Succession issues

GEORGETOWN, Guyana, Stabroek News - Succession in politics and the politics of succession can be rather thorny issues. Just over a month ago, Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands announced that she was abdicating, at the age of 75 and after a reign of 33 years, in favour of her son, Crown Prince Willem-Alexander, who will become King on April 30. Her fellow monarch, Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom, even though she is almost 87 and has been Queen for 61 years, shows no sign, however, of stepping down to allow her son, Charles, to ascend to the throne. It is understood that she has an ironclad concept of duty although the cynics say that she will not allow Charles to reign while she is still alive. A certain degree of continuity and predictability is, of course, important in constitutional monarchies but, perhaps, the right to hereditary rule, even if no longer as the Lord’s anointed, has its limits. Pope Benedict XVI, 85, conscious of his failing body and perhaps weighed down by the controversies surrounding the Roman Catholic Church during his pontificate, has surprised his followers and the world by relinquishing the papacy. Now, the Vatican may not be the most democratic institution in the world but, at least, there is a centuries-old method, albeit shrouded in secrecy and arcane ritual, for choosing the next Pope.