Don Dunstan
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Donald Allan Dunstan (21 September 1926 – 6 February 1999) was an Australian politician who served as the 35th
premier of South Australia The premier of South Australia is the head of government in the state of South Australia, Australia. The Government of South Australia follows the Westminster system, with a Parliament of South Australia acting as the legislature. The premier is ...
from 1967 to 1968, and again from 1970 to 1979. He was a member of the
House of Assembly House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level. Historically, in British Crown colonies A Crown colony or royal colony was a colony adm ...
(MHA) for the division of Norwood from 1953 to 1979, and leader of the South Australian Branch of the Australian Labor Party from 1967 to 1979. Before becoming premier, Dunstan served as the 38th
attorney-general of South Australia The attorney-general of South Australia is the Cabinet minister in the Government of South Australia who is responsible for that state's system of law and justice. The attorney-general must be a qualified legal practitioner, although this wa ...
and the treasurer of South Australia. He is the fourth longest serving premier in South Australian history. In the late 1950s, Dunstan became well known for his campaign against the
death penalty Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...
being imposed on Max Stuart, who was convicted of rape and murder of a small girl, opposing then-Premier Thomas Playford IV over the matter. During Labor's time in opposition, Dunstan was prominent in securing some reforms in Aboriginal rights and in Labor abandoning the White Australia policy. Dunstan became
Attorney-General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...
after the 1965 election, and replaced the older Frank Walsh as premier in 1967. Despite maintaining a much larger vote over the
Liberal and Country League Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment an ...
(LCL), Labor lost two seats at the 1968 election, with the LCL forming government with support of an independent. Dunstan responded by increasing his attacks on the Playmander, convincing the LCL into watering down the malapportionment. With little change in Labor's vote but with the Playmander removed, Labor won 27 of 47 seats at the 1970 election, and again in 1973,
1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...
, and 1977. Dunstan's socially progressive administration saw
Aboriginal land rights Indigenous land rights are the rights of Indigenous peoples to land and natural resources therein, either individually or collectively, mostly in colonised countries. Land and resource-related rights are of fundamental importance to Indigenou ...
recognised, homosexuality decriminalised, the first female judge (
Dame Roma Mitchell Dame Roma Flinders Mitchell, (2 October 1913 – 5 March 2000) was an Australian lawyer, judge and state governor. She was the first woman to hold a number of positions in Australia – the country's first woman judge, the first woman to be a ...
) appointed, the first non-British
governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
, Sir Mark Oliphant, and later the first Indigenous governor, Sir Douglas Nicholls. He enacted
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laws, reformed and expanded the
public education State schools (in England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand) or public schools (Scottish English and North American English) are generally primary or secondary educational institution, schools that educate all students without charge. They are ...
and health systems, abolished the death penalty, relaxed
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and drinking laws, created a ministry for the environment, enacted
anti-discrimination law Anti-discrimination law or non-discrimination law refers to legislation designed to prevent discrimination against particular groups of people; these groups are often referred to as protected groups or protected classes. Anti-discrimination laws ...
, and implemented
electoral reform Electoral reform is a change in electoral systems which alters how public desires are expressed in election results. That can include reforms of: * Voting systems, such as proportional representation, a two-round system (runoff voting), instant ...
s such as the overhaul of the Legislative Council, the
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of
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, lowered the voting age to 18, enacted
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, and completely abolished malapportionment. He also established Rundle Mall, enacted measures to protect buildings of historical heritage, and encouraging
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, with support for the
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, the State Theatre Company, and the establishment of the
South Australian Film Corporation South Australian Film Corporation (SAFC) is a South Australian Government statutory corporation established in 1972 to engage in film production and promote the film industry, located in Adelaide, South Australia. The Adelaide Studios are manage ...
. At the same time, there were also problems; the economy began to stagnate, and the large increases to burgeoning
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generated claims of waste. One of Dunstan's pet projects, a plan to build a new city at Monarto to alleviate urban pressures in Adelaide, was abandoned when economic and population growth stalled, with much money and planning already invested. After four consecutive election wins, Dunstan's administration began to falter in 1978 following his dismissal of Police Commissioner Harold Salisbury, as controversy broke out over whether he had improperly interfered with a judicial investigation. In addition, policy problems and unemployment began to mount, as well as unsubstantiated rumours of corruption and personal impropriety. The strain on Dunstan was increased by the death of his wife. His resignation from the premiership and politics in 1979 was abrupt after collapsing due to ill health, but he lived for another 20 years, remaining a vocal and outspoken campaigner for progressive social policy.


Early life

Dunstan was born on 21 September 1926 in
Suva Suva () is the capital and largest city of Fiji. It is the home of the country's largest metropolitan area and serves as its major port. The city is located on the southeast coast of the island of Viti Levu, in Rewa Province, Central Div ...
,
Colony of Fiji The Colony of Fiji was a Crown colony that existed from 1874 to 1970 in the territory of the present-day nation of Fiji. London declined its first opportunity to annex the Kingdom of Fiji in 1852. Ratu Seru Epenisa Cakobau had offered to c ...
, the son of Francis Vivian Dunstan and Ida May Dunstan (' Hill), Australians of Cornish descent. His parents had moved to Fiji in 1916 after his father took up a position as manager of the
Adelaide Steamship Company The Adelaide Steamship Company was an Australian shipping company and later a diversified industrial and logistics conglomerate. It was formed by a group of South Australian businessmen in 1875. Their aim was to control the transport of goods b ...
. He spent the first seven years of his life in Fiji, starting his schooling there. Dunstan was beset by illness, and his parents sent him to South Australia hoping the drier climate would assist his recovery. He lived in Murray Bridge for three years with his mother's parents before returning to Suva for a short period during his secondary education. During his time in Fiji, Dunstan mixed easily with the Indian settlers and
indigenous people Indigenous peoples are culturally distinct ethnic groups whose members are directly descended from the earliest known inhabitants of a particular geographic region and, to some extent, maintain the language and culture of those original people ...
, something that was frowned upon by many of the white people on the islands. He won a
scholarship A scholarship is a form of financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, diversity and inclusion, athletic skill, and financial need. Scholars ...
in
classical studies Classics or classical studies is the study of classical antiquity. In the Western world, classics traditionally refers to the study of Classical Greek and Roman literature and their related original languages, Ancient Greek and Latin. Classics ...
and attended St Peter's College, a traditional private school for the sons of the
Adelaide establishment The Adelaide Establishment is the name given to the group of wealthy landowners and industrialists who have played a considerable role in the history of South Australia since its foundation in 1836. Based primarily in South Australia's capital Ad ...
. He developed public speaking and acting skills, winning the college's public speaking prize for two consecutive years. In 1943, he portrayed the title role in a production of John Drinkwater's play ''
Abraham Lincoln Abraham Lincoln ( ; February 12, 1809 – April 15, 1865) was an American lawyer, politician, and statesman who served as the 16th president of the United States from 1861 until his assassination in 1865. Lincoln led the nation throu ...
'', and according to the school magazine, he "was the chief contributor to the success of the occasion". His academic strengths were in classical history and languages, and he disliked mathematics.Yeeles, p. 15. He gained a reputation as a maverick. During this time, Dunstan did not board and lived in the seaside suburb of Glenelg with relatives. Dunstan completed his secondary schooling in 1943, ranking in the top 30 overall in the statewide matriculation examinations.Cockburn, p. 312. In his youth, influenced by his uncle, former Liberal Lord Mayor of Adelaide Sir
Jonathan Cain Jonathan Leonard Friga (born February 26, 1950), known professionally as Jonathan Cain, is an American musician and songwriter best known as the keyboardist for Journey. He has also worked with the Babys and Bad English. Cain was inducted into ...
, Dunstan was a supporter of the
conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
Liberal and Country League Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment an ...
(LCL) and handed out how-to-vote cards for the party at state elections. Dunstan later said of his involvement with the Liberals: "I do not call it snobbery to deride the Establishment in South Australia, I admit that I was brought up into it, and I admit that it gave me a pain." When asked of his roots, he said, "I'm a refugee from it and thank God for somewhere honest to flee to!" His political awakening happened during his university years. Studying law and arts at the
University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...
, he became very active, joining the University Socialist Club, the
Fabian Society The Fabian Society is a British socialist organisation whose purpose is to advance the principles of social democracy and democratic socialism via gradualist and reformist effort in democracies, rather than by revolutionary overthrow. T ...
, the Student Representative Council, as well as the Theatre Group. A two-week stint in the
Communist Party A communist party is a political party that seeks to realize the socio-economic goals of communism. The term ''communist party'' was popularized by the title of '' The Manifesto of the Communist Party'' (1848) by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engel ...
was followed by membership in the
Australian Labor Party The Australian Labor Party (ALP), also simply known as Labor, is the major centre-left political party in Australia, one of two major parties in Australian politics, along with the centre-right Liberal Party of Australia. The party forms t ...
. Dunstan was markedly different from the general membership of the Labor Party of the time; upon applying for membership at Trades Hall, a Labor veteran supposedly muttered "how could that long-haired prick be a Labor man?"Yeeles, p. 17. His peculiarities, such as his upper-class accent, were a target of derision by the working-class Labor old guard throughout his early political involvement. Dunstan funded his education by working in theatre and radio during his university years. He eventually graduated with a double degree, with arts majors in
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through ...
,
comparative philology Comparative linguistics, or comparative-historical linguistics (formerly comparative philology) is a branch of historical linguistics that is concerned with comparing languages to establish their historical relatedness. Genetic relatedness ...
, history and politics, and he came first in political science. After Dunstan graduated, he moved with his wife to Fiji where he was admitted to the bar and began his career as a lawyer. They returned to Adelaide in 1951 and settled in George Street, Norwood, taking in boarders as a source of extra income.Dunstan, pp. 25–32.


