AUSTRALIANA First Edition.
104 p. illus. 26 cm. #261022
Vietnam War, 1961-1975. | Demonstrations — Australia.
Vietnam Moratorium Committee (Australia)
The Vietnam moratorium protests, the first of which took place on 8 May 1970, were the largest public demonstrations in Australia’s history at the time.
They represented growing discontent within a portion of the Australian population to the government’s commitment to the Vietnam War in general and conscription in particular.
The protests took place during a period of great social change in Australia, when people from a range of backgrounds were prepared to defy authority.
Labor politician Dr Jim Cairns addressing the first moratorium:
Our spirit is the spirit of peace and understanding. Our spirit is opposed to violence, opposed to hate, opposed to every motive that has produced this terrible war … we can overcome, ladies and gentlemen.
The most visible leader of the moratorium movement was Shadow Minister for Trade and Industry Dr Jim Cairns, whose charisma and intellect galvanised thousands of anti-war activists. Above all he recognised how important it was that the marches, which advocated peace, be peaceful themselves.
The moratorium movement drew in a disparate range of groups opposed to the war – clergy, teachers, academics, unions, politicians and school students. Donations poured in. While university students had led the anti-war movement up to this point, the moratorium involved thousands of everyday, middle-class Australians.
Not all Australians supported it; because of the unprecedented size and intensity of the protest many found it threatening. Conservatives were strongly opposed, among them Billy Snedden, Minister for Labour and National Service, who described it as ‘political bikies who pack-rape democracy’.
A total of 200,000 people took part in the first moratorium. The largest event was in Melbourne where 70,000 marched peacefully down Bourke Street, led by Cairns. The police were restrained and the crowds watching them cheered. Similar events took place in Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Hobart and dozens of rural towns.
The second and third moratoriums took place on 18 September 1970 and 30 June 1971 respectively. These events were dominated more by left-wing extremists, and fewer people attended. The second moratorium turned violent. In Melbourne police baton-charged protesters and in Sydney 173 people were arrested.