Michael Hamel-Green

Michael’s story

I went underground on the 7^th October 1970 initially staying with Ian Turner and Paul Fox. I stayed at a number of places, sometimes with Fran and sometimes with other Draft Resisters.

One was above the DMZ shop in Prahran with Fran, we were there for a few months. Another time with Fran was a place in McCracken st Kensington, with Sister Penelope and Jenny Walpole, where we stayed for three months.I spent several weeks at a place in East Melbourne and felt comfortable there. They didn’t know me from a bar of soap but were generous. Then there were people with a luxurious house in Kew who said you can use the house, which I did, perhaps they were away at that

A sort of safe house was at Melbourne University where students had set up a radio station and we had sought sanctuary there. The Police raided the building and Tony Dalton and John Scott escaped, whilst Michael Matteson and I found sanctuary in a cupboard and sat out the raid.

Another time I stayed with Lynton Brown in Tasmania and Fran would visit at weekends. I was there for two to three months. I was also a resident at the house in Rosebud along with other Draft Resisters. I remember that we cooked when we were staying there whereas at other places we joined the house owners for meals. The Rosebud house was in a back street and we had no contact with anyone and no-one knew who we were. Sometimes Fran would visit me there, taking the tram and three buses, always checking to see if she was being followed.

There was a house in Sth Melbourne which was rented solely for Draft Resisters, possibly it had been organised by Jean McLean, it was owned by someone with possible connections to a wealthy Melbourne family. I was only there a short time and the house only lasted for a while longer after I left.

I stayed at a house was in Dryburgh St Nth Melbourne which was owned by a woman with CPA connections. I stayed on a farm at King Lake, at Student units in Carlton and for a short time I went to NSW, staying at a house in Sydney. There a supporter called Matt Gudgeon took me and others to a beach house in Wollongong and to a fishing hut on the coast.  A few days after we arrived we were asleep, it was late at night, and hearing a car arriving at the house, we scrambled out thinking that it was the Commonwealth Police. But it was only Matt’s father.

A South African Quaker called Elizabeth Taylor in Malvern provided a safe house. At the time the house seemed big and luxurious to us as Uni students. I do remember that she was very frugal but we were fed well and with no expectations of having to do any housework.

There were several people who played big roles in providing safe houses which were just arranged and provided. Two of those people were John Ryan from Catholic Workers and Jean McLean from SOS.

In September 1971 I went back to University, I had continued my studies during my time underground lugging around my  work, and numerous  Hansards, from one safe house to another.