21 March – At the conference,Arthur Calwell andGough Whitlam were photographed outside the venue atKingston in Canberra. Although Calwell was the Leader of the Opposition, neither man was a member of the federal executive. Menzies jibed that the ALP was ruled by "36 faceless men".[1]
14 August –Yolngu people petitioned theAustralian House of Representatives with abark petition after the government sold part of theArnhem Land reserve on 13 March to abauxite mining company. The government did not consult thetraditional owners. Whenbauxite mining atNhulunbuy nearYirrkala went ahead, the Yolngu took their case against the mining company to the Northern Territory Supreme Court. Despite their claim not being upheld in the1971 court decision, non-indigenous Australians were alerted to the need for indigenous representation in such decisions, and a permanent parliamentary standing committee was created to scrutinise developments at Yirrkala, among other initiatives related to the indigenous people's moral right to their lands.
1 November –Indigenous Australians could vote in federal elections on the same basis as other electors when an amendment to the Commonwealth Electoral Act became law. The November 1963 election was the first federal election for Indigenous people in Western Australia, Queensland and the Northern Territory. Indigenous voting rights in other states had been in place since 1949.
15 November - TheQueensland Police Service raids the town ofMapoon, forcing residents at gunpoint to leave their houses and board a boat for relocation 200 km to the north.[2]
30 November –Federal election: The Coalition government was returned with an increased majority of 10 seats over the Australian Labor Party. The election was for the House of Representatives only.
They Found a Cave – Andrew Steane – XV Int. Festival Films for Young People
William Dobell – Dahl Collings
Others:
The Queen Returns – The 1963 Australian visit of Her MajestyThe Queen and His Royal HighnessThe Duke of Edinburgh was filmed by theCommonwealth Film Unit. Much of the 30-minute film is devoted toCanberra and its history as the Queen's visit coincided with Canberra's Jubilee Celebrations – 50 years since the founding of the city.
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