Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Climate Action, Environment and Heritage) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is a great honour to address the life of Sir Zelman Cowen. Whilst much has been said of his public life, I want to briefly discuss his community life. His public life of course is well known—the career from academia at Melbourne University to Rhodes scholar, Vinerian scholar, fellow of Oriel College at Oxford University, visiting professor at the University of Chicago and visiting professor at the Harvard Law School and the University of Utah, and his early role as Dean of the Melbourne Law School. His was an extraordinary academic career, which led to vice-chancellorships and ultimately to the Governor-Generalship as well as the critical role at Oriel College at Oxford University.

It is at the human level where perhaps his most important impacts have been felt. His Governor-General's role was a reflection of that. The notion of healing and of unity, and the sense of generosity of spirit at a difficult time was able to transcend many of the conflicts of those days. That is all well known. I really want to reflect more on his contribution at the personal and community level rather than at the public level. Along the way, I was fortunate to meet Sir Zelman, but I do not want to overstate that. It was a passing encounter. It has been through three other people that I have come to know of him and know of his impact on them.

At college, I was a friend of Ben Cowen, who is Sir Zelman and Anna's youngest son. Ben is an extraordinarily alive human being. There is a sense of energy, intellect and effervescence about the way Ben Cowen approaches his life. To be with him at university was to be with somebody who represented the best of his father: the intellect, the charm, the mischief and the sense of joy in pure existence. Ben is a reflection of his father and he is a source of great pride, justifiably, to his family. To see in Ben Sir Zelman is to have a sense of the best of the man himself.

Similarly, Steven Skala, who has had an extraordinarily distinguished career in business, banking and public service, is one of the many who classed Sir Zelman as his mentor. Steven speaks of the generosity of Sir Zelman with his time, but much more than that which of itself was extraordinarily valuable was the generosity of spirit. To listen to Steven talk about Sir Zelman and his ability to engage and to give people a sense that their lives could be rich with possibility and a sense of their moral duties was to feel Sir Zelman's impact. I want to quote one critical sentence from Steven's very moving eulogy at the state funeral for Sir Zelman. Steven Skala said:

In short, he was wise.

He embedded in us a love of learning, the pursuit of ideas and the power of reason in achieving justice, simply by being who he was.

I think the most valuable line in Steven Skala's eulogy, though, continues:

It is important to emphasise that he did not shape us—he helped us to shape ourselves. In discussion with him, when he sensed that we finally understood or had absorbed something, he would smile and say, ever so ambiguously: "So there we have it." This was Sir Zelman's distinctive method of closure.

It was about allowing each person to reach their potential, not to define that position for them.

The third person through whom I have had a sense of Sir Zelman is the member for Kooyong, my great friend and best man, although he says it is enough to call him merely the better man, Josh Frydenberg. Josh was a true protege of Sir Zelman. Josh collects mentors and Sir Zelman collected proteges. I think it was the perfect relationship. He was the ultimate avuncular figure for Josh and, as Josh said in his own speech at the funeral ceremony for Sir Zelman:

It became Sundays with Zelman.

On many Sundays over many years, Josh would sit at the feet of Sir Zelman and talk ideas, exchange personal directions but, above all else, develop, almost by osmosis, a sense of the morality of the world and our responsibilities as individuals. Josh has the most loving parents in Erica and Harry but, along with them, no other person was more influential in Josh's development than Sir Zelman, who gave him a sense of moral purpose and moral responsibility and the ability to aspire to be our very best selves—and, in that, you see the man.

The third element that I want to cover, apart from the public and the personal, is the community and, in particular, Sir Zelman's role within the Jewish community not as a religious leader but as a secular leader within the Jewish community and a secular representative from that community at the absolute highest level of Australian society. It is part of a great tradition: in the early part of the century Sir John Monash and Sir Isaac Isaacs were fundamental to the directions of this country.

Sir Zelman then became one of the critical standard bearers for the Jewish community. He lifted all of us. We were a better nation as a result of his presence, and his role within the community was fundamental. In the same way, that standard was then passed to people such as Mark and Isi Leibler, Leon Kempler and Colin Rubenstein. I apologise if there is a slight Melbourne bias, but those are the people whom I have known best. A new generation is now beginning to pick up that community leadership on the secular side of the Jewish community—people such as Josh Frydenberg and Anthony Pratt, both very close friends. The sense of moral purpose and a higher duty has been the consistent thread through the lives of all of them and perhaps no person within that heritage exemplifies it more courageously and with more dignity and beauty than Sir Zelman and the life he led. I want to acknowledge and reflect upon that life—not so much the public achievements, although they were great and majestic, because they have been well canvassed—and the impact that it had on many within my own sphere of engagement. It was a great life, a magnificently lived life, and we are all the better for having had him within our sphere.

Jane Prentice (Ryan, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to speak to this condolence motion, which pays tribute to the Rt Hon. Sir Zelman Cowen and the contribution that he made to the Australian community. On 8 December 2011, Australia lost one of its best Governor-Generals and one of the world's most respected and distinguished legal intellectuals. Sir Zelman's elevation to the role of Governor-General was a clear indication of the esteem in which he was held. It was also an acknowledgement of the growing multicultural fabric of Australia at the time, a process that continues today.

Born in Melbourne in 1919, he attended and was dux of Scotch College, then Melbourne University, topping his year in all of his subjects and taking an honours degree in arts and law before being awarded a Rhodes scholarship to further his legal studies at Oxford University, where he was dux of the 1947 Oxford postgraduate law school. He returned to Melbourne, where he held the positions of Dean of the Faculty of Law and Professor of Public Law, before being appointed vice-chancellor at the University of New England and then vice-chancellor of the University of Queensland.

As the member for Ryan, I want to make particular note of Sir Zelman's period of office at the University of Queensland. During the period between 1970 and 1977 as the third full-time vice-chancellor at the university 17 new buildings were completed on the campus, including Mayne Hall, now known as the James and Mary Emelia Mayne Centre. The university has named the building which houses the music and architecture faculties after Sir Zelman to honour his significant contributions to the arts. He oversaw the establishment of the Department of Fine Arts, the provision of a performance room with the then music department and the development of the Mayne Hall as a concert venue.

In 1970, like most leaders in the academic world, Sir Zelman was confronted with student protests and violent unrest on his campus. The anti-Vietnam War protests were in full swing and as a strong advocate of free speech the vice-chancellor gained something of a reputation for confronting the demonstrators head-on. Rather than avoid the protest, he would approach them and, having listened to their chanting, put forward an alternative view and make suggestions for them to consider. This behaviour apparently gained him the nickname of Super Zel among some of the more militant student groups. University of Queensland staff, past and present, comment on the way in which he treated all students at the university with dignity and respect, especially during periods of unrest.

Sir Zelman's role at the University of Queensland was a complex one. A rapidly growing student population, an incomplete and war-retarded campus, an urgent need to widen the range of the curriculum and a need for money for buildings and more staff were some of the challenges confronting him. An early task was to foster the formation of an alumni association so that graduates could maintain their links with their alma mater and grow into a supportive body. A connoisseur of the arts with a strong belief that the arts should bring equality and a dimension of richness and maturity to the life of a nation, he was determined to move the university's valuable art collection from its packing cases in the basement and set up an art gallery and an arts case in the Forgan Smith building.

The alumni association cooperated with a series of profitable social functions, and the tower of the Forgan Smith building was soon converted to include a gallery to house the university's large and valuable collection of art works and an art department under the direction of lecturer Nancy Underhill. Next, at Sir Zelman's request, the alumni association financed the creation of a teaching garden down by the river for the Faculty of Agricultural Science. A following big project was the erection of the Mayne Hall, named to recognise the university's largest benefactors, the Mayne family. It was a dual purpose building, primarily so that graduation ceremonies could at last be held on campus instead of at the Brisbane City Hall.

