AS DELIVERED 2
Jj AUSTRAL IA
PRIME MINISTER
FOR MEDIA THURSDAY, 22 JULY 1982
FARE; LL DINNER FOR SIR ZELMA2 N COWEN
This is a small dinner Your Excellencies to say thank you
very much for what you have done for Australia over the
last four to five years. Your record Sir Zelman, is
Australian ( inaudible). It is one in which we can all take
pride. In academic areas you were twice Vice-Chancellor, as a lawyer
your writings and your publications, your biography of Sir
Isaac Isaacs, the numerous papers that you have published on the
law and education and national affairs stand high by any
standards. There was one work that you wrote entitled " The
Trial of Lady Chatterly, the Trial of Oz". I am not quite
sure what it was about and I don't intend to go into it on
this occasion. Well His Excellency says that he will. I
sit down and this floor and forum is yours for as long as
you like.
You have served Australia with great distinction in many
areas, many offices and more particularly for the last four to
five years as the Governor-General. Your past history and
your own training has made it possible for you to take that
office with a great knowledge of what is required, with a
very keen understanding of the importance of the office to
the central position of Australia's constitutional affairs.
You have been the Queen's represcntative here and in many
ways Sir Zelrnan you have followed her example. She has been
through all history a unifying factor of British affairs in the
Commonwealth. You have sought to be so in Australian affairs.
I believe you have achieved that with very great distinction
and with remarkable success.
I thank you Sir very much for what you and Lady Cowen have
achieved. You have been far above the debate which takes
place in the: Federal Parliament, which seeks not to unify
so often, buat to divide and whatever you have done has been
to unify Australia as one nation. You have earned the respect
of everyone throughout this country. You have earned the respect
of all members of Parliament. In particular I believe you have
earned the respect of all the people in this room tonight
because whether it is in law, the courts, Parliament, the
Public Service or in the military, you have in this room the
people who a~ re the very core, of the fabric of Australian
Government.
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I don't know if the Earth opened up and everyone in this room
fell into a great bottomless pit, there would be a few good
jobs going. on the pay that you all get, I don't know that
there would bie too many cases, but I certainly know that
the Governmen. t of Australia would be much worse off if
that happene6.. The fact that so many people who are vastly
important to the Government or the Commonwealth are here tonight
is a small example of the respect that all Australians hold
for you and Lady Cowen.
I was interested to know in your Press Club speech yesterday
or the day before that you don't regard your officers as fat
and I am delighted to know it because I never have. In many
ways the constitution, the Office of the Governor-General is
much more important than many Australians think or many
Australians understand. That was not by some accident of
history, it is not because of some powers that come from
the monarch i~ n ancient times. It comes from the deliberate
act of Australia's founding fathers, the kind of constitution
that they wro~ te and the powers of that constitution gave to
the Office of the Governor-General. That imposes many
important obligations upon the office of the Governor-General,
upon the person holding that office and Sir, you have fulfilled
all those responsibilities with the very highest distinction.
In many ways the Governor-General is the custodian of the rights,
the basic rigjhts of all Australian people. As President
of the Executive Council it is possible by what is said, but
what is done by the manner of holdin~ g. that office, it is good
for Ministers and it will have an af-fect on their thinking
and there is nothing wrong with that and much good in it.
The speeches you have made from one end of this country to
the other you have exercised that intellectual influence on
the Australian community. You have put many things into a
national perSpective. You have had more public engagements
over a period of 4 to 5 years than any of your predecessors.
You very actively sought to take the office of the Governor-
General and the personality of yourself and Lady Cowen out to
every corner of Australia. I know that there are many tens
of thousands of Australians who are very grateful to you for
that. They have had a chance to meet with you, to talk with
you, to hear what you have to say and they have appreciated
it greatly indeed.
You have travelled very, very widely, whether it is the Cocos
Islands or the Christmas Islands or Norfolk Island or every
part of Australia. I think one of your main achievements
has been to bring Australians together. You I think in a
very real sen2se undermined the parochialism, the ideological.
rifts that so often appear whether it is in Parliament or
somewhere else. You have emphasised the real interests
Australians do hold in common.
3
In your Australia Day Address in 1978 1 think you indicated
that you regard the office and your part in the Office as a
symbol of the unity of all the people of Australia. You have
carried that through throughout the four or five years in a very
remarkable way. an
I think it is not/ uncommon thing to say that somebody who
has done a job as well as you have, could not have been
done so well had it not been for your better half. Lady Cowen
has always been with you, she has alw.. ays supported you. She
has always done much more than the people of Australia could
have asked. She has had her own involvement in the welfare
of many different groups throughout the Australian community,
assisting people who are less fortunate than most of us.
Lady Cowen I would like to thank you also very much for the
way you have dlone your part of this Office.
In one way Sir, and this is not an offence, you have been a
very cheap price because we got two for one and I am not
prepared to say ( inaudible)........ But you are both worth
a very great deal and thank you very much.
On Australia Day in 1982 in this year you indicated in your
address that Australians should concentrate their minds
proudly on what it is that keeps us all together. I believe
Sir, that that is one of the most important tasks in front of
all of us. It is so easy to be cut up into different groups,
to different Parties, in different sectional or economic
interests. But what you have epitomnised over the years is
the fact that as Australians our real interests are interests
in common and you have personified that in a very real way.
You have got to remind us of it and I thank you for that.
So you leave Australia in a few days time temporarily, I am
sure you leave with enormous goodwill on the part of all
of us. You go to look after the affairs of Oriel College
Oxford and I am sure you will ease your mind and put your
stamp on that college which is no stranger to you. As a result
there will be many people who would never understand Australia
and what we are all about. I hope to be here Sir on an occasion
and able to offer you a dinner whenever it is you wish to return
on an occasion such as this and welcome back the Governor-General
that left us, but he came back and for whom we have a great
affection and a very great regard.
So, thank you very much for what you have done for this country.
You have done a great deal in many different tasks, but what
you have done as Governor-General both you and Lady Cowen is
something tha~ t we will always remember. It will be written
in the history books, it will be written that you heal, that
you unified and you filled the office with very great
distinction and I ask all of you to rise and drink a toast.