigners trying to partici pate in the convention. Dr Powles and

other foreign participants mainly

international constitutional law experts from Australia and New Zealand were unable to attend but sent their papers to be read out at the meeting.

According to Dr Powles’ paper, the constitution discriminates against com moners, and nobles and commoners are not equal under all laws.

“The reality is that, while some laws; such as the criminal law treat all persons; the same, other laws relating to political! rights and land tenure make distinctions between classes. This means the Tongani constitution can and does, give greater weight or value to the vole of a noble; citizen than to the vote of a commoner citizen,” said Dr Powles. He said if] Tonga had been a former colony seeking} independence under United Nations; supervision, the UN would not have; permitted Tonga to become independent; without a more representative electoral! system for the legislature.