Part of Sir Zelman's wide-ranging thinking was to have an all-glass wall on the highest side of the hall so that the graduates on their important occasion could look from inside the hall across the lawn and see the university buildings in which they had received their education. He envisaged the rich tones of a pipe organ to usher graduands to their seats and to add dignity to the rendering of Gaudeamus Igitur. Here once again the alumni made the expense affordable. The cost of a special world-class pipe organ and the building of Mayne Hall were defrayed in part by the many successful concerts that attracted full houses for many years before the increase in student number necessitated further expansion. Under a later vice-chancellor, a larger graduation hall was built and Mayne Hall became the university art museum, housing the greatly expanded art collection. Both Sir Zelman and Lady Cowen were committed to the University of Queensland in a very wide sense. From the start of his appointment, Sir Zelman Cowen's involvement was wide ranging. A vice-chancellor's house was to be built, and he saw to it that it was planned with a view to saving the university money. As vice-chancellors have a certain amount of entertaining to do, their home included a strategically suitable area, handy to the kitchen for catering but separate from the privacy of their residence. It was most successful planning. Lady Cowen held monthly mornings for staff wives and thoughtfully produced a couple of mature aged students to babysit their children.

Sir Zelman had ideas for money-raising functions to bolster campus facilities. The public area of the house was ideal for classical concerts, with catering for 100 guests each time. They were organised by the alumni association but Sir Zelman personally paid for the grand piano to be tuned each time that it was moved between the music department and their home. The supper was all at their expense and his cooperative and very helpful wife, Lady Cowen, prepared it herself in their kitchen.

Given that this time last year the University of Queensland was engaged in the 2011 flood clean-up, it is worth noting another facet of Sir Zelman. After the terrible 1974 floods, when the lower areas of the University of Queensland campus were left a sea of rotting and stinking mud, the vice-chancellor and Lady Cowen were prominent among the volunteer workers clearing the debris from the grounds.

I would like to thank the current vice-chancellor, Professor Deborah Terry, and former vice-chancellor Professor Paul Greenfield, as well as other members of the University of Queensland community, who have expressed their appreciation for Sir Zelman's contribution to academia in Queensland. Professor Terry stated:

Students and staff at the University of Queensland continue to enjoy the legacy of Sir Zelman's outstanding leadership of this university. He led the University of Queensland during a period of significant growth and was influential in fortifying the university's strong cultural profile, which continues to flourish today.

I commend Sir Zelman for his contribution to the University of Queensland, the electorate of Ryan and the wider community in Australia. In short, Sir Zelman was a good man who achieved great things. As a nation, we are the beneficiaries of Sir Zelman's achievements and of his extraordinary life. On behalf of the electors of Ryan, I feel privileged to have had this opportunity to pay tribute to a great Australian.

Alan Tudge (Aston, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to add my comments to the condolences that we have heard today and yesterday on the passing of Sir Zelman Cowen on 8 December last year, the day that marked the 34th anniversary of his swearing in as Australia's 19th Governor-General in 1977. Sir Zelman was a true giant in our nation. There are few in Australia's short history whose public contributions can match those of Sir Zelman. Sir Zelman Cowen's name sits comfortably in a long line of Jewish-Australian patriots who have contributed so much to the building of our great nation—names such as Sir John Monash and Sir Isaac Isaacs come to mind.

Sir Zelman was born in 1919 in Melbourne, where he was educated at Scotch College and Melbourne University. He was a brilliant student, dux in his school and, as the previous speaker said, the top of every single subject that he did at university. He became a Rhodes scholar and later completed a further degree at Oxford University, where he remained for some time.

In 1951, at the age of just 31, he returned to Australia and became the dean of the law faculty at the University of Melbourne, a faculty that I attended some years ago. Later, he was appointed as the vice-chancellor of the University of New England and then as the vice-chancellor of the University of Queensland. By this time, he was regarded as one of the top constitutional lawyers in the English-speaking world. Having already made an incredible contribution, Sir Zelman is best known for his exemplary service as Governor-General of Australia, the position which he held from 1977 to 1982. He, of course, served in this role at a time when the institution had come to be mistrusted by a proportion of the Australian people, something that might have boded ill for our nation's unity if it were not for Sir Zelman's statesmanly vice-regal approach. He served with great distinction and grace and restored trust in the institution of Governor-General. He was, as many people have noted, the great healer of our nation at that time.

Among his many other talents was his ability to perceive, recognise and nurture the talented amongst those his junior. The member for Flinders, Greg Hunt, touched on this. For instance, as Greg and many others have noted, he was an important professional and personal mentor to my great friend and colleague Josh Frydenberg, the member for Kooyong. I never had the privilege of knowing Sir Zelman Cowen as well as Josh did. As is often the way, we often only understand that our not knowing someone is regrettable when the opportunity no longer exists. But I do hope that the story of Sir Zelman Cowen's life and his legacy is made more widely known among younger Australians so that they might be inspired by his example as a scholar and as a servant to the public in the best possible sense of that term. We will all miss this great Australian—a scholar, a leader, a healer and a patriot. Our condolences go to Lady Anna Cowen and the Cowen family.

Karen Andrews (McPherson, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to speak on the motion of condolence for one of our former governors-general, Sir Zelman Cowen. Sir Zelman sadly passed away last year on 8 December, which was the 34th anniversary of his swearing-in as Governor-General. Today I would like to pay my respects on the passing of this remarkable Australian. The passing of Sir Zelman is a great loss to our country, and I would like to reflect on the inspirational, remarkable and distinguished life of this noble man.

Sir Zelman was an incredibly accomplished man, having graduated from the University of Melbourne in arts and law and furthering his studies by taking up a Rhodes Scholarship in 1945. It is clear from the life that Sir Zelman lived that he truly embraced academia and believed strongly in the importance of education as a foundation for one's life. Sir Zelman was not only a Rhodes scholar but, later in life, a professor and Dean of the Faculty of Law at the University of Melbourne between 1951 and 1966 and vice-chancellor at both the University of New England, in 1967, and in my home state of Queensland at the University of Queensland, in 1970. I would like to place specific emphasis on the academic career of Sir Zelman as something I hope the young people of my electorate of McPherson will look up to; I hope they will see his achievements as something to aspire to. I share Sir Zelman's passion for the progression of academic excellence and the importance of education for our young future leaders. With his passing we have lost a great advocate for this very important cause. However, while Sir Zelman is no longer with us, his legacy most certainly is.

Following his time at our universities, Sir Zelman was asked to be Australia's 19th Governor-General to succeed Sir John Kerr. He graciously accepted this position in 1977 and held the post until 1982. Sir Zelman was Australia's second Jewish Governor-General, with the first being Sir Isaac Isaacs some 40 years prior. Being embraced by all sides of politics is no mean feat. However, Sir Zelman managed to achieve just that, receiving the admiration of politicians past and present from all political persuasions. Australia has gained immensely from Sir Zelman's decades of public service, and his passing is a significant loss to our nation.

Public service is a rewarding and often difficult business, and it is usually our families who provide the most valuable support and foundations for our success. It would appear that Sir Zelman was no different. In fact, when discussing his many achievements, Sir Zelman paid particular homage to the support of his wife, Lady Anna Cowen. We measure our life's achievements through the legacy we leave on the people and communities we leave behind when we pass on. I believe Sir Zelman's legacy is not only one he could be immeasurably proud of but one we as a nation can be collectively thankful for. I offer my sincere condolences to Sir Zelman's wife, Lady Anna Cowen, his children, his grandchildren and his extended family.

