PRIME MINISTER
EMBARGOED UNTIL DELVIERY CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY
" JULIUS STONE HUMANIST, JURIST AND INTERNATIONALIST"
INAUGURAL JULIUS AND RECA STONE MEMORIAL LECTURE
3 DECENBER 1985 SYDNEY
RECA STONE, MEMBERS OF THE STONE FAMILY, DISTINGUISHED
GUESTS, LADIES AND GENTLEIIIEN, N
I AM DEEPLY MOVED AND HONOURED TO PRESENT THIS, THE
INAUGURAL JULIUS AND RECA STONE MEMORIAL LECTURE.
JULIUS STONE, WITH THE AID AND ASSISTANCE OF HIS BELOVED
WIFE RECA, DID MORE THAN CONTRIBUTE TO THE DEVELOPMENT OF
AUSTRALIAN INTELLECTUAL LIFE. HE BROUGHT TO THIS COUNTRY,
AND TO THE WORLD, AN APPRECIATION OF THE NATURE OF HUMAN
ENDEAVOUR, THR REALISATION THAT THE INTERESTS ON WHICH WE
BASE LAW AND JUSTICE MUST BE THOSE OF ALL PEOPLE.
HIS GREAT CONTRIBUTION WAS TO SEE BOTH LAW AND JUSTICE AS
DEVELOPING IDEALS, FORGED IN CONCRETE HISTORICAL
CIRCUMSTANCES, ADMITTING OF STRUGGLE, INTERNAL CONFLICT,
DIFFERING SOCIAL PERCEPTION4S AND HUMAN INTERESTS FROM4 ONE
GENERATION TO THE OTHER.
GIVEN THAT THIS IS THE FIRST OF THE JULIUS AND RECA STONE
MEMORIAL LECTURES, I WOULD LIKE TO SAY SOMETHING ON HIS LIFE
AND WORK BEFORE FOCUSSING ON THREE ASPECTS OF JULIUS'
WRITINGS AND ACTIVITIES WHICH HAVE IMPRESSED ME
PARTICULARLY. IN THIS WAY, I SHALL ENDEAVOUR TO PROVIDE
INSIGHTS INTO JULIUS-STONE THE MAN, HIS IDEAS AND THE
CONTINUING RELEVANCE OF HIS WORK.
I FIRST BECAME AWARE OF JULIUS STONE WHEN, AS A LAW STUDENT
AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA, I WAS INTRODUCED TO
HIS PROVINCE AND FUNCTION OF LAW. AT THE TIME I KNEW
NOTHING OF? THE MAN, AND LITTLE OF THE CIRCUMSTANCES WHICH
HAD MOULDED HIM. I WAS LESS THAN FULLY AWARE OF THE
EUROPEAN JEWISH INTELLECTUAL TRADITION WJHICH NOT ONLY WAS TO
SHAPE THE DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIALISM, BUT WHICH WAS ALSO TO
NURTURE THE RIGHTS OF INDIVIDUALS WITHIN GROUPS AND GROUPS
WITHIN A SOCIETY.
IN LATER YEARS I WAS TO COME TO ADMIRE AND LOVE JULIUS.( AND
I WAS HONOURED WHEN HE WROTE THE INTRODUCTION TO HAI-IKE ON
ISRAEL). I TREASURE THE MEMORY OF HIS CONVERSATIW92.
THROUGH HIM, AND THROUGH OTHERS, I WAS TO UNDERSTAND AND
ADMIRE THE TENACITY DISPLAYED BY THE JEWISH PEOPLE IN THE
ESTABLISHMENT AND DEVELOPMENT OF THE STATE OF ISRAEL.
JULIUS STONE TOOK TO THE LAW AFTER HIS OXFORD TUTOR HAD
DESPAIRED OF HIM AS A HISTORIAN. AT OXFORD IN 1925, JULIUS
STONE, PRODUCT OF WORKING-CLASS LEEDS AND ONE OF THE FEW
STUDENTS ( LIKE RECA) TO WIN A STATE UNIVERSITY SCHOLARSHIP
TO A MAJOR UNIVERSITY, WAS CONFRONTED BY HIS HISTORY TUTOR
WITH THE WORDS: " STONE, YOU REALISE THAT YOUR IDEAS OF
HISTORY AND MINE HAVE NOTHING IN COMMON". THE TUTOR
SUGGESTED THAT STONE TAKE HIS TALENTS -AND HIS TALENTS WERE
RECOGNISED AS CONSIDERABLE EVEN THEN -SOMEWHERE ELSE. TO
DENTISTRY. OR CHEMISTRY. OR EVEN TO THE LAW.
