The dismissal - 35 years on

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This was published 13 years ago

The dismissal - 35 years on

By Peter Veness

In Labor circles Remembrance Day has a dual meaning.

Thursday November 11 marks the 35th anniversary of Gough Whitlam's dismissal.

Except for the World War I conscription referendums, his dismissal by Governor-General Sir John Kerr and Labor's defeat at the subsequent election remains the most divisive event in Australian politics.

In October 1975 the opposition used its control of the Senate to block Labor's budget.

It was the final move in years of coalition niggling through its dominance of the upper house.

Mr Whitlam went to Sir John to ask for an election. Instead, he was sacked.

With Mr Whitlam now well into his 90s and many of his contemporaries already having died, the ache of the dismissal seems a distant echo to outsiders.

But for those who were there, the pain still remains.

Peter Morris was the MP for the Newcastle-based seat of Shortland on November 11, 1975.

Mr Morris was sitting in the House of Representatives, helping to "make up the numbers" while reading a report on the manufacturing industry.

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His good colleague, John Coates, sat behind him.

"Coatesy tapped me on the back," Mr Morris recalled.

"Well, what did you think of the news?

"What news?

"We've been sacked."

And so a volcano of emotions erupted through parliament, leading to Mr Whitlam's famous line on the steps of parliament.

"Well may we say God save the Queen, because nothing will save the governor-general."

A young backbencher who had arrived in Canberra "starry-eyed", Mr Morris, can be seen a few feet from Mr Whitlam in those famous photos - the prime minister surrounded by reporters, supporters, enemies and plenty of others.

The events inside the building now known as Old Parliament House, are less well known.

Labor MPs walked side-by-side roaring "solidarity for ever" through the Kings Hall.

For Mr Morris, the anger over Sir John's action remains.

"The events of that day, my experience, are burnt in to me," he told AAP on Thursday.

"I remember the feverish anger ... the parliament had been summarily dismissed."

Sir John had plunged the nation into a constitutional crisis not seen before.

Mr Whitlam stayed on as Labor leader until the 1977 election, another heavy defeat.

Now, he is Australia's longest lived prime minister and a doyen of the Labor faithful.

The details of the dismissal have long been muddied as those left from that day continue to argue.

One thing is certain.

The pain still remains.

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