MS 9535
Papers of Denis Freney (1936-1995)
Scope and Content Note
Creator: Denis Freney
Title: Papers of Denis Freney
Date range: 1961-95
Reference number: MS 9535
Extent: 2.54 m (19 boxes)
Administrative Information
Access: Available for public reference except for Series 1; Series 3,
Folders 1 8 and Series 7, Folder 8 which are restricted.
Provenance: The collection was donated to the Library by David McKnight
in six instalments in 1997, 1998, 2000 and 2001.
The collection comprises correspondence, notebooks, brochures, flyers,
journal articles, memorabilia, newscuttings, pamphlets, photographs, press
releases, reports and research material. They document Freneys career and
activities as a teacher, political activist, journalist and writer. The papers
particularly relate to Freneys involvement in the Campaign for an
Independent East Timor as well as independence campaigns in New Caledonia and
Vanuatu. Other topics include the Nugan Hand Bank and crime and corruption in
Australia in the 1970s and 1980s.
Correspondents include Abilio Araujo, Julie Ann Ellis, José Ramos
Horta, Brian Manning, Warwick Neilly, Michel Pablo, Chris Santos and Barak
Sope. Folder 1 in Series 3 contains further correspondence by José Ramos
Horta which has been given to Freney.
Arrangement: The six instalments have been amalgamated and arranged into
seven series. Where possible, the original arrangement of the papers and file
titles have been preserved by the Library.
Biographical Note
Denis Freney was born in Sydney in September 1936 and grew up in the
suburbs of Sans Souci and Harbord. He attended North Sydney Boys High School
(1948-52) where he gained his Leaving Certificate. He then studied at the
University of Sydney (1953-55) gaining his Bachelor of Arts. This was followed
by a Diploma of Education (1956).
At the age of sixteen Freney joined the Australian Labor Party and then
later at Sydney University joined the Communist Party of Australia. He became
disenchanted with the party after the denunciation of Stalin by Khruschev in
1956 and the Soviet invasion of Hungary. He then joined the Trotskyist
movement.
He began teaching in 1957, first at Balgowlah High School and then later
in Cessnock. In 1960 he left Australia for Europe. During this time he visited
many countries and made contact with members of Communist Parties and the
Trotskyist movement. He visited South Africa in 1961-62 and then travelled to
Algeria in 1963-65 to work with the Algerian Press Service and with Michel
Pablo, a member of the Trotskyist Fourth International and an adviser to the
new government.
In 1968 Freney returned to Australia where he helped organise many
demonstrations against the war in Vietnam. In 1971 he was instrumental in
organising the massive campaign against the Springbok rugby tour which ended
sporting contacts with South Africa. This was followed by his involvement in
the Campaign for an Independent East Timor and the independence struggles in
New Caledonia and Vanuatu.
During the 1970s he also wrote one of the first articles in Australia
reporting the emergence of the militant gay liberation movement in New York. A
short time later he publicly acknowledged his own sexuality and became one of
the early activists in the gay movement in Australia.
Freney was a journalist and sub-editor for Tribune, the
magazine of the Communist Party of Australia in 1970-76 and again in 1980-91.
He was also editor of East Timor News in 1976-79 and editor
of Seli Hoo (a monthly magazine on the Vanuatu and New Caledonian
independence movement) in 1977-79.
Following his fiftieth birthday in September 1986 Freney decided to
write his autobiography. A map of days was published in 1991. This was
followed by Larry Death, a political thriller, which was also
published in 1991. Freney died from cancer in September 1995.
