Behind the Headlines Australia and the Mideast in 1983

A number of domestic political events developed in 1983 which will have an important effect on Australia’s role in the Middle East, including its traditionally good relations with Israel.

Malcolm Fraser, the Prime Minister since 1975 at the head of the Liberal-National Party (conservative) Coalition, was defeated in the March 3 elections by the standard bearer of the Australian Labor Party (ALP), Bob Hawke, a moderate, former head of the country’s trade union organization and Australia’s most charismatic politician.

Fraser had been one of Israel’s staunchest friends and allies during his years as Prime Minister. One of his more recent actions was to commit Australian troops to the Sinai peace-keeping force in 1981 in the face of an initially hostile public opinion.

Under Fraser, Australia often was part of the small pro-Israel minority in the United Nations and other international bodies. His government also pursued a steadily pro-American foreign policy. In 1982 he received a humanitarian award from the B’nai B’rith.

NEW P.M. IS A STAUNCH ZIONIST

Hawke is even more friendly toward Israel and to the Jewish people and is widely known in Australia as a staunch Zionist. He is personally extremely close to Israel Labor Party leaders, has what is often termed and “emotional commitment” to Israel, and has attempted to negotiate with the Soviet Union for the release of Soviet Jews. In 1979 he visited Moscow on a widely publicized but unsuccessful mission to help alleviate the plight of the refuseniks. He subsequently participated in a world conference on Soviet Jewry in Rome.

The ALP contains a clear majority of moderates in the Parliament who are fairly sympathetic to Israel (although critical of former Premier Menachem Begin’s policies), but the party also contains an extreme leftwing minority whose virulent hatred of Israel is often astonishing in so remote a country as Australia.

This faction of the ALP is especially strong in Victoria (whose capital is Melbourne) and is led by Bill Hartley who is widely known as “Baghdad Bill” because of his links to Iraq. This faction is equally vehemently anti-American and dislikes Hawke, who is perceived as a rightwinger in the context of the ALP. Although this so called “Socialist Left” faction is weak on the national Parliamentary level, it consistently sided with Fraser. The ALP also passed a resolution harshly critical of Israel’s invasion of Lebanon and which called for a Palestinian state in the West Bank. The resolution also called for the withdrawal of Australia’s Sinai force.

Bill Hayden, who is the Foreign Minister in the Hawke government is pro-Arab (although not anti-Israel in any real sense) and met PLO chief Yasir Arafat in Beirut in 1980.

DISTURBING CHANGES IN MIDEAST POLICIES

Preoccupied with such nearby areas as southeast Asia, the new government initially said very little about the Middle East. Last September, however, the government announced a series of minor but disturbing changes in its Mideast policies, including the opening of an Arab League office in Australia and allowing Australian Ambassadors to have official meetings with PLO representatives.

Shortly before that, Australia abstained on a resolution on racism during a session of the UN in Geneva. This resolution included a harsh anti-Israel statement. Previous governments and most Western nations voted against this resolution.

HAWKE OFFERS KEY CONCESSIONS

These changes occasioned a hastily summoned meeting between Jewish leaders and Hawke who was surprised by the vehemence of the Jewish response to these changes. The Jewish delegation, headed by Isi Leibler, leader of the Executive Council of Australian Jewry, won a number of key concessions from Hawke, including a promise that Australia would not change its voting pattern in the UN regarding Israel’s interests and a commitment that the Arab League office in Australia could not engage in boycott activities or include PLO members.

These concessions received considerable press coverage. A number of other government policy changes, among them a reduction of funding to private schools, including Jewish schools, have evoked concern.

There is no doubt that Hawke is staunchly pro-Israel. Hayden, who is scheduled to visit Israel and the Mideast in January, is less pro-Israel, but even he is now believed to favor keeping Australian troops in the Sinai. Australia’s slight tilt away from the pro-Israel stance of the Fraser government can be expected to continue, although this country’s Jewish leaders have sensitized the Hawke government to its concerns.