Bert Van Manen (Forde, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to add my comments to the condolences for Sir Zelman Cowen. The Australian Associated Press best described Sir Zelman Cowen as the healer of the Australian nation. They say he sometimes spoke of his success in life as being down to good luck and fortune. Although I did not know Sir Zelman Cowen personally, I have great respect for Australia's 19th Governor-General and the contribution he made to this great nation as a modern servant and leader of our country. Sir Zelman was a wonderful Australian who contributed enormously to public life with a wide variety of responsibilities and experiences during his lifetime, including serving in the Royal Australian Navy during World War II and becoming a member of General Douglas MacArthur's staff.

In 1951, Sir Zelman, at the age of 31, became the Dean of the Law Faculty of the University of Melbourne. This marked the start of a highly professional educational career which saw him travel the world, advising on legal and constitutional matters as a highly regarded professor. Other achievements include becoming the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Queensland, where he made his mark as a highly skilled diplomat or negotiator during the protests associated with the Vietnam War, as one of my colleagues mentioned earlier in greater detail. He was also honoured as the Chairman of the British Press Council.

Sir Zelman's diverse background, combined with his worldly knowledge, paved the way for his appointment as Governor-General following Sir John Kerr's turbulent period in office and subsequent resignation in 1977. He entered office during a particularly difficult time in our nation's history and succeeded in healing the nation. I am reminded of a quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson:

You cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it will be too late.

We as a nation were blessed to have a man with his vision and compassion as our Governor-General during this difficult time. Sir Zelman was a faithful representative of the Queen, and, during her visit to Australia in 1980, the Queen appointed him a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order. This was one of many great honours that were awarded to him during his lifetime.

Sir Zelman continued to make an important contribution in many fields, such as academia, business, sport and the community, especially the Jewish community, well after his formal vice-regal duties finished in 1982. Sadly, the last 15 years of his life were marked by Parkinson's disease, from which he eventually passed away on the 31st anniversary of his swearing-in as Governor General. Sir Zelman will be remembered as a fine Australian who spend the majority of his life serving others. I would like to add my condolences to his family and friends.

Ewen Jones (Herbert, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to add my voice to the many words of condolence on the passing of Sir Zelman Cowen. I never met the man. The first Governor-General of whom I was aware was Sir John Kerr, but the man of whom we are speaking now set the template for what the Governor-General's role is today. The man's smile seemed so warm. He seemed so friendly, so welcoming, so Australian and so tailored to the role of Governor-General.

But Sir Zelman's legacy to me will not be so much in relation to his role as Governor-General, although that is the thing he is most known for. I come from Townsville, where we have a regional university, James Cook University. After having been a Rhodes scholar, and as a 31-year-old associate professor at Melbourne University, it would have been so easy to stay in academia in Victoria. But to him to take up the vice-chancellor role in Armidale for the University of New England says to me that he focused on education for all and that education is a key to all things. To branch out in education away from the sandstone buildings and into the regions was a truly remarkable feat by a truly remarkable man. He was then to go on to be vice-chancellor at the University of Queensland during the 1970 Springbok tour, when the city of Brisbane was nearly torn to pieces as competing interests and passion on all sides rallied and protests were made. His role as a healer then was every bit as evident as later on in the country.

I also mention his role as a mentor. I speak often with the member for Kooyong, who has told me of his friendship with Sir Zelman. I think those of us who have mentors who are older than us. In my city it is Graham Jackson of Loloma Jewellers, who gives and gives of his time and is always welcoming. I think that is what it would have been like to be in the company of Sir Zelman Cowen, to be in the company of someone who is willing to give his information and who is willing to give his knowledge as his true gift to Australia, and I think that is something we will always be very aware of.

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Sir Zelman Cowen died in Melbourne on 8 December 2011, 34 years to the day since he was appointed Australia's 19th Governor-General. Chosen to be the next Governor-General after the divisive dismissal of Prime Minister Gough Whitlam in 1975 and the early resignation of Sir John Kerr in 1977, Prime Minister Malcolm Fraser offered Sir Zelman the position of Governor-General, a role which at the time he described as 'the most difficult role to fill'. Mr Fraser said just recently that Sir Zelman:

… worked extremely hard to see as much as he could and to talk to as many Australians as possible-

And that:

He took over the position at a more difficult time than any other governor-general and served in the role with great distinction.

One of Australia's most distinguished constitutional lawyers and academics, Sir Zelman's life was a rich tapestry of achievement, duty and service above self. After serving in the Royal Australian Navy in World War II he began his studies in Oxford, England, where he completed a Bachelor of Civil Law degree before moving on to become a highly regarded consultant on legal matters to the British military government in Germany.

With all his accomplishments, it was easy to see why Sir Zelman was often described as the perfect choice to 'restore Australia's faith in the office of Governor-General'. He was often described as a distinguished Australian with an international reputation and with professional qualifications which were beyond dispute and, given that he had never been in politics, his political views were unknown. Sir Zelman was also Jewish, and this gave his appointment a multicultural aspect in keeping with contemporary Australian sentiment.

Sir Zelman was the breath of fresh air a government under pressure needed to bring trust within the walls of Parliament House and to show the Australian people a united front. He was, as has been described in the eloquent speeches given yesterday in the House, a healer. As the member for Kooyong stated so very well at Sir Zelman's state funeral:

Sir Zelman was destined for greatness, born as he was on 7 October 1919, the day Alfred Deakin died. He was bound by intellectual brilliance, a profound decency and a firm moral compass which were equally matched by a deep sense of his own identity.

I know how much the member for Kooyong is mourning the passing of Sir Zelman, friend that he was to this late great man. A man of greatness he was, a great Australian; one who will be missed, one who helped build bridges to this country's greatest asset—its people.

Sir Zelman knew where he was going and never forgot from where he came. He was a man who loved his faith as much as his family and was described by the member for Kooyong as being proud of his immigrant background and his Jewish faith. He never sought to distance himself from his heritage during his long and distinguished career.

Sir Zelman will be sadly missed by many but especially his wife, Lady Anna, and his four children and extended family. Shalom.

George Christensen (Dawson, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would like to associate myself with the comments of the Prime Minister; the Leader of the Opposition; the members for Melbourne Ports, Kooyong and Riverina in particular; and other members who have spoken so eloquently here this morning and yesterday on the condolence motion for Sir Zelman Cowen. Like them I too am in awe of Sir Zelman and the life that he lived. As the member for Kooyong said, Sir Zelman was a true giant of a man in Australian history, with a history of achievement spanning the best part of a century.

His lists of achievements others have detailed. He was a leader in every field of endeavour to which he turned his hand. He was co-dux at Scotch College in Melbourne, a Rhodes scholar and a dux at Oxford's postgraduate law school. He was internationally renowned as a legal academic and vice-chancellor. He was chairman of Fairfax and chairman of the British Press Council. He was made a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order by Queen Elizabeth II. He was an avid St Kilda Football Club supporter and leader of the Australian Jewish community. He was a loving and devoted family man. He married Lady Anna, then Anna Wittner, after serving in the Second World War both in Darwin when it was bombed in 1942 and as a sublieutenant on the staff of the US General Douglas MacArthur.

Sir Zelman Cowen was born on 7 October 1919 and passed away, as we know, on 8 December 2011 at the good age of 92. His life spanned more than the best part of the 20th century. Sir Zelman Cowen bridged a gap in Australian government at a time when it most needed to be bridged. His predecessor, Sir John Kerr, had changed the political landscape forever in this country with the dismissal of the Whitlam government. A rift, I have got to acknowledge, had developed as the role of Governor-General did come under increasing scrutiny at the time. In bridging the gap Sir Zelman Cowen was credited with 'healing' the nation and in doing so he brought the role of Governor-General closer to the Australian people—so much so that the nation mourns his loss as a family mourns the loss of someone dear.