Political beginnings

Dunstan was nominated as the Labor candidate for the electoral district of Norwood at the 1953 election. His campaign was noted for his colourful methods to sway voters: posters of his face were placed on every pole in the district, and Labor supporters walked the streets advocating Dunstan. He targeted in particular the large Italian migrant population of the district, distributing translated copies of a statement the sitting LCL member Roy Moir had made about immigrants. Moir had commented that "these immigrants are of no use to usa few of them are tradesmen but most of them have no skills at all. And when they intermarry we'll have all the colours of the rainbow." Dunstan won the seat and was elected to the
South Australian House of Assembly The House of Assembly, or lower house, is one of the two chambers of the Parliament of South Australia. The other is the Legislative Council. It sits in Parliament House in the state capital, Adelaide. Overview The House of Assembly was crea ...
. His son Andrew was born nine months after the win.Dunstan, pp. 35–36.Crocker, p. 115. Dunstan was to become the most vocal opponent of the LCL Government of Sir Thomas Playford, strongly criticising its practice of electoral malapportionment, known as the Playmander, a pun on the term gerrymander. This system gave a disproportionate electoral weight to the LCL's rural base, with votes worth as much as ten times others − at the 1968 election the rural seat of
Frome Frome ( ) is a town and civil parish in eastern Somerset, England. The town is built on uneven high ground at the eastern end of the Mendip Hills, and centres on the River Frome. The town, about south of Bath, is the largest in the Mendip d ...
had 4,500 formal votes, while the metropolitan seat of Enfield had 42,000 formal votes. He added colour and flair to debate in South Australian politics, changing the existing "gentlemanly" method of conducting parliamentary proceedings. He did not fear direct confrontation with the incumbent government and attacked it with vigour. Up to this point most of his Labor colleagues had become dispirited by the Playmander and were resigned to the ongoing dominance of Playford and LCL, so they sought to influence policy through collaborative legislating.Cockburn, p. 314. In 1954, the LCL introduced the Government Electoral Bill, which was designed to further accentuate the undue weight favouring rural voters. During the debate, Dunstan decried this "immoral Bill... I cannot separate it from the motives of those who put it forward. Since it is immoral, so are they." Such language, unusually aggressive by the prevailing standards, resulted in Dunstan's removal from the parliamentary chambers after he refused a request from the Speaker to retract his remark. The first parliamentarian to be expelled in years, Dunstan found himself on the front pages of newspapers for the first time. Nevertheless, he was not able to build up much of a profile in his first few years as '' The Advertiser'', the dominant newspaper in the city, had a policy of ignoring the young politician's activities—its editor Lloyd Dumas was the father of one of Dunstan's first girlfriends.


Max Stuart trial

In December 1958 there occurred an event that initially had nothing to do with Playford, but eventually intensified into a debacle regarded as a turning point in his premiership and marked the end of his rule. Dunstan was prominent in pressuring Playford during this time.Cockburn, p. 292. A young girl was found raped and murdered, and Max Stuart, an Aboriginal man, was convicted and sentenced to be executed. Stuart's lawyer claimed that the confession was forced, and appeals to the Supreme and
High Courts High may refer to: Science and technology * Height * High (atmospheric), a high-pressure area * High (computability), a quality of a Turing degree, in computability theory * High (tectonics), in geology an area where relative tectonic uplift ...
were dismissed. Amid objections against the fairness of the trial among an increasing number of legal academics and judges, ''The News'' brought much attention to Stuart's plight with an aggressive, tabloid-style campaign.Cockburn, p. 297. When Playford and the Executive Council decided not to reprieve Stuart, an appeal to the
Privy Council A privy council is a body that advises the head of state of a state, typically, but not always, in the context of a monarchic government. The word "privy" means "private" or "secret"; thus, a privy council was originally a committee of the mo ...
was made to stall the execution. Spearheaded by Dunstan, Labor then tried to introduce legislation to stall the hanging.Cockburn, p. 299. Amid hue and cry, Playford started a Royal Commission to review the case. However, two of the commissioners had already been involved in the trial and one of the appeals. This provoked worldwide controversy with claims of bias from Dunstan and Labor, who also attacked Playford for what they regarded as a too-restrictive scope of inquiry.Cockburn, p. 303. The Royal Commission began its work and the proceedings were followed closely and eagerly debated by the public. As Playford did not commute Stuart's sentence, Dunstan introduced a bill to abolish
capital punishment Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...
. The vote was split along party lines and was thus defeated, but Dunstan used the opportunity to attack the Playmander with much effect in the media, portraying the failed legislation as an unjust triumph of a malapportioned minority who had a vengeance mentality over an electorally repressed majority who wanted a humane outcome. Amid the continuing uproar, Playford decided to grant clemency.Cockburn, p. 305. The Royal Commission concluded that the guilty verdict was sound. Although a majority of those who spoke out against the handling of the matter (including Dunstan) thought Stuart was probably guilty, the events provoked heated and bitter debate in South Australian society and destabilised Playford's administration,Cockburn, p. 308. while bringing much publicity to Dunstan. From 1959 onwards, the LCL government clung to power with the support of two independents, as Labor gained momentum. Always at the forefront, Dunstan lambasted the government for perceived underspending on social welfare, education, health and the arts. Dunstan heavily promoted himself as a reformer. In 1960, Dunstan became president of the State Labor Party. The year also saw the death of Opposition Leader
Mick O'Halloran Michael Raphael O'Halloran (12 April 1893 – 22 September 1960) was an Australian politician, representing the South Australian Branch of the Australian Labor Party. He served as Leader of the Opposition in the Parliament of South Australia ...
and his replacement by Frank Walsh. Dunstan attempted to win the position of Opposition Leader and, failing that, Deputy Leader. However, the Labor
caucus A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures. The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to a meeting ...
was sceptical of his age and inexperience, and he failed to gain either position, albeit narrowly.


