|
|
|
REGISTERING FOR THE ARMY
From "January 1965" to
"December 1972" 63,735 men were conscripted out of the 804,286
eligible for National Service, of these 15,542 saw active service in
Vietnam.
During the Vietnam Conflict 200 National
Servicemen
were killed in action, and a further 800 were wounded.
The call-up notice
The national service scheme
required most men who turned twenty years of age and who were an
'ordinarily
resident' in Australia to
register with the Dept Labour and National Service (DLNS). Men turning
twenty
who were temporarily absent from the country at the time of their
birthday were
required to register within fourteen days of returning. From June 1968
men
turning twenty who intended to travel overseas could not do so without
first
obtaining permission from the DLNS, while airline and shipping
companies were
not to issue tickets to men in the twenty-year age group without first
obtaining a departmental certificate. However, the Government could
neither
prevent men liable to register from travelling to New Zealand, for
which a
passport was not required, nor prevent them from obtaining and using
British
passports, after which the Government had no way of tracing the men's
movements.
The
registration process involved filling in a form at a local national
service
registration office. There were two registration periods each year,
each
lasting a fortnight and widely publicised. The first, in January, was
for men
who turned twenty in the first half of the year. The second, in July,
was for
men turning twenty in the second half. Failure to register was an
offence.
Those who did not register without reasonable explanation were
automatically
balloted in and considered for call-up. They were also liable to be
fined.
Although men were legally required to register within their
registration
period, in practice registration was accepted without penalty up to the
date of
the ballot.
Young
men who had reached the age of eighteen years and nine months, and men
aged
twenty who had been granted indefinite deferment or exemption, could
volunteer
for national service. Volunteers could also request to serve in limited
duties
of a non-combatant nature.
I
can vividly remember coming home from work one day in late September of
the same year and chatting to my
mother while she watched afternoon television in the lounge room of the
house in Chifley NSW - ala Matraville. I
enquired if
there was any mail to which she answered that she hadn't looked, so I
ambled out
to the post box and took out a solitary letter which was addressed to
myself. I immediately knew what it was
because the
business styled brown
envelope had the then familiar title "ON HER MAJESTY'S SERVICE" on the
top left. I must say at this stage I took no notice of the
published selected 'dates of birth' ballots which appear in the
newspapers of the day.
I
took it back to the kitchen unopened and remember saying to my mother "Well this is it Mum, I'm
either in or out". The
letter contained a simple letter (previously shown), stating
that I had been selected in the National Service Draft.
I
would be advised in due course of what action would take place.
That was it, nothing else but I must admit, there was an air of
excitement about it all. I guess the anticipation and the
unexpected.
National service was
brought back for
a fourth time in 1964, and in May 1965 the Liberal government
introduced new
powers that enabled it to send national servicemen overseas. At that
time
Australian soldiers were involved with the war in Vietnam, and the Menzies
government wished
to raise the army’s numbers to 40,000 in order to meet overseas
commitments.
All 20-year-old males had to register with the Department of Labour and
National Service, and their names were selected by the “birthday
ballot”, in
which men were randomly selected for national service by their date of
birth.
Exemptions were given to Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders, the
medically
unfit, and theology students. Young men were granted exemption on the
grounds
of conscientious objection only if they could prove their objection to
war was
based on religious beliefs. A temporary deferment of national service
was
granted to university students, apprentices, married men, and those who
could
prove that national service would cause them financial hardship. Those
who were
selected for national service were required to serve for two years
full-time in
the regular army, and three years part-time in the reserves.
Immediately
I knew that I had to advise my employer, the NSW Police Department, of
my
situation. The following day I submitted
a report to my superiors informing them but there
was little or no reaction. That surprised me a bit.
The
police force had in place a system, like all government and semi
government departments,
where a person undergoing National Service would have his pay made up
to the amount
he would have received should he have not been called up.
Government Departments also did this during
WWII. There was a number of young policemen in my situation.
Whilst
this was great and really acted as a system of forced savings because
their allotment went straight into my bank account, it
was virtually an act of good
faith
by the employer but in reality it did act as a disencentive to me
particularly to
want to advance in the army. From memory
my combined pay (army-police) at the time was about equal to an army
lieutenant’s.
