book

Speech - Australia and the Vietnam War

21 Pages 802 Words 1557 Views

?From the year 1962 to 1972, over 60 thousand Australian Servicemen were sent to Vietnam to partake in one of the most controversial events in all of Australia’s History. Many believe we should have been involved in the Vietnam war because of our “geographical proximity," “the domino theory” or our “alliance with the USA," however throughout this speech, I will share why I believe Australia, as a nation, should have never participated. Australia should not have been involved in the war due to the inhumane conduct through uses of chemical warfare, Robert Menzies deceiving the nation and the Australian public’s opinion. In a speech Robert Menzies presented to Parliament on the 29th of April 1965 he said: “The Australian Government is now in receipt of a request from the Government of South Viet Nam for further military assistance.” After analysing this, Menzies clearly means that the government of South Vietnam requested our help, however the South Vietnamese Prime Minister wrote to the Australian Ambassador based in Saigon saying: “I have the honour to refer to your letter ... confirming the Australian Government’s offer to send to Vietnam an infantry battalion...in assisting the defence of the Republic of Vietnam. I wish to confirm my government’s acceptance of this offer....” These differentiating primary quote sources do pose a lot of confusion, although South Vietnam did not directly appeal for our assistance. For this reason I do not believe Australia should have been involved in The Vietnam War unless we were requested to help. The lives of too many were lost in a War that we were not obligated to participate in, because the Australian Prime Minister deceived the nation. Inhumane warfare conduct has been one of the most scandalous facets of the Vietnam War. Over 80 million litres of chemicals, including Agent Orange were sprayed in the Vietnam War. However, the Geneva Protocol, signed in 1925 clearly prohi

Read Full Essay