Noting Sir Zelman's Jewish background, I know that in Hebrew the word 'shiva' is literally translated as 'seven' but it is also known as an emotional and spiritual bridge that does heal the grief of family members in times of loss. 'Shiva' is seen as the bridge that helps them cross the void that is left in their life. Traditionally, given that 'shiva' means 'seven', it is a seven-day mourning period in Judaism. A week seems a little inadequate, given the magnitude of Sir Zelman's impact on our lives, our government, our people and our nation. We, as a nation, join Lady Anna and the family of Sir Zelman in mourning their loss but also celebrating a full life, fully lived.

If I may, I will end by borrowing from a well-known Jewish prayer, the El Malei Rachamim:

Fully compassionate God on high:

To Sir Zelman Cowen who has entered eternity

Grant clear and certain rest with You

In the lofty heights of the sacred and pure

Whose brightness shines like the very glow of heaven.

Source of mercy:

Forever enfold Zelman in the embrace of Your wings

Secure his soul in eternity

Adonai: He is Yours.

He will rest in peace.

Amen

Teresa Gambaro (Brisbane, Liberal Party, Shadow Parliamentary Secretary for Citizenship and Settlement) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to also offer my condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of Sir Zelman Cowen and particularly to give my support to other members who have spoken, including the member for Kooyong and also the member for Melbourne Ports. Sir Zelman Cowen was Australia's 19th Governor-General, who sadly passed away on 8 December 2011 aged 92. It was the 34th anniversary of his swearing-in as Governor-General in 1977. He served with distinction for 4½ years as Governor-General from 1977 to 1982. He suffered from and battled with Parkinson's disease for the past 15 years of his life and was labelled as Australia's Muhammad Ali for his long and brave battle against it, a battle that my family has also come to know more about since my father has been suffering this terrible illness for the past 12 years. It is a really debilitating disease.

When Sir Zelman Cowen was sworn in to the office of Governor-General, he was regarded as one of the leading constitutional lawyers in the English-speaking world and very much a leader within the Jewish community. High Court Justice Michael Kirby said that Sir Zelman had restored what was much needed—that calm to the office. He said further:

His greatest service to Australia was that he used his incumbency to bring a "touch of healing"—

and the word 'healing' has been mentioned in a number of speeches by my colleagues from the opposition and by members of the government—

to settle the sharp divide—

that had occurred in our nation. Sir Zelman told Australians that he hoped to bring a touch of healing to the country and its people. He declared that he was going to avoid being portrayed as the caricature of a cutter of ribbons and an utterer of platitudes, describing his role as Governor-General as being to interpret the nation to itself. In a speech to the Australian Academy of Science, Sir Zelman Cowen promoted the cause of free scientific inquiry, notably in genetic engineering. He also advocated support for refugee assimilation.

He served in the Royal Australian Navy during World War II, from 1941 to 1945, and his expertise was in naval intelligence. He was based in Darwin during the Japanese attack of 1942. He later served as a sublieutenant on General MacArthur's staff in Brisbane—the headquarters are now located in Queen Street, which is part of the electorate of Brisbane. After the war, from 1947 to 1950, he was a fellow of Oriel College, Oxford, and then went on to become a Rhodes scholar at New College, Oxford, where he completed a Bachelor of Civil Law degree and jointly won the Vinerian Scholarship. He was also a consultant on legal matters to the British military government in Germany. My colleagues have spoken about Sir Zelman's many achievements. He was an outstanding individual.

I remember Sir Zelman with great fondness. In particular, I remember his appointment as Vice-Chancellor of the University of Queensland, in 1970. I saw him utilise his exceptional diplomatic skills to negotiate and calm student protests and, in particular, a number of disturbances that were occurring at the university. The memory of this great Australian will live on across this country in many ways. Victoria University is home to the Sir Zelman Cowen Centre, providing training and support to the courts, legal practitioners, judiciary and other professions. In 1981, the Royal Australian Institute of Architects established the Sir Zelman Cowen Award for Public Architecture, recognised as Australia's leading award for public buildings. His reach and his influence went far beyond the area of law. Melbourne Law School awards the Zelman Cowen National Scholarship to incoming juris doctor students. The scholarship is awarded purely on the basis of academic merit and is the law school's most prestigious scholarship.

I join with my many colleagues in mourning the loss of Sir Zelman Cowen, a distinguished Australian with an international reputation, who has indeed made an outstanding contribution to this country. It was indeed my privilege and honour in the House yesterday to be in the presence of his wife, Lady Anna, and one of his children and to hear numerous members who rose at the dispatch box to speak about his incredible life. Today I speak about and acknowledge the wonderful contribution that he made to this country as Governor-General both here and abroad. I mentioned earlier his wonderful skills, particularly in being one of the leading constitutional lawyers that this country has ever seen, and for that he is to be truly commended. It is a rare privilege today to speak and join my colleagues. Again, I offer my condolences to his family. We have indeed lost a truly remarkable and outstanding Australian.

Natasha Griggs (Solomon, Country Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Many of my colleagues have had the privilege of knowing Sir Zelman Cowen and have spoken fondly of their memories of him, outlining how, through friendship and mentoring, he helped shape their lives. Sir Zelman was appointed the 19th Governor-General in 1977 and, from all accounts, he was surprised but delighted by this appointment. Sir Zelman has been described by many as a healer of the people through his role as the Governor-General. My colleague the member for Kooyong said that Sir Zelman set a standard which will be the benchmark for those who follow as Governor-General. He had an impeccable reputation based on a life lived with honesty and integrity, according to the member for Kooyong. Others have commented that he returned a dignity to the role of Governor-General.

Throughout his 92 years he witnessed some major historical events that certainly shaped our country. Sir Zelman Cowen had a link to Darwin and the Northern Territory. His first visit to Darwin was in 1942 as a Navy lieutenant during World War II. In fact Sir Zelman was in Darwin when it was bombed by the Japanese in February 1942. I understand that Sir Zelman has, over the years, given several accounts of his experiences during the bombings of Darwin. These accounts have assisted many historians in ensuring that this very important event in our history has been recorded. In a couple of weeks time we will be commemorating the 70th anniversary of the bombings of Darwin and, unfortunately, Sir Zelman will not be with us for these commemorations.

Another historical event that Sir Zelman was involved in that relates to the Northern Territory was when as the Governor-General in 1978 he opened the Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory. This was a significant event for Territorians, as this was when the Northern Territory was granted self-government. I did not personally know Sir Zelman, but from all accounts he was an amazing man and I am just delighted that he was able to be involved in some significant events for the Northern Territory. I extend my condolences to Lady Anna and her family.

Ken Wyatt (Hasluck, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the condolence motion on the death of Sir Zelman Cowen. Sir Zelman was Australia's 19th Governor-General. He died after suffering an illness at his Toorak home. His wife, Anna, was by his side. He is survived by his wife; his four children, Simon, Yosef, Kate and Ben; 16 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. He was 92.

Much has been said by my parliamentary colleagues and I endorse the sentiments that they have expressed in the chamber and the Federation Chamber. I vividly recall the appointment of Sir Zelman Cowen as the Governor-General following Sir John Kerr's 1975 dismissal of the Whitlam government. In the events that unfolded, I was working as a primary school teacher and, on that day, I came back in from yard duty and the message was very clear: the Whitlam government had been dismissed, setting in train a sequence of reactions, emotions and bitterness. It divided a community and it divided a nation, as debates occurred at dinner tables, events and functions that people attended. But the other part of this that was important was that I was teaching at the time, and the year 7s I was teaching wanted to know about those events and the subsequent appointment of Sir Zelman Cowen. That was my introduction to him as an individual and to the contribution that he had made prior to his appointment.

