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

I want to acknowledge and honour as best I can Tadashi Yamamoto, a great friend of Australia, who, sadly, died in Tokyo on 15 April. I had the great privilege of knowing Tadashi. He was, first and foremost, a gentleman. He was a very polished, sophisticated, urbane individual who had a great capacity to build relationships, and he did so over many decades both in Australia and the United States. He was a great Japanese diplomat, a champion of global health and a long-term director of Friends of the Global Fund in Japan. He had a very distinguished career as President of the Japan Centre for International Exchange. I was involved for many years as a board member on the Australian Political Exchange Council, and it was in that capacity that I had the great opportunity to meet Mr Yamamoto on many occasions. In fact, I had the privilege of hosting him and other colleagues in our place outside of Canberra, and again in Kirribilli when I had left politics and was working in the commercial sphere—we often hosted the tours each year.

But it has meant that both here in Australia and in the United States Mr Yamamoto was responsible for developing wonderful relationships in hosting young political leaders from Japan to both countries. It has led now over two decades to the establishment of some amazing and very high level relationships which have been enduring. Certainly, I have stayed in touch with many of the people who I met when I first visited Japan in the early nineties.

Mr Yamamoto was a pioneer in many respects. He was known in Japan as a person who had been a major financier and who was responsible through the Global Fund for raising amazing amounts of money to fight AIDS, TB and malaria, and for other programs. His legacy is one of a man who really walked tall, and yet he was a man with great humility. I just want to convey on my own behalf and for my parliamentary colleagues the great respect, the honour and the great gratitude that we have for our association with this exceptional man, who did so much. I convey our condolences to his family and friends.

Bruce Scott (Maranoa, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Goldstein. We observed a moment of silence earlier, which I am sure that you wish to be associated with.

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

Yes, thank you.