Conservatives Divided: Defending Rhodesia Against Malcolm Fraser 1976-1978

Understanding the conflict between pro- and anti-Rhodesian government parliamentarians is the only way to understand how and why Australia struggled to formulate a coherent Rhodesia policy. It reveals the extent to which Malcolm Fraser had to struggle against his own party in this matter and adds needed nuance to this period. Fraser's opinion that Rhodesia was a racist and immoral project caused a schism in the Coalition parties. Despite Fraser's open antipathy towards Rhodesia, Rhodesia's interests in Australia were largely safeguarded. This reflects the reality that the Liberal and National Country Parties contained sizeable blocs of parliamentarians who openly and publicly saw Rhodesia as a fraternal country, not a dangerous pariah. They did not hold these beliefs passively and actively sought to resist any moves made by Fraser to damage Rhodesia and its interests. By following the development of Fraser's Rhodesia policy in the late 1970s the power of Rhodesia's allies in the Australian parliament becomes clear. Opposing Rhodesia was touted by Fraser as one of the greatest achievements of his government, yet the issue was divisive and caused bitter infighting.     

The Yellow Cake Road: Malcolm Fraser,the Ranger Enquiry and Australia's Role in the US International Fuel Cycle Project

The 1975–1983 Fraser Government failed to develop an enrichment industry in Australia but did see the initiation of uranium sales following the adoption of the Ranger Enquiry. Both of these developments were shaped by US nuclear commercial and non‐proliferation policies during the Ford and Carter Administrations, which aimed to restrict the spread of enrichment technology. Fraser would come to realise that it was not a question of private ownership of the nuclear fuel cycle, but of accepting a role for Australia in the international fuel cycle as a supplier of cheap yellowcake.     

Malcolm Caldwell

This paper is an analysis of the role played by the 1952 language movement (bhasha andolan) in East Bengal in the development of a Bengali nationalist discourse. The language movement forged a conscious link between various subaltern social groups, enabling them to transcend existing barriers and transform them into formidable political actors. Using the concept of counter hegemonic striving, this paper argues that the language movement was a definitive outcome of years of counter hegemonic activities of the Bengali subalterns.

This process of counter hegemony was especially evident in the peasant insurgency in rural areas and in the building of an alternative political organization. The articulation of political power through these two processes stands in sharp contrast to the efforts of the Muslim League, both ideologically and politically. It negated the idea of the very existence of the Pakistan state, and facilitated new ways of articulating the concept of Bengali nationalism. Although the unit forged by the language movement was short-lived it, nonetheless, underscored the existence of an indigenous political culture to the subalterns and paved the way for the historic emergence of a separate nationstate in 1971 — Bangladesh.     

The Evolution of Malcolm Fraser's China Policy

This article explores the evolution of Malcolm Fraser's views on China. While Gough Whitlam is fondly remembered as a trailblazer for normalizing Australia‐China relations, Fraser was a pioneer in rendering a sense of bipartisanship in Australia's China policy. Fraser was not initially a Sino‐enthusiast, however. He came from a background of staunch anti‐Communism and throughout the 1950s and 1960s believed that China posed a major threat to stability in the Asia‐Pacific. The Liberal Party fiercely opposed the Whitlam government's decision to normalise diplomatic relations with China in 1972. Following the Whitlam dismissal in 1975, Fraser became Prime Minister and, in what seemed to be an abrupt departure from the Liberal Party's position, thoroughly embraced relations with China. As Leader of the Opposition, Whitlam called out the hypocrisy of the Liberal Party's radical policy shift. This study examines the domestic and international dynamics that shaped Fraser's views on China and ultimate adoption of a successful China policy. This is the untold story of a crucial turning point in Australia‐China relations under the leadership of a conservative government, in which a strong relationship with China became a cornerstone of bipartisan Australian foreign policy.     

Wars in the Balkans: Personal recollections

An examination of South Africa's different foreign policy role conceptions under the administrations of Nelson Mandela and Thabo Mbeki, highlighting the respective governments’ strategies in carving a niche for the country in global relations.     

Australia's Battle against the Common Agricultural Policy: The Fraser Government's Trade Diplomacy and the European Community

The aim of this article is to offer a different interpretation of Fraser Government's diplomacy towards the European Community. In particular, it will be argued that, although Fraser's European policy was unsuccessful, this was not principally his fault since no matter what sort of approach he adopted, no major result could have been obtained from Brussels. Second, this article will argue that Fraser clearly understood the EC's internal political dynamics and acted accordingly. If he failed to achieve results, it was not because he lacked an understanding of the complexity of the EC's constitutional realities, but because these realities were too complex for anyone to overcome. Thirdly, it will be argued that Fraser did not attribute a disproportionate importance to agriculture, since this was far and away the most important issue for Australia.     

欧洲文化多元主义:理念与反思

自2010年以来,文化多元主义在欧洲多个国家"被宣告"失败,深刻地反映了欧洲社会在文化多样性问题上厚此薄彼的态度——积极支持欧洲本土文化的多样性,却消极对待以移民群体为代表的非欧洲文化的存在;文化纠结是当代欧洲文化多元主义实践中的一种真实心态,折射出他们在国家与民族认同层面上的价值诉求;欧洲国家不应当仍旧把持"单一民族"国家的观念去治理和应对一个实际上已经"多民族化"的国家现实,"多元一体"应当成为未来国家与民族建构的指向。     

Reflections on Economic Sovietology: A Comment

A specialist on Russian politics and society examines the apparent success of economic and political liberalism in Novgorod oblast' in the 1990s. The article is based on published and unpublished documentary sources from the region, as well as in-depth, repeated interviews with local officials during 1997-1999. Focus is on progress in economic reform, finance, and foreign investment, forms of political decentralization and representation, the growth civic associations, and styles of political leadership. Several explanations for these outcomes are proposed and discussed.     

A Personal Eulogy

Two specialists on Russian society and politics analyze how Russians view human rights and the conflict in Chechnya, as well as factors shaping views on these issues within Russia, based on a survey conducted in October 2001. The authors discuss how their results diverge from the findings of other studies of Russian public opinion on issues relating to democracy, consider several explanations for the patterns they observe, and propose some appropriate policy measures.     

The Personal Is Political: The Cuban Ethnic Electoral Policy Cycle

This article documents a U.S. Cuban foreign policy cycle that operated in tandem with the presidential electoral cycle between 1992 and 2004. During these post–Cold War years, when Cuba posed no threat to U.S. national security, influential, well-organized Cuban Americans leveraged political contributions and votes to tighten the embargo on travel and trade, especially at the personal level. U.S. presidential candidates, most notably incumbent presidents seeking re-election, responded to their demands with discretionary powers of office. When presidential candidates supported policies that made good electoral sense but conflicted with concerns of state, they subsequently reversed or left unimplemented Cuba initiatives. After describing the logic behind an ethnic electoral policy cycle and U.S. personal embargo policy between 1992 and 2004, this article examines Cuban American voter participation, political and policy preferences, lobbying, political contributions, and the relationship between the ethnic policy and presidential election cycles.