Ascent to power

Federally, Dunstan, together with fellow Australian Fabian Society member
Gough Whitlam Edward Gough Whitlam (11 July 191621 October 2014) was the 21st prime minister of Australia, serving from 1972 to 1975. The longest-serving federal leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1967 to 1977, he was notable for being the h ...
, set about removing the White Australia policy from the Labor platform. The older trade-unionist-based members of the Labor Party vehemently opposed changing the status quo. However, the "New Guard" of the party, of which Dunstan was a part, were determined to bring about its end. Attempts in 1959 and 1961 failed, with Labor leader
Arthur Calwell Arthur Augustus Calwell (28 August 1896 – 8 July 1973) was an Australian politician who served as the leader of the Labor Party from 1960 to 1967. He led the party to three federal elections. Calwell grew up in Melbourne and attended St J ...
stating, "It would ruin the Party if we altered the immigration policy... it was only cranks, long hairs, academics and do-gooders who wanted the change." However, Dunstan persisted in his efforts, and in 1965 it was removed from the Labor platform at their national conference; Dunstan personally took credit for the change. Whitlam later brought about the comprehensive end of the White Australia policy in 1973 as
Prime Minister of Australia The prime minister of Australia is the head of government of the Commonwealth of Australia. The prime minister heads the executive branch of the federal government of Australia and is also accountable to federal parliament under the princip ...
. Dunstan pursued similar reforms with respect to
Indigenous Australians Indigenous Australians or Australian First Nations are people with familial heritage from, and membership in, the ethnic groups that lived in Australia before British colonisation. They consist of two distinct groups: the Aboriginal peoples ...
. In 1962, the Aboriginal Affairs Bill was introduced to liberalise constraints that had been placed on Indigenous Australians in the past and had effectively resulted in segregation. The initial proposal still retained some restrictions, placing more controls over full-blooded Aboriginal people. Dunstan was prominent in Labor's opposition to the double standards,Summers, p. 495. and called for abolition of race-based restrictions, saying that social objectives could be achieved without explicit colour-based schemes. He was successful in forcing amendments to liberalise controls on property and the confinement of Indigenous Australians to
Aboriginal reserve An Aboriginal reserve, also called simply reserve, was a government-sanctioned settlement for Aboriginal Australians, created under various state and federal legislation. Along with missions and other institutions, they were used from the 19th c ...
s. However, his attempt to remove the different standards required of part and full-blooded Aboriginal people failed, as did his proposal to ensure that at least half of the members of the Aboriginal Affairs Board be Indigenous Australians.Summers, p. 496. Despite the passage of the bill, restrictions remained in place and Dunstan questioned the policy of
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of Aboriginal people, which he saw as the diluting of their distinctive cultures.Summers, p. 497. Labor won the seats of Glenelg and Barossa at the 1965 election, after winning the seats of Chaffey and
Unley Unley is an inner-southern suburb of Adelaide, South Australia, within the City of Unley. The suburb is the home of the Sturt Football Club in the South Australian National Football League (SANFL). Unley neighbours Adelaide Park Lands, Fullarton ...
at the 1962 election. Labor thus finally overcame the Playmander and formed government for the first time in 32 years, with Frank Walsh as
Premier of South Australia The premier of South Australia is the head of government in the state of South Australia, Australia. The Government of South Australia follows the Westminster system, with a Parliament of South Australia acting as the legislature. The premier is ...
. Despite winning 55 percent of the primary vote, the Playmander was still strong enough that Labor won only 21 of 39 seats, a two-seat majority. Dunstan became
Attorney-General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...
and Minister of Community Welfare and Aboriginal Affairs. He was far and away the youngest member of the cabinet; he was the only minister under 50,Parkin, p. 3. and one of only three under 60.Parkin, p. 293. Dunstan had a major impact on Government policy as Attorney-General. Having only narrowly lost out on the leadership in 1960, Dunstan became the obvious successor to the 67-year-old Walsh, who was due to retire in 1967 under Labor rules of the time. The Walsh Government implemented significant reform in its term of office.Parkin, pp. 294–295. Liquor, gambling and entertainment laws were overhauled and liberalised,Blewett and Jaensch, p. 37. social welfare was gradually expanded and
Aboriginal reserve An Aboriginal reserve, also called simply reserve, was a government-sanctioned settlement for Aboriginal Australians, created under various state and federal legislation. Along with missions and other institutions, they were used from the 19th c ...
s were created. Strong restrictions on Aboriginal access to liquor were lifted. Women's working rights were granted under the mantra of "equal pay for work of equal value", and racial discrimination legislation was enacted. Town planning was codified in law,Blewett and Jaensch, p. 39. and the State Planning Authority was created to oversee development. Workers were given more rights and the bureaucracy of the education department was liberalised. Much of the reform was not necessarily radical and was primarily to "fill the gaps" that the previous LCL government had left. Despite a consistently higher statewide vote, Labor were consistently outnumbered 16–4 in the Legislative Council, so some desired legislation did not make it through. In 1965, the legislature convened for 65 days, the most for 34 years, but many bills were still yet to be debated. Many bills were watered down,Parkin, p. 295. but due to lack of public interest, outcry was minimal. In particular, the council blocked electoral reform legislation, paving the way for a probable LCL win at the next election. Such was Dunstan's pre-eminence during his term as Attorney-General that the cabinet was often called the "Dunstan Ministry".Parkin, p. 294.Blewett and Jaensch, p. 36. An economic depression had begun in South Australia after the Labor government gained office in 1965; unemployment went from the lowest in the country to the second highest, while immigration levels dropped. Labor was not responsible for the depression, although it initially did little to alleviate it. The Liberals seized on this opportunity, blaming it on "twelve months of Socialist administration in South Australia" and branding it the "Dunstan Depression".Blewett and Jaensch, p. 46. In the 1966 Australian federal election, Labor suffered a swing against it of 11.8% in South Australia, double the national average. If this was replicated at a state election, it was projected that Labor would hold only ten of the 39 seats. The Liberals dropped Playford as the state leader, and the younger and more progressive
Steele Hall Raymond Steele Hall (born 30 November 1928) is a former Australian politician who served as the 36th Premier of South Australia from 1968 to 1970. He also served in the federal Parliament as a senator for South Australia from 1974 to 1977 and ...
took his place. In a dire situation with the next state election looming,Blewett and Jaensch, pp. 50–51. Labor changed leaders with Walsh, a "neanderthal figure in the television age", standing down in May 1967. Much of the Labor Right faction, as well as Walsh, was opposed to Dunstan taking the leadership, but no other MPs had the same charisma or eloquence. Eventually, Dunstan won the leadership over
Des Corcoran James Desmond Corcoran AO (8 November 1928 – 3 January 2004) was an Australian politician, representing the South Australian Branch of the Australian Labor Party. He was the 37th Premier of South Australia, serving between 15 February 1979 ...
, winning fourteen votes to eleven on the strength of rural and marginal Laborites, having trailed by one vote on the first count before less popular candidates were eliminated. Dunstan's first Premiership was eventful, with a steady stream of reform and attempts to end the depression. The latter half of 1967 saw the beginnings of a slight recovery, with unemployment dipping and industrial capacity steadying. The 1967–68 budget ran into deficit, allocating funds to energise the economic engine whilst Dunstan lambasted the Federal Government for neglecting the South Australian economy, demanding it take a degree of responsibility for its ills.


Elections 1968–1970

