美国国家公共电台 NPR--What does the future hold for the Commonwealth under King Charles III?

What does the future hold for the Commonwealth¹ under King Charles III?

Transcript²

NPR's Steve Inskeep talks to David Webster of King's University College at Western University Canada, about the Commonwealth under King Charles III. His rule reaches beyond the island of England.

STEVE INSKEEP, HOST:

King Charles III and Camilla, the queen consort³, travel to Northern Ireland today. They're touring all four nations that make up the United Kingdom. They are not the only nations with a new head of state. Fourteen countries known as commonwealth realms still recognize the British monarch⁴ as their own. In all, in fact, some 56 independent countries claim membership in the commonwealth, which is largely a relic⁵ of the old British Empire. Although, not all of them have kept the British queen or king. Dr. David Webster is associate professor of human rights studies at Western University in London, Ontario, in Canada, where people would now say, God save the king. Dr. Webster, welcome.

DAVID WEBSTER: (Laughter) Thank you very much.

INSKEEP: Why do some countries choose to keep the British crown as their own?

WEBSTER: (Laughter) Sentiment as much as anything, habit as much as anything. Not many people are saying God save the king. I haven't heard anyone say that at all. But there's still a sense that there's value in keeping the system that, for all its oddness, seems to stagger along and work just fine.

INSKEEP: Is there an upside, a concrete upside, that you can get your hands on as a Canadian to having Charles as head of state?

WEBSTER: I don't think it matters who's the head of state.

INSKEEP: (Laughter) OK.

WEBSTER: There is talk of perhaps moving towards a republic more in Australia than in Canada, but it's always talked about. The occupant of the head of state is distant enough that the office can therefore be depoliticized enough that government carries on as normal. And you've got a neutral referee⁶ if you ever need one.

INSKEEP: Well, let's talk about that. Are there still powers that the king or queen of England has in Canada, like to dissolve parliament, anything like that?

WEBSTER: Yes. The crown has those powers. But those powers are delegated to now the king's representative in Canada, who's known as the governor general. And that's a resident of Canada appointed on the advice of the Canadian government by the crown. Right now, it's Mary Simon. She's an Inuk woman from northern Quebec, so the first Indigenous⁷ governor general of Canada. And essentially⁸, she has to sign all legislation and ratify⁹ it before it will take effect.

INSKEEP: Is this similar to the king's powers within the U.K. in that they still have some residual¹⁰ powers that they will probably keep so long as they never use them really?

WEBSTER: That's essentially it, yes, keeping these powers out of - (laughter) out of the hands of anyone unscrupulous.

INSKEEP: Oh. And so they're just there. They're a stabilizing¹¹ force even if they never actually block legislation or do some of the various things they might, in theory, still do. Now, you just raised another fascinating point when you said that Canada has its first Indigenous governor general. Isn't the relationship with the British Empire especially complicated for Native peoples, not just in Canada, but in Australia and in many other nations we could name?

WEBSTER: It is indeed, yes. Treaties - unlike in the United States, the Canadian takeover of lands in the West was done by treaty with the Indigenous peoples of the area. Those treaties are signed between the Indigenous nations and the crown. Therefore, they're binding¹² on Canada. But it creates a special relationship. So the Iroquois people talk about a covenant¹³ chain that needs to be polished by the queen or now king from time to time to keep it in a good state of being. So there is a special treaty relationship which binds¹⁴ both the crown itself and the Canadian government. So - and this is the same thing in New Zealand and other countries.

INSKEEP: How, if at all, has the crown been polishing that chain, making sure those relations are legitimate¹⁵ and beneficial for all involved?

WEBSTER: (Laughter) Well, it hasn't been, if we're quite honest. And so from time to time, you'll have Indigenous peoples go to London to petition. And the crown will consistently say it's the Canadian government that needs to deal with this. And this is an example of not using the powers that are there. Unfortunately, in this case, it's an example where ongoing¹⁶ human rights violations¹⁷ against Indigenous peoples are allowed to continue, in effect.

INSKEEP: Is there a serious debate at this moment - in the change in the name of the person wearing the crown, is there a serious debate in Canada about disposing of the king?

