Communism in Australia

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Communism in Australia

• How did the Australian government deal with the
  threat of communism?

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Fear of communism

• In 1949 many people in the western world feared
  the spread of communism
• People in countries like the USA, UK, Australia
  and New Zealand feared the growing spread of
  communism in Eatern Europe and Asia

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Fear of communism
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Fear of communism
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Fear of communism

• Films and newspaper reports claimed that
  communists were unAustralian
• These same reports said that communists were
  subversives
• Members of the communist party were also active
  in industries such as shipping, wharves, coal and
  steel-making. Why would some people consider this
  to be a dangerous factor for Australia?

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Fear of communism
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Fear of communism
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Fear of communism
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Fear of communism
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Fear of communism

• Menzies on Communism
• "All I need say is that Australia is British. It
  has a great and tried and common family
  allegiance under the Crown. But Australia knows,
  and so do the Communists, that the closest
  concert between the United States and the
  Commonwealth is vital to the common defence.We
  will work incessantly to strengthen this great
  association, just as the Communist powers and
  their overseas friends will work incessantly to
  divide and destroy us."

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Fear of communism
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Fear of communism
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Fear of communism
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Fear of communism
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Fear of communism
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Fear of communism

• Australians were so fearful of communism in 1949
  that it became an election issue
• During the 1949 election the leader of the
  Liberal Party said he would introduce laws that
  would declare the communist party in Australia
  illegal
• Menzies said he would ban the communist party if
  he was elected Prime Minister

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Guilty Until Proven Innocent

• What is wrong with that?
• In 1950 Prime Minister Menzies introduced a
  bill or proposed law into the Australian
  Parliament
• The bill was called the Communist Party
  Dissolution Bill
• The bill proposed to outlaw the communist party
  and to stop any member of the communist party
  from being a government employee and/or a member
  of a trade union

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Guilty Until Proven Innocent

• The bill also proposed that anyone who was
  declared a communist had to prove his or her
  innocence
• This proposed law angered many people as it
  threatened individual freedoms and the rights of
  the individual

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Guilty Until Proven Innocent

• Ten trade unions and the Australian Communist
  Party challenged the proposed law in the
  Australian High Court
• They argued that the Australian government should
  only have such powers during wartime
• The High Court agreed and said that the proposed
  law was unconstitutional
• Menzies proposed law was scrapped

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Menzies votes in the election
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1951 Referendum

• Menzies was angry that his proposed law was
  unconstitutional
• Following that he set up a referendum to put the
  vote to the people whether or not the communist
  party should be banned
• The Catholic Church and many news organisations
  said that people should vote yes.
• What was the result of the referendum?

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1951 Referendum

• It was a bitterly fought referendum with many
  people arguing, protesting and writing letters to
  newspapers and politicians.
• Date of referendum 22 September 1951
• Yes vote 2, 317, 927 votes
• No vote 2, 370, 000 votes

23
Robert Menzies on the Internet

• The Robert Menzies Virtual Museum
• http//www.menziesvirtualmuseum.org.au/

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Censorship

• The Autsralian government attempted to censor or
  ban literature and art during the 1950s
• A novel by Frank Hardy entitled Power Without
  Glory came under the scrutiny of the government
• It was claimed that the novel criticised
  capitalists and Hardy was accused of being a
  communist
• The court case against him failed and he was
  acquitted - declared not guilty
• His book became an international best seller as a
  result