AUSTRALIA: Australia's titular head of state has temporarily given up office while rape claims he firmly denies are resolved, but his long-term future is uncertain, the Prime Minister, Mr John Howard, said yesterday.
The Governor-General, Dr Peter Hollingworth, the British queen's envoy to Australia and a former Anglican archbishop, three days ago issued a public denial that he raped a girl at a church camp 40 years ago.
The bombshell came as Dr Hollingworth already faced pressure to resign after a church inquiry found he allowed a paedophile to remain a priest in the 1990s when he was an archbishop.
"It has been agreed between the Governor-General and myself that Dr Hollingworth will stand aside from his position as governor-general, pending the determination of the court proceedings," Mr Howard told a news conference.
"It is only when the proceedings started by the late Ms Jarmyn have been resolved that proper consideration can be given by the Governor-General to his longer-term tenure of the office." It is the first time in the 102-year history of the viceregal office that a governor-general has stepped aside.
In London, a spokeswoman for Queen Elizabeth said Buckingham Palace was leaving Mr Howard to deal with the issue. "It's a matter for the Australian Prime Minister," she said.
But Australian Opposition politicians and child welfare groups continued to call for Dr Hollingworth's resignation, saying it was not enough to step aside since he had also mishandled child sex abuse cases when he was an archbishop. "The decision of the Prime Minister tonight is totally unacceptable," said Labour opposition leader Mr Simon Crean.
The decision that Dr Hollingworth (68) should stand aside was taken after Mr Howard met his hand-picked Governor-General yesterday, following the Prime Minister's return from a world tour.
Dr Hollingworth said in a statement he had made the move mindful of maintaining "the integrity and dignity of the office". An administrator, Tasmanian governor Mr Guy Green, takes over in the interim. As the longest-serving of six state governors, Mr Green has deputised before when the Governor-General travelled.
Mr Howard said Dr Hollingworth and he had agreed to deal initially with the rape allegations that emerged from a civil action for damages lodged earlier this year by Ms Rosemarie Jarmyn (57). She committed suicide last month.
The Governor-General would then decide what to do about the controversy over his alleged mishandling of child sex abuse complaints when he was the Anglican Archbishop of Brisbane.