Letter

In response to 'Rude, arrogant and entitled’: ex-Prince Andrew’s arrest is the inevitable concl

Monarchy is 'Cruel and Unusual Punishment'

Jenny Hocking convincingly lays out the social, political and constitutional problems with granting power and privilege to the members of the British royal family. But there is another side to the case against the existence of a hereditary monarchy. Quite simply, it ruins lives.

Princess Margaret was forbidden to marry a divorced RAF Group Captain (who was posted overseas to get him out of the way). Prince Charles was not permitted to marry Camilla Parker-Bowles but was pressed into a contrived marriage with Diana Spencer. Prince Harry was hounded out of the royal family, in part for his choice of bride. As for Prince Andrew, he would never have been cultivated by Jeffrey Epstein if he had been just any retired naval officer. If all of these people had been private citizens, they might still have suffered miseries but at least they would have been spared intrusive, incessant and hurtful media harassment.

Monarchy, I suggest, constitutes ‘cruel and unusual punishment’ and on this ground alone should be abolished.

— Hugh Smith from Canberra