In preparation for the 1968 election, Labor campaigned heavily around its leader, and this resonated with voters; in surveys conducted in parts of the metropolitan area, 84% of respondents declared their approval of Dunstan.Blewett and Jaensch, pp. 65–66. In a presidential-style election campaign, Hall and Dunstan journeyed across the state advocating their platforms, and the major issues were the leaders, the Playmander and the economy. Television saw its first major use in the election, and Dunstan, an astute public speaker, successfully mastered it.Blewett and Jaensch, pp. 60–61, 90–100. With his upbeat style, Dunstan also made an impact in the print media, which had long been a bastion of the LCL. Despite winning a 52% majority of the primary vote, and 54% of the two-party preferred count, Labor lost two seats, resulting in a hung parliament: the LCL and Labor each had 19 seats. Had 21 votes in the rural seat of
Murray Murray may refer to: Businesses * Murray (bicycle company), an American manufacturer of low-cost bicycles * Murrays, an Australian bus company * Murray International Trust, a Scottish investment trust * D. & W. Murray Limited, an Australian who ...
gone the other way, Labor would have retained power. The balance of power rested with the chamber's lone independent,
Tom Stott Tom Cleave Stott CBE (6 June 1899 – 21 October 1976) spent 37 years as an independent member of the South Australian House of Assembly, from 1933 to 1970. He served as Speaker of the House from 1962 to 1965 for the Tom Playford LCL governm ...
, who was offered the speakership by the LCL in return for his support on the Assembly floor. Stott, a conservative, agreed to support the LCL.Parkin, p. 4. There was a degree of speculation in the press that Dunstan would call for a new election because of the adverse outcome. However, Dunstan realised the futility of such a move and instead sought to humiliate the LCL into bringing an end to malapportionment. Although Stott's decision to support the LCL ended any realistic chance of Dunstan remaining premier, Dunstan did not immediately resign his commission, intending to force Hall and the LCL to demonstrate that they had support on the floor of the Assembly when it reconvened. He used the six weeks before the start of the new legislature to draw attention to malapportionment. Protests were held on 15 March in
Light Square Light Square, also known as Wauwi (formerly Wauwe), is one of five public squares in the Adelaide city centre. Located in the centre of the north-western quarter of the Adelaide city centre, its southern boundary is Waymouth Street, while Curri ...
. There, Dunstan spoke to a crowd of more than ten thousand: "We need to show that the people of SA feel that at last the watershed has been reached in this, and that they will not continue to put up with a system which is as undemocratic as the present one in SA." On 16 April, the first day of the new House's sitting, Dunstan lost a confidence vote. With it now clear that the LCL had control of the House, Dunstan tendered his resignation to
Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
Edric Bastyan Lieutenant General Sir Edric Montague Bastyan, (5 April 1903 – 6 October 1980) was a senior British Army officer, who became Governor of South Australia from 4 April 1961 until 1 June 1968 then Governor of Tasmania from 2 December 1968 until 30 ...
.Parkin, p. 5.Blewett and Jaensch, pp. 173–177. Hall was then sworn in as premier. However, the six weeks of protesting had brought nationwide criticism of the unfairness of the electoral system and put more pressure on the LCL to relent to reforms; it has been seen as one of the most important political events of its time. With the end of Playford's tenure, the LCL had brought younger, more progressive members into its ranks. The Hall Government continued many of the social reforms the Walsh/Dunstan governments had initiated; most of these at the instigation of Hall or his Attorney-General, Robin Millhouse.
Abortion Abortion is the termination of a pregnancy by removal or expulsion of an embryo or fetus. An abortion that occurs without intervention is known as a miscarriage or "spontaneous abortion"; these occur in approximately 30% to 40% of pre ...
was partially legalised, and planning for the Festival Centre began. The conservative and rural factions of the League, notably in the Legislative Council dominated by the landed gentry, were bitterly opposed to some reforms, and more than once Hall was forced to rely on Labor support to see bills passed. The LCL began to break apart; what had once been a united party was now factionalised into four distinct groups across the political spectrum. The economy of South Australia began to pick up under Hall, returning to full employment. During the term in opposition,
Des Corcoran James Desmond Corcoran AO (8 November 1928 – 3 January 2004) was an Australian politician, representing the South Australian Branch of the Australian Labor Party. He was the 37th Premier of South Australia, serving between 15 February 1979 ...
became Dunstan's deputy, and the pair worked together well despite any rift that may have been caused by the struggle to succeed Walsh. Hall was embarrassed that the LCL was in a position to win government despite having clearly lost the first-preference vote, and was committed to a fairer electoral system. Soon after taking office, he enacted a complete overhaul of the electoral system. While they fell short of "
one vote one value In Australia, one vote, one value is a democratic principle, applied in electoral laws governing redistributions of electoral divisions of the House of Representatives. The principle calls for all electoral divisions to have the same number of e ...
" as Labor and Dunstan had demanded, they were still significant. Under the Playmander the lower house had 39 seats, 13 in Adelaide and 26 in the country. Hall's reforms expanded the lower house to 47 seats–28 in Adelaide and 19 in the country. While there was still a slight rural weighting (since Adelaide accounted for two-thirds of the state's population), with Adelaide now electing a majority of the legislature, historical results made a Labor win at the next election likely. The capital had been SA Labor's power base for three decades. Even at the height of Playford's power in the 1950s, the LCL won almost no seats in the capital outside of the wealthy eastern crescent and around
Holdfast Bay The Holdfast Bay is a small bay in Gulf St Vincent, next to Adelaide, South Australia. Along its shores lie the local government area of the City of Holdfast Bay and the suburbs of Glenelg and Glenelg North European settlement on Holdfast Bay ...
. This was a major reason why Playford's LCL never held more than 23 seats–two more than needed to govern. Under the circumstances, conventional wisdom was that Hall undertook electoral reform knowing he was effectively handing the premiership to Dunstan at the next election. Stott withdrew support in 1970 over the
Chowilla Dam Chowilla Dam was a proposed water storage reservoir on the Murray River in the 1960s. The dam wall would have been in South Australia, but the reservoir behind it would have stretched upstream into Victoria and New South Wales. The site was sele ...
, a dispute over the location of a dam on the
Murray River The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray) (Ngarrindjeri: ''Millewa'', Yorta Yorta: ''Tongala'') is a river in Southeastern Australia. It is Australia's longest river at extent. Its tributaries include five of the next six longest ...
,Parkin, p. 6. and South Australia went to the polls. The dam controversy was not much of an election issue, and attempts by the Democratic Labor Party to portray Dunstan as a communist over his opposition to ongoing Australian support for
South Vietnam South Vietnam, officially the Republic of Vietnam ( vi, Việt Nam Cộng hòa), was a state in Southeast Asia that existed from 1955 to 1975, the period when the southern portion of Vietnam was a member of the Western Bloc during part of th ...
had little effect. The LCL campaigned heavily on Hall, while Dunstan promised sweeping social reform, artistic transformation and more community services. He said "We'll set a new standard of social advancement that the whole of Australia will envy. We believe South Australia can set the pace. It can happen here. We can do it." Dunstan won the 1970 South Australian state election easily, taking 27 seats compared with the LCL's 20. Although the share of the votes had been similar to 1968, the dilution of the Playmander had changed the share of the seats. As Labor had attained a majority of the popular vote for a long period, and because malapportionment had been largely ended, the political scientists Neal Blewett and
Dean Jaensch Dean Harold Jaensch (27 October 1936 – 17 January 2022) was an Australian political scientist and a Professor of Political and International Studies at The Flinders University of South Australia. Jaensch was awarded a Bachelor of Arts (Hon ...
said: "A Dunstan decade seems assured."