SO JULIUS STONE CROSSED THE QUADRANGLE AT HIS OXFORD
COLLEGE, EXETER, AND G. S. CHESHIRE, FATHER OF LEONARD
CHESHIRE ACCEPTED HIM AS A STUDENT. IN THIS RATHER
OFF-HAND UNGUARDED WAY BEGAN A LIFE-LONG ASSOCIATION WITH
THE LAW WHICH, IN THE COURSE OF THE ENSUING 60 YEARS, FIRMLY
ESTABLISHED JULIUS STONE AS* ONE OF THE LEADING LEGAL
PHILOSOPHERS OF HIS DAY.
THE STUDY OF LAW HAS BEEN, EVER SINCE, THE RICHER FOR THAT
DECISION. THERE ARE TWO ELEMENTS OF THE EARLY STORY THAT SEEM
IMPORTANT TO ME. FIRSTLY, JULIUS STONE CLASHED WITH HIS
HISTORY TUTOR BECAUSE HE, JULIUS, SAW HISTORY IN TERMS OF
ITS SOCIOLOGICAL AND ECONOMIC IMPACT ON ORDINARY PEOPLE,
WHILE HIS MORE CONVENTIONAL TUTOR AN EXPERT, INCIDENTALLY,
ON NAPOLEON BONAPARTE SAW IT AS PRINCIPALLY A RECORD OF
THE DEEDS OF KINGS AND PRINCES.
IN HIS EMPHASIS ON THE IMPORTANCE OF ORDINARY PEOPLE IN THE
SCHEME OF THINGS, I BELIEVE ONE CAN SEE THlE SEEDS OF ONE OF
JULIUS STONE'S LIFELONG PREOCCUPATIONS: A PREOCCUPATION
WITH THE RIGHT OF INDIVIDUALS IN A WORLD TOO LONG DOMINATED
BY KINGS AND PRINCES.
THE OTHER IMPORTANT ASPECT OF THE STORY IS THAT IT
DEMONSTRATES STONE'S TOTALLY HONEST AND UNCOMPROMISING
APPROACH TO HIS LEARNING. MANY A LESSER MORTAL, ONCE WARNED
HOW THE WIND BLEW WITH HIS TUTOR, WOULD HAVE TRIMMED HIS
SAILS TO THE PREVAILING WEATHER. NOT SO JULIUS STONE, AND
IT IS A REVEALING SIDELIGHT ON HIS INHERENT MODESTY THAT IN
RELATING THESE EVENTS IN LATER YEARS HE SEEMED COMPLETELY
OBLIVIOUS TO THE TREMENDOUS COURAGE IT MUST HAVE TAKEN NOT
TO SUCCUMB EASILY TO THE PRESSURES UPON HIM.
AT OXFORD, THE YOUNG JULIUS STONE HAD TO CONTEND WITH THE
BRITISH CLASS SYSTEM AND THE STRONG ELEMENTS OF
ANTI-SEMITISM WITHIN IT. IT WAS NOT A HAPPY TIME FOR HIM
AND HE FOUND, AS DID OTHERS, THAT TO SURVIVE HE HAD TO DO A
LOT OF PRETENDING. BUT HE HATED " THE GUTS OF THE PLACE" AND
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CONTINUED TO DO SO UNTIL THE END OF HIS LIFE, APART FROM HIS
LAW TUTOR, WHOM HE-LEARNED TO LOVE. IN PARTICULAR, HE
DESPISED THE DISTORTED CLASS-VALUE SYSTEM OF OXFORD AN
OPINION WHICH I, WITH MY AUSTRALIAN EGALITARIAN BACKGROUND,
COULD READILY UNDERSTAND.
JULIUS' ACADEMIC LIFE FROM THE BEGINNING WAS MARKED-BY
COURAGE, AND UNCOMPROMISING LOYALTY TO HIS BELIEFS AND A
SELF-IMPOSED DISCIPLINE FOR HARD WORK. AND HE NEEDED ALL
THESE ATTRIBUTES TO SUCCEED IN LEEDS, AT OXFORD, IN AMERICA
AND IN AUSTRALIA.
JULIUS STONE WAS FORTUNATE IN THAT HE WAS RAISED IN A
TRADITION WHICH ENDOWED HIM WITH IMMENSE FAITH IN THE HUMAN
SPIRIT. HIS DIFFICULT PHYSICAL EXISTENCE IN LEEDS SHARPENED HIS
RESOLVE TO SUCCEED AND GAVE HIM AN IMMENSE CAPACITY FOR
WORK. IT WAS FROM A POOR, HUMBLE BACKGROUND THAT JULIUS WON HIS
WAY TO OXFORD AND GAINED A BRILLIANT FIRST IN THE B. A.
( JURISPRUDENCE) EXAMINATION. UNABLE TO REMAIN AT OXFORD FOR
LACK OF FUNDS, JULIUS TOOK HIS B. C. L. PART-TIME AND
SUPPLICATED THE SAME DAY AS ANTHONY EDEN. KEEN TO OBTAIN
HIS JULIUS WAS INFORMED IT WOULD TAKE 10 YEARS. BUT
WHILE WORKING IN LEEDS, HE WROTE REGIONAL GUARANTEES OF
MINORITY RIGHTS AND INTERNATIONAL GUARANTEES OF MINORITY
RIGHTS AND SUBMITTED THEM FOR THE D. C. L.
