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Was the Dismissal of Gough Whitlam the Will of the People?
the Senate and of the House of Representatives.” this did not happen and there is no clear reason why. The Whitlam Government was dismissed just 18 months after the people of Australia had democratically elected it and as such, people immediately began to protest about the matter and the actions of the Governor-General. “God Save the Queen. God Save the Queen because nothing will save the Governor-General” (Mr Whitlam). The Liberal-Country Coalition attempted to alter the course of democracy by blocking supply twice and forcing the Government to an election twice. “Representative democracy in Australia cannot be indefinitely preserved if the Governor-General has the right to intervene directly in the political process in a way which clearly tips the political balance in favour of one side rather than the other.” (The Age, November 12 1975)
The Liberal-Country Coalition played a game of cat and mouse with both the Parliament and the Australian public. They forced their way to the top by using the Australian Constitution as it was never intended to be used. The people of Australia did not want this; and as such, the Governor-General should not have dismissed the Government and the Opposition should not have blocked supply. So, in answer to the question posed at the beginning of this essay – was the dismissal of the Whitlam Government the will of the people – I firmly believe it was not. It was a political powerplay by Malcolm Fraser – nothing more, nothing less. Its impact is still felt today.