Robert James "Bob" Brown (born 27 December 1944) is an Australian senator and former Parliamentary Leader of the Australian Greens. He was the first openly gay member of the Parliament of Australia, and the first openly gay leader of an Australian political party. Brown was elected to the Australian Senate on the Tasmanian Greens ticket, joining with sitting Greens Western Australia senator Dee Margetts to form the first group of Australian Greens senators following the 1996 federal election. He was re-elected in 2001 and again in 2007.
While serving in the Tasmanian parliament, Brown successfully campaigned for a large increase in the protected wilderness areas. Brown led the Australian Greens from the party's foundation in 1992 until April 2012, a period in which polls grew to around 10% at state and federal levels (13.9% of the primary vote in 2010).[1] From 2002 to 2004 when minor parties held the balance of power in the Senate, Brown became a well-recognised politician. In October 2003 Brown was the subject of international media interest when he was suspended from the parliament for interjecting during an address by United States president George W. Bush.
On 13 April 2012, Brown resigned as leader of the Greens and indicated his intention to resign from the Senate in June.[2]
Brown was born in Oberon, New South Wales, one of twins[3] and attended Trunkey Public School and Blacktown Boys High School. In his senior year he was elected school captain. After graduating, he enrolled in medicine at Sydney University where he obtained a Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery degree. He practised medicine for a time at the Royal Canberra Hospital. During his tenure at the hospital he and other senior medical staff took a pacifist stance by refusing to certify young men who did not wish to fight in the Vietnam War as fit to be conscripted.[4] He then worked as a resident at Darwin and Alice Springs hospitals. At the latter post he met John Hawkins, a surgeon who had kayaked rivers in Tasmania.[4] He travelled to London in 1970 and worked at Hounslow Cottage Hospital and St Mary Abbott's Hospital in South Kensington.[5]
Brown moved to Tasmania in 1972 and worked as a medical general practitioner in Launceston. He soon became involved in the state's environmental movement, in particular the campaign to save Lake Pedder. By 1972 he was a member of the newly formed United Tasmania Group, Australia's first "green" party.[6] In a newspaper interview at this time, Brown announced that he had a gay partner[7] in order to highlight discrimination and encourage law reform as homosexual activity was a crime in Tasmania at the time.[7]
In 1976 he fasted for a week on top of Mt Wellington in protest against the arrival at Hobart of the nuclear powered warship USS Enterprise.[8]
In 1978 Brown was appointed director of the Tasmanian Wilderness Society. In the late 1970s he emerged as a leader of the campaign to prevent construction of the Franklin Dam, which would have drowned the Franklin River valley as part of a hydroelectricity project. Brown was among the 1500 people arrested while protesting during the campaign. He subsequently spent 19 days in Hobart's Risdon Prison. On the day of his release in 1983, he became a member of Tasmania's parliament for the House of Assembly seat of Denison after the Democrats MP Norm Sanders resigned to successfully stand for the Australian Senate; Brown was elected to replace him on a countback.[9] The Franklin campaign was a success after Federal government intervention protected the Franklin River in 1983.
During his first term of office, Brown introduced a wide range of private member's initiatives, which include freedom of information, death with dignity, lowering parliamentary salaries, gay law reform, banning the battery-hen industry and advocation for nuclear free Tasmania. His 1987 bill to ban semi-automatic guns was voted down by both Liberal and Labor members of Tasmania's House of Assembly, nine years before the Port Arthur massacre resulted in a successful federal Liberal bid to achieve the same results.
In 1989 Tasmania's system of proportional representation allowed the Greens to win five out of 35 seats in the Tasmanian House of Assembly and Brown became their leader.[footnote 1] He agreed to support a minority Labor Party government, on the basis of a negotiated Accord (signed by Michael Field and Bob Brown) in which the Green independents agreed to support the budget but not motions of no confidence, and the ALP agreed to develop a more open parliamentary process, to consult on departmental appointments, provide a legislative research service, parity in parliamentary staffing and a reform agenda which included equal opportunities, freedom of information, national parks protection and public disclosure of bulk power contracts and royalties from mining companies.[10] This agreement, however, broke down over forestry issues in 1992. In 1993 Brown resigned from the House of Assembly and stood unsuccessfully for the federal House of Representatives.