To
understand the call-up system and how it all worked it is
important to read the following information and statistics or if this
bores you, you can scroll down to chapter 2.
The official estimate of
the cost of
the War, above the normal cost of maintaining the armed forces in Australia, was $43 million at the
time of peak
involvement between 1967 and 1970, amounting to a total of $218.4
million from
1962 to March 1972.
Selected by a ballot system
As the number of
twenty-year-old men was greater than the number needed for the annual
intakes,
a ballot was held about four to six weeks after the close of each
registration
period to select those to be considered for call-up.
Selection for military
service
by ballot had been introduced with the approval of Cabinet in 1957 for
an
earlier national service scheme, and the selection procedures adopted
then were
unchanged.
Numbered marbles, each
representing two birthdates, were placed in a barrel. A predetermined
number of
marbles were drawn randomly by hand, one at a time. One hundred and
eighty-one
marbles were placed in the first ballot barrel, and 184 in the others.
The
number drawn depended on statistical calculations by the DLNS not only
of the
final number of national servicemen needed for military service, but
also of
how many registrants were expected to apply for exemption or were
already
exempt from service, and of how many were entitled to indefinite or
temporary
deferment.
The calculation also
made allowances
for those classified as medically unfit.
Once the ballot was
completed,
the results were sent to DLNS State
offices which held registration records. Within a month, all affected
by the
ballot knew if they were 'balloted in' or 'balloted out'. The former
received a
letter informing them of their rights to apply for exemption or
deferment; the
latter were told they were under no further obligation and were
indefinitely
deferred.
The
Government went to great lengths to ensure that the ballot was
conducted in a
fair, equal and random manner. The drawing of the ballot was conducted
as a
ceremony under the supervision of a representative of the Government
and the
marbles were drawn by a 'distinguished citizen' not associated with the
administration of the scheme. The procedure was supervised by senior
officers
of the army and the DLNS, and the marbles drawn were checked and
crosschecked
in the DLNS central office. The ceremony, up to the drawing of the
first
marble, was open to representatives of the press, radio and television,
but the
drawing of marbles was conducted in secret.
Also
secret for the first eleven of the sixteen ballots were the birthdates
that the
drawn marbles represented, for the Government wished to make it
impossible both
for the public to deduce the results of the ballots and for men whose
national
service obligation had been indefinitely deferred to deduce whether
deferral
had been granted as a result of the ballot or on other grounds
discussed below.
The
Government had three main reasons for such secrecy. First, it believed
that
publishing the ballot results would encourage men to register only
after their
ballot, having first waited to see which birthdays were drawn. This
could
assist those who desired to escape national service and add to the DLNS
administrative workload. Second, the Government was concerned that some
members
of the public might study the mathematical probability of the same
numbers
falling in successive ballots.
The
Government was convinced that such study could not lead to successful
evasion,
but it might prompt some registrants to give false birthdates and,
again,
increase the administrative workload substantially. Third, as not all
those
balloted in were called up, the Government did not want to be put in
the position
of explaining why some men balloted in were not called up. The DLNS
believed
that this could lead to delicate situations and a breach of
confidentiality
between the department and registrants, especially those with mental or
physical illness or defects, or those considered a security risk.
Growing
criticism and suspicion of the secrecy of the ballot led to increasing
pressure
on the Government to publish the birthdates. In 1970 the DLNS examined
the
ballot arrangements and on 12 June that year the Minister for Labour
and
National Service, Billy Snedden, announced that the ballot dates would
be
published from September.
Birthdates drawn in the
eighth
National Service ballot: 13 September 1968
This is the
ballot I
figured in.
Men
included in the ballot who were born in the period 1 July 1948 to 31 December 1948.
July
3, 21, 22, 24, 30
August 1,
3, 16, 18, 24,
26
September
5, 9, 12, 14, 22, 23, 24, 26
October
3, 13, 18
November
5, 18, 24, 28, 29
December
7, 12, 14, 15, 19, 21, 22, 26
(August
1 is my birth date
– this is the one that got me)
Compulsory
military training
for was re-introduced in 1951 by the Liberal government as the National
Service
Scheme. The scheme was criticised as being irrelevant to modern defence
needs,
and for being a drain on the Regular Army’s finances and manpower. In
1959 the
scheme was abolished. National Service was re-introduced in 1964, and
in May
1965 the Liberal government introduced new powers that enabled it to
send
national servicemen to serve overseas.