I certainly witnessed the raw anger expressed by many and the bitterness at the events which unfolded on 11 November 1975 and afterwards. I attended political rallies in Forrest Place, Perth, to hear the various members of parliament and was concerned at the level of anger and bitterness about the dismissal of the Whitlam government. As a young man I honestly wondered how we, as a nation, would move on from a period that was unparalleled in Australian history. Michael Gordon and Michelle Grattan, in their article in the Sydney Morning Herald of 9 December 2011 titled 'He "restored Australia's faith": Sir Zelman Cowen dies at 92,' wrote:

One of Australia's most distinguished constitutional lawyers and academics, Sir Zelman was appointed to the vice-regal post by Malcolm Fraser in 1977. Critics said the role had been politicised by the controversial sacking but he won respect from both sides.

I recall from the commentary in the media and from conversations at the time that there prevailed a strong view that the office of the Governor-General had been compromised and that our faith as a nation in the impartiality of that office would never be the same. Political wounds leave incredible scars of pain because of our passion as individuals for the philosophy that we hold dear and the party that we support. The challenge was to heal those wounds and restore the faith in the impartiality of the Governor-General.

The appointment of Sir Zelman Cowen certainly raised interest. What I found about Sir Zelman was that he was attentive and cared deeply about the pain that was created. He was highly compassionate and empathetic to the needs of others, seeking to bring peace and integrity to Australian society at large. He wanted to heal and correct the conflicts that divided political and social groups. He was committed to things that were positive and made extraordinary sacrifices in an attempt to achieve the ideals that were important to all Australians and he related to all those whom he met and influenced. I heard Sir Zelman Cowen speak on one occasion and was taken not only by the content of his message but more importantly by the gentle way in which he delivered that message and the way that he projected. I was made to feel that I was part of an audience he was talking to individually. Mark Leibler, a Jewish community leader, said in a recent interview with the Sydney Morning Herald that Sir Zelman was one of Australia's greatest Jews and a man whose advice and guidance was sought frequently. I think that advice and counsel was sought by many outside the Jewish community who valued a man of principle and integrity. We owe Sir Zelman a debt of gratitude for healing our nation and for the work he did in serving this country.

I want to conclude with the words of Josh Frydenberg, the member for Kooyong, who paid tribute to a humane and decent man: 'He was interested in your own personal development. He was always a source of sound advice and he took great pride in mentoring many people. He was much loved and respected by people from all walks of life and will be remembered as one of the greatest Australians to ever live.' I think there are times when we are fortunate to meet people who have the capacity to bring together those who have been scarred or hurt by the pain of an event and then to reflect within their thinking and psyche a peaceful approach that restores that which existed prior to the event. A man of that integrity, or any leader who has that quality, is someone who is to be admired greatly. My condolences go to Anna and to Sir Zelman Cowen's family.

Kelly O'Dwyer (Higgins, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Following on from the very eloquent and moving words of my colleague the member for Hasluck, I rise today to also pay tribute to a remarkable Australian who led a remarkable life in his 92 years. Sir Zelman was a constituent of mine and an inspiration to so many. Thrust into public life after one of the most, if not the most, tumultuous times in Australian political history, Sir Zelman was a pillar of strength who brought a sense of stability and authority to the office of Governor-General. There would not be one person in this place who would not be intimately familiar with the events of November 1975. What is somewhat less well documented is the role that Sir Zelman played in his own quiet way in uniting and healing our nation when he was made Governor-General in the year of my birth, 1977.

He had a most distinguished career. Born to Jewish immigrant parents in 1919, Sir Zelman graduated as dux from Scotch College. He then went on to complete an arts-law degree from the University of Melbourne. At the tender age of 19, he was the youngest person ever to receive a tutorship at the University of Melbourne, where he tutored in political philosophy. After being awarded a Rhodes Scholarship, he deferred his overseas studies to serve in the Navy in Darwin and was stationed there during the Japanese attacks in 1942. At the completion of his service, Sir Zelman returned to study and he and his wife moved to Oxford to commence his scholarship. Sir Zelman continued his academic career as a lecturer and fellow of Oriel College. At the age of 30 he was offered the position of dean of the law school at the University of Melbourne. After his tenure at the University of Melbourne Sir Zelman went on to become vice-chancellor at the University of New England and the University of Queensland. Known for his sense of humour and kind nature, Sir Zelman was a wonderful example of human nature in its finest form. As we heard yesterday from my friend and colleague the member for Kooyong, Josh Frydenberg, Sir Zelman's welcoming personality and generous nature made him a wonderful mentor.

Sir Zelman's commitment to his Jewish faith was paramount. It was something that he celebrated and it was this shared Jewishness that my friend Josh described as one of the foundations of their friendship.

In addition to Sir Zelman's public service, scholarly achievements and faith, at a personal level Sir Zelman shared a wonderful partnership with his wife, Lady Anna, to whom he was married for 66 years. He is survived by Lady Anna and his four children, Rabbi Dr. Shimon Cowen, Nick, Ben and his daughter, Kate. Our condolences go to them for their loss of a husband and father. Today, we pay tribute to the public service of Sir Zelman Cowen.

Malcolm Turnbull (Wentworth, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Communications and Broadband) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Zelman Cowen was born in 1919 on the day of Alfred Deakin's death. As many people have observed—Michael Kirby was the first to do so—it was as though Sir Zelman always felt that some spark of Deakin had entered his soul at the time he came into the world. This is entirely inconsistent with Jewish theology or indeed Christian theology; nonetheless, it is a wonderful idea. And it is a reminder of the way in which the threads of Zelman Cowen's life—very long life—are connected in tangible and intangible ways to so many other important figures in Australian history, not simply to Sir Alfred Deakin. It is an interesting point to note that Zelman Cowen was of course the second Jewish Governor-General of Australia, the first having been Sir Isaac Isaacs. Again, is it a coincidence that Sir Zelman had written a biography of Isaac Isaacs some years before? And is it a further coincidence that they died at exactly the same age? What were the chances of that? There are a lot of threads in Zelman Cowen's life that connect him to the history and the prominent figures of our country, some that are rather more intangible.

I first became aware of Zelman Cowen in a law library. When he was a young scholar at Oxford—he was Rhodes Scholar at Oxford University—he wrote a very important book on evidence, called Essays on the Law of Evidence, in partnership with another academic named Peter Carter, who did not go on to greatness in public life but remained a teacher at Oxford University. Indeed, when he was lecturing me and others in 1979 on evidence, I have no doubt that the notes he was lecturing to us from were the same he had used when he was a fellow with Zelman Cowen, given that the notes were so ancient and tattered and that moths were practically flying off the page every time he turned one over. That was my first encounter with Zelman Cowen in print. But when I was at Oxford I learnt an enormous amount about Zelman Cowen from my very good friend and fellow Rhodes Scholar Steven Skala, who was one of the handful of guests at our wedding in 1980. Steven had grown up in Brisbane and had, it seemed, effectively become part of the Cowen family. He spoke of Zelman with a warmth and an insight that made Lucy and me almost feel as though we knew him, even though I had not at that stage of my life met Zelman, other than through the pages of his evidence text—which is not the best way to get to know anyone, I might add. So Steven spoke of a man who was warm and was a mentor, although mentor is a rather chilly term—I think it was almost as if he was a man who was prepared to be almost like a father to so many other young people. This was a long time ago. It is well over 30 years ago that I am talking of Steven's discussions about Zelman Cowen with me. It is very touching that, much later, in much more recent years our colleague the member for Kooyong, Josh Frydenberg, had a similar filial mentor relationship with Zelman Cowen. Just as Zelman inspired and helped fashion the ideals and values of Steven he has clearly done the same with Josh, and it says a lot about the character of the man. Of course, there are so many other people on whom he had this impact.

