Tanya Plibersek (Sydney, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Before the House rises for the year, I want to acknowledge the passing of some very important members of our community in Sydney and New South Wales. This year we said farewell to two great local Sydney Labor women: Tessa Mallos, East Sydney branch member and tireless campaigner for peace and the Labor movement; and Barbara Murphy, teacher, activist, feminist, unionist and the first woman to serve as an executive member of the Labor Council of New South Wales. We also lost footballer, barber, former alderman of the City of Sydney and South Sydney councils and all-round Labor legend Wally Dean. I also want to acknowledge the loss of two stalwarts from New South Wales: Johno Johnson and former senator Steve Hutchins. The Labor family mourns the passing of our friends and comrades.

Only last month, I was very sad to hear of the passing of Sol Bellear AM, a Bundjalung man from Mullumbimby, who in Redfern in 1977 was pivotal in the formation of the Aboriginal Land Council, dedicating his entire adult life to the fight for Aboriginal land rights and justice.

These people, each one of them, made a huge contribution not just to our Labor family and not just to our local community in Sydney but to the fabric of our nation. Every one of them stood up throughout their lives—their working lives and their lives as political activists—for the rights of all, and they will be sadly missed.