National
servicemen
received the same pay and service benefits as
Regular Army volunteers. Naturally, the Army provided free meals,
accommodation, uniforms and work clothes, and medical, dental and
hospital
treatment. Unmarried soldiers of private rank were paid $34.16 a week
in 1966 - can you believe that? What moron would work for that
amount? Married privates received $45.71. Extra pay margins were
awarded if soldiers
qualified
at trade courses conducted at Army schools and were employed in that
trade in
their units. An additional combat allowance was awarded during service
overseas. Other benefits included the following:
*
|
Three
weeks' annual leave, with free travel, except for married soldiers
whose families lived in the station area. |
*
|
After
two years' service, a gratuity of $80. If discharged on medical grounds
before
completing two years' service, a gratuity of not less than
$40. |
*
|
After
two years' continuous service, an additional seven days' leave with pay
or one
week's extra pay. |
The
National Service scheme
was introduced by the Menzies Government in November 1964 and operated
until
December 1972, when the newly elected Whitlam Labor Government
suspended it.
The scheme was based on a birthday ballot of twenty-year-old men who
had
registered their names with the Department of Employment and National
Service (DENS). If balloted in, these men were
called up to perform two years' continuous full-time service in the
Regular
Army Supplement, followed by three years' part-time service in the
Regular Army
Reserve. National servicemen on full-time duty were liable for what was
called
'special overseas service', which included combat duties in Vietnam. When the scheme was
introduced the
Government planned to raise 4200 servicemen during the second half of
1965,
then 6900 annually thereafter. This would create the desired Army
strength of
37 500 full-time soldiers. In 1965 Menzies announced that from
1966 the
annual intake would be maintained at 8400 (two intakes of 4200),
resulting in
an Army strength of 40 000. He explained that the Government's decision
had
been made 'in the light of the
successful
introduction of the national service scheme and bearing in mind all the
various
commitments, at home and abroad, which our forces might be required to
undertake'.
The
role of the DENS in
operating the scheme was to handle all matters dealing with call-up of
national
servicemen from the time of registration to the time service commenced
in the
Regular Army Supplement. The department administered all aspects
involving
registration, selection and examinations and answered questions
concerning
deferment or exemption from call-up. The day-to-day operation of the
scheme was
largely handled by the department's regional offices in the capital
cities and,
in country areas, by offices of the Commonwealth Employment Service.
Deferments and exemptions
Indefinite deferments were
granted to registrants who
married before callup; to those with a serious criminal record or who
posed a
security risk; and to those who had joined the part-time Citizen
Military
Forces, Citizen Naval Force or Citizen Air Force.
Medical, fitness, education and security
examinations
The
standards of fitness
required for national service in the Regular Army Supplement were the
same as
those for voluntary service in the Regular Army. Prospective national
servicemen underwent three examinations. To avoid loss of working time,
most
were held on weekday evenings or on Saturdays. Men balloted in who
failed to
report for a medical examination or deceived or obstructed a Medical
Board were
fined $100.
The
first examination was
conducted by one of the medical boards, usually consisting of two
casually
employed civilian doctors, that were convened at various centres around
Australia and performed their task
according
to standards laid down by the DENS. This examination consisted of a
study of
the man's medical history, a physical examination, and a urinalysis to
check
albumen and sugar. A chest x-ray was conducted if the man passed these
tests.
Doctors were instructed not to risk passing men who might become
medical
liabilities in action. Prospective national servicemen were then placed
in one
of four categories: A, or medically fit for all service duties and to
be called
up in the next intake; B. not at present meeting the required standards
and to
be called up and examined again; C, unfit for service; and D, unfit for
service
and advised to seek medical advice or treatment. The number of men
classified
unfit after this examination increased each year. In 1965, 37.7 per
cent of men
examined failed to meet Army standards; in 1967 and 1970 the failure
rate was
51.2 per cent. Three factors may explain the rise. First, it has been
suggested
that the increase was due to exploitation of the system. Several
doctors in
Victoria believed that a growing number of young men sought outside
medical
advice, such as that given by groups opposed to national service, and
took
'various tablets and potions' to become unfit.6 Secondly, it is also
possible
that a growing number of civilian doctors on medical boards sympathised
with
men who were unwilling to undertake national service. Thirdly, the
examination
became more rigorous as a consequence of the rising number of national
servicemen killed in Vietnam.