Publications
East Timor; the fight for independence, Sydney, D. Freney,
1975
In defence of the Vietnamese revolution: against its Trotskyist
detractors, Annandale, D. Freney, 1975
Timor: freedom caught between the powers, Nottingham, Bertrand
Russell Peace Foundation for Spokesman Books, 1975
The CIAs Australian connection, Sydney South, D. Freney,
1977
Australias CIA connection , 1977
The Socialist Labour League: the Moonies of the left, Sydney
South, D. Freney, 1982
Polish voices: interviews with Solidarity, Red Pen, 1981
All the way with the CIA? The Labor Committee for Pacific Affairs
and the attack on the Pacific trade unions, Sydney, D. Freney,
1984
Nazis out of uniform: the dangers of neo-Nazi terrorism in
Australia, Sydney South, D. Freney, 1984
The Socialist Labour League: the Moonies of the left
with
additional material on the Socialist Workers Party, Sydney South,
D. Freney, revised edition, 1984
Get Gough! and Dr Jim and Rex and Lionel and all: the CIA, organised
crime and arms dealers in the loans affairs conspiracy, Sydney
South, D. Freney, 1985
The fruits of Glasnost: selections from the Soviet media,
edited by Denis Freney, Ultimo, Australian Radical Publications, [1988]
The politics of Solidarity: supporting liberation struggles in the
Australian context, Sydney South, D. Freney, 2000
A map of days: life on the left, Port Melbourne,
Heinemann, 1991
Larry Death, Port Melbourne, Mandarin, 1991
Other works
Shadow over East Timor, a documentary film produced in
1987 and updated in 1991 for SBS TV. Freney was co-producer and scriptwriter
for the film.
Series List
Series Title
1 Correspondence, 1965-95
2 Notebooks
3 Campaign for Independent East Timor, 1974-83
4 Subject files, 1962-89
5 Published works, 1986-91
6 Photographs, 1975-86
7 Other papers, 1961-83
Series Description
Series 1 Correspondence 1965 95
This series consists of general correspondence including letters, notes,
drafts of speeches and articles, flyers, telegrams, pamphlets, press releases
and telegrams. The majority of letters relate to Freneys involvement in
the independence campaigns in East Timor, New Caledonia and Vanuatu. Other
material relates to his membership of the Communist Party of Australia, his
work as a journalist for Tribune and his personal writings.
Correspondents include Abilio Araujo, Julie Ann Ellis, José Ramos
Horta, Brian Manning, Warwick Neilly, Michel Pablo, Chris Santos and Barak
Sope.
The correspondence has been arranged in chronological order. Due to the
amalgamation of the seven instalments there is a small degree of overlap in
dates, as the original arrangement of material within files has been
retained.
Folder
1 Correspondence, 1965-90
2-3 Correspondence, 1969-84
4 Correspondence, 1974-76
5 Correspondence, 1976-91
6 Correspondence, 1977-79
7 Correspondence, 1978
8 Correspondence, 1980-84
9 Correspondence, 1986-88
10 Correspondence, 1991-95
11 Address book belonging to Freney
Series 2 Notebooks
This series consists of 29 notebooks and an address book. The notebooks
contain names and addresses, appointment details, notes of press conferences,
research notes and travel arrangements. Freneys writing is quite
difficult to read and the notes do not have dates or subject headings attached
to them. The notes which can be read appear to relate to the Nugan Hand Bank,
intelligence organisations including the CIA, crime and corruption, land rights
and notes on the Philippines.
Folder
1 Notebooks, 1 2
2 Notebooks, 3 4
3 Notebooks, 5 6
4 Notebooks, 7 8
5 Notebooks, 9 10
6 Notebooks, 11 12
7 Notebooks, 13 14
8 Notebooks, 15 16
9 Notebooks, 17 18
10 Notebooks, 19 20
11 Notebooks, 21 22
12 Notebooks, 23 24
13 Notebooks, 25 26
14 Notebooks, 27 - 28
15 Address book of delegates to a conference in Newcastle, Easter
1973
Series 3 Campaign for an Independent East Timor,
1974-83
East Timor was a Portuguese colony from the 16th century until 1974. In
April 1974 the Portuguese armed forces overthrew the right wing government in
Lisbon and undertook to relinguish their overseas empire. After the withdrawal
of the Portuguese, the situation in East Timor deteriorated rapidly as
Indonesian forces began to cross the borders. On the 28th November 1975 the
East Timorese Fretilin Party declared the regions independence but on 7th
December 1975 Indonesia launched a full scale invasion of the territory.
Freneys commitment to East Timor began well before the Indonesian
invasion when he organised a trade union and community delegation to the newly
liberated Portuguese colony. In this period and after the invasion he worked
closely with leaders José Ramos Horta and Abilio Arujio in keeping the
world informed of the brutality of the Indonesian rule and the Fretilin
guerilla struggle.
The Campaign for an Independent East Timor was established in 1974 to
support the right of the East Timorese to independence and self-determination,
to oppose any Indonesian invasion and to support Fretilin community projects.