He was, above all, a natural teacher. This is an important point because many teachers and scholars of Sir Zelman's rank find teaching students a little bit beneath them, and they prefer to leave that to their assistants and concentrate on research and giving grand lectures. But his enthusiasm and passion for other people, particularly for young people, marked him out as a really special teacher, somebody who had not simply the intellect, the charisma and the ability to communicate but also the compassion and the genuine human interest in others. That is remarkable. The great scholars of whom you could make those observations would form a relatively short list, in my experience.

He held many university positions. He was a fellow at Oxford. He later became the Dean of the Melbourne University Law School, the Vice-Chancellor at the University of Queensland and prior to that at Armidale, and later, after his Governor-Generalship, he was the Provost of Oriel College. He had a range of interests and they went well beyond the academic. But the big event in his life was when Malcolm Fraser invited him to become Governor-General of Australia. At the moment of his appointment he described it as the opportunity to deliver a touch of healing, and that is exactly what he did. Whatever the rights and wrongs of the 1975 dismissal, the actions by Sir John Kerr and the subsequent political controversy had brought the office of the Governor-General into a degree of bitter contention and political acrimony that it had not had before nor, I am happy to say, since. It required a very special person to take over from Sir John Kerr.

Sir Zelman Cowen was able to bring a remarkable intellect but also a depth of humanity and empathy with all Australians that enabled him to reach out and reconnect that office with the people in a manner that restored confidence in it. He had a genuine warmth. Again, we have had many great viceroys at the federal and the state level. You can think today of the extraordinary warmth of Marie Bashir, the Governor of New South Wales. They are of course two very different people, although both great scholars and academics in their own fields, but each of them had that degree of humanity, compassion and warmth. I dealt quite regularly with Sir Zelman Cowen during the debate over the Australian republic. I am pleased to see my colleague the member for Goldstein, Andrew Robb, here who was also on the side of justice and truth in that campaign. Zelman Cowen had been an advocate for an Australian republic for some time, well before the referendum campaign in 1999. He had the same view about what an Australian republic should look like—that is to say, it should have a president who has essentially the same powers as the Governor-General—but he was strongly opposed, as indeed I was and the member for Goldstein was, to the idea that the president should be directly elected by the people.

His argument in that regard was very well made on a number of occasions but most notably in the Hawke Lecture in 1999, which he entitled 'The guide for the perplexed', which is a very neat literary reference to Maimonides work on theology. Sometimes constitutional law is even more obscure than theology. His argument was essentially that you must, in looking at the office of head of state, first ask yourself what you want your head of state to do and be. If your job description is, 'We want somebody who is nonpolitical, nonpartisan, seen as impartial and not caught up in political controversy,' then it follows that electing them directly in a contested public election is unlikely to deliver a person who would fit those characteristics. Almost invariably—and this is true in every country where presidents are elected, whether they are executive presidents as in America or non-executive presidents as in the Republic of Ireland—you would end up with somebody who is a nominee of one of the major political parties. We shared exactly the same views about it. He intervened in the debate, as his friends Sir Ninian Stephen and Sir Anthony Mason intervened, and that was very important, not simply because jurists of that stature gave support and credibility to the proposition that we should make this change but because they were able to assure Australians that the change was not going to result in red revolution. Of course, our opponents were busily saying that would be the case and running all source of scare campaigns.

Zelman and I spoke on a number of occasions about one of the most egregious scare campaigns run by the no case in that referendum which was that, if Australia became a republic, we would have to leave the Commonwealth—that we could not be a member of the Commonwealth any longer. It beggars belief that anyone would make a claim like that, because the largest country in the Commonwealth, India, is in fact a republic. Zelman was able to deal with this repeatedly. I will quote from part of his Hawke lecture in 1999. He said:

I therefore support the Constitutional Convention's proposal that the President be elected by two-thirds of a joint sitting of the two Houses of federal Parliament. This is the proposal which will be put to the people in November this year, and I believe it can be safely recommended to our fellow citizens as giving us an Australian head of state without radical change to our parliamentary system.

Of course there are other aspects which merit attention. There is one I would like to mention in closing. It is the question of whether Australia's becoming a republic has any implications for Australia's continued membership of the Commonwealth.

…   …   …

The point can be simply put: Australia's becoming a republic is entirely consistent with our continuing membership of the Commonwealth. This point was established almost exactly fifty years ago, when the consequence of a member state of the Commonwealth becoming a republic was considered by the Commonwealth Prime Ministers meeting in London in 1949.

It was there resolved that India, which had put the matter before the Prime Ministers, might maintain membership of the Commonwealth as a republic, and that India would for its part recognize the monarch as Head of the Commonwealth ... The upshot is that the modern Commonwealth includes states which are republics—the majority—those which have their separate monarchs, and a substantial minority which retain the monarch, among these Australia.

Interestingly, as he goes on in his speech he acknowledges that, at the time that he was a young law lecturer and a fellow at Oxford, he and all constitutional lawyers of the day had been brought up to believe that fealty to the Crown was an integral part of being a member of the Commonwealth, as indeed it had been. He says that this change in 1949 came as somewhat of a surprise. He goes on to note:

I remember that soon after the decision of the Commonwealth Prime Ministers was made public, I - then a young Oxford law teacher - was sitting alongside Mr Attlee, who was then Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, and a party to the London agreement. A youthful purist (some might say pedant), I asked whether in view of all of the history, he had difficulty in reaching his conclusion. The most laconic of men, he answered directly to the point. 'No.' That was all.

Sir Zelman was very important in that debate. He did not win the referendum, of course, but his input was intelligent, sober, sane, measured, nonpolitical and capable of providing the sort of intelligent input into policy debates that we could perhaps do with a little bit more of from time to time.

His healing hand was not only felt in the Commonwealth of Australia. Our paths had crossed previously, in the early nineties, when, after a long series of corporate catastrophes, John Fairfax had gone into bankruptcy and my firm was representing the subordinated debt holders, the so-called 'junk bond' holders. We put together a group comprising us, the bond holders, Kerry Packer, Conrad Black and an American private equity fund to make a bid for the companies as the so-called Tourang consortium. It was eventually successful, but, given all the colourful characters involved in that bid, it was no surprise that just about everyone fell out with everyone else.

The takeover of John Fairfax was effected at the end of 1991, we got the deal done, and then the company was relisted in early 1992, and Zelman was the first chairman of the board. Chairing a board with all of those characters on it, or represented on it, would have been pretty challenging—although we did have as a director Laurence Street, who ultimately succeeded him as chairman.

Zelman and I crossed swords, in a gentle way, at the Fairfax AGM on 25 November 1992, which was the first AGM of John Fairfax since young Warwick had recklessly taken it over in 1987, with all of the disasters that followed. I was then a shareholder. My shareholding was not substantial in a companies act sense but, for me, it was a very substantial shareholding in the company. I had taken exception about a month or so before the meeting when I learnt that the directors were proposing to issue to themselves and to some executives options exercisable at $1, notwithstanding that the market price for the shares was $1.50. I had rung up the chief executive, Stephen Mulholland, to complain about this, and he had abused me rather colourfully. An hour later, he sent me some flowers, which I thought was sweet of him. I rang him back and he did the same thing again. The second time, the flowers did not come.

