| Who Calls The Shots Around Here? |
|
|
|
| Written by Dr. Janice Seto | |
| Sunday, 18 May 2008 | |
|
Page 9 of 10 When someone strays, the royal often (but not always) pays, as shown in these examples. When Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands alluded to religious extremism in her New Year's address, she was bluntly told: 'Stay out of it'. Her opinions on gay marriage and Princess Maxima's advocacy of this issue have raised eyebrows. 
 In 1990, King
Baudoin I of the Belgians, backed by his conservative Spanish consort, Queen
Fabiola, abdicated for a day to avoid signing into law an abortion bill in
Brussels.
This may have been a personally sensitive matter as the Queen had suffered five miscarriages and ultimately bore the king no children. Although people admired Baudoin’s loyalty to his faith, his decision to initiate a 24-hour republic in Belgium did not go down well with the political establishment. Not that the king, who died in 1993, is alone in the history books for having allowed his personal ethics to dictate (however briefly) his public role.
|
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