Dunstan decade

Dunstan wasted no time in organising his new ministry. He served as his own
Treasurer A treasurer is the person responsible for running the treasury of an organization. The significant core functions of a corporate treasurer include cash and liquidity management, risk management, and corporate finance. Government The treasury ...
, and took several other portfolios for himself. Deputy Premier
Des Corcoran James Desmond Corcoran AO (8 November 1928 – 3 January 2004) was an Australian politician, representing the South Australian Branch of the Australian Labor Party. He was the 37th Premier of South Australia, serving between 15 February 1979 ...
took on most infrastructure portfolios: Marine and Harbours, and Public Works. Corcoran became the face of the Dunstan ministry in its relationship with the Labor caucus, with his ability to use his strong manner to settle disputes. Bert Shard became Health Minister, overseeing the construction and planning of new, major public hospitals: the Flinders Medical Centre and Modbury Hospital. Hugh Hudson took on the Education portfolio, an important role in a government that was determined to bring about profound change to the South Australian education system.
Geoff Virgo Geoffrey Thomas Virgo (9 November 1918 – 5 January 2001) was an Australian politician. Political career From 2 March 1968 to 29 May 1970 he represented the electoral district of Edwardstown in the South Australian House of Assembly as a ...
, the new Transport Minister, was to deal with the Metropolitan Adelaide Transport Study (MATS) plans.
Len King Leonard James King (1 May 1925 – 23 June 2011) was an Australian politician, lawyer and judge. Early life King matriculated from St Joseph's Memorial School at age 14, then worked at Shell Company as a clerk. He served in the Royal Aus ...
was made Attorney-General and Aboriginal Affairs Minister despite being a new member of parliament. Dunstan formed a strong circle of loyal ministers around him, in a style radically different from his predecessors.Dunstan, pp. 172–173. Soon after the election, Dunstan travelled to
Canberra Canberra ( ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's largest inland city and the eighth-largest city overall. The ci ...
for the annual Premiers' Conference as the sole Labor premier. His Government, on a mandate to dramatically increase funding in key areas, sought to appropriate further finances from the Federal Government. This brought Dunstan into conflict with Prime Minister
John Gorton Sir John Grey Gorton (9 September 1911 – 19 May 2002) was an Australian politician who served as the nineteenth Prime Minister of Australia, in office from 1968 to 1971. He led the Liberal Party during that time, having previously been a l ...
, and federal funding to SA was not increased. An appeal was made to the Federal Grants Commission, and Dunstan was awarded more than he had hoped for. In addition to the money received from the Grants Commission, funds were diverted from water-storage schemes in the Adelaide Hills over the advice of engineers, and cash reserves were withdrawn from the two government-owned banks. The monies were subsequently used to finance health, education and arts schemes. On the death in office of
Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
Sir James Harrison in 1971, Dunstan finally had the opportunity to put forward a nominee for governor of his own choosing to HM Queen Elizabeth II (and by extension the British Foreign Office which still technically oversaw the appointment process of Australian state governors until the '' Australia Act 1986''): Sir Mark Oliphant, a physicist who had worked on the
Manhattan Project The Manhattan Project was a research and development undertaking during World War II that produced the first nuclear weapons. It was led by the United States with the support of the United Kingdom and Canada. From 1942 to 1946, the project w ...
. Dunstan had never been happy that governors were usually British ex-servicemen and it was a personal goal of his to see an active and notable South Australian take on the role; Sir Mark Oliphant was uneventfully sworn in. Although the post is mostly ceremonial (with the exception of constitutional responsibilities), Oliphant brought energy to the role and he used his stature to decry damage to the environment caused by deforestation, excessive open-cut mining and pollution. Oliphant's tenure was successful and held in high regard, although he did come into conflict with the premier at times as both men were outspoken and strong-willed. In 1972, the first major developments in regard to the state's population growth occurred. Adelaide's population was set to increase to 1.3million and the MATS plan and water-storage schemes were in planning to accommodate this. These were summarily rejected by the Dunstan Government, which planned to build a new city 83kilometres from Adelaide, near Murray Bridge. The city, to be known as Monarto, was to be built on farmland to the west of the existing town. Dunstan was very much against allowing Adelaide's suburbs to further sprawl, and thus Monarto was a major focus of his government. He argued that the new South Eastern Freeway would allow a drive of only 45 minutes from Adelaide, that the city was not far from current industry, and that water could be readily supplied from the
River Murray The Murray River (in South Australia: River Murray) (Ngarrindjeri: ''Millewa'', Yorta Yorta: ''Tongala'') is a river in Southeastern Australia. It is Australia's longest river at extent. Its tributaries include five of the next six longest ...
. The government hoped Adelaide would not sprawl into the Mount Lofty Ranges to the east and that the bureaucracy would be dispersed from the capital. In contrast, public servants feared being forced into the rural settlement. Critics (of whom there were many) derided the project as "Dunstan's Versailles in the bush".Whitelock, p. 149. Environmental activists aired fears of the effects of Monarto on the River Murray, which was already suffering from pollution and salinity problems. Later on, it was noticed that there was hard bedrock underneath the ground, raising drainage problems. From 1970 to 1973, much legislation passed through the South Australian Parliament. Workers saw increases in welfare,Parkin, p. 7. drinking laws were further liberalised, an
Ombudsman An ombudsman (, also ,), ombud, ombuds, ombudswoman, ombudsperson or public advocate is an official who is usually appointed by the government or by parliament (usually with a significant degree of independence) to investigate complaints and at ...
was created, censorship was liberalised,Whitelock, p. 145. seat belts were made mandatory, the education system was overhauled, and the public service was gradually increased (doubling in size during the Dunstan era). Adelaide's water supply was fluoridated in 1971 and the age of majority was lowered from 21 to 18. A Commissioner of Consumer Affairs was created, a demerit point system was introduced to penalise poor driving practices in an attempt to cut the road toll, and compensation for workers was improved. Police autonomy and powers were restricted following a rally in opposition to the Vietnam War, which was broken up by police, although Dunstan had wanted the demonstrators to be able to close off the street. A royal commission was called into the police commissioner's disregard for Dunstan's orders, and resulted in legislation giving the government more control over the police; the commissioner then retired. The dress code for the
Parliament In modern politics, and history, a parliament is a legislative body of government. Generally, a modern parliament has three functions: representing the electorate, making laws, and overseeing the government via hearings and inquiries. Th ...
was relaxed during this period, the suit and tie was no longer seen as obligatory, and Dunstan himself caused media frenzy when he arrived at Parliament House in 1972 wearing pink shorts that ended above his knees. After his departure from public life he admitted that his sartorial statement may have gone beyond the limits. Nevertheless, his fashion sense resulted in his being voted "the sexiest political leader in Australia" by ''Woman's Day'' in 1975, and the image of Dunstan in the shorts remains iconic. Having played a part in Labor's abandonment of the White Australia Policy at national level, Dunstan was also prominent in promoting
multiculturalism The term multiculturalism has a range of meanings within the contexts of sociology, political philosophy, and colloquial use. In sociology and in everyday usage, it is a synonym for " ethnic pluralism", with the two terms often used interchang ...
. He was well known for his attendance at and patronage of Cornish, Italian and
Greek Australian Greek Australians ( el, Ελληνοαυστραλοί, ) are Australians of Greek ancestry. Greek Australians are one of the largest groups within the global Greek diaspora. As per the 2021 census, 424,750 people stated that they had Greek an ...
cultural festivals and his appreciation of Asian art, and sought to build on cultural respect to create trade links with Asia. Dunstan's involvement in such cultural exchanges was also credited with generating strong support for Labor from ethnic and non-Anglo-Saxon immigrant communities,Whitelock, p. 150. although it was viewed with suspicion by some in the Anglo-Saxon establishment.Whitelock, p. 151. Dunstan himself later recalled: "When I proposed the establishment of a Cornish Festival, in Australia's 'Little Cornwall', people of Cornish descent came flocking." Having been vocal in criticising Playford for sacrificing heritage to the march of development, Dunstan was prominent in protecting historic buildings from being bulldozed for high-rise office blocks. In 1972, the government intervened to purchase and thereby save Edmund Wright House on King William Street from being replaced with a skyscraper. In 1975, the Customs House at
Semaphore Semaphore (; ) is the use of an apparatus to create a visual signal transmitted over distance. A semaphore can be performed with devices including: fire, lights, flags, sunlight, and moving arms. Semaphores can be used for telegraphy when arr ...
was purchased to save it from demolition. His support of heritage preservation overlapped with his promotion of gourmet dining when his personal efforts helped to save the historic Ayers House on North Terrace, having it converted into a restaurant to avoid demolition.Whitelock, p. 144. In contrast, there were also some controversial developments. Part of the rocky Hallett Cove on Gulf St Vincent in Adelaide's southern suburbs was developed for housing, as were vineyards in
Morphettville Morphettville is a suburb of Adelaide, South Australia in the City of Marion. The northern part of the suburb is bounded by the Glenelg tram line, and fully occupied by the Morphettville Racecourse (horseracing track). The tram barn storage an ...
, Tea Tree Gully, Modbury, and Reynella.Whitelock, p. 152. This attracted criticism, as Dunstan was prominent in promoting South Australian viticulture and enotourism.Whitelock, p. 153. In pursuit of economic links with the nations of
South-East Asia Southeast Asia, also spelled South East Asia and South-East Asia, and also known as Southeastern Asia, South-eastern Asia or SEA, is the geographical south-eastern region of Asia, consisting of the regions that are situated south of mainland ...
, Dunstan came into contact with the leaders of the
Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...
n state of
Penang Penang ( ms, Pulau Pinang, is a Malaysian state located on the northwest coast of Peninsular Malaysia, by the Malacca Strait. It has two parts: Penang Island, where the capital city, George Town, is located, and Seberang Perai on the M ...
in 1973. Striking a note with Chong Eu Lim, the Chief Minister, Dunstan set about organising cultural and economic engagement between the two states. "Penang Week" was held in Adelaide in July, and in return, "South Australia Week" was held in Penang's capital, George Town. In the same year, the
Adelaide Festival Centre Adelaide Festival Centre, Australia's first multi-purpose arts centre and the home of South Australia's performing arts, was built in the 1970s, designed by Hassell Architects. The Festival Theatre opened in June 1973 with the rest of the centr ...
was openedAustralia's first multifunction performing arts complex. Over a six-year period, government funding for the arts was increased by a factor of seven and in 1978, the
South Australian Film Corporation South Australian Film Corporation (SAFC) is a South Australian Government statutory corporation established in 1972 to engage in film production and promote the film industry, located in Adelaide, South Australia. The Adelaide Studios are manage ...
commenced work. During Dunstan's time in charge, acclaimed films such as '' Breaker Morant'', '' Picnic at Hanging Rock'' and '' Storm Boy'' were made in the state. Dunstan's support of the arts and fine dining was credited by commentators with attracting artists, craftspeople and writers into the state,Whitelock, p. 146. helping to change its atmosphere. The Legislative Council, the upper house of Parliament, was, due to its limited
electoral roll An electoral roll (variously called an electoral register, voters roll, poll book or other description) is a compilation that lists persons who are entitled to vote for particular elections in a particular jurisdiction. The list is usually broke ...
, overwhelmingly non-Labor.Jaensch (1986), p. 498. Unlike the Lower House, its members were elected only by voters who met certain property and wealth requirements.Jaensch (1997), p. 38. Combined with the remains of the " Playmander" malapportionment,Jaensch (1997), p. 39. it was difficult for the Labor Party to achieve the representation it wished. The Legislative Council either watered down or outright rejected a considerable amount of Labor legislation; bills to legalise homosexuality, abolish
corporal Corporal is a military rank in use in some form by many militaries and by some police forces or other uniformed organizations. The word is derived from the medieval Italian phrase ("head of a body"). The rank is usually the lowest ranking non- ...
and
capital punishment Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...
