[Editor: This article, regarding the response of Australia’s political leaders after the fall of Singapore to the Japanese during the Second World War (1939-1945), was published in The Telegraph (Brisbane, Qld.), 16 February 1942.]
No word if A.I.F. moved or left on Singapore
The Minister for the Army (Mr. Forde) said that the Government had received a brief official advice from General Wavell announcing Singapore’s fall and was awaiting further details.
Mr. Forde was unable to indicate whether the A.I.F. was still on the island or had been moved elsewhere. The fall of Singapore was a heavy, bitter blow, and the Australian people should not try to disguise it in any way, he said.
The Government, he added, would certainly not seek to conceal from the Australian people the gravity of the situation which would now emerge as a direct result of Singapore’s fall.
“It is clear that the strategic possibilities of the campaign in the Pacific and Indian Oceans have altered to our disadvantage,” he said. “The degree of immediate danger to other areas, including Australia, in the defensive chain we had hoped to maintain intact, has increased very seriously indeed.
“There is no need and no time for dismay. The most important question for us all to ask in the perilously brief time we now possess is not ‘who is responsible?’ but ‘what is to be done?’” Mr. Forde continued.
“Pacific situation capable of control”
“It is the considered view of the Commonwealth Government,” he said, “that the Pacific situation is capable of control, and the people of Australia can be sure that the Government is doing its utmost.
“We intend to see that the lessons that the Empire has learned at so terrible a cost are applied with all rapidity to the fullest extent our influence and authority can command,” the Minister said. “It is possible to save this country and vital areas of the N.E.I. as bases from which to attack the enemy.
“With the whole-hearted, full-throttle co-operation of the Allied forces we will undoubtedly win through, but that can only be achieved if the whole of the people realise the gravity of the situation and act upon that realisation.
“Every citizen of Australia must, therefore, put behind him all thought of everything but his personal share in the war.
“Every man and woman in the country can see for himself or herself, without one further word being said, the pass we have reached and what personal contribution can be made. I urge all, without delay, to take up an active defence role, either in the fighting services of essential war industries, which must be speeded up to the maximum possible extent. We all now must either work or fight. Our existence may depend on it,” Mr. Forde added.
Mr. Forde said he had received no further news of Australian forces in New Guinea or Amboina.
The best barrier against advance
SYDNEY. — “This final blow will cause a great deal of grief to the people of Australia whose soldiers have participated in this great and gallant fight,” said the Minister for Air (Mr. Drakeford).
“The fall of Singapore should bring home to Australians the fact that civilian needs must give way immediately to essential war needs.
“Apart from actual fighting capacity, the best barrier we can throw up against the southward advance of Japan, is complete acceptance of the fact that the entire Australian people must now throw every ounce of effort into defensive and offensive action.”
Will sport be continued?
Japan’s entry into the war caused sporting bodies to consider whether they should continue with their plans. Several bodies went to the Prime Minister direct for guidance. They decided to carry on until such time as the Prime Minister himself advised them that it was not in the interests of the nation.
To-day the Prime Minister said: “I feel that the stature of our race is such that we can put playtime aside. The hours previously devoted to sport and leisure must now be given to the duties of war.”
Those sporting bodies must now reconsider their position in the light of recent developments and Mr. Curtin’s speech. It now becomes a question of whether the Prime Minister inferred that the time had come to end competitive sport. They will now have to await clarification of the position before going ahead with their plans.
Source:
The Telegraph (Brisbane, Qld.), 16 February 1942, p. 5 (City Final edition)
Editor’s notes:
A.I.F. = Australian Imperial Force; the First Australian Imperial Force was created in 1914 to fight in World War One, the Second Australian Imperial Force was created in 1939 to fight in World War Two
Amboina = (also spelt: Amboyna; now usually rendered as: Ambon) Ambon Island (part of Indonesia; previously part of the Dutch East Indies)
See: 1) “Ambon: island, Indonesia”, Encyclopaedia Britannica
2) “Ambon Island”, Wikipedia
Commonwealth Government = the government of the Commonwealth of Australia, i.e. the federal government of Australia
Drakeford = Arthur Samuel Drakeford (1878-1957), engine driver, trade unionist, and Labor Party politician; he was born in Fitzroy (Victoria) in 1878, served in several roles as a Minister (Air, Civil Aviation, and Navy), and died in Moonee Ponds (Vic.) in 1957
See: 1) Frank Bongiorno, “Arthur Samuel Drakeford (1878–1957)”, Australian Dictionary of Biography
2) “Arthur Drakeford”, Wikipedia
Empire = in the context of early Australia, the British Empire
Forde = Francis Michael Forde (1890-1983), commonly known as Frank; a schoolteacher, telegraphist, Labor Party politician, Prime Minister of Australia (1945), and diplomat; he was born in Mitchell (Queensland) in 1890, served in several roles as a Minister (Trade and Customs, Army, and Defence), was Prime Minister for seven days (6-13 July 1945), and died in Brisbane (Qld.) in 1983
See: 1) Neil Lloyd and Malcolm Saunders, “Francis Michael (Frank) Forde (1890–1983)”, Australian Dictionary of Biography
2) “Frank Forde”, Wikipedia
Minister = (in the context of various British Commonwealth countries, including Australia) a Minister of the Crown (including the Prime Minister); a government minister who is responsible for overseeing a government department, formulating government policy, and/or making decisions on issues affecting the country; someone who is part of the government Ministry or Cabinet
N.E.I. = the Netherlands East Indies (also known as the Dutch East Indies)
See: “Dutch East Indies”, Wikipedia
Wavell = Archibald Percival Wavell (1883-1950), 1st Earl Wavell; an officer in the British Army, who served in the Boer War (1899-1902), the Bazar Valley Campaign (India, 1908), the First World War (1914-1918), and the Second World War (1939-1945), and rose to the rank of Field Marshal; he was born in Colchester (Essex, England) in 1899, and died in London (England) in 1950
See: 1) “Archibald Percival Wavell, 1st Earl Wavell: British field marshal”, Encyclopaedia Britannica
2) “Archibald Wavell, 1st Earl Wavell”, Wikipedia
[Editor: Changed “undobutedly” to “undoubtedly”.]
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