Release date: 7 May 2024
On 6 April 1984 the permanent residents of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands voted in an historic referendum on self-determination. Observed by a mission from the United Nations, the referendum gave voters the options of integration with Australia, free association with Australia, or independence. Of the 261 registered voters, 229 or 88 per cent voted overwhelmingly for integration with Australia, which gave all island residents Australian citizenship including voting rights and social security entitlements.
Originally uninhabited, from 1857 to 1955 the islands were a British territory but remained under the control of the Clunies-Ross family, who since the 1820s had recruited Malay workers to the islands’ coconut palm industry, essentially as indentured labour. In 1955 the Cocos (Keeling) Islands became an external territory of Australia and in 1978 they were purchased from the Clunies-Ross family by the Australian government. Every year on 6 April, the 600 residents of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands celebrate Self-Determination Day with Cocos Scottish dancing and Jukong races.
The Stamps
$1.50 40th Anniversary Jukong
The stamp design incorporates the number 40 and the jukong, a traditional seacraft of the Cocos (Keeling Islands). Jukong racing is part of the annual festivities around Self-Determination Day every 6 April
$3.00 Figures representing integration with Australia
The design is based on the original ballot paper for the 1984 referendum. Voters were encouraged to vote on one of three diagrammatic options. The first, representing complete independence of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands, showed a single figure in traditional Cocos Malay dress. The second, representing integration with Australia, depicted two figures arm in arm, as shown on the stamp, one in Cocos Malay dress, the other in Australian European dress. The third diagram, which indicated free association with Australia, showed the two figures standing side by side without touching.
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