So we commenced proceedings in the Federal Court in which my father-in-law was my counsel and Lucy was the solicitor—so it was definitely a family exercise—and we were successful. Regrettably for Fairfax and Conrad Black, their solicitors had made a few errors in the notice of meeting and there were some other deficiencies, and they basically had to surrender. So the options exercisable at $1 were not issued. This was a big issue leading up to their shareholders' meeting, and Conrad Black and I spent much of the meeting shouting at each other: me from the floor of the opera theatre, I think, and Conrad on the stage. Needless to say, there were 800 shareholders there, most of whom were small shareholders, and you can imagine their sympathy was not with the directors giving themselves options at $1.

Over all of this Zelman managed somehow to keep order and he was able to radiate a degree of calm. At one point he suggested he might have to rule some remarks of mine as out of order, and we had a debate about whether he was trying to gag me or not. With his charm and my sense that I might lose the support of the room if I had a row with such a distinguished chairman, we managed to get through to the end of the meeting satisfactorily.

He did a very good job at Fairfax and, just as he had been as chairman of the press council of Britain, he was not unfamiliar with the media. It was a good example, in a very practical and turbulent sense, with 800 largely very unhappy shareholders and some pretty arrogant directors and executive on the part of Fairfax, Stephen Mulholland and Conrad Black in particular. It was a good example, I thought, of Zelman's ability to provide a calming influence not just in a speech to a gentlemanly or ladylike gathering or in a committee meeting but in a big hall.

He led a long and incredibly full life, a life of great accomplishment. He died laden with honours and loved by all. He obviously, however, cherished his family above all, as we all should—and in this respect Zelman Cowen is an example to all of us. It is common to say of people, 'He was a good family man' or 'She was a good mother and wife' and all of that. That is a good thing to say, but Zelman Cowen's family was his passion. In that sense, it was part of his Jewishness. Of course the Jews are not by any means the only people who love their families, but family life and the warmth of family life, the hamesha family life, the warm homeliness of it, is so central to Jewish life, to Jewish culture and to Sir Zelman Cowen.

Mourned by all, missed by all but admired for a lifetime of achievement, we salute Zelman Cowen and, as a parliament, offer our condolences to his widow, Lady Anna, and to their children, grandchildren and all of their family, some of whom, like Josh and Stephen Skala, were effectively informally adopted.

Andrew Robb (Goldstein, Liberal Party, Chairman of the Coalition Policy Development Committee) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is a great privilege for me to have an opportunity to say a few words of condolence about this very great Australian. I must say how much I enjoyed, and I endorse, the comments by the member for Wentworth, which were put so eruditely and finely in the last few minutes. I enjoyed also the interactions that Malcolm Turnbull experienced with Sir Zelman over a long period of time.

I had the great honour of getting to know Sir Zelman perhaps over the last 15 years. As the member for Wentworth mentioned, we were engaged with Sir Zelman in all sorts of ways during the republic debate and I shared Sir Zelman's view of how it should proceed and what shape it should take—the minimalist model and the lack of election of a president, which he felt very strongly about, as did I and still do. That gave us a point of connection and it gave me a great opportunity to get to know the man and to appreciate what so many others have eloquently put in this chamber about the qualities of Sir Zelman and the reasons for which he is so widely respected within the Australian community and the global community in the many areas that he has interacted with. I have been able to maintain some measure of contact, often by coincidence, as Sir Zelman lived near my electorate. Caulfield, in which he resided, is the neighbouring suburb to my electorate. I have around 8,000 members of the Jewish community in my electorate of Goldstein and I enjoy my regular interactions with the Jewish community. I would often find myself at the same function or event as Sir Zelman as a consequence.

The thing that struck me about him, both in my interactions with him and in the way he dealt with other people, was his humility. I found it hugely instructive and also a source of great admiration for a man of such extraordinary achievements—and not just for the magnificent role as Governor-General but through the history of his achievements which have already been chronicled so well by so many: from a young age as dux of his school, as a Rhodes scholar and then later as the Dean of Law at the University of Melbourne at the age of 30. These marked him as a man of remarkable intellect and capacity. I suspect, despite the humble, sympathetic and empathetic manner that he always brought to interactions with people, there was clearly great strength of character. He was a man who was not easily swayed from his view of things. He had a capacity to stay true to what he believed and to argue it and influence others without any bombast and without any acrimony. It is again a lesson for many of us in this place that there are multiple ways of achieving outcomes and multiple ways of legitimately disagreeing with one another without some of the nastiness that can surround proceedings not just here but in other parts of our community.

Sir Zelman was operational in Darwin when the bombings took place in the Second World War. He experienced the bombings, which in fact exceeded Pearl Harbor. This is not well understood due to the strategic approach taken at the time not to frighten the rest of the community with what was happening up north. To this day, I do not think Australians appreciate the significance of the magnitude of the disaster or the intensity of the hundreds of Japanese bombings that took place. Sir Zelman experienced all of that. He was a patron of the Darwin Defenders group and without exception attended the Darwin Defenders service, which is held on 19 February each year in Melbourne and in other parts of the country. Without exception, he was a patron of the Darwin Defenders group. For the years I have been in parliament I have attended each year, and he has always been there, no matter what his state of health has been. Again, he was always responsive to people and always had that great capacity, which the member for Wentworth described so eloquently, for mentoring. He had this innate ability, whether you were speaking to him for one minute or for 30 minutes, to influence what you thought, without preaching at you or imposing a point of view. It is very hard to articulate; he was a very remarkable man and he had this quality about him. Others, such as the member for Kooyong, have spoken eloquently about this capacity, and they have enjoyed that experience, perhaps more than others, with Sir Zelman.

I saw it again and again. In every interaction I had with him over the last 15 years, that was the thing that stayed with me. I always came away from that discussion, no matter how short or how long it was, with a feeling of more certainty about certain issues and with something to think about. Again, it was all done in a gentle manner. His humility was a constant and it was extraordinary. He had many reasons to have a touch of arrogance or hubris, given his contribution, but you never saw it for a second.

He was a man of great empathy and patience. When Malcolm described that unruly shareholder meeting, I could visualise it. I could see the patience that he would exert, the wisdom that he would convey in his comments and the respect and empathy that I know he would have shown for everyone in that room. That invites cooperation. It calms things down and leads to constructive outcomes. I was not at the meeting, although I have read about it. I can see him in my mind's eye carrying out that role that the member for Wentworth so adequately described. The patience, empathy, intellect and loyalty that he showed to the Darwin Defenders constituted a life and a respect that is not unique but is as strong as you would ever find for any individual in Australia.

It is a great immigrant story, and many have spoken about that. It reinforces the pride that I have, and the confidence that most Australians have, that we are a much greater nation because of the millions of immigrant stories, and this is another immigrant story of great quality. Not only does it help to form the glue that holds this country together; it also ensures that we go from strength to strength. The sorts of stories, experiences and qualities that he is an example of broadens and deepens the Australian character. I think there are many great Australians who have had profound influences over the development of Australia in the last 200 years. There are people who have done things which have unambiguously had long-term influences in shaping either the physical attributes or the cultural attributes of Australia. So there are many great Australians through history, but I think it could be reasonably argued that no-one has had an influence that exceeded his. They might be equal to him, but no-one has had a singular influence that exceeded the unique healing role that he so magnificently performed during his time as Governor-General.

I do think it was a time when Australia could have been heading towards a significant fracturing of our fundamental institutions or culture or sense of oneness. It had that potential to go off the rails, and that could have been a long-term, damaging and unfortunate development. But I think to the great surprise of everyone in such a short period—he had 4½ years as Governor-General but, really, this was within two years—he had taken hold of that source of division, angst and potential fracturing and calmed it down. He had shown a greater purpose that we have all got together, and the value of putting those things behind us and moving on. Things happen—in a family, in an organisation, in a country; they cannot be removed, they happen, but you have to find ways of dealing with them. I think he showed Australia a way of dealing with that issue. For that if for nothing else, even though he made the most extraordinary contributions in so many areas, he must have the undying gratitude of all Australians for many decades into the future. He shaped Australia. He made a critical and fundamental contribution to the essence of the Australian character through the civilising influence he bought to that job. I do feel that he and his family should be enormously proud of that role that he played.

