PRESS OFFICE TRANSCRIPT WEDNESDAY, 19 MARCH, 1980
PRIME MINISTER INTERVIEWED BY GEOFF MEDWELL, 5DN, ADELAIDE
PHONE INTERVIEW, CANBERRA
QUESTIONS NOT AUDIBLE
Question Prime Minister-
Yes, it has. It is quite a while.
Question Prime Minister
Stopped, in an arbitrary sense, is the wrong word, because
we have said we will not withdraw passports. But I hope the
Australian Olympic Federation and the Olympic Federations of
many countries will heed the views of governments when we say
that getting the message through the Soviet Government and people
is important, and if teams are absent and flags are absent and
countries are absent from the Moscow Olympics, that will do more
to express the general abhorrence with what has been happening
in Afghanistan than almost any other single act. If we want
to make the world a slightly safer place we need to get that
message through.
Question Prime Minister-
I do not think they would be allowed to attend.
Question Prime Minister-
Oh, the officials would stop it, yes. There was an incident
of that kind once before I think, involving some black American
athletes do you remember?
Question / 2
-2-
Prime Minister
I have forgotten what Games they were at.
Question Prime Minister
Yes. If all Australian athletes wore quite apart from the
fact that a black could be taken for Australian there could
be some misconstruction-aboutt-that. But, a sign of mourning for
those who have died and been killed and gassed in Afghanistan,
obviously that would be one thing. But there is no way the
Soviet officials, I believe, or Government, would allow that
to occur.
Question Prime Minister
I would like it to be a year of industrial peace. But if
trade unions and powerful companies are together agreed-that
a small independent operator is to be denied the means of
livelihood, is to be denied fuel, can we be accused of engineering
the Transport Workers' Union and AMOCO into that position?
Once they have taken that position, are we to do nothing about it?
If anyone it is confronting, it is the Transport Workers' Union
and also, in a sense, AMOCO, confronting Mr. Laidely and the
people of Australia; if you like, the little people of Australia.
So far as we are concerned, that just is not good enough. Whenever
the Federal Government stands up against the union movement,
Mr. Hawke or other people in the union movement say that we are
seeking confrontation. Well in fact they are trying to ride
roughshod over the people of Australia. If Governments, State
or Federal, do not stand up to protect the rights of the average
citizen, nobody else will.
Question Prime Minister
I do not know that that is right. I think that when we do not
take action in a serious matter, the average person does get
concerned. The average Australian is concerned about the
excess and the excess use of union power. But when we do take
action what you find is that some trade union leaders, or
Mr. Hawke, condemn us, or some members of the Australian Labor
Party condemn us. I do not think you find the condemnation
comes from the average person in the street, because I think they
want to see Governments stand up to the great and brutal use
of union power that so often occurs.
Question / 3
-3-
Prime Minister-
Absolutely. There is no way that that judgement, I do not think
there is any way that judgemeunt will be altered. for quite some
time, for quite some years into the future.
Question Prime Minister-
If we are I would like to know about it, because I announced
an intention to substantially expand the army reserve. Now, if
there a particular unit or a particular area where people are
being rejected I would like to know about it and I will look
into the reasons for it.
Question Prime Minister-
You are counting people who are in the army reserve but
are also unemployed. You are referring quite specifically
to that category?
Question Prime Minister
Well, I will look at that quite directly. That has not been
put to me before, and you might well have a pint that needs
looking at. But if I could just make the point: the Minister
for Defence has been conducting a progranures with the great
support of employers over the last year or two, which are
designed to encourage employers to release army reserve people
for the proper and full periods of training, and to do so in
a way in which they are encouraged. We do want to encourage people.
Question
-Prime Minister
I have said we will look at that situation. That has not been
put to me before. We will look at it.
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