and allow gambling and casinos were rejected.Parkin, p. 307. A referendum had indicated support for Friday night shopping, but Labor legislation was blocked in the upper house by the LCL.Parkin, p. 8. Dunstan called an election for March 1973, hoping to gain a mandate to seek changes to the council. The LCL were badly disunited; the more liberal wing of the party under Hall joined Dunstan in wanting to introduce universal suffrage for the upper house, while the more conservative members of the LCL did not. The conservatives then decided to limit Hall's powers, resulting in his resignation and creation of the breakaway Liberal Movement (LM), which overtly branded itself as a semi-autonomous component within the LCL. Labor capitalised on the opposition divisions to secure an easy victory. They campaigned under the slogan "South Australia's Doing Well with Labor", while the LCL was hampered by infighting; many LCL candidates were claiming different leaders in their electoral material depending on their factional allegiance.Parkin, p. 9. The Labor Party won with 51.5% of the primary vote and secured a second consecutive majority government with 26 seats. It was only the second time a Labor government in South Australia had been re-elected for a second term, the first being the early Thomas Price Labor government. It would be the first five-year-incumbent Labor government however. They also gained two more seats in the Legislative Council to have six of the twenty members.Parkin, p. 10. Labor entered the new term with momentum when a fortnight after the election, the LCL purged LM members from its ranks, forcing them to either quit the LM or leave the LCL and join the LM as a distinct party. Dunstan saw reform of the Legislative Council as an important goal, and later a prime achievement, of his Government. Labor, as a matter of party policy, wanted to see the Legislative Council abolished. Dunstan, seeing this as unfeasible in his term, set about to reform it instead. Two bills were prepared for Legislative Council reform; one to lower the voting age to 18 and introduce
universal suffrage Universal suffrage (also called universal franchise, general suffrage, and common suffrage of the common man) gives the right to vote to all adult citizens, regardless of wealth, income, gender, social status, race, ethnicity, or political sta ...
, and another to make councillors elected from a single statewide electorate under a system of
proportional representation Proportional representation (PR) refers to a type of electoral system under which subgroups of an electorate are reflected proportionately in the elected body. The concept applies mainly to geographical (e.g. states, regions) and political divis ...
. The LCL initially blocked both bills, stating that it would accept them only if modifications were made to the second one. Changes were conceded; unlike the House of Assembly, voting would not be compulsory and the preference system was to be slightly altered. Once the amendments were made, the legislation was passed. During his second term, Dunstan started efforts to build a petrochemical complex at Redcliff, near
Port Augusta Port Augusta is a small city in South Australia. Formerly a seaport, it is now a road traffic and railway junction city mainly located on the east coast of the Spencer Gulf immediately south of the gulf's head and about north of the state c ...
. Negotiations were held with several multinational companies, but nothing eventuated. Legislation was passed to create a Land Commission and introduce urban land price controls. However, a bill to create "a right to privacy" was defeated in the upper house after protests from journalists, as was legislation to mandate refunds to consumers for returning beverage containers and therefore promote recycling. In 1975, Dunstan declared Australia's first legal nude bathing reserve. Prior to the 1975 federal and
state State may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * ''State Magazine'', a monthly magazine published by the U.S. Department of State * ''The State'' (newspaper), a daily newspaper in Columbia, South Carolina, United States * ''Our S ...
elections, Australia, and South Australia in particular, had been hit by a series of economic problems. The
1973 oil crisis The 1973 oil crisis or first oil crisis began in October 1973 when the members of the Organization of Arab Petroleum Exporting Countries (OAPEC), led by Saudi Arabia, proclaimed an oil embargo. The embargo was targeted at nations that had su ...
had massively increased the cost of living, domestic industry began to erode due to a lack of cost-competitiveness, and government funds were waning. In response, the Dunstan Government sold loss-making railways to the Commonwealth and brought in new taxes to allow wage rises. The changes had unexpected consequences: inflation, already high, increased markedly, and workers were still displeased with wages. The LCL, now known as the Liberal Party, had rebuilt after internal schism and had modernised to make themselves more appealing to the public. Having called an early election, Dunstan appealed to the electorate and pushed blame onto the Whitlam Government for South Australia's problems. In a television address just days before the election, he said: "My Government is being smeared and it hurts. They want you to think we are to blame for Canberra's mistakes. The vote on Saturday is not for Canberra, not for Australia, but for South Australia." Labor remained the largest party in Parliament, but lost the two-party preferred vote at 49.2% and saw its numbers decrease from 26 to 23. The LCL held 20 seats, the Liberal Movement two, the Country Party one, and the last remaining with an independent, the nominally Labor Mayor of
Port Pirie Port Pirie is a small city on the east coast of the Spencer Gulf in South Australia, north of the state capital, Adelaide. The city has an expansive history which dates back to 1845. Port Pirie was the first proclaimed regional city in South A ...
,
Ted Connelly Edward Connelly (6 November 1918 – 17 September 2013) was an Australian politician. He was an independent member of the South Australian House of Assembly between 1975 and 1977, representing the electorate of Pirie. At the 1975 state ele ...
. Dunstan appealed to Connelly and offered him the role of
Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** In ...
.Parkin, pp. 310–311. However, the reforms to the Legislative Council's election bore fruit. Of the 11 seats up for election, Labor won six with 47.3% of the vote, and the LM two, allowing Labor a total of 10 seats. This meant they could now, with the help of the LM, push through reforms opposed by the Liberals.Parkin, p. 12. Dunstan continued to try to push through further legislation; he sought to expand on the Hall Government's electoral-boundaries reform, to bring it closer to
one vote one value In Australia, one vote, one value is a democratic principle, applied in electoral laws governing redistributions of electoral divisions of the House of Representatives. The principle calls for all electoral divisions to have the same number of e ...
. The legislation sought to establish 47 electoral districts containing roughly equal numbers of voters (with a 10% tolerance). Redistributions were to be presided over by an independent boundaries commission. The bill passed with the support of the breakaway LM in the upper houseformer Premier Steele Hall and his former Attorney-General Robin Millhouse. One famous demonstration of Dunstan's charismatic style and media savvy came in January 1976. A psychic predicted that, due to Dunstan and the state's social liberalisationwhich he saw as sinfulWhitelock, p. 141.God would destroy Adelaide with a
tsunami A tsunami ( ; from ja, 津波, lit=harbour wave, ) is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and other underwater exp ...
caused by an earthquake. This was publicised by the media, prompting a not insignificant number of residents to sell their property and leave; some businesses had clearance sales while many who decided to stay indulged in doomsday parties. Dunstan promised to stand on the seashore at Glenelg and wait for the imminent destruction. He did so on 20 January, the day of the predicted storm, and nothing happened, although he made newspaper headlines in the United Kingdom for his defiance. In 1976, the Dunstan Government stepped up its legislative efforts. Some bills, such as the one to remove the sodomy law and decriminalise male homosexuality, had been initially blocked by the Legislative Council.Parkin, p. 11. However, the bill to abolish
capital punishment Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that ...
passed with ease, and the homosexuality law reforms eventually passed in September.
Rape Rape is a type of sexual assault usually involving sexual intercourse or other forms of sexual penetration carried out against a person without their consent. The act may be carried out by physical force, coercion, abuse of authority, or ...
law was properly codified and defined as a crime within marriage for the first time in Australia. Shopping hours, previously the most restrictive in the nation, became the most open. Following a royal commission, Friday night shopping was introduced for the city and Thursday night shopping for the suburbs. The deposits on beverage containers was finally passed. The first signs of Monarto's eventual failure began to appear:
birth rate The birth rate for a given period is the total number of live human births per 1,000 population divided by the length of the period in years. The number of live births is normally taken from a universal registration system for births; populati ...
s started dropping significantly, immigration slowed and the economy was stagnant. South Australia's robust population growth, previously the highest per capita among the states, came to an abrupt halt. However, state money continued to be poured into the Monarto project, despite the fact that the Whitlam government cut funding to $600,000 in 1975, while his Liberal successor
Malcolm Fraser John Malcolm Fraser (; 21 May 1930 – 20 March 2015) was an Australian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Australia from 1975 to 1983, holding office as the leader of the Liberal Party of Australia. Fraser was raised on hi ...
gave nothing at all the following year. However, by the time Monarto was eventually scrapped after Dunstan's departure, no less than $20million had been used to buy land, plant trees and formulate development plans, and the failed project is often seen as Dunstan's greatest failure. In addition, the federal government removed subsidies for shipbuilding at
Whyalla Whyalla was founded as "Hummocks Hill", and was known by that name until 1916. It is the fourth most populous city in the Australian state of South Australia after Adelaide, Mount Gambier and Gawler and along with Port Pirie and Port Augusta ...
, forcing the operations to be scaled down. After Oliphant's term had expired, Dunstan appointed the first Indigenous Australian Governor, Sir Douglas Nicholls, a former football player and clergyman. Following Nicholls' resignation due to ill health in 1977, a second consecutive clergyman took the post,
Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...
Keith Seaman.Parkin, p. 13. However, this appointment was not successful; Seaman became involved in an unspecified scandal and made a statement admitting to a "grave impropriety", without elaborating further. He did not resign and kept a low profile from then on.Whitelock, p. 143. Dunstan also appointed Dame Roma Mitchell to become the nation's first female Supreme Court judge. Dunstan broke new ground in Australian politics with his policies on native title for Aboriginal people. The North West Aboriginal Reserve (NWAR) covered more than 7% of the state's land, and was inhabited by the
Pitjantjatjara people The Pitjantjatjara (; or ) are an Aboriginal people of the Central Australian desert near Uluru. They are closely related to the Yankunytjatjara and Ngaanyatjarra and their languages are, to a large extent, mutually intelligible (all are vari ...
. In 1977, when the NWAR was about to be transferred to the
Aboriginal Lands Trust In Australia, an Aboriginal land trust (ALT) is a type of non-profit organisation that holds the freehold title to an area of land on behalf of a community of Aboriginal Australians. The land has been legally granted to a community by the governme ...
, a tribal delegation asked for the lands to be given to the traditional owners. Dunstan agreed to an investigation, and subsequently introduced the Pitjantjatjara Land Rights Bill.Summers, p. 503. This bill proposed for a tribal body, the Anangu Pitjantjatjaraku, to take control of the NWAR and further lands after the claims were cleared by an independent tribunal. It also proposed to allow the body to decide mining proposals on the land and receive royalties. This aroused discontent among mining interests, but a bipartisan parliamentary committee endorsed the bill and it was tabled. However, Labor lost power before the bill was passed and although the new Liberal government said they would remove the mining restrictions, mass public rallies forced them to relent, and a bill similar to Dunstan's was passed. The legislation, the bedrock of which was laid by Dunstan, was the most reformist in Australia, and in the 1980s, more than 20% of the land was returned to its
traditional owners Native title is the designation given to the common law doctrine of Aboriginal title in Australia, which is the recognition by Australian law that Indigenous Australians (both Aboriginal Australian and Torres Strait Islander people) have right ...
. Dunstan called another snap election in September at the 1977 election; he hoped to recover from the previous election, the outcome of which had been affected by the dismissal of the Federal Labor Government. As the remnants of the Playmander had been abolished, conditions were more favourable for Labor and they wanted to end their reliance on the casting vote of the speaker. The campaign proceeded smoothly and exploited the unpopularity of the federal Liberal government, using the jingle "Thank the Lord for South Australia". Labor won an absolute majority with 51.6% of the primary vote and 27 seats.Parkin, p. 14.


