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EMBARGO NOT TO BE PUBLISHED BROADCAST OR TELEC-AST BEFOBE 7,15 PM
ON TUESDAY, HVEM3ER 19.
BROADCAST NO. 3
BROADCAST 3Y TT-E PRIME MINISTERo THE RT. HON.
SIR ROBERT MENZIES, OVER ABC NA. IIONAL STATIONS
AT 7.15 PM ON TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 19, 1963
here does labour stand on Australia's alliances and
mutual security arrangements? This is a tremendously important
question, for we are living in a very dangerous world, and we
need friends if we are to survive.
The Labour Party's policy and I must keep on
emphasising this is not made by Mr. Calwell and his Parliamentary
colleagues. It is made for them by an outside group six from
each State not elected by the people, and not responsible to
them. Yet what a majority of the 36 decide to be labour policy
absolutely binds Mr. Calwell and his colleagues, whatever they
say or promise during an election. Cast your minds back only a
few months to the time when the 36 were meeting behind closed
doors at Canberra to decide whetiier Labour should oppose the
establishment of an American Naval Communications Station at North
West Cape-a station whose work could be absolutely vital to
Australia s security in the event of war.
You remember the picture: Mr. Calwell and Mr. ihitlam,
the aspiring Prime Minister and Deputy Prime Minister of Australia,
wAtig outside in the cold, waiting for their orders. The leftwingers
inside, no lovers of America, were just beaten by the
narrowest of majorities (: Thich could of course quite easily be
reversed next time!) and an instruction came out to these so-called
leaders that they could approve, on unacceptable terms.
Neither my colleagues nor I speaking for Australia at
international conferences and in direct discussions with Prime
Ministers and Presidents, have over had to cable for instructions
from a body of men, not in Cabinet or Parliament, to whom we owed
obedience. Do you think that the new order would strengthen
Australia's voice and authority abroad? Do you think that it will
strengthen our alliances, our understandings and our security?
Labourts outside law-makin; body has a curious history,
in practice. Only a feui years ago it was opposed to increased
defence, it was demanding the recall of our troops from Malaya it
was following the very left-wing line internationally. Recently,
and quite obviously for purposes of this election, it switched;
but in a curiously ambiguous way. It will support Malaysia, but
only on terms which it knows to be impossible. It will support
defence? but only at the expense of setting aside the modern
conception of very mobile and heavily armed forces available whore
they are needed, and reverting to a curious and antiquated notion
of defending Australia along its coastline; a sort of Maginot line
conception. At the same time, it wishes to deprive our nuclear allies
of any right to defend us rith nuclear weapons South of the
Equator against a Comaunist nuclear attack from North of the
Equatorl / 2
-2
The truth is that the though Mr. Calwell
is no more a Communist than I am, must compromise with the
left wing to survive.
I can't discover that the Labour Party has plans
to make any new friends internationally unless it is by voting
to install Communist China in the Security Council and give
it a crushing diplomatic victory all over South-East Asia.
But I have observed that Mr. Calwell is pledged to do two
things in relation to the United States. One is to ' e-negotiate"
the North West Cape Agreement, which has already been signed
and ratified. The other is ( if I understand him) to cancel
our most valuable agreement about the TFX bomber:
Is this what you want in the voice of Australia?
a nation which, to live must command the respect and confidence
of the outside free world?
You will make your answer on November 30th, There
will be no useful second thoughts thereafter.