Senator Bob Brown in 2007
Brown was elected to the Australian Senate for Tasmania in 1996, and was an outspoken voice in opposition to the conservative government of John Howard, and in support of green and human rights issues, including international issues such as Tibet, East Timor and West Papua. He also introduced bills for constitutional reform, forest protection, to block radioactive waste dumping, to ban mandatory sentencing of Aboriginal children, to prohibit the use of cluster munitions and for greenhouse abatement.
At the 2001 federal election Brown was re-elected to the Senate with a greatly increased vote, and was outspoken on Prime Minister John Howard's refusal to allow 438 asylum seekers (mostly from Afghanistan) to land on Christmas Island after they had been rescued from their sinking boat in the Indian Ocean by the MV Tampa, a Norwegian freighter. Brown was equally critical of Opposition Leader Kim Beazley's acquiescence to John Howard's stance on the Tampa incident.
Brown was particularly vocal in his opposition to Australian participation in the 2003 invasion of Iraq and became recognised as a leading voice for the anti-war/peace movement. When President Bush visited Canberra on 23 October 2003, Brown and fellow Senator Kerry Nettle interjected during his address to a joint sitting of the two Houses of Parliament.[11] During Bush's speech Brown and Nettle wore signs referring to David Hicks and Mamdouh Habib, two Australian citizens held at Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, at that time (Habib was later released without charge and Hicks served a prison term for providing material support for terrorism), following their apprehension by United States forces in Afghanistan and Pakistan respectively. Bush accepted the interjections with good humour but the Speaker of the House, Neil Andrew formally "named" Brown and Nettle. This meant that they were both suspended from the Parliament for 24 hours which prevented them from being present during a similar address from Chinese President Hu Jintao the next day. After the speech, however, Brown shook Bush's hand.
Brown opposed the Howard Government's amendments to the Marriage Act in 2004, stating that "Mr Howard should relax and accept gay marriages as part of the future's social fabric".[12]
In December 2004, forestry and export woodchip company Gunns Limited attempted to sue Brown and others for $6.3 million, in an action which media reports say related to "ongoing damaging campaigns and activities" against the company. The original Statement of Claim issued by Gunns was struck out by the Supreme Court and costs were awarded against Gunns for the initial proceedings. Gunns ultimately failed with the company finally dropping all claims against Brown on 13 December 2006[13] while continuing its case against others including The Wilderness Society.
Brown was formally elected as the first Federal Parliamentary Leader of The Greens on 28 November 2005,[14] following almost a decade of service as de facto leader since his election to the Senate in 1996.
In February 2007, the Tasmanian State Government and the Australian Federal Government responded by changing the text of the State's Regional Forest Agreement. New clauses make it clear that the word 'protection' relates only to whether the two respective governments deem a species to be protected rather than the meaning of the word being based on actual evidence of such.
In early 2007, Brown attracted scorn from sections of the media and the major political parties for his proposal to commit to a plan within three years, that would eventually see the banning of coal exports.[15] Brown described coal exports as the "energy industry's heroin habit" and stated that the export of alternative technologies should be the priority.[16]
Brown was re-elected in the 2007 federal election. He announced his intention to stand again at the Greens National Conference in November 2005.
Following his re-election and that of the new Labor Government, Brown called on the new Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, to set fixed carbon targets immediately, and to announce their levels at the upcoming United Nations Bali Climate Change Conference in December 2007, continuing his climate campaigning, and saying that it was "obvious" what the outcome would be if Australia was to not set carbon emissions goals.[17]
In 2005, Brown brought a legal case against Forestry Tasmania in the Federal Court, in an attempt to protect Tasmania's Wielangta forest from clearfell logging. The 1997 Tasmanian Regional Forest Agreement (RFA) exempted logging operations from endangered species laws but required the protection of endangered species. Bob Brown brought a case against Forestry Tasmania citing threats to endangered species like the Swift parrot and Wielangta Stag Beetle.[18] In December 2006, Judge Shane Marshall awarded the case in Brown's favour.[19] On appeal to the full bench of the Federal Court level, the case was lost, without rejecting the earlier judgement that logging would further endanger these species. In May 2008 the High Court denied leave to appeal that decision after the wording of the RFA was changed.[20]
Brown was ordered to pay $240,000 to Forestry Tasmania, which he said he could not afford to pay. Failure to pay would have resulted in bankruptcy proceedings which would have cost Brown his Senate seat.[21] Brown had earlier rejected a settlement offer from Forestry Tasmania that would have required him to have only paid $200,000 of the costs he had incurred.[22] On 9 June 2009, Australian entrepreneur Dick Smith came to Brown's rescue with a promise to bail him out.[23] Pledges for support from over 1,000 donors covered Brown's legal bill within a few days of his announcement.[24]
In 2011, after the 2010–2011 Queensland floods Brown drew criticism for suggesting that half the Mineral Resource Rent Tax be allocated to future natural catastrophes.[25] He made comments to the effect that climate change, specifically the impact on climate from the mining sector should be held at least partially responsible for the flooding.
