Dear Venerables,
Thank you for your responses so far.
From Ajahn Hiriko’s recent essay (which is discussed here) I was under the impression that the nuns would indeed be Bhikkhūnī at this point.
The Bhikkhu Saṅgha and the Bhikkhunī Saṅgha are two legally separate entities and subsequently one cannot exert its will on the other. It follows, therefore, that the Bhikkhu Saṅgha cannot determine the legality of the Bhikkhunī Saṅgha. The legality of bhikkhunī ordination is a choice to be made by bhikkhunīs, not for bhikkhunīs. This is the argument based on Vinaya
I humbly respect your greater understanding on such matters and would be interested to understand more clearly where your views differ.
Pasannā