THE OXFORD FELLOWS AND EXAMINERS WERE, AS RECA SAYS, NOT
" ENTHUSIASTIC" ABOUT AWARDING THE DEGREE SO EARLY AND TO A
JEW BUT THEIR DECISION WAS " UNANIMOUS". JULIUS CARRIED
THE POSTCARD CONTAINING THE NEWS WITH HIM FOR MANY MANY
YEARS. IN 1931 JULIUS ACCEPTED THE POSITION OF ROCKEFELLER FELLOW
IN SOCIAL SCIENCES AT HARVARD, WHERE HE WORKED WITH ONE OF
THE PIONEERS OF THE SOCIOLOGICAL SCHOOL OF JURISPRUDENCE,
ROSCOE POUND. HE STAYED ON AT HARVARD AS AN ASSISTANT
PROFESSOR OF LAW, AND EVENTUALLY RETURNED TO ENGLAND WHERE
THERE WAS THE PROMISE OF A UNIVERSITY POSITION. THIS,
HOWEVER, DID NOT EVENTUATE, BECAUSE HE WAS TOLD HE WAS A
JEW. DISGUSTED, JULIUS ACCEPTED A POSITION AT AUCKLAND
UNIVERSITY IN NEW ZEALAND AND, AS RECA HAS RECALLED, THEY
" SCATTERED AND LIVED". WHILE IN NEW ZEALAND, A CHAIR IN
INTERNATIONAL LAW AND JURISPRUDENCE AT THE UNIVERSITY OF
SYDNEY WAS ADVERTISED AND JULIUS WAS APPOINTED. A FEW WEEKS
LATER, HIS APPOINTMENT WAS RESCINDED BY THE UNIVERSITY
SENATE. HIS EVENTUAL APPOINTMENT AS CHALLIS PROFESSOR OF LAW AND
JURISPRUDENCE AT SYDNEY UNIVERSITY WAS SURROUNDED BY
CONTROVERSY AND PREJUDICE AN INDICTMENT OF AUSTRALIAN
SOCIETY AND THE LEGAL PROFESSION AT THAT TIME. HE WAS
SUSPECTED BY THE CONSERVATIVE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE DAY BOTH
BECAUSE HE WAS A JEW, AND BECAUSE OF THE EMPHASIS HE PUT ON
THE SOCIOLOGICAL IMPLICATIONS OF LAW. AS HE HIMSELF PUT IT
WITH UNDUE CHARITY, I THINK " THE LEGAL PROFESSION AND
THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY IN GOOD FAITH MISTOOK
' SOCIOLOGY' FOR SOCIALISM". EVEN THOUGH THEY DID NOT SAY
IT, THERE WAS UNDERLYING THE STONE AFFAIR A HORROR OF THE
POSSIBILITY OF THIS CLOSED PROFESSION SUDDENLY BEING INVADED
AND INSPIRED BY A SUPPOSED BOLSHEVIK.
AUSTRALIAN SOCIETY HAS CHANGED SIGNIFICANTLY SINCE THE
19401S, AND IT IS VERY DIFFICULT TO IMAGINE A SIMILAR
INCIDENT OCCURRING TODAY. NEVERTHELESS, AS TONY HORWITZ HAS
POINTED OUT IN A RECENT ARTICLE IN THE SMH, INFORMAL
ANTI-JEWISH DISCRIMINATION CONTINUES TO EXIST IN AUSTRALIA,
PARTICULARLY IN CIRCLES THAT NO DOUBT SEE THEMSELVES AS THEPINACLE
OF OUR SOCIETY. AS HORWITZ WROTE IT IS " EASIER FOR
A JEW TO BECOME A KNIGHT OF THE REALM THAN TO PENETRATE THE
INNER SANCTUM OF THE SOCIAL ESTABLISHMENT". JULIUS STONE
WOULD, LIKE ME, HAVE A LOFTY DISDAIN FOR THAT SORT OF
PREJUDICE. JULIUS STONE WAS NO BOLSHEVIK, THOUGH HE LED THE RESISTANCE
TO THE COMMUNIST PARTY DISSOLUTION ACT WHEN SIR ROBERT
MENZIES TRIED TO OUTLAW THE COMMUNIST PARTY IN THE 1950' S.