On 24 March 2012, at the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the Tasmanian Greens,[26] Senator Bob Brown warned[27] about possible degradation of the Earth and the impact that could have on future generations.[28] As a possible approach to pre-empting this he proposed a Global Parliament. He was met with a standing ovation. The then deputy leader Christine Milne said it was "a very inspiring speech".[29] There was criticism of his approach.[30] At the Global Greens Conference in Dakar, Senegal Africa, 1 April 2012, Bob Brown advocated that there be established a "global parliament" where "every citizen should have an equal say". The final resolution supported by the Australian Greens and others, was passed.[31] Subsequently, on the ABC Q&A program Bob Brown said, "I’ve never called for world Government. You have been reading the Murdoch press."[32]
On Friday 13 April 2012, Senator Brown resigned as leader of the Greens and announced that he will be resigning from the Senate in June when his replacement is available. His deputy Senator Christine Milne became Greens leader and federal Melbourne MP Adam Bandt became Greens deputy leader.[33] The replacement was selected, and named as Peter Whish-Wilson, who had formerly stood for the Greens.[34]
Brown lives in Hobart with his long-time partner, Paul Thomas, a farmer and activist whom he met in 1996.[35][36]
Brown was the founder, in 1990, of the Australian Bush Heritage Fund, now Bush Heritage Australia, a non-profit environmental organisation dedicated to purchasing and preserving Australian bushland. He was President of the organisation until 1996.[37] On 20 March 2011 Brown donated a 14-hectare (35-acre) property and house he had owned for 38 years to Bush Heritage Australia. The property is located 47 kilometres (29 miles) south-west of Launceston, Tasmania, in the Liffey Valley. According to Australian Geographic, it is a site of historic and symbolic significance.[38]
Brown describes himself as a "lapsed Presbyterian".[39]
In an interview with Richard Fidler on ABC radio, Nigel Brennan, an Australian photojournalist who was kidnapped in Somalia and held hostage for 462 days, revealed Brown had contributed $100,000 of his own money to help pay the ransom for his release. It was also revealed that Brown contacted Australian businessman Dick Smith asking that he also contributed funds towards the release of Brennan[40] Brennan, who was released in November 2009, also stated in this interview that Brown had to borrow this money, an assertion also made in various media outlets at the time of Brennan's release.[41][42] In the same interview, Brennan notes that in contrast to Brown's compassion, the Australian government seemed unconcerned with his welfare, with Prime Minister Kevin Rudd dismissing his mother's anxiety at having her son released because she wasn't showing Rudd the level of respect he deemed acceptable.[citation needed]
Brown has published several books including Wild Rivers (1983), Lake Pedder (1986), Tarkine Trails (1994), The Greens (1996) (with Peter Singer), Memo For A Saner World (2004), Valley of the Giants (2004), Tasmania's Recherche Bay (2005), Earth (2009) and In Balfour Street (2010)[43] In 2004 James Norman published the first authorised biography of Brown, entitled Bob Brown: A Gentle Revolutionary.
Bob Brown has received the following awards:
- ^ "Election 2010 blog". Australian. 28 February 2011. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/election-2010-blog/story-fn59niix-1225907876218. Retrieved 4 May 2012.
- ^ Ireland, Judith; Wright, Jessica. "Bob Brown resigns as Greens leader and senator". Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax. http://www.smh.com.au/opinion/political-news/bob-brown-resigns-as-greens-leader-and-senator-20120413-1wxoz.html. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
- ^ "Senator Bob Brown – Australian Greens" (PDF). http://www.australianpolitics.com/parties/greens/07-05-10_bob-brown-biography.pdf. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
- ^ a b Thompson (1984) p.13
- ^ Thompson (1984) p.43
- ^ Timms, Peter (2009). In Search of Hobart. UNSW Press. p. 161.