The
second examination was
an interview, in which men were asked details of their education and
employment
history so the Army could use what occupational skills they possessed.
Men who
had not obtained the Intermediate Certificate at school were required
to sit an
aptitude test conducted by a psychologist. The third examination was a
security
and character check, carried out with the assistance of the
Attorney-General's
Department, the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation, and the
Commonwealth Police, and was based on documents obtained without the
subject's
knowledge. Those who had been convicted of minor offences were usually
passed.
Those considered a security risk or who held a criminal record for a
character
which would make them unsuitable soldiers' received indefinite
deferrals.
Probation officers were involved in assessing whether 'borderline'
cases such
as parolees should be called up.
**
|
If
holding Intermediate Certificate at time of call-up, permission to
study on
Army time to gain
Matriculation level. If matriculated at
time of
call-up,
entitlement to undertake two years of a
three-year university degree
course by
correspondence at the Army's expense. |
*
|
Free
legal advice for those requiring assistance on matters relating to
financial commitments and re-entry to civil employment. Those sent to
'special service areas' overseas such as Vietnam, and the dependents of
such men,
were also entitled to settle their affairs at the Army's expense before
leaving Australia. |
*
|
Eligibility
for legal protection from finance agreements including mortgages,
debts, contracts and hire purchase agreements made before
the national serviceman received his call-up notice. What amounted to
financial assistance from
the Army continued after the end of full-time service. If the full-time
service was less than a year, the period was set at equal to the length
of time served. |
*
|
Training
under the National Service Vocational Training Scheme where the Army
believed a national serviceman's skills could be supplemented
by a course of study or a refresher course, whether full-time,
part-time or by correspondence,
or if the serviceman had no job to return to on completing national
service. The scheme
covered the cost of post discharge training, including compulsory fees,
travel fares, textbooks and
equipment, and a living allowance for those studying full-time. |
*
|
Transfer
whenever requested or on completion of national service to the
Australian Regular Army. The minimum service obligation in
the
Regular Army was
three or
six years.
|
*
|
Eligibility
for promotion to non-commissioned and commissioned ranks and to apply
to be
sent to the Officer Training Unit after
commencement of basic training.
National servicemen who in civil life were doctors or dentists or who
held a
commercial pilot's licence were also considered for officer training. |
*
|
From
1968, membership of the Defence Forces Retirement Benefit scheme,
giving
national
servicemen and their dependents invalidity,
death and
retirement
cover. |
*
|
Cover
under the provisions of the Commonwealth Employees' Compensation Act
for
service-caused death or injury. |
*
|
Pensions,
medical treatment and war-service-home rights under the Repatriation
(Special
Overseas Service) Act for those injured or
killed in Vietnam on service.
|
*
|
Pensions,
medical treatment and war-service-home rights under the Repatriation
(Special
Overseas Service) Act for those injured or
killed in Vietnam on service. |
The
Army was obliged to make
effective use of the trade skills of national servicemen. Subject to
vacancies,
these men were employed in the Arrny in their civilian occupation,
though the
Army could not guarantee that every skilled man would be so employed.
Early in
the administration of the scheme, after a large number of students and
apprentices called up in the first two ballots had deferred their
national
service obligation, the DENS became concerned about the potentially
large
number of skilled men liable for national service once the students and
apprentices completed their training. There was also a fear of
resistance from
trade unions (particularly metalworking and electrical industry unions)
as the
Army would not be able to employ all national servicemen in their
professional
occupations. DENS concerns appear to have been dispelled when
subsequent
intakes proved it had overestimated the numbers of deferments.
Men not required to
register
Men not required to
register for national service were:
Aborigines as defined by the National Service Act; members of the
Permanent
Armed Forces (which included the Regular Army) and former members who
had
served at least two years; United Nations staff; official personnel
from
foreign governments living in Australia; and, until January 1967,
non-British
subjects.