There is so much more that others have said, and said more eloquently than I could. His achievements are just remarkable. As the member for Wentworth said, it never stopped. He contributed at an extraordinary level right through to the end. Despite years of ill-health in the latter part of his life, he was still having this extraordinary influence on people and events.

I conclude by saying that it was a great life. He was so greatly respected. His life was one of simply great accomplishments. But he was a man who was marked by extraordinary humility, empathy and respect for others. We salute Sir Zelman Cowen. His was a life well lived. We offer our condolences to his widow, Lady Anna, his children, all those that were close to him and all those that he loved so much.

Russell Matheson (Macarthur, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to pay tribute to a fine Australian who has been remembered as one of the great political healers of our time. Sir Zelman Cowen served for 4½ years as Australia's 19th Governor-General, from December 1977 to July 1982. He was described as a great and dignified Australian after being hand-picked in 1977 as a unifying figure to help heal the politics of the nation after the dismissal of the Whitlam government in 1975.

Sir Zelman was appointed to the position of Governor-General by Malcolm Fraser in 1977. In his later years he described the appointment as 'totally unexpected' but 'the greatest experience' of his life. The Sydney Morning Heraldrecently quoted Malcolm Fraser, when he said:

Sir Zelman "restored Australia's faith in the office of governor-general".

Malcolm Fraser went on:

"Sir Zelman took over the position at a more difficult time than any other governor general and served in the role with great distinction …

According to Fraser:

"Sir Zelman worked extremely hard to see as much as he could and to talk to as many Australians as possible."

I would like to express my condolences to Sir Zelman's wife, Anna, and their four children, Shimon, Nick, Kate and Ben, and his 16 grandchildren and six great-grandchildren. I am sure that, while they grieve the passing of a man they loved so much, they are also very proud of the contribution that he made to our nation and the faith that he restored in our political system.

At his funeral, Sir Zelman's son, Shimon, said his dad:

… rebuilt or healed a divided nation and indeed throughout his life constantly sought to work consensus by modelling mutual respect and decent values.

He said his dad was not philosophical and that he was a doer, who dedicated his life to humanity.

Sir Zelman was labelled as the 'perfect choice' for the post of Governor-General in 1977. He was a distinguished Australian, with an international reputation in the field of law and education. Between 1951 and 1966 he was the Dean of Law at the University of Melbourne. He was appointed the Vice-Chancellor of the University of New England in Armidale, New South Wales, in 1966. In 1970 he was appointed Vice-Chancellor of the University of Queensland in Brisbane.

He was regarded by his peers as one of the leading constitutional lawyers in the English-speaking world. He won a Rhodes scholarship in 1940 and decided to join the Royal Australian Navy. He served in Darwin in February 1942 during the Japanese air raids on Darwin and Northern Australia.

Later in the war he worked as a sublieutenant on the staff of General Douglas MacArthur. Sir Zelman was also a proud member of the Jewish community and, in 2003, he urged all Australians to show more compassion and generosity towards refugees. Even in retired life he set a fine example for other Australians to follow.

After his retirement, Sir Zelman pursued a range of other interests, including serving for five years on the board of Fairfax newspapers and being patron of St Kilda Football Club.

Sadly, he was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 1990 and, as a result, he lost his voice in recent years. At his funeral, Shimon said this gave his father a new view of life and spirituality. He said that his dad responded to his condition without anger or irritation and that he was cast into an entire new modality of listening and receptivity.

It is clear that Sir Zelman was a great man both in his public and private life and, whilst he gave so much to his country and humanity, I am sure he gave a lot more to those who loved him the most—his family.

Sir Zelman was a great leader in both the Australian and Jewish communities and someone whom all politicians could aspire to today. He showed great humanity and dignity during his time in office and championed many important causes. He set a great example for all of us who serve our communities here in this place, and I believe this is one of the greatest legacies he has left behind.

I am proud to see so many of my colleagues pay tribute to Sir Zelman today. He was a great Australian who deserves the kind words which have been spoken about him. I only hope that his death will not be in vain and that we all take a page from his book and continue to work hard to bring great integrity and dignity to the jobs which our communities have elected us to do.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Sir Zelman for his contribution to our nation and for the great legacy he has left behind for his children and his country. I would also like to note that, before I spoke in this chamber today, the member for Kooyong sat through and listened to a number of speeches of my colleagues on the condolence motion for Sir Zelman. Sir Zelman was a great mentor for the member for Kooyong and we see the member for Kooyong, a great shining light, come into this House. I am sure that Sir Zelman would have been very proud of his performances not only in this House but also within his community. I am sure we all would have liked to have had a great mentor such as Sir Zelman. I am looking forward to watching the member for Kooyong grow in this House and in what he achieves for his community. The Australian people will be proud of the member for Kooyong in the way he performs his duties in this House.

John Alexander (Bennelong, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on the life of Sir Zelman Cowen and on his contribution to our country. Sir Zelman passed away on 8 December, at the age of 92. He was born in the Melbourne suburb of St. Kilda in 1919, on the same day as the death of Alfred Deakin, one of the founding fathers of our nation. At 19 years of age he became the youngest tutor in the history of the University of Melbourne. Chosen for a Rhodes scholarship the following year and at just 31 years of age, he was chosen as Dean of the University of Melbourne's Faculty of Law, one of our nation's great schools of law. He also helped establish the Monash Law School and the Griffith Law School and was appointed Vice-Chancellor of the University of New England and then of the University of Queensland, exemplifying his unique commitment to learning and leadership.

His writings on privacy and bioethics have stood the test of time and helped shape the laws we hold firmly to today. As many Australians have found their hero status in the field of combat and in the face of fire, Sir Zelman's heroic deeds were performed in peacetime but at a time of crisis. In 1977 he was appointed as Governor-General. It was his most important role. After the 1975 dismissal, our nation was fractured. He entered with a goal to become the healer and he left five years later having achieved this goal.

His many more contributions to the British legal system and the Press Council have been recounted numerous times, as have his love for his family and his contribution to the vibrant Australian Jewish community. But Sir Zelman was more than that. He represented a new stage in Australia's development. He was a first-generation Australian who strongly represented our new multicultural society. He brought together old-world religious, cultural and social traditions with the continuous development and growth of our legal system and practices. He reflected great courage as a 1930s school student, writing stories for his peers about the great suffering being heaped upon the Jewish community in Europe. He defended our nation and our nation's core values on the battlefield, in the classroom, in the lecture theatre and on the typewriter. He possessed an intellect that few could match but preferred to use humour as a tool to get his message across; yet this keen intellect and intuition was on constant display throughout his days as he remained steadfastly loyal, despite only once being rewarded by that great institution, the St Kilda Football Club. He was a truly broad Australian of intellect and a love of sport. Sir Zelman was a hero on the field of combat and in his peacetime pursuits. He was a truly great Australian. We will miss him greatly.

John Murphy (Reid, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I too wish to associate myself with the contributions made by other honourable members. Sir Zelman Cowen was not only a distinguished Australian; he was a great Australian. I take this opportunity to extend my deepest sympathy to Lady Cowen and her family. May he rest in peace.

I understand it is the wish of honourable members to signify at this stage their respect and sympathy by standing in their places.

Honourable members having stood in their places

I thank the Committee.

Chris Hayes (Fowler, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That further proceedings be conducted in the House.

Question agreed to.