HE TOOK ON OTHER UNPOPULAR CAUSES. HE SPOKE UP FOR ACADEMIC
FREEDOM DURING WHAT HAS COME TO BE KNOWN AS THE MCCARTHY
PERIOD. HE WAS A PIONEER OF THE SOUTH AFRICAN DEFENCE
LEAGUE, WHICH FOUGHT APARTHEID IN SOUTH AFRICA, AND THE
IMMIGRATION REFORM MOVEMENT IN NEW SOUTH WALES, WHICH FOUGHT
AGAINST DISCRIMINATORY IMMIGRATION POLICIES. HE WORKED FOR
AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL AND FOUGHT FOR THE RIGHTS OF SOVIET
JEWRY AND POLITICAL PRISONERS EVERYWHERE.
IN SUCH ACTIVITIES, JULIUS' ESSENTIAL HUMANISM AND
INTERNATIONALISM STOOD OUT.
IT WAS AT SYDNEY UNIVERSITY THAT' JULIUS ESTABLISHED HIS
GREAT INTERNATIONAL STANDING. DURING HIS 30 YEAR TE1NURE OF
THE CHAIR, JULIUS AS SIR ZELMAN COWAN WROTE " SECURELY
ESTABLISHED A GREAT REPUTATION AS A SCHOLAR, PUBLICIST AND
TEACHER, AND HIS MAIN WORK IN THE ANGLO-AMERICAN LEGAL WORLD
WAS DONE FROM THIS AUSTRALIAN BASE".
THE PROVINCE AND FUNCTION OF LAW, THE THREE DRAFTS OF WHICH
WERE TYPED BY RECA, FIRST APPEARED IN 1946 AND ATTRACTED
WIDE AND HIGHLY FAVOURABLE ATTENTION. THE PERIOD SINCE HAS
FULLY VALIDATED THE CONTEMPORARY CONCLUSION OF MR JUSTICE
ELSE MITCHELL ( AS HE NOW IS) THAT THE BOOK ' IS ONE OF THE
OUTSTANDING JURISTIC WORKS OF THE PRESENT CENTURY'. IN 1964
IT RECEIVED THE SWINEY PRIZE FOR JURISPRUDENCE OF THE ROYAL
SOCIETY OF ARTS, ENGLAND'S HIGHEST AWARD IN THIS FIELD.
FROM IT HAVE COME LEGAL SYSTEM AND LAWYERS' REASONINGS
( 1964). HUMAN LAW AND HUMAN JUSTICE ( 196-5) AND SOCIAL
DIMENSIONS OF LAW AND JUSTICE ( n19' T, DESCRIBED AS THE MOST
COMPREHENSIVE'ACCOUNT YET WRITTEN OF MODERN JURISPRUDENTIAL
THOUGHT. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO SPEAK OF JULIUS AND HIS WORK WITHOUT
REFERENCE TO HIS BELOVED WIFE, RECA, WHO IS WITH US THIS
EVENING. SHE WAS HIS BOON COMPANION AND INTELLECTUAL
SUPPORT FROM THE TIME THEY MET IN A RESOURCE LIBRARY FOR
POOR STUDENTS IN LEEDS AND JULIUS CARRIED HER BOOKS HOME.
THIS ACT OF KINDNESS WAS THE BEGINNING OF A LIFE-LONG
PARTNERSHIP BETWEEN TWO INDIVIDUALS OF GREAT INTELLECTUAL
AND SPIRITUAL STRENGTH.
LIKE HER HUSBAND, RECA GREW UP IN THE DESPERATELY
UNDERPRIVILEGED SLUMS OF LEEDS. LIKE HIM, RECA EARNED
SUCCESS IN LIFE THROUGH ACADEMIC ABILITY AND SHEER HARD
WORK. SHE ALSO WON ONE OF BRITAIN'S RARE AND
HARD-FOUGHT-FOR STATE SCHOLARSHIPS, AND COULD ALSO HAVE GONE
UP TO ONE OF THE MAJOR UNIVERSITIES; INSTEAD SHE CHOSE TO
DO A DEGREE IN CHEMISTRY AND ZOOLOGY AT LEEDS, AND THEN
DENTISTRY. DURING WORLD WAR II, SHE BECAME INVOLVED IN THE YOUTH ALIYAH
MOVEMENT CONCERNED WITH SENDING JEWISH CHILDREN TO ISRAEL.
HER " REVOLT IN THE GHETTO" WHICH RAISED FUNDS FOR YOUTH
ALIYAH, IS A MOVING ACCOUNT OF THE STORY OF THE JEWS OF THE
WARSAW GHETTO.
FROM THE EARLIEST DAYS, RECA PARTICIPATED FULLY IN HER
HUSBAND'S WORK, DISCUSSING THE CONTENT OF HIS PROJECTED
WRITINGS, EDITING THE MANUSCRIPTS AS THEY SAW THE LIGHT OF
DAY, AND GENERALLY PROVIDING THE STRONG INTELLECTUAL, MORAL
AND EMOTIONAL SUPPORT HE NEEDED.
