The 11th of November sees the 34th anniversary of the Dismissal of the Whitlam Government in 1975. On 15 November, the Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House will be holding the second of our interactive role playing tours, reconstructing the final hours of the Whitlam government by retracing the steps of the key players.

The events leading up to the dismissal of the Labor Government in 1975 and the subsequent landslide victory of the Liberal-Country Coalition parties in the election of 13 December were played out in the corridors, offices and chambers of Old Parliament House—the Museum of Australian Democracy at Old Parliament House remains inextricably linked to the Dismissal.

Leading up to the dismissal were a series of key events from as early as March 1974 until September 1975. These events included the ‘Loans Affair’, ministerial sackings and resignations, the rise of a new Opposition Leader, Malcolm Fraser, and the appointment of a new Governor-General, Sir John Kerr.

Initially the Opposition blocked the passage of the Government’s supply bills in the Senate. This was done in an attempt to force Prime Minister Gough Whitlam to call an early election, following the double-dissolution election of 18 May, 1974. When Whitlam refused to go early, an impasse ensued.

On 11 November, 1975 the Governor-General Sir John Kerr took action to break this deadlock and dismissed Whitlam and his government. The action by the Governor-General was the penultimate climax in the drama, as the federal election of 13 December, 1975 saw the complete rout of the federal Labor government in what Malcolm Fraser described as “the biggest shift in public opinion in Australia’s history”.

The dismissal is now part of Australia’s political and constitutional history. Although thirty-four years have now passed, the event is still remembered as a moment of unique drama, though perhaps less so by younger Australians, for whom the central characters are now historical figures. When the Whitlam Government was dismissed, a fierce debate took place about the implications for the future of democracy in Australia—would these events threaten the foundations of stable government and lay siege to democracy itself? For others, it was an example of democracy at work, with the unfolding events of the dismissal operating to restore stable Government.

Interestingly, the rules of the Constitution that allowed for the dismissal of the Whitlam Government remain unchanged. Whether one considers it appropriate for the Senate to block Supply or not, it retains that power and could use it to try to force an election.

Related links

• Dismissed! exhibition website
• The Dismissal at NAA
• Wikipedia entry on The Dismissal