- ^ a b "Doctor says he's gay". Launceston Examiner: p. 3. 10 June 1976.
- ^ Green, Roger (1981). Battle for the Franklin. Fontana ACF. pp. 122–123.
- ^ "Results of All Countbacks to Fill House of Assembly Casual Vacancies, under the Tasmanian Electoral Act, for the 43 years from 1965 to 2008". Proportional Representation Society of Australia. http://home.vicnet.net.au/~prsa/history/tascava.htm. Retrieved 15 August 2010.
- ^ Cassandra Pybus and Richard Flanagan (eds). The Rest of the World is Watching Us. Pan Macmillan Sydney 1990. ISBN 0-7251-0651-4 pp258-266
- ^ "Free speech - free press". Media Watch. 27 October 2003. ABC. ABC1.
- ^ "Ban on same-sex marriages doesn't target gays: PM". Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax. 27 April 2004. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/04/27/1082831558618.html?from=storylhs. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
- ^ "Senator Bob Brown: Media". Bob Brown. http://www.bobbrown.org.au/600_media_sub.php?deptItemID=2190. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
- ^ "Senator Bob Brown: Media". Bob Brown. http://www.bobbrown.org.au/600_media_sub.php?deptItemID=1831. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
- ^ "Kill coal off, says Bob". 9 February 2007. http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,,21200858-3102,00.html.
- ^ "Coal is energy industry's heroin habit: Brown". Age. Melbourne: Fairfax. 10 February 2007. http://www.theage.com.au/news/national/coal-is-energy-industrys-heroin-habit-brown/2007/02/09/1170524298591.html?page=fullpage. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
- ^ Streem / Politics / Brown says PM must set carbon targets
- ^ "Bob Brown – Wielangta Landmark Trial". On-trial. http://www.on-trial.info. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
- ^ "Brown v Forestry Tasmania (No 4) [2006] FCA 1729 (19 December 2006)". Austlii. http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/cases/cth/federal_ct/2006/1729.html. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
- ^ "Brown loses High Court battle to save Tas forest". ABC. 23 May 2008. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/05/23/2253955.htm. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
- ^ "Brown facing bankruptcy over Forestry Tas bill". ABC. 8 June 2009. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/06/08/2592384.htm?section=justin. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
- ^ Wels, Peter (10 June 2009). "I took advice on court costs, says Bob Brown". Examiner. Tasmania: Fairfax. http://www.examiner.com.au/news/local/news/politics/i-took-advice-brown/1536354.aspx. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
- ^ "Dick Smith to bail Brown out". ABC. 9 June 2009. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/06/09/2593414.htm. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
- ^ "Forestry Tasmania's bill will be paid on time, says Brown". Greens. http://bob-brown.greensmps.org.au/content/media-release/forestry-tasmania%E2%80%99s-bill-will-be-paid-time-says-brown. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
- ^ Australian Greens media release, 17 January 2011 http://greens.org.au/content/what-did-bob-brown-really-say-about-floods accessed 8 June 2011
- ^ Mather, Anne (27 March 2012). "Bob sings up a party". Mercury. Hobart: News. http://www.themercury.com.au/article/2012/03/24/312341_tasmania-news.html. Retrieved 4 April 2012.
- ^ Brown, Bob (31 March 2012). "Global democracy alone will save us from ourselves". Age. Fairfax. http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/politics/global-democracy-alone-will-save-us-from-ourselves-20120330-1w3s9.html. Retrieved 4 April 2012.
- ^ Grattan, Michelle (1 April 2012). "Brown a Green man of many colours". Fairfax. http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/politics/brown-a-green-man-of-many-colours-20120331-1w505.html. Retrieved 4 April 2012.
- ^ Kerr, Christian (28 March 2012). "Christine Milne defends 'Earthians' speech". Australian. News. http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/browns-deputy-defends-earthians-speech/story-fn59niix-1226312903472. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
- ^ Sharwood, Anthony (4 April 2012). "Earth to Bob. Little green men won’t save the world". The Punch. http://www.thepunch.com.au/articles/earth-to-bob.-little-green-men-wont-save-the-world/. Retrieved 4 April 2012.