TONIGHT, IT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO DO JUSTICE TO JULIUS' SCHOLARLY
ACTIVITIES, HIS WRITINGS, HIS DEGREES, THE AWARDS AND
ACCOLADES HE RECEIVED AND HIS COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES THEY
ARE TOO NUMEROUS AND TOO DIVERSE. I DO, WANT HOWEVER, IN
THE REMAINDER OF MY ADDRESS, TO FOCUS ON THOSE 3 ASPECTS OF
HIS WORK WHICH HAVE IMPRESSED ME PARTICULARLY:
HIS DEFENCE OF HUM4AN RIGHTS AND HIS HOSTILITY TO ANY
FORM OF PREJUDICE AND DISCRIMINATION;
HIS BELIEF IN DIALOGUE AND DISCUSSION IN THE RESOLUTION
OF CONFLICT; AND
HIS CONCERN FOR THE PEACEFUL MANAGEMENT OF RELATIONS
BETWEEN STATES.
JULIUS' BELIEFS RECOGNISED THE RIGHTS OF ALL MEN AND WOMEN
TO BE TREATED EQUALLY BEFORE THE LAW. THROUGHOUT HIS. LIFE,
JULIUS CONSISTENTLY WORKED FOR SOMETHING WHICH IS EASY TO
SAY IN WORDS EQUALITY FOR ALL BUT IMMENSELY HARD TO
ACHIEVE IN PRACTICE. AS A SPECIALIST IN INTERNATIONAL LAW,
JULIUS WAS TORMENTED BY THE MAGNITUDE OF INSTITUTIONALISED,
STATE SANCTIONED CRUELTY, INJUSTICE AND SAVAGERY. HE FOUGHT
AGAINST WHAT HE CALLED THIS JUNGLE IN HIS PUBLICATIONS, AND
IN HIS WORK WITH THE INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION OF JURISTS.
JULIUS STONE SAW INTERNATIONAL LAW AS A CONCEPT OF JUSTICE
SHARED BY THE WHOLE HUM4AN COMMUNITY, A SYSTEM WHEREBY PEOPLE
AND NATIONS REACH AGREEMENTS ON WHAT IS UNJUST. IN THIS
REGARD, HE WAS NOTED FOR HIS REFUSAL TO ACCEPT FACILE,
OPTIMISTIC ASSESSMENTS OF THE EFFICACY OF INTERNATIONAL LAW
WHICH CANNOT BE SUPPORTED IN THE LIGHT OF THE FACTS; AND, ON
THE OTHER HAND, FOR HIS CONCERN FOR THE PROTECTION OF HUMAN
RIGHTS ACROSS STATE FRONTIERS. THIS LATTER THEME WAS
DEVELOPED IN HIS FIRST PUBLISHED WORK ON INTERNATIONAL LAW
IN 1932, INTERNATIONAL GUARANTEES OF MINORITY RIGHTS,
DEALING MAINLY WITH THE THEN EXISTING SYSTEM FOR THE
PROTECTION OF MINORITIES, AND RECEIVED FURTHER ILLUSTRATION
IN HIS LATER BOOK, THE LEGAL CONTROLS OF INTERNATIONAL
CONFLICT. AS I MENTIONED BEFORE, JULIUS STONE WAS A PIONEER IN THE
FIGHT AGAINST APARTHEID.
TODAY, THE INTERNATIONAL COMMUNITY IS BECOMING MORE CLOSELY
CONCERNED WITH THE CONTINUING DISREGARD AND ABUSE OF
PEOPLE'S RIGHTS BY THE GOVERNMENT OF SOUTH AFRICA.
UNLIKE THIS COUNTRY, WHICH HAS LONG RECOGNIZED
INTERNATIONALLY AGREED HUMAN RIGHTS STANDARDS IN GUIDING
LEGISLATION AND PUBLIC OPINION ON THE RIGHTS OF GROUPS
WITHIN OUR SOCIETY, THE GOVERNMENT OF SOUTH AFRICA HAS NOT.
AS WAS RECENTLY DEMONSTRATED AT THE COMMONWEALTH HEADS OF
GOVERNMENT MEETING IN THE BAHAMIAS, AND IN THE UNITED NATIONS
THE AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENT SHARES WITH AN INFLUENTIAL
PROPORTION OF THE WORLD COMMUNITY THE BELIEF THAT
INTERNATIONAL PRESSURE MUST BE BROUGHT TO BEAR ON SOUTH
AFRICA TO RECOGNISE THE RIGHTS AND INTERESTS OF ALL ITS
PEOPLE. WE BELIEVE WE MUST TOGETHER SEEK A SOLUTION WHICH
TAKES INTO ACCOUNT THE INTERESTS OF ALL PARTIES IN SOUTH
AFRICA, WHICH ENDS RACIAL DISCRIMINATION, AND WHICH
ESTABLISHES A JUST AND DEM4OCRATIC SOCIETY. AT THE SAME
TIME, WE RECOGNISE, IN JULIUS' TERMS, THE LIMITS OF THE
FEASIBLE AND THE NEED TO PRESERVE THE COUNTRY'S ECONOMIC
ACHIEVEMENTS-AND INFRASTRUCTURE.