Freney was Secretary of the CIET in 1974-87. In 1976 a radio link was
established with the Fretilin forces in the Northern Territory. Though harassed
by government intelligence agencies, Telecom and the police, this contact
survived for at least 18 months before being closed down.
This series consists of correspondence, telegrams, press releases,
newscuttings, notes and reports relating to the campaign for an independent
East Timor. Folder 1 contains
correspondence between José Ramos Horta and Freney and other
supporters of the campaign from around the world. See also Series 1 for other
correspondence relating to East Timor.
Folder
1 Correspondence, 1974-75, of José Ramos Horta which had been
given to Freney
2 Correspondence, 1977-78, relating to the funding of the Democratic
Republic for East Timor (DRET) which was established in Melbourne in 1976
3 Correspondence, 1985-88, notes, newscuttings and press releases
relating to the re-establishment of radio contact between East Timor and Darwin
in 1986. The file also contains correspondence (1988) and an agreement (1989)
for the production of a documentary film entitled Shadow over East Timor
to be made by Freney and others
4 Photocopies of messages relating to the Timor Democratic Union (UDT)
Coup in 1975
5 Correspondence, newscuttings and notes relating to radio
transmissions, 1976-81, between East Timor and Australia. The file includes
photographs of a radio transmitter.
6 Telegrams sent by Fretilin forces in East Timor to Australia, 1978 and
some tyescript translations of messages
7 Samples of the codes used to send messages between East Timor and
Australia
8 Subscription details and mailing list for East Timor News
9-10 CIET press releases, November 1974 January 1976 (Includes
reports filed by Roger East before his disappearance in December 1975)
11-12 CIET press releases, January 1975 September 1976
13 CIET press releases, December 1975 September 1976
14 CIET press releases, February 1976 September 1976
15 CIET press releases, August 1976 November 1976
16 CIET press releases, October 1976 February 1977
17 CIET press releases, January September 1977
18 CIET press releases, September 1977 December 1979
19 Newscuttings, 1974-75
20 Newscuttings, January February 1976
21 Newscuttings, March April 1976
22 Newscuttings, May June 1976
23 Newscuttings, July August 1976
24 Newscuttings, September October 1976
25 Newscuttings, November - December 1976
26 Newscuttings, January February 1977
27 Photocopy of a journal article by H.W. Arndt entitled Timor:
vendetta against Indonesia which appeared in Quadrant
(1979) and a draft typescript response by Freney
28 Dossier on the International Seminar for East Timor held in Lisbon on
20th May 1979: proceedings
29-30 Photocopies of documents requested by Freney under the Freedom of
Information Act in 1983 relating to CIET, East Timor and himself. The request
was made to several Federal Government Departments. The material includes
information held on Freney.
31 Correspondence, 1983-84, relating to a submission to the Hope Royal
Commission on Australias Security and Intelligence Agencies by CIET
32 Photocopy of a Gazetteer of East Timor and Report
on a visit by Ken Fry to the United Nations Security Council to participate in
debate on East Timor
Series 4 Subject files, 1962-89
This series consists of newscuttings, brochures, pamphlets, journal
articles and reports on various subjects. A majority of the folders relate to
the Nugan Hand Bank and its connections with the CIA and organised crime in
Australia and overseas. Freney became interested in this subject after the
death of Frank Nugan near Lithgow, NSW in 1980. He wrote various articles on
this for Tribune and prepared a number of draft chapters on the
subject.