- ^ "World Congress of Green parties calls for a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly". Campaign for a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly. 2 April 2012. http://en.unpacampaign.org/news/616.php. Retrieved 5 May 2012.
- ^ "Bob Brown joins Q&A". ABC. 23 April 2012. http://www.abc.net.au/tv/qanda/txt/s3478779.htm. Retrieved 2 May 2012.
- ^ As it happened: Bob Brown resigns as Greens leader - Australian Broadcasting Corporation - Retrieved 24 April 2012.
- ^ "Greens name Brown's Senate replacement" http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-05-04/whish-wilson-takes-brown-senate-spot/3991174
- ^ Nader, Carol (19 August 2010). "The issue others avoid". Age. Melbourne: Fairfax. http://www.theage.com.au/federal-election/the-issue-others-avoid-20100818-12f4n.html. Retrieved 1 October 2010.
- ^ "How green is Brown's valley". Sydney Morning Herald. Fairfax. 1 October 2004. http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/09/30/1096527861329.html. Retrieved 1 October 2010.
- ^ "Bush Heritage Australia: Our Patron". Bush Heritage. http://www.bushheritage.org.au/about/people/our_patrons. Retrieved 23 August 2010.
- ^ Pickrell, John (21 March 2011). "Bob Brown gives away his green sanctuary". Australian Geographic. Australian Geographic. http://www.australiangeographic.com.au/journal/bob-brown-gives-away-his-house.htm. Retrieved 22 March 2011.
- ^ "Q: What do these MPs have in common? A: They are out and proud atheists". Age. Fairfax. 14 March 2010. http://m.theage.com.au/national/q-what-do-these-mps-have-in-common-a-they-are-out-and-proud-atheists-20100313-q59i.html. Retrieved 14 March 2010.
- ^ "Nigel Brennan". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 28 June 2011. http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2011/06/28/3255470.htm. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
- ^ "Dick Smith contributed to Aussie hostage's ransom". Fairfax. 27 November 2009. http://www.smh.com.au/world/dick-smith--contributed-to-aussie-hostages-ransom-20091127-jv11.html. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
- ^ "Dick Smith, Bob Brown in deal to free hostages". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. 27 November 2009. http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2009/11/27/2754994.htm. Retrieved 30 June 2011.
- ^ http://catalogue.nla.gov.au/Search/Home?lookfor=bob+brown&type=author
- ^ ABC: My Favourite Australian, retrieved 30 June 2011
- ^ IUCN: Packard Awards in Alphabetical Order, retrieved 30 June 2011
- ^ Global 500 Forum, retrieved 30 June 2011
- ^ Goldman Environmental Prize: Robert Brown, retrieved 30 June 2011
- ^ "Our Patron – Senator Bob Brown - Bush Heritage Australia". Bushheritage.org.au. http://www.bushheritage.org.au/about/people/our_patrons. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
- ^ "Penguin Books Australia". Penguin.com.au. http://www.penguin.com.au/contributors/bob-brown. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
- ^ "Senator Bob Brown - Australian Greens" (PDF). http://www.australianpolitics.com/parties/greens/07-05-10_bob-brown-biography.pdf. Retrieved 8 July 2011.
- ^ http://poa.org.au/admin/?q=node/11
- ^ Rosslyn Ives: Australian Humanist of the Year 2010 Bob Brown, Political Activist in International Humanist and Ethical Union, 2010
- Thompson, Peter (1984). Bob Brown of the Franklin River. Sydney: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 0-86861-596-X.
- "Biography for BROWN, Robert (Bob) James". Parliament of Australia. 28 June 2011. http://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query=Id%3A%22handbook%2Fallmps%2FQD4%22. Retrieved 1 July 2011.
- ^ In 1989, the Greens did not have formal leadership positions, but Brown's official senate biography lists his leadership of the state party from 1989-1993 as his first parliamentary party position.
- Armstrong, Lance J.E. (1997). Good God, He's Green! A History of Tasmanian Politics 1989–1996. Wahroonga, N.S.W., Pacific Law Press. ISBN 1-875192-08-5
- Lines, William J. (2006) Patriots : defending Australia's natural heritage St Lucia, Qld. : University of Queensland Press, 2006. ISBN 0-7022-3554-7
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Brown, Bob |
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Brown, Robert James |
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Australian politician |
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27 December 1944 |
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Oberon, New South Wales |
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