JULIUS' WRITINGS AND LIFE WORK WAS UNDERPINNED BY A
PASSIONATE COMMITMENT TO DIALOGUE, TO DISCUSSION AND TO
DEBATE. HE BELIEVED IN PEOPLE GETTING TOGETHER TO RESOLVE
THEIR DIFFERENCES AND HE HAD A MARVELLOUS CAPACITY TO
UNDERSTAND OTHER VIEWPOINTS.
IT WAS JULIUS' DESIRE FOR DISCUSSION AND FOR DIALOGUE WHICH
LED TO HIS ESTABLISHING THE HARVARD CLUB TO PROMOTE THE
MEETING OF MINDS; HE WAS ONE OF A GROUP WHO FOUNDED THE
SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH COUNCIL, WHICH LATER BECAME THE
AUSTRALIAN ACADEMY OF SOCIAL SCIENCES; HE CREATED THE
AUSTRALASIAN UNIVERSITIES LAW SCHOOLS ASSOCIATION AND HE
PLAYED A KEY ROLE IN THE SYDNEY LAW REVIEW AND THE
AUSTRALIAN SOCIETY OF LEGAL PHILOSOPHY.
JULIUS WAS ALSO CONSCIOUS OF THE NEED TO PROMOTE DIALOGUE
NOT ONLY IN THE ACADEMIC COMMUNITY, BUT ALSO IN THE WIDER
COMMUNITY AND FROM 1945 HE WAS A REGULAR A. B. C. BROADCASTER
ON INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS. HE WAS ALSO A STRONG PROPONENT OF
DIALOGUE BETWEEN EAST AND WEST. OF PARTICULAR INTEREST IS
THE FACT THAT THE FIRST PUBLISHED SUGGESTION FOR THE " HOT
LINE" BETWEEN WASHINGTON AND MOSCOW WAS MADE BY JULIUS IN A
SERIES OF LECTURES DELIVERED IN LATE 1960 OVER THE NATIONAL
RADIO NETWORK OF THE AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING COMMISSION.
LATER THAT YEAR, WHEN HIS LECTURES WERE MADE INTO A BOOK,
QUEST FOR SURVIVAL: THE ROLE OF LAW AND FOREIGN POLICY, THE
IDEA WAS FIRST PRESENTED IN THE UNITED STATES. TWENTY-FIVE
SETS OF PAGE PROOFS OF THIS BOOK WERE REQUISITIONED IN
ADVANCE BY THE CARNEGIE FOUNDATION OF INTERNATIONAL PEACE,
AND SENT BY THE FOUNDATION TO KEY MEMBERS OF THE THEN
INCOMING KENNEDY ADMINISTRATION. A TOP LEVEL COMMUNICATIONS
LINK FOR USE IN TIMES OF* CRISIS WAS ACTUALLY ESTABLISHED IN
1963. ITS WORTH HAS BEEN EVIDENT ON A NUMBER OF OCCASIONS.
UNTIL THE END OF HIS LIFE JULIUS STONE CONSTANTLY ADDRESSED
THE QUESTION OF RELATIONS BETWEEN STATES, PARTICULARLY
RELATIONS BETWEEN THE SUPERPOWERS. HIS BOOK, VISIONS OF
WORLD ORDER, BETWEEN STATE POWER AND HUMAN JUSTICE,
PUBLISHED EARLIER THIS YEAR, EXEMPLIFIED A KEY PREOCCUPATION
OF HIS PROFESSIONAL LIFE: THE QUESTION OF HOW ORDER CAN BE
MAINTAINED BETWEEN STATES. HE WAS ALWAYS VIGILANT AGAINST
POLITICAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL THREATS TO SUCH ORDER.
THROUGHOUT HIS LIFE, HE CONTINUED TO MAINTAIN A LIVELY
INTEREST IN AND CONCERN FOR MAJOR DEVELOPMENTS IN
INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS. IN AUGUST THIS YEAR, HE WROTE TO
ME PRIVATELY CONCERNING THE UNITED STATES STRATEGIC DEFENCE
INITIATIVE, EXPRESSING DISQUIET AT ITS LONG-TERM
RAMIFICATIONS AND FORWARDING SOME THOUGHTS HE HAD PREVIOUSLY
PENNED ON STRATEGIC DEFENCE INITIATIVE ( SDI) RESEARCH.
