New publication: The Coup that Laid the Fear of China
In this new paper commissioned by the Whitlam Institute, former diplomat and Ambassador Dr Stephen FitzGerald AO traces the political, social and cultural developments that led to Whitlam’s bold decision to visit, and later extend diplomatic recognition to the People’s Republic of China.
The paper draws on his own experience as part of Gough Whitlam’s historic 1971 delegation to China, and paints a vivid picture of those great moments. The paper is also a call for Australia’s current attitude toward China to be imbued with the same courage and independence that drove Gough Whitlam to make his ground-breaking 1971 visit.
