Note: I read that since the events, it has been confirmed that Britain's Queen Elizabeth was not informed of the decision to oust Whitlam although I find that hard to believe. The CIA's involvement was confirmed by numerous sources, one of them being Jimmy Carter I believe. Anyway, in general, a politician, even a Prime Minister of a major US ally, would be likely be allowed to remain and the CIA has many methods at its disposal when it comes to interference in the internal politics of other nations including its allies.
Thanks to Chester Harris for sharing this though the source is unknown to us; we're searching. Richard Mellor Admin
Gough Whitlam
The US doesn't have allies and belligerents like most countries, they have competitors and sycophants.
Next week on 11 November it will be 50 years since the sacking of the Whitlam Labor Government by the Queen's representative Governor General Sir John Kerr.
On that day Australia lost more than our Prime Minister Gough Whitlam we also lost our independence.
The role of the United States in the dismissal of the Whitlam Government cannot be underestimated.
The US interference in the event was confirmed by President Jimmy Carter in an apology to Gough Whitlam via the President's envoy in 1977, and confirmed by Whitlam himself to parliament in the same year. Gough ended conscription in one of his first acts in government, released all the draft resistors from jail, and withdrew all remaining troops from the US war in Vietnam.
He demanded to know about the CIA spy base at Pine Gap near Alice Springs and threatened to close it down. Victor Marchetti, the CIA officer who helped set up Pine Gap,once admitted that: "the threat to close Pine Gap caused apoplexy in the White House...and a kind of Chilean Coup was set in motion."
The White House sent Marshal Green to Canberra as their Ambassador. Green was Ambassador in Chile when Salvador Allende's Government was brought down by a CIA backed coup in 1973.Green was known as the 'coup-master', and also played a central role in the 1965 coup against President Sukarno in Indonesia. Green and his masters saw Sukarno, Allende and Whitlam as communists who must be eliminated.
The Pine Gap Treaty with the US looked as if it was going to be terminated by Whitlam who stated that his government's policy on foreign military bases was "that there should not be foreign military bases, stations, or installations in Australia."
Whitlam ordered AISO to terminate all communications with the CIA, but the ASIO Chief Peter Barbour ignored the PM's order. He later sacked the heads of ASIS and ASIO for their insubordination, and also because the ASIS Chief was secretly assisting the CIA in covert operations in East Timor during the civil war there.
Early in November 1975 it was revealed that a former CIA Officer, Richard Stallings, had been secretly chanelling funds to Country Party Leader Doug Anthony, and other Opposition parties.
When Whitlam repeated these charges against Stallings and insisted on an investigation into Pine Gap to establish once and for all, it's true purpose, and also demanded a full list of CIA operatives in Australia, alarm bells no doubt rang at CIA headquarters in Langley in the US. On 6 November 1975 the Head of the Department of Defence met with Governor General Sir John Kerr, and stated publicly afterwards that: "this is the greatest threat to the nations security that there has ever been." On 8 November 1975, Kerr was also briefed by senior Defence officials regarding CIA allegations that Whitlam was jeopardizing the security of American bases in Australia.
The same day, the CIA in Washington informed the ASIO Chief that all intelligence links with Australia would be cut unless something was done about Whitlam.
On 11 November 1975 Kerr invoked his 'reserve powers' on what amounted to a coup to sack Gough Whitlam and the elected Australian Government."
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