JULIUSI ARTICLE WAS CHARACTERISTIC IN ITS RATIONALITY AND IN
ITS PURPOSE AND I FOUND IT A BREATH OF FRESH AIR. JULIUS'
MISGIVINGS ABOUT THE PROBLEMS INHERENT IN SDI WERE
ESSENTIALLY THE SAME AS THOSE WHICH HAVE LED THE GOVERNMENT,
WHILE RECOGNISING THE INTEGRITY OF THE US ADMINISTRATION'S
POSITION, TO DECLINE TO ENDORSE THE INITIATIVE.
JULIUS' SUGGESTED SOLUTION TO THE DIFFICULTIES OF SDI WAS
THAT THE RESEARCH SHOULD BE UNDERTAKEN JOINTLY BY THE TWO
SUPERPOWERS. IN HIS WORDS:
" WHAT IS URGENTLY REQUIRED IS AN UNRELENTING CAMPAIGN
PRESSING ON BOTH WASHINGTON AND MOSCOW THE ABSOLUTE
NECESSITY OF MAKING THE ATTEMPT TO PERFECT THE STRATEGIC
DEFENSE INITIATIVE AS A JOINT SOVIET-UNITED STATES
PROJECT. THE ABSOLUTE NECESSITY FOR SUCH
CO-OPERATION SHOULD NOW BECOME A CENTRAL PLATFORM OF ALL
GROUPS AND INDIVIDUALS WHO WISH TO CHECK ( AND ULTIMATELY
RENDER OBSOLETE) THE MONSTROSITY OF NUCLEAR WEAPONS."
I NOTE IN THIS CONNECTION THAT PRESIDENT REAGAN HAS ON A
NUMBER OF OCCASIONS, INCLUDING AT THE RECENT GENEVA SUMMIT,
TALKED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF SHARING THE SDI TECHNOLOGY.
JULIUS' APPROACH TO THE SDI DILEMMA ECHOED IN M4ANY WAYS HIS
EARLIER SUGGESTION, TO WHICH I HAVE ALREADY REFERRED, NAMELY
THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A " HOT LINE" BETWEEN MOSCOW AND
WASHINGTON.
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IN ALL HIS SCHOLARSHIP JULIUS ALWAYS REMEMBERED THE
ESSENTIAL HUMANITY. WHICH BINDS NATIONS TO EACH OTHER. THIS
OFTEN NEGLECTED ELEMENT OF DIPLOMACY HAS BEEN REINFORCED BY
THE REAGAN/ GORBACHEV SUMMIT. AT LEAST A DIALOGUE BETWEEN
IDEOLOGICAL ADVERSARIES MEANS THAT HOPE EXISTS THAT THOSE
THINGS THEY HAVE IN COMMON WILL OUTWEIGH THEIR IRREVOCABLE
DIFFERENCES AND ALLOW US ALL TO BUILD A MORE STABLE WORLD.
WERE JULIUS WITH US TODAY, I FEEL SURE HE WOULD TAKE HEART
FROM THE PROSPECTS FOR IMPROVED DIALOGUE BETWEEN THE UNITED
STATES AND THE SOVIET UNION.
HIS CONCERN WITH THE PRACTICAL ISSUES OF ARMS CONTROL AND
DISARMAMENT AND THE REDUCTION OF THE TENSIONS BETWEEN EAST
AND WEST IS SHARED BY MY GOVERNMENT. OUR POLICIES PLACE A
HEAVY EMPHASIS ON PEACE, DISARMAMENT AND ARMS CONTROL.
THESE POLICIES ARE NOW WELL ESTABLISHED. WE HAVE APPOINTED
AN AMBASSADOR FOR DISARMAMENT TO ENSURE THAT OUR VOICE FOR
PEACE IS HEARD IN INTERNATIONAL FORUMS. WE PLAYED A LEADING
ROLE IN THE ESTABLISHMENT OF A SOUTH PACIFIC NUCLEAR FREE
ZONE AT THE AUGUST MEETING OF THE SOUTH PACIFIC FORUM. OUR
STRINGENT SAFEGUARD AGREEMENTS STRENGTHEN THE REGIME OF THE
NUCLEAR NON-PROLIFERATION TREATY. WE HAVE JOINED OUR
NEIGHBOURS IN STRONGLY OPPOSING FRENCH NUCLEAR TESTING IN
THE SOUTH PACIFIC. WE ARE AT THE FOREFRONT OF INTERNATIONAL
EFFORTS AIMED AT ACHIEVING A COMPREHENSIVE TEST BAN TREATY.
AND WE WILL GIVE ACTIVE SUPPORT TO THE UN'S INTERNATIONAL
YEAR OF PEACE IN 1986.