WEBSTER: I don't think so, although it's talked about. And there isn't the same affection for Charles as there was for Elizabeth. He may build that. But I think there's a sense that if the system works, you don't need to fix it. So it's not a serious debate, but it may be in the future.

INSKEEP: Dr. Webster, it's a pleasure talking with you. Thank you so much.

WEBSTER: Thanks very much.

INSKEEP: David Webster is associate professor of human rights studies.

1 commonwealth   

n.共和国，联邦，共同体

参考例句：

• He is the chairman of the commonwealth of artists.他是艺术家协会的主席。
• Most of the members of the Commonwealth are nonwhite.英联邦的许多成员国不是白人国家。

2 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

3 consort   

v.相伴；结交

参考例句：

• They went in consort two or three together.他们三三两两结伴前往。
• The nurses are instructed not to consort with their patients.护士得到指示不得与病人交往。

4 monarch   

n.帝王，君主，最高统治者

参考例句：

• The monarch's role is purely ceremonial.君主纯粹是个礼仪职位。
• I think myself happier now than the greatest monarch upon earth.我觉得这个时候比世界上什么帝王都快乐。

5 relic   

n.神圣的遗物，遗迹，纪念物

参考例句：

• This stone axe is a relic of ancient times.这石斧是古代的遗物。
• He found himself thinking of the man as a relic from the past.他把这个男人看成是过去时代的人物。

6 referee   

n.裁判员．仲裁人，代表人，鉴定人

参考例句：

• The team was left raging at the referee's decision.队员们对裁判员的裁决感到非常气愤。
• The referee blew a whistle at the end of the game.裁判在比赛结束时吹响了哨子。

7 indigenous   

adj.土产的，土生土长的，本地的

参考例句：

• Each country has its own indigenous cultural tradition.每个国家都有自己本土的文化传统。
• Indians were the indigenous inhabitants of America.印第安人是美洲的土著居民。

8 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

9 ratify   

v.批准，认可，追认

参考例句：

• The heads of two governments met to ratify the peace treaty.两国政府首脑会晤批准和平条约。
• The agreement have to be ratify by the board.该协议必须由董事会批准。

10 residual   

adj.复播复映追加时间；存留下来的，剩余的

参考例句：

• There are still a few residual problems with the computer program.电脑程序还有一些残留问题。
• The resulting residual chromatism is known as secondary spectrum.所得到的剩余色差叫做二次光谱。

11 stabilizing   

n.稳定化处理[退火]v.（使）稳定， （使）稳固( stabilize的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• The disulfide bridges might then be viewed primarily as stabilizing components. 二硫桥可以被看作是初级的稳定因素。 来自辞典例句
• These stabilizing design changes are usually not desirable for steady-state operation. 这些增加稳定性的设计改变通常不太符合稳态工作的要求。 来自辞典例句

12 binding   

有约束力的，有效的，应遵守的

参考例句：

• The contract was not signed and has no binding force. 合同没有签署因而没有约束力。
• Both sides have agreed that the arbitration will be binding. 双方都赞同仲裁具有约束力。

13 covenant   

n.盟约，契约；v.订盟约

参考例句：

• They refused to covenant with my father for the property.他们不愿与我父亲订立财产契约。
• The money was given to us by deed of covenant.这笔钱是根据契约书付给我们的。

14 binds   

v.约束( bind的第三人称单数 )；装订；捆绑；（用长布条）缠绕

参考例句：

• Frost binds the soil. 霜使土壤凝结。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Stones and cement binds strongly. 石头和水泥凝固得很牢。 来自《简明英汉词典》

15 legitimate   

adj.合法的，合理的，合乎逻辑的；v.使合法

参考例句：

• Sickness is a legitimate reason for asking for leave.生病是请假的一个正当的理由。
• That's a perfectly legitimate fear.怀有这种恐惧完全在情理之中。

16 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

17 violations   

违反( violation的名词复数 )； 冒犯； 违反（行为、事例）； 强奸

参考例句：

• This is one of the commonest traffic violations. 这是常见的违反交通规则之例。
• These violations of the code must cease forthwith. 这些违犯法规的行为必须立即停止。