New
regulations commencing
in January 1967 during the fifth registration period exempted nationals
of Denmark, Switzerland, Morocco, Peru, Venezuela and Argentina from national service
under treaties
providing for mutual exemption from military service. In February that
year the
Nationality and Citizenship Bill was passed in Parliament, giving
non-British
immigrants liable for national service the right of citizenship after
three
months of national service on the condition they were efficient
soldiers.
Non-British subjects who volunteered to serve in the armed forces were
granted
the same right of citizenship. The Bill ensured that no national
serviceman
would serve overseas before having the opportunity of becoming an
Australian
citizen.
Other
conditions applying to
immigrants were as follows:
*
|
Men
with dual or plural nationality who were both British nationals and
Australian
citizens were required to register. |
*
|
Non-British
subjects who had completed or undertaken some military training
overseas were required to register in the normal way from
January 1967. However, men
who had
completed fifteen months' continuous full-time service in a
recognised
navy,
military or air force of a country other than Australia were granted
indefinite
deferment of call-up on 'submission of satisfactory documentary
evidence of
such service'. Those who completed less than fifteen months' service
were
required to undertake a reduced period of national service of two years
less
the period of their service overseas. Those with less than
fifteen
months'
overseas service could nominate to serve in the Citizen Military Forces
for a
period varying in length according to the period served overseas.
|
*
|
If
a male visitor to Australia were twenty years of age and in Australia
for more
than eleven months after 1 January 1967, he had to prove that
he was
not
'ordinarily resident' in Australia and establish temporary visitor
status
before being exempted from national service.
|
*
|
Until
legislative amendments in 1967, immigrants whose parents were
naturalised
Australians could renounce their citizenship and avoid
callup. |
*
|
The
option of part-time service in the Citizen Military Forces was open to
non-British subjects. They
were, however, required to meet conditions
of entry
and one of these conditions was that they had resided in Australia for a year. |
*
|
Non-British
subjects were permitted to volunteer for national service if they were
twenty
years of age or if they had reached the age of eighteen
years and nine
months
and had a good reason for wishing to volunteer for service ahead of
the
normal
call-up for their age group.
|
STATISTICS
Between 1964 and 1972, 804,286
twenty-year-olds registered
for national service and 63,735 national servicemen served in the Army.
Balloted
out: 567,
238
*
|
Granted
indefinite deferment: 566,513 |
*
|
Awaiting
'next' ballot: 725 |
Balloted
in: not eligible for
ballot, elected to serve in
the Citizen Military Forces, and volunteers: 237,048
*
|
Exemptions:
3,563
|
Theological students, ministers
of religion and members of
religious orders: 553
|
| Physical or mental disabilities:
1,768 |
| Conscientious
objection
determined by a court: 1,242 |
*
|
Indefinite
Deferments: 35,548
|
Married before the date of
call-up: 20,502 |
| Members of the Citizen Forces:
7,197 |
| Citizen
Forces whose obligations
completed: 7,849 |
*
|
No longer liable to be called
up: 102,134 |
Death subsequent to
registration: 916 |
| Served or
serving in Permanent
Forces: 2,194 |
| Rejected as
not meeting the
medical, psychological and
educational standards required by
the Army: 99,010 |
| Imprisoned
for refusal to obey a
call-up notice: 14 |
*
|
Unavailable
for call-up as at 31 December 1972:
21,876 |
Granted or
being considered for
deferment 15,526 |
| Granted or
seeking deferment on
grounds of exceptional
hardship: 470 |
| Under
investigation for
suspected breaches of National
Service Act: 3,890 |
| Granted
permission to leave Australia: 610 |
|
Migrants
not included elsewhere,
not yet due for call-up:
1,380
|
*
|
Called up and enlisted in the
Army: 63,740 |
*
|
Available for call-up
subject to
meeting the standards
required for Army service and the outcome of applications for
exemption or deferment: 10,187.
|
CONSCRIPTION
Opinion
polls: In Nov.
1964, 71 % supported conscription and in May 1965, 52% supported
sending troops
to Vietnam
In 1964 Australia enjoyed full employment
and had a
voluntary Army.
Also in 1964, 11,463 volunteered to join the Army. 71% were rejected as
"unsuitable". The Army needed 4,200 in 1965, based on the political
assessment of the tensions in Indonesia and the war in Vietnam, then 8,400 per year
until 1972.
