Biographies
Index
KEN BUCKLEY
Ken Buckley served as an officer and as a paratrooper in the
British Army in the Middle East and in Greece towards the end
of the 2nd World War and during the post-war turbulence that
followed. He was educated in London where he was born and he
graduated from London University. During his university years
and beyond, he was an active communist, prominently involved
in student politics. In those years, and in Greece, he developed
a strong sense of justice and a commitment to the cause of freedom
from oppression. This has dominated his life ever since. He
migrated to Australia in 1953 to take up a senior lectureship
in Economic History at Sydney University and quickly became
involved in academic politics and issues of staff welfare. He
also led an Australian campaign for the independence of Cyprus
from British rule.
Highly regarded as a teacher by his students, he retired as
Associate Professor of Economic History at Sydney University
in 1988. Since then, Buckley has maintained a positive profile
through his writings as an historian and through his media involvement
on social issues. He is the author of many books including co-authorship
of a biography of Dr H V Evatt, commissioned by the Evatt Foundation.
To Buckley the pursuit of justice has no compromise. Civil liberties,
he believes, means freedom from arbitrary control of one's life
by government - unnecessary intrusions of authority, especially
by police and through censorship. It means freedom of expression
and the right to dissent. In the name of the NSW Council for
Civil Liberties he has led the charge on civil liberties matters
in NSW since 1963 and has written and spoken extensively on
civil liberties issues. While maintaining a strong personal
commitment to the left in politics he has pursued an equally
committed, steadfastly non-political position on issues of civil
liberties to ensure the Council's acceptance by a broad cross
section of people. He has been its lynch pin since its foundation
and has occupied most executive positions. Although not a lawyer,
he has considerable legal "know-how" which he has acquired through
long association with the lawyers on the Council and his characteristically
well researched approach to all issues. Describing himself as
"an aggressive bastard", he expresses his views without fear
or favour, particularly when his audience is a "copper".
In 1998, Ken Buckley and his wife, Berenice,
also a foundation member of the organisation, were among 50
Australians recognised by the Human Rights and Equal Opportunities
Commission for their contribution to the maintenance of human
rights in Australia through the Council for Civil Liberties.
In 2000 Ken Buckley was awarded an Order of Australia in recognition
of his "service to the community as an advocate for civil liberties,
human rights and social justice issues in Australia, particularly
through the NSW Council for Civil Liberties." Buckley still
holds a Committee member on the Council and is an active leader
in its activities. Few organisations can boast such ongoing
leadership provided by its founder for nearly four decades.
DICK KLUGMAN
Dr Dick Klugman, a Sydney medico and later federal Labor politician,
was one of the founding members of the Council for Civil Liberties.
He and many other young students in the late 40s and 50s experienced
violent police oppression while expressing their rights of assembly
and free speech - in particular during protests against continuing
Dutch presence in Indonesia. For him, as for many others, freedom
of expression, a civil right of paramount importance, was under
threat in this country. He opposed dogmas of any sort, objected
strongly to censorship and, perhaps above all, resented the
threats to freedoms manifest in the behaviour of the police.
While President of the Labor Club of Sydney University and during
the demonstrations he made the headlines in the daily newspapers
as a 'commo demonstrator' - an epithet that, because of his
strong anti-communist views angered him considerably. Klugman
was a member of the Humanist Society and strongly opposed compulsory
religious education. As well, he protested against racial discrimination
and was, in the 60s and 70s, very critical of police and government
treatment of Aborigines. He was a strong advocate of law reform,
especially of those laws related to victimless crimes like gambling,
drug use, prostitution and vagrancy - laws used by many police
to flex their muscle and impose unnecessary authority on people's
behaviour. He believed such crimes should be decriminalised.
He had made earlier attempts to establish an organisation to
protect civil liberties and in 1963, together with Ken Buckley
and Jack Sweeney, founded the present non-political organisation
which would promote a cause that reflected the values of freedom
and justice they believed important in a democratic society.
Dick Klugman was heavily involved in the formation of the Council.
Not only did he attract membership from many friends, lawyers
and academics but he concerned himself in a very practical way
with administrative and organisational matters when the new
organisation was being established. He became the Council's
first Treasurer, was industrious in the development of an office
and financial organisation, contacting and attracting new members,
processing applications and mailing information - all mundane
and time consuming but essential tasks for the new organisation.
He was a founder in the true sense of the word. Klugman became
a member of the House of Representatives in 1969. During his
long parliamentary career he served on many social and foreign
affairs committees and was the Australian Labor Party spokesman
on Health, Science and Veterans' Affairs while in opposition.
His resistance to religious and political dogmas reflected his
strong belief in the importance of individual freedoms and although
he left the Council during the late 70s because of his perception
that partisan political issues were dominating, his belief in
a non-political organisation to safeguard civil liberties has
remained. Of the three founders, Klugman was politically the
most conservative, holding views on issues such as the Vietnam
War and conscription that would have varied significantly from
those of Buckley and Sweeney. These differences were of little
importance while they remained outside the deliberations of
the a-political Council for Civil Liberties.
