Answers: Referendums
The French overseas territory of New Caledonia held its third independence referendum in three years on December 12. While voters decided to stick with France, low turnout amid boycott calls by pro-independence groups marred the outcome in the Pacific region just over 3,200 km away from Australia but 16,800 km away from mainland France.
To keep the focus tight, the referendums below are largely linked to questions of sovereignty, the role of the monarch and regional identity. A notable exclusion is Brexit as I did not have anything insightful to add. The two major referendums of 2014 in Scotland and Crimea, while deserving candidates, haven’t found a place either. Referendums on social issues with international implications such as gay marriage, marijuana legalisation or the vote against abortion restrictions in Ireland will be for another quiz.
Answers
1) What proposal was rejected by voters in Australia in 1999, Tuvalu in 2008 and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in 2009?
Voters in Australia, Tuvalu and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines decided against becoming a republic, sticking to Queen Elizabeth II as their head of state. Barbados did not hold a referendum while transitioning to a republic in November 2021.
2) India has had its share of referendums, mostly in the run-up to independence and its immediate aftermath (North-West Frontier Province, Sylhet, Junagadh). But the one considered a fully free-and-fair vote with the outcome uncertain was in 1967. It was to decide whether a small region (union territory) should merge with a larger state. Voters in the smaller entity opted to retain their separate status. Which region?
Goa. Voters rejected a proposal to merge the then union territory with the neighbouring state of Maharashtra. More here, here and here. A detailed look at the referendums held in India here.
I had omitted to mention the referendums in French-held Pondicherry and Chandernagore on merging with India in the question. The first was Chandernagore in 1949. Pondicherry followed in 1954 with a limited vote of elected representatives.
3) The last referendum directly tied to India was held in 1975. Where was it held and what was formalised by the referendum?
Sikkim. The former Himalayan Kingdom was merged with India. More here, here, here and here. A prominent critic of the accession process was the then editor of the Hindustan Times B.G. Verghese. His scathing articles include ‘Kanchenjunga, here we come’ and ‘A Merger is arranged’ on the referendum. You can read them here.
4) This country declared its independence in 1847, following a referendum the previous year. But only 272 people, all settlers, voted from among the eligible settlers (indigenous people could not vote). This was the first constitutional referendum on the continent. Which country?
Liberia. It was envisaged as a homeland in Africa for Black Americans, both free and recently freed from slavery. The voters in the 1846 referendum were made up of Black people resettled from the U.S. The indigenous majority was excluded and were subjected to discriminatory laws established by the Americo-Liberians. More here. The settler minority, less than 5 percent of the population, wielded power from independence in 1847 until a military coup in 1980. More on the coup here and here. Indigenous people were granted the right to vote only in 1945.
5) The United Nations held a referendum in this British-held territory in Africa in 1961. The options were to merge with one of two neighbouring newly-independent countries. The northern part of the territory favoured the neighbouring former British colony while the southern part opted for the nearby former French colony with which it had stronger ethnic and religious links. Since then linguistic tensions have played a major role in a conflict that’s expanded over the last few years. Which are the two countries?
The former British colony is Nigeria and the former mostly French colony is Cameroon. Cameroon was a German colony and a battleground during the First World War. After defeating Germany in 1916, Britain and France partitioned the region. Colonial British Cameroons was made up of Northern Cameroons and Southern Cameroons. The northern part opted for Nigeria in the 1961 referendum while the southern English-speaking part opted for Francophone Cameroon. Since then the Anglophone part of Cameroon has nursed grievances over discrimination at the hands of the Francophone majority. Recent years have seen an expansion in violence and separatism. More here, here, here and here.
6) In January 2011 South Sudan held an independence referendum following a peace agreement with Sudan in 2005. It subsequently became the world’s youngest country after 99% of voters backed independence. In 2019 a region in the South Pacific held a non-binding referendum in which 98% of voters opted to break away from the country it is part of. The vote in the mineral-rich region followed a 2001 peace deal that ended the bloodiest conflict in that part of the world since World War II. The region’s leaders have set a 2027 deadline for full independence during talks this year. Name the region and the country it is now part of.
