View source for Nauru Local Government Council

{{Short description|Nauruan legislative body}}
The '''Nauru Local Government Council''' was a legislative body in [[Nauru]]. It was first established in 1951, when Nauru was a [[United Nations trust territory]], as a successor to the [[Council of Chiefs (Nauru)|Council of Chiefs]]. It continued to exist until 1992, when it was dissolved in favor of the Nauru Island Council.
==History==
Since 1928, the Nauruan people had been represented by an elected [[Council of Chiefs (Nauru)|Council of Chiefs]], which only had the power to advise the Administrator. By the late 1940s, there were calls for greater Nauruan self-government, both internationally by members of the [[United Nations Trusteeship Council]], and internally by Nauruans themselves. [[Australia]], which administered Nauru, was against this. The Council of Chiefs submitted a petition for more self-government for Nauru to the 1948-49 session of the Trusteeship Council, however Australian Acting External Affairs Minister [[Cyril Chambers]] convinced the Council of Chiefs to withdraw the petition.<ref name="phosphate">{{cite book |last=Viviani|first=Nancy |date=1970|title=Nauru Phosphate and Political Progress|trans-title= |url=https://openresearch-repository.anu.edu.au/bitstream/1885/114914/2/b11197110.pdf|language=English|pages=93-96, 104-107|location= |publisher=[[Australian National University]]|isbn=}}</ref> In 1950, the United Nations Visiting Mission recommended to the Trusteeship Council that the Council of Chiefs should have more legislative power, especially in the realm of budget appropriations.<ref name="law">{{cite book |last=Ntumy|first=Michael A.|date=1993|title=South Pacific Islands Legal Systems|chapter=Nauru|trans-title= |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d6EBEAAAQBAJ|language=English|pages=142–143|publisher=University of Hawaii Press |location= |isbn=978-0-8248-1438-0}}</ref>
On 20 August 1951, the recommendation was accepted in part, and the Nauru Local Government Council Ordinance was passed, creating the Local Government Council and imbuing it with certain powers. In effect, the Local Government Council did not have much more power than the previous Council of Chiefs, and the Administrator still had control over Nauru. The legislative body divided the 14 historical districts into eight electorates. Each electoral district had one councillor to represent it, except for the electoral district representing [[Denigomodu District|Denigomodu]], [[Nibok District|Nibok]], [[Uaboe District|Uaboe]], and [[Baitsi District|Baiti]], which had two. Councillors served four-year terms.<ref name="phosphate"/>
The first [[1951 Nauruan Local Government Council election|elections]] for the Local Government Council were held on 15 December 1951.<ref name="phosphate"/> It was the first election held with universal suffrage on the island.<ref name="law"/> The first meeting of the council was held on 18 December. [[Timothy Detudamo]], who had previously served as [[Head Chief of Nauru|Head Chief]] in the Council of Chiefs, was elected Head Chief of Nauru by the Local Government Council. He died in 1953, being replaced by [[Raymond Gadabu]]. In 1954, the council gained more power, and the entire Nauru Royalties Fund were appropriated to the expenses of the council. After another [[1955 Nauruan Local Government Council election|council election]] in 1955, [[Hammer DeRoburt]] was elected [[Head Chief of Nauru|Head Chief]].<ref name="phosphate"/>
In 1966, the Trusteeship Council passed a resolution calling for Nauruan independence by 31 January 1968. At the same time, the Legislative Council was formed.<ref name="law"/> Of the first members of the Legislative Council, most had been members of the Local Government Council.<ref name="phosphate"/> The Local Government Council had broad range of administrative activities, operating numerous government corporations and services. The bulk of its activities were funded by the Nauru Royalty Fund and the Nauru Development Fund.<ref name = "micronesia">{{cite journal |last1=Olsson|first1=Julie|title=Micronesia in Review: Issues and Events, 1 July 1991 to 30 June 1992|journal=[[The Contemporary Pacific]]|date=1993|volume=5|issue=1 |pages=145–146|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/23699874|access-date=23 July 2023|publisher=[[University of Hawai'i Press]] |location=Honolulu, Hawaii|doi=|jstor=23699874|issn=|oclc=}}</ref>
In 1992, the Local Government Council was abolished.<ref name="law"/> The Nauru
Local Government Council Dissolution Act was certified on 2 March. The Local Government Council was dissolved to prevent the accumulation of more debt, which the institution had been accruing both internationally and domestically. The Nauru Island Council was created by parliamentary act certified on 20 March. Between the Local Government Council's dissolution and the Nauru Island Council's creation, there was an interim Nauru Council, which consisted of the [[cabinet of Nauru]] and was led by the [[President of Nauru|president]]. The Nauru Island Council had less power than the Local Government Council, playing more of an advisory role to the national government.<ref name = "micronesia"/> In 1999, the Nauru Island Council was dissolved, with its local government powers being subsumed by the national government.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.commonwealthofnations.org/sectors-nauru/government/regional_local_government/|title=Regional & Local Government|publisher=[[Commonwealth of Nations]]|access-date=2 July 2023}}</ref>
==See also==
*[[Parliament of Nauru]]
==References==
{{reflist}}
==External links==
*[http://www.paclii.org/nr/legis/consol_hist_act/nlgco19511965375/ Nauru Local Government Council Ordinance 1951-1965] at the [[Pacific Islands Legal Information Institute]]
[[Category:1951 establishments in Nauru]]
[[Category:1992 disestablishments in Nauru]]
[[Category:Political history of Nauru]]
[[Category:Government of Nauru]]
[[Category:Political organisations based in Nauru]]