1962

Sir Robert Menzies

Posted in 1962

  • New cabinet sworn in: Prime Minister Menzies third from leftNew Cabinet sworn in after 1961 election.
  • Attends Commonwealth Prime Minister's Conference. The major issue is Britain's entry into the European Economic Community.
  • Menzies returns home via the USA where he has talks with President Kennedy. 

PM Menzies talking with US President Kennedy at the White House

Australian Events

Posted in 1962

  • Aborigines gain the right to voteIndigenous Australians gain the right to vote in federal elections.

"Despite what many regarded as the most democratic constitution in the world ... fear and loathing also figured prominently at the birth of the nation. The question of Aborigines and women is one example. Before Federation, women had the vote in WA and SA and Aborigines were prohibited from voting in WA and Queensland.
Because the new parliament could not deny the vote to those who already had the vote in any state, some Aborigines in the southern states could continue to take part in elections while their adult children were disenfranchised for life."
M Gordon, The Age, 9 May 2001.

† History of the Indigenous vote

  • The Queensland Labor Party decides to affiliate with the national Democratic Labor Party.
  • Air Minister Les Bury (Wentworth) is forced to resign after publicly expressing a less pessimistic view of Britain's proposed entry into the European Economic Community.
  • April: Interstate direct dial between Sydney, Canberra and Melbourne allows callers to dial numbers without the assistance of an operator to make the connection. The last telegram transmitted by Morse Code was in December.
  • November: The new Australian Ballet company's first performance is a wonderful success when it performs Swan Lake in Sydney.

World Events

Posted in 1962

  • CubaCuban Missile Crisis: USA forces Soviet Union to withdraw missile bases from Cuba.
  • USA establishes a military command in South Vietnam.
  • Telstar communication satellite is launched.
  • The drug Thalidomide is withdrawn after being linked to deformities in children.