Bougainville and Papua New Guinea. More here and here. More about Bougainville and the civil war, the worst conflict in the Pacific since World War II here, here, here, here and here.
7) This former Dutch colony in the South Pacific is the western part of an island. The Dutch handed over power to a United Nations administration in 1962. In a year the post-colonial state that had laid claim to the former colony began administering it on the condition that it would hold an independence referendum. The vote was held in 1969 but the administering country and its military were accused of coercion by allowing only a group of handpicked voters to cast ballots. The official verdict was for a merger. Since then the mineral-rich region has faced separatism and violence stretching decades. Name the region and the country it is part of.
West Papua and Indonesia. More here, here, here and here. West Papua is the western side of the island of New Guinea, bordering Papua New Guinea. Confusingly, the region of West Papua is divided into two provinces, Papua and West Papua. West Papua’s independent movement has received sympathetic attention in Pacific island nations with common Melanesian ethnic and cultural roots. More here.
8) This region became an independent country after a referendum in 2006. The independence camp secured the 55% threshold the European Union insisted on for recognising the outcome. Which country? (Hint: the breakaway region and the entity it was part of did field a common team for the football world cup held soon after the referendum)
Montenegro, which separated from ‘Serbia and Montenegro’. More here.
The ‘Serbia and Montenegro’ banner was unfurled one last time at the football world cup in 2006, which was held after Montenegro became independent. The team representing a country that no longer existed did not make it past the group stage. It marked the swansong for the Yugoslav anthem and flag. More here and here. The name ‘Federal Republic of Yugoslavia’ had been replaced by Serbia and Montenegro in 2003.
9) This province linguistically distinct from the rest of the country held referendums in 1980 and 1995 to further an independence bid. Both failed though the 1995 verdict was a narrow one. Name the province and country.
Quebec and Canada. More here and here.
10) 2017 saw two independence referendums in the space of a week (September 25 and October 1). Both did not get international recognition and the second one led to the jailing of key secessionist politicians. Where did the referendums take place?
Iraq’s Kurdish region and Catalonia in Spain. More on the developments in Iraq here and here. More on Catalonia here and here.
11) A referendum was held in this country in March 1992 but only a minority of the population could take part. The government advocated a 'yes' vote on the question and the result was a resounding yes. Which country and what was the issue? (Hint: I remember this because a cricket team's participation in the World Cup was at stake)
South Africa. It was the last white-only vote in the country under the last apartheid government led by F.W. de Klerk, who died last November. An overwhelming majority backed the end of apartheid. More here and here.
12) This country held a referendum in March 1950 on whether the king's constitutional powers should be restored. The king, who had been accused of collaborating with the Nazis, was in exile (he had been formally exonerated). While nearly 58% of voters backed the king's return, support was overwhelmingly from one linguistic region, while the other one was largely opposed. The government collapsed over the controversy and protests led to the king stepping down in favour of his 19-year-old son within months. Which country?
Belgium. While Flemish speakers supported the return of Leopold III, French speakers were opposed. More here and here. The linguistic chasm has continued to widen in Belgium. Question 3 of my earlier quiz on Languages and Conflict is about the creation of a new university for French speakers who were forced out of an existing one. The Economist last year called Belgium’s ‘the world’s most successful failed state’.
13) This country held a referendum in 1974 to decide whether its exiled former monarch should be allowed to return as king. The vote was held months after the ruling military junta handed over power to a civilian government. The king had initially cooperated with the junta only to fall out and seek exile. He was not allowed to campaign in person and had to present his case on television and radio from exile in London. Voters overwhelmingly opted for a republican system, rejecting the former king’s return. He moved back to the country only in 2013. Which country? (Hint for sports aficionados: the king was an Olympic gold medallist in 1960)
Greece. The former king and Olympic gold medallist is Constantine II. More here and here. While Crown Prince he won the Olympic gold medal in Dragon class in sailing.
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