1,012 men had been
determined by the courts to be
conscientious objectors whereas 34,970 had opted to join the CMF
So many conscripts were
keen to go to Vietnam that, at the stage of
allocation to
units, the Army was able to stream all but the most enthusiastic away
from
areas where overseas service would be likely.
NATIONAL SERVICE STATISTICS
761,854 men in
Australia turned 20 between 1965 -1972
150,330 were called up = 20% 1 chance in 5
of that number 90,782 were rejected on
medical, psychological, educational or security
/
criminal standard = 60%
59,548 were accepted, plus 4,187 successful volunteers, a total of
63,735.
=8% of 20 year olds 1 chance in 12
19,450 National Servicemen served in South Vietnam
= 33% 1
chance in 3
= 13% of those called up 1
chance in 8
= 2.5% of all 20 year olds 1
chance in 40
200 conscripts died in
South Vietnam
=1.03% of conscripts in Vietnam 1 chance in 97
=.0.33% of total conscripts 1 chance in 300
= 0. 13% of total called up 1 chance in 770
= 0.026% of 20 year olds between 1965-72 1 chance in 3,950
880 conscripts wounded
in South Vietnam
= 4.5% of conscripts in Vietnam 1 chance in 22
= 1.5% of total conscripts 1
chance in 66
= 0.6% of total called up 1 chance
in 167
= 0.12% of those turning 20 between 1965-72, 1 chance in 869
600 conscripts became non battle medical casualties in Vietnam
= 3% 1 chance in 33
Total
Men Registered 761,854
|
Statistical
chance of a 20 year old being:
|
Statistical
chances of a man who was ballotted being:
|
Statistical
chances of a conscripted soldier being:
|
Statistical
chances of a conscripted in Vietnam being:
|
Of
these, the number ballotted was: 150,330
|
Ballotted: 1
in 5
|
Rejected:
1 chance in 8
|
|
|
Of
these, the number conscripted for service was: 63,735 includes
4,187 volunteers.
|
Conscripted:
1 in 12
|
|
|
|
Of
these, the number posted to Vietnam was: 19,450
|
Posted: 1 in
39
|
Posted: 1 in
8
|
Posted: 1 in
3
|
|
Of
these, the number wounded in Vietnam was approx 880 which was:
|
Wounded: 1
in 866
|
Wounded: 1
in 167
|
Wounded: 1
in 66
|
Wounded: 1
in 22
|
Of
these, the number of non battle medical casualties 600 which was:
|
Non battle
casualties: 1 in 1269
|
Non battle
casualties: 1 in 250
|
Non battle
casualties:1 in 106
|
Casualties:
1 in 33 |
Of
these, the number of conscripts killed in Vietnam 200 which was:
|
Killed: 1 in
3950
|
Killed: 1 in
770
|
Killed: 1 in
300
|
Killed: 1 in
97
|
Hope I got all these right.
AUSTRALIANS WHO
SERVED
IN VIETNAM
|
Conscripts
|
19,450
|
Regular Army
|
22,460
|
Air Force
|
4,443
|
Navy
|
2,858
|
TOTAL
|
49,211
|
PERSPECTIVE: AUSTRALIANS
KILLED
IN OTHER WARS 100,879
TOTAL
DEATHS IN VIETNAM 501= 0.5%
AUSTRALIAN
CASUALTIES IN VIETNAM
|
|
AUSTRALIAN FORCES
|
ARMY
|
|
|
|
Army
|
RAAF
|
Navy
|
TOTAL
|
Regular
|
Conscript
|
CMF
|
TOTAL
|
|
Killed in Action
|
316
|
4
|
6
|
326
|
172
|
143
|
1
|
316
|
|
Died of Wounds
|
68
|
-
|
-
|
68
|
40
|
28
|
-
|
68
|
|
Killed
Accidentally
|
25
|
-
|
-
|
25
|
15
|
10
|
-
|
25
|
|
Missing
|
4
|
2
|
-
|
6
|
2
|
2
|
-
|
4
|
|
Non Battle Deaths
|
65
|
8
|
3
|
76
|
50
|
15
|
-
|
65
|
|
TOTAL DEATHS
|
479
|
14
|
9
|
502
|
278
|
200
|
1
|
479
|
|
Wounded
|
1875
|
30
|
13
|
2,026
|
986
|
|
