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PRIME MINISTER Press Statement No. 495
April 1975
COMMONWEALTH HEADS OF GOVERNMENT MEETING
The Prime Minister, Mr Whitlam, announced today
that he would leave Australia on 23 April to attend the
Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Kingston,
Jamaica, and to pay official visits to Peru and the
United States. He would return to. Australia on 11 May.
Mr Whitlam said he would visit Peru from 24-27
April. He would be in Kingston from 27 April 7 May and
would then fly to Washington for a 27 hour visit. He would
s pend two days in Tahiti on his way home.
The Prime Minister said that he would be accompanied
by the Special Minister of State, Mr Bowen.
The Delegation would include the Secretaries of
the Departments of the Prime Minister and Cabinet and of
Foreign Affairs, Mr Menadue and Mr Renouf, the High
Commissioners in London and Kingston, Sir John Bunting
and Mr Hoyle, and the Deputy Secretary of the Department
of Overseas Trade, Mr Scully.
Mr Whitlam reaffirmed Australia's unswerving
support for the Commonwealth as a unique multi-racial
grouping. He recalled in this context that the Commonwealth
was a voluntary association of 34 independent states,
each responsible for its own policies, but consulting and
co-operating in the common interests of their peoples to
promote international understanding and world peace. Hie
noted also the important non-governmental links which
existed between professional and other associations in
Commonwealth cQuntries.
The Australian Gover ' nment, he said, attached
particular importance to the development of co-operative
international arrangements of this kind which would operate
free from special allegiances to power blocs. The periodic
Heads of Government meetings the-last was at Ottawa in
1973 were an important aspect 6f Commonwealth co-operation.
He would be going to Kingston to participate in wide-ranging
discussions with other Commonwealth leaders on international
matters and issues of common concern to Heads of Government.
He and his colleagues would aim to play a full and active
part in promoting further co-operation between member states
in a number of areas where practical programs beneficial
to the peoples of the Commonwealth were already in operation,
such as education, the law, and science and technology.
lie was also looking forward to a detailed exchange
of views, under the heading of world and Commonwealth trends,
of changing power relationships and of world trade and
financial matters, which he believed would be important
subjects for consideration at this meeting.
Mr Whitlam said that during his visit to Washington
he expected to meet President Ford and Dr Kissinger, as
well as members of the House International Relations
Committee and the Senate Foreign Relations Committee.
This would be his second meeting with, President
Ford in just over six months and would provide a good
opportunity for discussion of developments in power
relationships, particularly in Indo-China, in the intervening
period. His visit to Peru would be the first by an
Australian Prime Minister toSouth America and he was glad
of the opportunity to meet and hold talks with the President,
General Juan Velasco Alvarado, the Prime Minister,
General Morales Bermudez, and Government Ministers.
He noted in this regard that Peru was an important
Pacific state, which had played a major role in matters
concerning the law of the sea and in the non-aligned
movement. It was also a member of the Organisation of
American States and the Andean Group of States. Australia
has observe status with both organisations.
CANBERRA. A. C. T.