The Unreliable Witness: Clarence Dakin, ASIO, and Espionage

This historical note examines the role of a witness-informer at the 1954–55 Royal Commission on Espionage. That witness was Clarence William Dakin, an individual overlooked by historians, and his background, testimony and motivations are discussed. As with ex-communists in the USA during McCarthyism, who successfully incriminated their former comrades, ASIO expected his evidence would prove explosive. However, he dashed the hopes of ASIO, disappointed the royal commissioners and discredited himself. This note provides an insight into the rare use of witness-informers during Australia’s Cold War.