Australia: WikiLeaks cables reveal ties between Rudd coup plotters and US embassy

[Hannah Bell]

The latest batch of the several hundred leaked US diplomatic cables concerning Australia... provide further extraordinary evidence of Washington’s direct involvement in the anti-democratic coup against former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd last June.

Key coup plotters in the Labor Party and trade unions — including senators Mark Arbib and David Feeney, and Australian Workers Union chief Paul Howes — secretly provided the US embassy with regular updates on internal government discussions and divisions within the leadership.

As early as June 2008, the American ambassador identified Julia Gillard as the “front-runner” to replace Rudd.

In October 2009, i.e., eight months before Gillard was installed in unprecedented circumstances, Mark Arbib informed American officials of emerging leadership tensions.

The Australian people, on the other hand, were kept entirely in the dark about any differences between the prime minister and his colleagues until after Rudd was ousted...

The cables make clear that Arbib and the other identified MPs function not simply as mere US “sources”, as characterised in the media today—but rather as agents. Within the Labor and trade unions apparatuses, these party members serve as conduits for Washington’s agenda. The embassy communications reveal the extent to which the US government determines Australian foreign policy and dictates who will hold senior government posts, including the office of prime minister.

A precise chronology of Washington’s sordid, behind-the-scenes manipulation of Australian political affairs, between the Labor Party’s election victory in November 2007 and Rudd’s axing in June 2010, is likely to emerge once WikiLeaks releases the full cache of relevant cables.

Already, however, it is now beyond dispute that Washington began cultivating Gillard at the same time as embassy officials were issuing damning assessments of Rudd, above all over his stance on Beijing.

http://www.wsws.org/articles/2010/dec2010/aust-d09.shtml

[Catherina]

1. This stuff just keeps getting better and better. Rec'd

[madmax]

2. 'They hate us for our freedom...' g.w. bush

Everyone hates us for our fucking meddling in every nations affairs and bullying them into submission or outright invasion as was the case in Iraq.

"A precise chronology of Washington’s sordid, behind-the-scenes manipulation of Australian political affairs, between the Labor Party’s election victory in November 2007 and Rudd’s axing in June 2010, is likely to emerge once WikiLeaks releases the full cache of relevant cables.

Already, however, it is now beyond dispute that Washington began cultivating Gillard at the same time as embassy officials were issuing damning assessments of Rudd, above all over his stance on Beijing."
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2010/dec2010/aust-d09.shtm...

[gateley]

3. Jesus. nt

[Ichingcarpenter]

4. K & R n/t

[EFerrari]

5. I don't know very much about Australia.

Could this bring down that government?

[Hannah Bell]

6. Causing it a bit of embarrassment apparently:

Australian minister 'not a spy' for US: colleagues

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5gmf0JBkXT3i3ChsWK3mY5oa2vZxA?docId=CNG.c41db06392485b1ac24c577f6d55fb67.561


Gillard red-faced after calling WikiLeaks 'illegal'

http://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/1434991/Gillard-red-faced-after-calling-WikiLeaks-'illegal'

[EFerrari]

8. People seemed upset enough before this last leak was posted

because of the government's failure to defend Assange. I saw a poll last night at a Melbourne paper that showed 87% of respondents believed the Assange arrest was political. It was just a net poll but, still.

[formercia]

12. Agenda

Methinks.

[Violet_Crumble]

13. What's bad is that the US knew of the plot months before the Australian public did...

That really says something, doesn't it? For me it makes the whole overthrow of Rudd just that bit more unpalatable and it really puts more of a nasty taint on Julia Gillard, who until the coup couldn't do a thing wrong as far as I was concerned...

[EFerrari]

14. The bit about how she could be expected to vote could have been written

about most mainstream national Democrats in this country.

[laughingliberal]

7. K & R nt

[malaise]

9. Oops

K & R

[Luminous Animal]

10. Nothing to see here. Move along. Move along.

[leveymg]

11. This looks like a repeat of the Poppy Bush coup that toppled PM Whitlam in'75.

A BFEE tradition continues.

[Turborama]

15. Thanks for posting this, Hannah. Do you know if it's in any mainstream papers in Australia?

Who would have thought that America would be involved in a coup in Australia? And for what purpose? Big coal and oil hating Rudd's stance on climate change?

[Alamuti Lotus]

16. Not the first time Australia has had US gov't deciding it's leaders

The year of 1976 stands out for some reason, I shall have to consult Blum's book to be sure..