THESE AND OTHER POLICIES HAVE GIVEN AUSTRALIA AN
UNPRECEDENTED VOICE FOR PEACE ! N WORLD FORUMS. THEY HAVE
STRENGTHENED OUR RIGHT TO A ROLE IN ADVOCATING BALANCED AND
VERIFIABLE NUCLEAR DISARMAMENT AND ARMS CONTROL. OUR VERY
CLOSE RELATIONS WITH THE UNITED STATES GIVE US AN EFFECTIVE
BASIS ON WHICH TO DEVELOP THIS ROLE. AT THE SAME TIME, THIS
GOVERNMENT HAS SOUGHT TO ESTABLISH A DIALOGUE WITH THE USSR
ON THESE ISSUES, NOTWITHSTANDING THE FUNDAMENTAL DIFFERENCES
OF PRINCIPLE BETWEEN US.
HUMANITY AND VISION ARE PERHAPS JULIUS' GREATEST BEQUESTS TO
US ALL. DESPITE THE DANGEROUS JUNGLE WHICH HE COULD ALL TOO
CLEARLY SEE, JULIUS WAS AT HEART AN OPTIMIST. HE SAW
HUMANITY AS SLOWLY, HESITATINGLY, BEATING PATHS TO CREATE
SMALL, PRECIOUS ENCLAVES OF JUSTICE AND PEACE. HE EXHORTED
US NOT TO LOSE HOPE BUT TO FIGHT ON TO ENLARGE THESE
ENCLAVES, TO BROADEN WHAT HE CALLED " POCKETS OF HOPE".
HIS VISION WAS ESSENTIALLY A PRODUCT OF HIS JEWISH
TRADITION. AFTER THE NIGHT MUST COME THE DAY.
AND HIS WORK CAN BE SUMMED UP BY ANOTHER OF HIS FAVOURITE
SAYINGS -THIS ONE FROM THE RABBINICAL ETHICS OF THE
FATHER " IT IS NOT FOR YOU TO COMPLETE THE TASK, BUT
NEITHER ARE YOU FREE TO DESIST FROM IT." t
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JULIUS' TASK ENDURES DESPITE HIS DEATH LAST SEPTEMBER. IT
ENDURES IN THE EFFECT WHICH HIS WRITINGS WILL SURELY HAVE ON
FUTURE GENERATIONS OF SCHOLARS. IT ENDURES IN THE WORK OF
THE INSTITUTIONS WHICH HE INSPIRED OR WAS INSTRUMENTAL IN
FOUNDING, SUCH AS THE PRESTIGIOUS INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION
OF JURISTS. PERHAPS IT ENDURES MOST FRUITFULLY OF ALL IN
THE STUDENTS WHOM HE TAUGHT AND INSPIRED PARTICULARLY AT
SYDNEY UNIVERSITY, WHERE JURISPRUDENCE BECAME KNOWN AS
" JULES PRUDENCE". ONE OF HIS FORMER STUDENTS, MR JUSTICE
KIRBY, SAID OF STONE'S INFLUENCE: " SOME ANGRY SPIRIT
CONSTANTLY URGED JULIUS STONE ON TO MORE AND MORE ENDEAVOUR.
IT WAS AN INFECTIOUS SPIRIT."
JULIUS' SPIRIT INSPIRED MANY OF HIS STUDENTS WHO HAVE
SHAPED, AND CONTINUE TO SHAPE, OUR SOCIETY. THEY INCLUDE
HIGH COURT JUDGES, SUPREME COURT JUDGES, PROMINENT QUEEN'S
COUNSEL AND SUCH PROMINENT LAWYERS AS NSW'S CHIEF JUSTICE
SIR LAWRENCE STREET, JUSTICE ELIZABETH EVATT AND JUSTICE
MICHAEL MCHUGH. NEVILLE WRAN, FRANK WALKER AND AUSTRALIA'S
PRESENT AMBASSADOR TO UNESCO, GOUGH WHITLAM, WERE ACOLYTES
OF PROFESSOR STONE WHO HAVE, IN THEIR WAY, ATTEMPTED TO
TRANSLATE THE STONE PHILOSOPHY INTO POLITICAL REALITY.
LADIES AND GENTLEMEN.
AUSTRALIA, AND THE WORLD, ARE IMMEASURABLY THE BETTER FOR
THE CONTRIBUTION OF P'EOPLE LIKE JULIUS AND RECA. THEIR
IDEALS AND THEIR CONTRIBUTION TO HUMANITY, WILL CONTINUE TO
BE A TREASURED RESOURCE AND INSPIRATION TO US ALL.
RECA, YOUR HUSBAND'S GREAT CONTRIBUTION LIVES ON. IT LIVES
ON IN HIS WORK AND IN THE MANY WHO WERE TOUCHED BY HIS
WRITINGS, HIS TEACHING, HIS EXAMPLES OF INTELLECTUAL VIGOUR,
HIS BREADTH OF INTERESTS, HIS CONCERN FOR CURRENT ISSUES
AND, AS IN MY. OWN FORTUNATE CASE, HIS FRIENDSHIP.
LIKE THE HANUKKAH [ HAH-NU-KAH] FLAME THE WORLD WILL CONTINUE
TO BE LIT BY HIS WORKS.