Folder
1 Abeles, Sir Peter and TNT Ltd, 1980-84
2-4 Communist Party of Australia, 1971-81
5 Crime and corruption, 1976-77
6 Dollar Fund of Australia Ltd, 1969-77
7 Gay Liberation Movement, 1972-76
8-9 Marxism and Socialism, 1964-89
10 Moll, Christo, 1979-83
11 Nazis in Australia, 1962-84
12-13 National Civic Council, 1962-84
14 Negri River Corporation, 1981-83
15-16 Nuclear Disarmament Party, Socialist Workers Party and the
Tasmanian Unemployed Workers Union,
17 New Caledonia and the Philippines, 1986-88
18 New Hebrides / Vanuatu struggle, 1977-80
19 New Left Party, 1985-90
20-23 Nugan Hand Bank, 1978-83
24 Organised crime, 1983-85
25 Phone tapping, 1983-84
26-27 Royal Commission on Intelligence and Security, 1968-75
28 Saffron, Abe, 1976-83
29 Schuller, Karl, 1973-83
30 Strasser, Sir Paul, 1977-82
31 Socialist Workers Party, 1983-84
32 Special Branch (various state police forces), 1978-83
33 Task Force 157 and the Nugan Hand Bank, 1977-83
34 Tax avoidance, 1982
35 Urbanchich, Lyenko, 1979-86
36-39 Ustasha, 1969-86
40 West Papua New Guinea, 1976-77
41 Miscellaneous including Labor Committee for Pacific Affairs, National
Civil Council and unions, 1975-86
Series 5 Published works, 1986-91
This series consists of papers relating to Freneys autobiography
A map of days and the political thriller Larry Death which
were both published in 1991.
Folder
1 Correspondence with publisher William Heinemann , 1986-91, relating to
both publications, comments from various sources on Freneys manuscripts,
book reviews and applications for grants from the Literature Board of the
Australia Council, 1990-91
2 Proofs of various chapters of A map of days with
corrections
3 Copy of A map of days
Series 6 Photographs, 197586
This series consists of black and white prints and negatives, colour
prints and a box of 35mm colour slides. The majority of the photographs do not
have any accompanying caption information or the dates when they were taken.
The subject coverage includes demonstrations, marches and meetings in Australia
and East Timor relating to the Campaign for an Independent East Timor and also
the independence struggles in New Caledonia.
There is an envelope of colour prints showing the liberated areas in
East Timor (1983) with troop training, guerrilla fighters and the Fretilin
Commander-in-Chief Xanana Gusmao. There is also a portrait shot of Freney, a
small number of prints showing him taking part in demonstrations as well as a
series documenting a visit to the Philippines in 1986.
2 folders
Series 7 Other papers, 1961-83
This series consists of miscellaneous papers including personal
memorabilia and badges and stickers relating to the campaign in East Timor.
There are also typed draft chapters for an historical novel on Henry James
OFarrell and photocopies of company records collected by Freney as part
of his investigations into the Nugan Hand Bank and its association with
organised crime and intelligence organisations in Australia and overseas.
Folder
1-2 Typescript draft chapters of a manuscript OFarrell
with a synopsis and notes
3 Issues of Kalori (1968) the Pittwater High School magazine
and The Hill (1961) the annual magazine of the Hill High School,
Johannesburg. Freney was a teacher at both of these schools
4 Photocopies of company information from records held by the Corporate
Affairs Commission of New South Wales obtained by Freney in 1973-83
5 Submission to the New South Wales Royal Commission of Inquiry into
Drug Trafficking, 1983
6 Memorabilia including badges, campaign stickers and membership cards
for the New South Wales Teachers Federation and the Communist Party of
Australia
7 Five sound cassettes. Four of the cassettes contain segments of radio
broadcasts on the situation in Timor. Most of the interviews do not contain
dates or details of speakers. A fifth tape contains the proceedings of the book
launch for A map of days in 1991
8 Typed notes on the Gay Liberation Movement including comments by
Freney on his own homosexuality, drafts of poems relating to his homosexuality
and a letter (n.d.) written to his mother and sister expressing his feelings
after publicly acknowledging his homosexuality
Box List
| Box
|
Series
|
Folder/Piece |
| 1 |
1 |
1 5 |
| 2 |
1 |
6 11 |
| 3 |
2 |
1 8 |
| 4 |
2 |
9 15 |
| 5 |
3 |
1 8 |
| 6 |
3 |
9 13 |
| 7 |
3 |
14 19 |
| 8 |
3 |
20 26 |
| 9 |
3 |
27 - 32 |
| 10 |
4 |
1 7 |
| 11 |
4 |
8 13 |
| 12 |
4 |
14 19 |
| 13 |
4 |
20 24 |
| 14 |
4 |
25 30 |
| 15 |
4 |
31 37 |
| 16 |
4 |
38 41 |
| 16 |
5 |
1 |
| 17 |
5 |
2-3 |
| 17 |
6 |
1-2 |
| 17 |
7 |
1-2 |
| 18 |
7 |
3-7 |
| 19 |
7 |
8 |
April 2001 |