Salisbury affair and departure from office

Since 1949, there had been a "Special Branch" within the South Australian Police, for the purposes of surveillance and espionage. Conceived in 1939 an "intelligence branch", to maintain surveillance of the large German Australian community during
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, it had amassed information on tens of thousands of individuals and organisations. While such an operation troubled Dunstan and his government because of civil liberties concerns, the branch's apparent party-political bias was even more worrying. In particular, it held information files on Labor parliamentarians, communists, church leaders and trade unionists, and so-called "pink files" on gay community activists which dated from the time before homosexuality was decriminalised. Although only two Labor MPs, from both federal and state parliaments, did not have files, the branch held significantly fewer files relating to Liberal Party figures. Dunstan had known of the existence of the branch since 1970, but said that he had been assured by the police commissioner that its files were not systematically focused on left-wing political figures. However, Peter Ward, a journalist and former Dunstan staffer, published a story about the files. An inquiry was conducted into the Special Branch by Justice White of the
Supreme Court of South Australia The Supreme Court of South Australia is the superior court of the Australian state of South Australia. The Supreme Court is the highest South Australian court in the Australian court hierarchy. It has unlimited jurisdiction within the state i ...
, and the report was placed in Dunstan's hands on 21 December 1977. It said the dossiers did exist and that they were "scandalously inaccurate, irrelevant to security purposes and outrageously unfair to hundreds, perhaps thousands, of loyal and worthy citizens". The report also noted that the files overwhelmingly focused on left-wing politicians and activists, and that Dunstan had been misled by the Police Commissioner, Harold Salisbury. After reviewing the findings, Dunstan sacked Salisbury in January and threatened to make the report public.Parkin, p. 15. However, controversy erupted regarding the inquiry and Dunstan's subsequent actions because Salisbury had a reputation as a man of integrity. Ward claimed that Dunstan had known about the true contents of the files for several years. A Royal Commission under Justice Mitchell, set up at the instigation of the Liberals, investigated the matter. It cleared the Dunstan Government of any error, and did not find that it had known about the Special Branch's activities earlier. Dunstan had sacked Salisbury for misleading Parliament about the existence of the "pink files" and many of the Special Branch files were burnt. Salisbury retired to the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...
with a $160,000 payout.
Stewart Cockburn Alexander Stewart Cockburn (16 October 1921 – 6 July 2009) was an Australian journalist, commentator and author from Adelaide, South Australia. History Cockburn was the only child of journalist Rodney Cockburn and his second wife, Ruby Ethel ...
wrote a book, ''The Salisbury Affair'', about the debacle.Parkin, pp. 14–15. There were initially no other major controversies for Dunstan, although the economy remained poor and the Redcliff complex was still in limbo, because an agreement with Dow was still to be finalised. The financial difficulties forced a freeze on public sector expansion and hospital developments, and there were claims of theft and mismanagement in the health system. However, the Liberal opposition was in a disorganised state and unpopular, so they were not able to pressure Dunstan effectively.Parkin, p. 16. Towards the end of the year, political and media scrutiny of Dunstan began to grow, and he became uneasy in his dealings with the press. Soon after the Salisbury dismissal, he walked out of a stormy media conference after refusing to be drawn on the rumoured sacking of Seaman from the gubernatorial role.Whitelock, p. 155. Increasing innuendo about Dunstan's private life, and allegations of corruption and economic mismanagement were worsened by Dunstan's self-righteous tendencies. The premier angrily denied claims that he was using government funds to build an opulent residence in Malaysia, as well as claims about his sexual lifestyle. He pre-emptively called a press conference on one occasion to denounce what he called "idiot rumours" and he further claimed that "reactionary forces" and "right-wing journalists" were engaged in a witchhunt against his "decent and responsible government".Whitelock, p. 156. Dunstan also faced difficulties on policy issues. Factional cracks began to appear in the Labor Party, and the discovery of uranium deposits near the northern outback town of Roxby Downs put the premier in a bind. Mining the uranium promised to provide a valuable economic boost in difficult times, but a government ban on its mining, on safety grounds, was still in force. Dunstan was opposed to uranium mining but was seen as lacking conviction by environmentalists, and he was also being criticised by industrialists. By May, his approval rating had fallen to 57%, down from 80% just two years earlier, and unemployment was increasing. It was also widely anticipated that a book titled ''It's Grossly Improper'' would soon be released, containing embarrassing allegations about Dunstan's private life. Together with Mike Rann, his press secretary and speechwriter (and later Premier), who had worked with him in 1978 on a series of speeches on
Aboriginal Land Rights Indigenous land rights are the rights of Indigenous peoples to land and natural resources therein, either individually or collectively, mostly in colonised countries. Land and resource-related rights are of fundamental importance to Indigenou ...
, industrial democracy and women's rights, Dunstan made a uranium fact-finding trip to
Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...
to study safe methods of generating
nuclear power Nuclear power is the use of nuclear reactions to produce electricity. Nuclear power can be obtained from nuclear fission, nuclear decay and nuclear fusion reactions. Presently, the vast majority of electricity from nuclear power is produced b ...
and of nuclear waste disposal. By the summer that followed Dunstan became extremely ill. When Parliament resumed, he collapsed on the floor of the House and was forced to use a walking stick; his doctor advised him that he required six months of rest to recover. The Liberal Opposition seized on the state of affairs and charged that the Labor Party was "as ailing as the man who led it". In a stage-managed press conference on 15 February 1979, Dunstan announced his retirement as premier from his room in Calvary Hospital, clearly shaking and wearing a dressing gown. The book, ''It's Grossly Improper'', by two Adelaide journalists, Des Ryan and Mike McEwen, was published later that year. Political scientist Andrew Parkin said one of Dunstan's main achievements was to debunk the notion that state governments and parliaments lacked the ability to make significant changes with profound impacts. As evidence, he cited Dunstan's sweeping social reforms and the fact that many other state governments followed South Australia's lead.Parkin, p. 20.


Life after politics

After Dunstan's resignation from Parliament, deputy
Des Corcoran James Desmond Corcoran AO (8 November 1928 – 3 January 2004) was an Australian politician, representing the South Australian Branch of the Australian Labor Party. He was the 37th Premier of South Australia, serving between 15 February 1979 ...
took his place as party leader and Premier. At the subsequent Norwood by-election, Dunstan's seat was retained by Labor. Corcoran soon called the 1979 election, which left the party with only 19 seats against the Liberals on 25 seats on an 8.4 percent two-party swing against Labor. The Tonkin Liberal Government came to power and officially abandoned the Monarto project. Dunstan took a trip to Europe after being released from hospital, staying in
Perugia Perugia (, , ; lat, Perusia) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber, and of the province of Perugia. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and part ...
for five months and pursuing Italian studies. He subsequently returned home and lived quietly in Adelaide for three years without finding work that appealed to him, such as that related to the shaping of public policy. During this time, he became increasingly disillusioned with South Australian political affairs. A book by two Adelaide journalists, ''It's Grossly Improper'', was released in November and sold out within a week. It alleged inappropriate use of government funds and a homosexual affair with a restaurateur, John Ceruto, in return for political favours. There was initial fanfare and speculation as to the authenticity of its claims; Dunstan dismissed the book as a "farrago of lies" in his 1981 memoirs, entitled ''Felicia''. From May 1980 to early 1981 he acted as editor for the magazine POL. In 1982, he moved to the neighbouring state of Victoria, and was appointed the Director of Tourism. This sparked an outcry in South Australia due to the two states' traditional rivalry. For his part, Dunstan said he had yearned to be given a role in shaping and building the future of his native state, but that he had been snubbed for three years. He said that public figures in South Australia had told him his high profile and ability to overshadow others could have caused a loss of face to them, and thus his departure would be seen favourably by them, while Victoria's offer gave him an opportunity to be constructive. Dunstan was appointed to the Victorian Economic Development Corporation on 12 July 1983, resigning on 23 June 1986. Dunstan stayed in the Director of Tourism role until 1986, when he returned to Adelaide after falling out with the government of
John Cain John Cain may refer to: * John Cain (34th Premier of Victoria) (1882–1957), Australian politician *John Cain (41st Premier of Victoria) (1931–2019), Australian politician, son of the above *John Cain (lawyer), Victorian Government Solicitor (20 ...
. His retirement from these positions followed the provocative publication of a photograph of him with Monsignor Porcamadonna, member of the gay community Order of Perpetual Indulgence, taken after he had launched a collection of coming out stories by gay historian Gary Wotherspoon. He was the national president of the ''Freedom from Hunger Campaign'' (1982–87), president of the ''Movement for Democracy in Fiji'' (from 1987), and national chairman of Community Aid Abroad (1992–93). Dunstan was an
adjunct professor An adjunct professor is a type of academic appointment in higher education who does not work at the establishment full-time. The terms of this appointment and the job security of the tenure vary in different parts of the world, however the genera ...
at the University of Adelaide from 1997 to 1999 and portrayed himself in the 1989 Australian independent film ''Against the Innocent''. In his retirement, Dunstan continued to be a passionate critic of
economic rationalism Economic rationalism is an Australian term often used in the discussion of macroeconomic policy, applicable to the economic policy of many governments around the world, in particular during the 1980s and 1990s. Economic rationalists tend to favour ...
(
neoliberalism Neoliberalism (also neo-liberalism) is a term used to signify the late 20th century political reappearance of 19th-century ideas associated with free-market capitalism after it fell into decline following the Second World War. A prominent f ...
) and
privatisation Privatization (also privatisation in British English) can mean several different things, most commonly referring to moving something from the public sector into the private sector. It is also sometimes used as a synonym for deregulation when ...
, particularly of South Australia's water, gas and
electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as describe ...
supplies. During the 1990s he wrote essays for the ''Adelaide Review'' magazine strongly criticising the Federal Labor Governments of
Bob Hawke Robert James Lee Hawke (9 December 1929 – 16 May 2019) was an Australian politician and union organiser who served as the 23rd prime minister of Australia from 1983 to 1991, holding office as the leader of the Australian Labor Party (A ...
and
Paul Keating Paul John Keating (born 18 January 1944) is an Australian former politician and unionist who served as the 24th prime minister of Australia from 1991 to 1996, holding office as the leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP). He previously serv ...
, the Federal Liberal Government of
John Howard John Winston Howard (born 26 July 1939) is an Australian former politician who served as the 25th prime minister of Australia from 1996 to 2007, holding office as leader of the Liberal Party. His eleven-year tenure as prime minister is the ...
and the State Liberal Governments of Dean Brown and John Olsen. He remained an advocate for
multiculturalism The term multiculturalism has a range of meanings within the contexts of sociology, political philosophy, and colloquial use. In sociology and in everyday usage, it is a synonym for " ethnic pluralism", with the two terms often used interchang ...
and cultural diversity, often writing about the dangers of
racism Racism is the belief that groups of humans possess different behavioral traits corresponding to inherited attributes and can be divided based on the superiority of one race over another. It may also mean prejudice, discrimination, or antagoni ...
. A year before his death, the ailing Dunstan decried Labor's economic rationalism in front of 5,000 at the Gough Whitlam Lecture. Regardless of the acclaim in which he was held during his decade in power, Dunstan was largely overlooked for honours after leaving office and largely ignored by the state's elite. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of Australia in June 1979, but no national parks or gardens were named after him.Whitelock, p. 157. The Dunstan Playhouse was later named to honour his contribution to the performing arts.


