CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY EMBARGOED UNTIL 12.30 P. M.
AUST
PRIME MINISTER
SPEECH BY THE PRIME MINISTER
OFFICIAL LAUNCHING OF THE AUSTRALIAN ENCYCLOPAEDIA
( 4TH EDITION) 2 NOVEMBER 1983
Let me say at the outseI: how pleased I am to be
here to launch this new edition the fourth of the
Australian Encyclopaedia.
The existence of such a reference work is
indispensable to the needs of contemporary Australia.
There is now, both locally and world-wide, a
growing interest in all things Australian
In commercial, industrial, scientific, sporting
and cultural fields across a wide range of Australian
endeavour Australians are making distinctive and valuable
contributions. We can point, for example, to an increasing number
of Australian technological and manufacturing successes.
The interscan airport approach sYStem is a particularly
impressive recent case in point.
On the cultural side, we take pleasure in the
international reputation Australian3 have achieved in the
highly competitive field of film and T. V. production.
Australian authors have al. 5o won world acclaim;
among them, Patrick White, our resident Nobel Prize winner
for literature; Morris West, who invariably makes the world
best-sellers list; and Thomas Kenea: ly, who last year won
the prestigious British Booker-McC,-, nell prize with
" Schindler's Ark".
This encyclopaedia draws of these strands of
Australian experience and achiever" r. t together in readily
accessible form.
That it has been done so t:! fectively is a tribute
to the editorial advisory board members we are told
established the preliminary list :-ncyclopaedia entries,
recommended suitable consultants " ontributors and
provided invaluable ongoing advice oi assistance to the
editors.
2.
Special recognition is due to
Sir Harold White, former National and Parliamentary
Librarian, who served as Chairman of the editorial
board for both this 4th edition and its
predecessor; Donald Horne, distinguished author and commentator;
Bruce Pratt, Editor-in-Chief of the 3rd edition;
and Dr Alan Day, senior lecturer in geology and
geophysics at the University of Sydney.
Through these board members I would also like to
j pay tribute to the work of hundreds of specialist
consultants and contributors who are too numerous to mention
individually collectively they are responsible for what has
Ibeen a massive enterprise
The 12th volume deserves special mention. The
appendix and index are no less an achievement than the other
The indexing system is notably innovative and
helpful. Significantly it is integrated with the
encyclopaedia's own computerised typesetting and alphabetic
sorting ptogram. This topical application of advances in information
technology provides a more precise guide for the user than
did the conventional folio and column indexing approach used
previously.
Ii I agree with the publishers of this encyclopaedia
that its particular achievement is to present " a
comprehensive-picture of Australia and its people both past
and present" to present " a changing Australia in a changing
wo rl1d"
I think it is important that we appreciate the
inevitability, scope and accelerating rate of change and
the need to try to identify its causes, origins, trends and
effects so that we can better confront and determine our
future as a nation.
There has hardly been a facet of contemporary
Australia that has been untouched by change.
Even basic and cherished assumptions must
regularly be reviewed.
No longer, for example, can we view Australia as an
island continent isolated on the rim of Asia.
For, while our Western roots will continue to
contribute significantly to Australia's distinctive
character, it is indisputable that Culturally and
economically our future will be very hound up with this
region. Ongoing changes within Australia are also having
profound implications for our future.
I think it is especially significant, for example,
that the information given about our Aboriginal people has
been significantly expanded in this edition.
This reflects not only greater awareness of the
original inhabitants of our land, but more genuine interest
in their way of life, their culture, beliefs and history
and, I hope, a greater concern for their well-being
and respect for their traditions and aspirations.
Similarly the treatment of our ethnic communities
has been expanded.
Australia's emergence as a multi-cultural community
has generated changes across the whole spectrum of national
li fe from our recreational and cultural pursuits to
welfare, employment and educational programs
An equally profound but more subtle aspect of
population change in Australia has to do with the ageing of
our community. We tend to see ourselves as a ' young country',
particularly by comparison with many other countries.
But, paradoxically, we are a steadily ageing
society. Recent Government projections suggest that in
years time the number of Australians over 65 will have more
than doubled, while the total population will only have
grown by slightly more than one third.
The implications this will. have for health, social
security and education services, employment patterns and,
not least, our own perceptions of ourselves are fundamental.
The perception and management of change is often a
confusing and complex exercise.
Adjustments in attitudes, social structures, And
institutions are usually involved.
A successful transition will depend, I believe, on
the willingness of the social partners Government, unions,
employers, and ultimately and most importantly, the people
to consult at all levels in a climate of mutual trust and
respect. A proper appreciation of the factors contributing
to change, of the implications of change, is necessary to a
healthy, well-ordered society.
Anything which can help us understand our past and
present, and gives us a perspective of the future, deserves
our attention and respect..
That is one of the many reasons why I commend this
edition of the Australian Encyclopaedia.
It is not, of course, an encyclopeadia's function
to provide a particular perspective, nor to furnish
ready-made conclusions, on any issue.
The encyclopaedia properly leaves to its readers
the responsibility of fashioning their own perspectives and
the exercise of drawing their own conclusions.
What I am suggesting is that the Australian
Encyclopaedia can provide considerable help in such pursuits
through its well presented entries
through the excellent suggestions for further
reading which accompany most entries
through its useful cross-referencing between
relevant entries
and through its invaluable and comprehensive index
system Again I must congratulate all who are responsible
for the Australian Encyclopaedia it is a top quality
production in every way
Except on one point.
It has been said that a book should not be judged
by its cover but in this case I am compelled to make, if not
a judgement, at least a comment.
For inside the cover of Volume One you will note
that this edition of the Australian Encyclopaedia was
printed in Singapore.
The result may be absolutely first class.
But, an equally fine job could have been done by
our own printing industry
and, I believe, at a comparable cost.
When last July I launched the " Keep Printing in
Australia" campaign, I did so with the conviction that
Australia's printing industry could produce at a price and
quality competitive with anywhere else in the world.
I sincerely hope that the bicentennial edition of
this Encyclopaedia will be all Australian.
However, that criticism aside, this project shows
again what Australians from all their diverse areas of
skills, backgrounds and fields of interest can achieve when
all work together towards a common aim.
It gives me great pleasure to commend all those
responsible for the preparation of this excellent 4th
edition of the Australian Encyclopaedia and to welcome it to
the bookshops and bookshelves of our nation.