Bill Robertson (Australian intelligence officer)
Bill Robertson CBE, MC | |
---|---|
Director-General of the Australian Secret Intelligence Service | |
In office 3 July 1968 – 21 October 1975 | |
Prime Minister | John Gorton (1968–71) William McMahon (1971–72) Gough Whitlam (1972–75) |
Preceded by | Sir Walter Cawthorn |
Succeeded by | Ian Kennison |
Personal details | |
Born | Mentioned in Despatches | 2 February 1917
William Thomas Robertson,
During the
In 1952, Robertson was a founding member of the ASIS; its existence was to remain officially secret for two and a half decades.
Early life
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Robertson was born in
Military service
On 15 November 1939, Robertson joined the
From 1942, during the
In August 1943, Robertson was appointed to the position of
In early 1944, Robertson was posted to Britain, where he was GSO1 with the British 51st (Highland) Infantry Division, as it prepared for the invasion of Europe.[9][10] During the Normandy campaign, he was GSO1 of the British 50th (Northumbrian) Infantry Division.
Intelligence career
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Dismissal as Director-General
On becoming informed of a CIA operation in Chile in February 1973 which involved ASIS, the then Labor Prime Minister Gough Whitlam signed a document ordering the closure of ASIS operations in Chile. It appears, however, that ASIS agents did not leave Chile until October 1973, after the 1973 Chilean coup d'état had brought down the Allende Government. Whitlam accused Robertson of disobeying instructions by delaying the closure of the ASIS station in Chile.
In the lead up to Indonesia’s invasion of East Timor in 1975, ASIS paid a Dili-based Australian businessman Frank Favaro for information on local political developments. The leaking of his identity in late 1975 led to another confrontation between Whitlam and Robertson.[11][12]
These incidents led to Whitlam sacking Robertson on 21 October 1975, with effect on 7 November, just 4 days before Whitlam's own dismissal in the 1975 Australian constitutional crisis, although Robertson disputes the reason for his dismissal in documents lodged with the National Archives in 2009.[13]
References
- ^ Robertson, Malcolm (7 January 2011). "War hero founded spy agency". The Age. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
- ^ "Lieutenant-Colonel Bill Robertson". The Telegraph. 13 January 2011. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
- ^ Downer, Alexander. "Australian Secret Intelligence Service". Questions in Writing. Parliament of Australia. Retrieved 3 March 2012.
- ^ Obituary, Courier Mail
- ^ Volume I – To Benghazi
- ^ Volume II – Greece, Crete and Syria
- ^ Volume V – South–West Pacific Area
- ^ Volume V – South–West Pacific Area
- ^ Converse, p. 185
- ^ Volume VII – The Final Campaigns
- ^ "ASIS – Favaro affair". Nautilus Institute. 19 December 2011. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
- ^ "Intelligence boss showed strength". The Age. 15 January 2011. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
- ^ Suich, Max (20 March 2010). "Spymaster stirs spectre of covert foreign activities". The Australian. Retrieved 30 October 2016.
Bibliography
- Converse, Alan (2011). Armies of Empire: The 9th Australian and 50th British Divisions in Battle 1939–1945. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0521194808.