Personal life

Whilst living in Norwood and studying at university, Dunstan met his first wife, Gretel Elsasser, whose Jewish family had fled
Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...
to Australia. They married in 1949, and moved to Fiji. They returned to Adelaide in 1951 and settled in George Street, Norwood, with their young daughter, Bronwen. The family was forced to live in squalor for a number of years while Dunstan established his legal practice; during this time, they took in boarders as a source of extra income. Gretel later gave birth to two sons, Andrew and Paul. In 1972, Dunstan separated from his wife and moved into a small flat in Kent Town, adjacent to Norwood. The family home was sold as two of the children were already studying in university. In 1974, the couple were finally divorced. Dunstan notes this period as being initially a "very bleak and lonely" time for him. In absence of his family, he made new friends and acquaintances. Friends living nearby would come to his apartment for conversation and good foodcooking was Dunstan's hobby. Dunstan bought another house in 1974, partially financed from a then-unpublished cookbook. In 1976, ''Don Dunstan's Cookbook'' was publishedthe first cookbook released by a serving Australian leader. More generally, Dunstan promoted a revolution in fine dining in the state. Encouraged by Dunstan's enthusiasm for multiculturalism, many new restaurants were opened by proprietors and the diversity of cuisine increased. He also promoted the
viticulture Viticulture (from the Latin word for '' vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of '' Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, r ...
industry through his patronage of wine festivals. In 1973, Adele Koh, a Malaysian journalist formerly living in Singapore, was appointed to work for Dunstan. She had been expelled by the Singaporean Government of
Lee Kuan Yew Lee Kuan Yew (16 September 1923 – 23 March 2015), born Harry Lee Kuan Yew, often referred to by his initials LKY, was a Singaporean lawyer and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1959 and 1990, and Secretary-General o ...
for criticising its policies. The newspaper she had been working for, the ''Singapore Herald'', was shut down by the government and she then moved to Australia. The two began a relationship in 1974, and married in 1976 in a small ceremony at Dunstan's residence. Dunstan was much older than Adele, who was in her 30s. She was diagnosed with advanced
lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from transformed, mali ...
in May 1978, and died in October after Dunstan had cared for her at her bedside for months. Her death seriously affected him and his own health began to suffer. Although Dunstan never publicly commented on his sexuality, it has been said that he "lived as a sexually liberated bisexual man". In 1986, he met his future partner, Stephen Cheng, a post-graduate science student then in his twenties. Together, they opened a restaurant called "Don's Table" in 1994. He lived with Cheng in their Norwood home for the rest of his life. Cheng nursed Dunstan through lung cancer until his death, and Dunstan bequeathed their home to Cheng for life.


Death

In 1993, Dunstan was diagnosed with an aggressive throat cancer and then an inoperable
lung cancer Lung cancer, also known as lung carcinoma (since about 98–99% of all lung cancers are carcinomas), is a malignant lung tumor characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. Lung carcinomas derive from transformed, mali ...
, which led to his death on 6 February 1999. Dunstan was not a smoker but was long exposed to
passive smoking Passive smoking is the inhalation of tobacco smoke, called secondhand smoke (SHS), or environmental tobacco smoke (ETS), by persons other than the intended "active" smoker. It occurs when tobacco smoke enters an environment, causing its inhala ...
. A public memorial service was held on 9 February at the
Adelaide Festival Centre Adelaide Festival Centre, Australia's first multi-purpose arts centre and the home of South Australia's performing arts, was built in the 1970s, designed by Hassell Architects. The Festival Theatre opened in June 1973 with the rest of the centr ...
as a tribute to Dunstan's love of the arts. In attendance were former Labor Prime Ministers
Gough Whitlam Edward Gough Whitlam (11 July 191621 October 2014) was the 21st prime minister of Australia, serving from 1972 to 1975. The longest-serving federal leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) from 1967 to 1977, he was notable for being the h ...
and
Bob Hawke Robert James Lee Hawke (9 December 1929 – 16 May 2019) was an Australian politician and union organiser who served as the 23rd prime minister of Australia from 1983 to 1991, holding office as the leader of the Australian Labor Party (A ...
, Federal Opposition Leader
Kim Beazley Kim Christian Beazley (born 14 December 1948) is an Australian former politician and diplomat. He was leader of the Australian Labor Party (ALP) and leader of the opposition from 1996 to 2001 and 2005 to 2006, having previously been a cabinet ...
, Premier John Olsen, and State Opposition Leader Mike Rann. Thousands more gathered outside the centre in
Elder Park Elder Park is a public open space in the city of Adelaide, South Australia on the southern bank of the River Torrens and that is bordered by the Adelaide Festival Centre and North Terrace. The park is named after the Elder family who were ...
along the banks of the
River Torrens The River Torrens , (Karrawirra Parri / Karrawirraparri) is the most significant river of the Adelaide Plains. It was one of the main reasons for the siting of the city of Adelaide, capital of South Australia. It flows from its source in the ...
. State flags were flown at half-mast and the memorial service was televised live.


Legacy

A theatre in the Festival Centre was renamed the Dunstan Playhouse. The Electoral Commission of South Australia's 2012 redistribution included renaming the seat of Norwood to
Dunstan Saint Dunstan (c. 909 – 19 May 988) was an English bishop. He was successively Abbot of Glastonbury Abbey, Bishop of Worcester, Bishop of London and Archbishop of Canterbury, later canonised as a saint. His work restored monastic life in ...
which came into existence as of the 2014 election. In 2014 a biography ''Don Dunstan Intimacy & Liberty'' by Dino Hodge, written with the co-operation of Dunstan's family and former lovers, was published. In 1988, Dunstan donated a collection of files pertaining to his political, professional and personal life; photographs; press clippings; speeches and press releases; audiovisual material; books from his library; some items of clothing; and other memorabilia to
Flinders University Flinders University is a public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia, with a footprint extending across 11 locations in South Australia and the Northern Territory. Founded in 1966, it was named in honour of British navigator M ...
Library, where it can be viewed and accessed for research purposes (see
External links An internal link is a type of hyperlink on a web page to another page or resource, such as an image or document, on the same website or domain. Hyperlinks are considered either "external" or "internal" depending on their target or destination ...
).


Don Dunstan Foundation

The Don Dunstan Foundation was established by Dunstan at the
University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...
in 1999, shortly before his death, to push for progressive change and to honour Dunstan's memory. Dunstan had spent his last months helping to lay the platform for its establishment. At the inauguration of the body Dunstan had said, "What we need is a concentration on the kind of agenda which I followed and I hope that my death will be useful in this." The Foundation aims to represent and advocate for the values of its founder, such as
cultural diversity Cultural diversity is the quality of diverse or different cultures, as opposed to monoculture, the global monoculture, or a homogenization of cultures, akin to cultural evolution. The term "cultural diversity" can also refer to having different c ...
, fair
distribution of wealth The distribution of wealth is a comparison of the wealth of various members or groups in a society. It shows one aspect of economic inequality or economic heterogeneity. The distribution of wealth differs from the income distribution in th ...
,
human rights Human rights are moral principles or normsJames Nickel, with assistance from Thomas Pogge, M.B.E. Smith, and Leif Wenar, 13 December 2013, Stanford Encyclopedia of PhilosophyHuman Rights Retrieved 14 August 2014 for certain standards of hu ...
advocacy, and Indigenous rights in Australia. Among other initiatives, it runs a series of annual events, such as a conference on
homelessness Homelessness or houselessness – also known as a state of being unhoused or unsheltered – is the condition of lacking stable, safe, and adequate housing. People can be categorized as homeless if they are: * living on the streets, also kn ...
, the IPAA Don Dunstan Oration, and the Lowitja O'Donoghue Oration, Hugo Lecture, AdMental, Southgate Oration and Human Rights Oration. On 3 June 2020, Jane Lomax-Smith was announced as new chair of the organisation, taking over from Lynn Arnold, who had held the position for 10 years and remains on the Board as Director and Patron as of June 2022.


Don Dunstan Award

Since its commencement in 2003, the
Adelaide Film Festival The Adelaide Film Festival (AFF, formerly ADLFF) is film festival usually held for two weeks in mid-October in cinemas in Adelaide, South Australia. Originally presented biennially in March from 2003, since 2013 AFF has been held in October ...
has presented The Don Dunstan Award in recognition of outstanding contribution by an individual to the
Australian film industry The cinema of Australia had its beginnings with the 1906 production of ''The Story of the Kelly Gang'', arguably the world's first feature film. Since then, Australian crews have produced many films, a number of which have received internati ...
. Deemed by the Adelaide Film Festival's Board to have "enriched Australian screen culture through their work", its recipients include David Gulpilil,
Rolf de Heer Rolf de Heer (born 4 May 1951) is a Dutch Australian film director. De Heer was born in Heemskerk in the Netherlands but migrated to Sydney when he was eight years old.
, and Scott Hicks. After receiving the award in 2013, Hicks acknowledged Dunstan's vision for the creation of a film industry in South Australia as being instrumental to his professional development.


References

* * * * * *Hodge, Dino (2014) Don Dunstan : ''Intimacy & Libertya Political Biography''. Wakefield Press * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *


References


External links

*
Don Dunstan FoundationDunstan Collection, Flinders University Library
, - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Dunstan, Don 1926 births 1999 deaths Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of South Australia Australian people of Cornish descent Australian King's Counsel Bisexual men Bisexual politicians Deaths from cancer in South Australia Companions of the Order of Australia Lawyers from Adelaide Leaders of the Opposition in South Australia LGBT legislators in Australia People educated at St Peter's College, Adelaide Politicians from Suva Premiers of South Australia Treasurers of South Australia Adelaide Law School alumni 20th-century Australian lawyers 20th-century Australian politicians Attorneys-General of South Australia 20th-century LGBT people