JACK SWEENEY
Jack Sweeney QC was the third of the founders of the Council
for Civil Liberties. He was an established lawyer with a particular
reputation for his skills in industrial law, a field in which
he was recognised as Sydney's top industrial barrister. He apparently
belonged to the Communist Party in the 30s and probably into
the 40s when, like many others, he drifted away as a result
of the Nazi-Soviet Pact. He had an affinity with the left in
the union movement and was an active civil libertarian in the
lead-up to and during the second World War when restrictions
on liberties were commonplace. Such restrictions were of great
concern to many socially aware lawyers and others who believed
that basic human rights were sacrosanct and for whom the acceptance
of restrictions was untenable. As a solicitor in the 30s, he
was involved in the famous Egon Kisch case and in 1941 represented
the unionists Ratcliff and Thomas who were interned under the
Menzies government's draconian National Security Regulations.
Sweeney was always impressive in debate, an outspoken defender
of civil liberties and eloquent in his defence of trade unionists
generally, whom he saw frequently as victims of employer exploitation
and oppressive government regulation. The rights of the less
empowered were of great concern to him.
He became a QC in 1962 and was a highly respected member of
the bar in NSW. Because of his standing in the legal profession,
he was able to interest a considerable number of lawyers in
joining the Council for Civil Liberties - lawyers who were tired
of defending criminal cases where the police were falsifying
evidence or, in some cases, indulging in criminal behaviour
themselves. These lawyers were to form the backbone of the Council
and provide the technical skills used in defending those denied
their rights. They were prepared to work for the CCL, in most
cases, as long as it remained apolitical. He was very interested
in art, music and the theatre. As well, he owned several race
horses with which he had occasional success. In the final stages
of his career he was a Deputy President of the Commonwealth
Conciliation and Arbitration Commission, then judge of the Australian
Industrial Court. In 1977 he was appointed as a judge of the
Federal Court where he remained until his death in 1981.
BERENICE BUCKLEY
One of the people invited to the inaugural
meeting of the CCL, because of her knowledge of immigration
matters, was Berenice Granger. She was also an active member
of the Humanist Society and was attracted to the idea of an
organisation safeguarding and promoting civil liberties and
rights. Her association with community organisations and her
interests were related strongly to her involvement in matters
concerning the problems of migrants. She was Secretary of the
Good Neighbour Council in NSW, part of a national community
organisation which, although supposedly independent in its operation
was set up by the federal government to facilitate the acceptance
of new migrants into the Australian community. From the inaugural
meeting of the Council for Civil Liberties in September 1963,
she was involved in the structuring of the organisation, promoting
membership and contributing to the drawing up of its constitution.
In those formative days she met and married Ken Buckley. Her
involvement has been maintained directly and indirectly ever
since, as Assistant Secretary, subcommittee co-ordinator and
committee member until her retirement during the 90s. Berenice
Buckley was very active in the Council for Civil Liberties -
particularly in campaigns against censorship - both books and
theatre - on one occasion publicly challenging the government
to arrest her for importing a banned book. She has also been
active in homosexual law reform. However, she has been most
involved in and brought special expertise to the CCL in the
area of migrant rights and immigration and citizenship issues.
At that time the Minister for Immigration had total power and
people were being refused citizenship or denied entry into Australia
with no reason being provided. The Council was able, with her
help, to draw attention to specific issues especially those
relating to deportations and the right of appeal. The rights
of migrants in relation to the police and the courts, and the
absence of interpreters were also issues. Her close affiliation
with community organisations made her one of the few people
in NSW at that time who understood the law in relation to migrants
and what was going on in migrant communities. As a result of
this she joined the law Section of the Commission of Inquiry
into Poverty under (then) Professor Ron Sackville researching
the situation of migrants in relation to their contact and experiences
with the law and legal procedures in three states - NSW, Victoria
and South Australia. After her many years of dealing with migrant
and other community issues, Ms Buckley became a senior public
servant in NSW where she remained until she retired. In 1998,
together with her husband, she was recognised by the Human Rights
and Equal Opportunities Commission for her promotion of human
rights in Australia.
KEP ENDERBY
- Born Dubbo, New South Wales, 25th June 1926 and educated
at Dubbo High School 1939-1943. As a teenager won numerous
golf tournaments and championships. Served as a trainee pilot
in the Australian Air Force 1944/1945. Studied law at Sydney
University 1946/1950. Admitted as barrister to NSW Bar 1950.
As an amateur, won numerous Australian golf championships
between 1946 and 1950.
- Lived and worked as a solicitor in London, England between
1950 and 1954 and part time did postgraduate studies in law
at the University of London.
- With some success, played in the British Amateur and Open
Golf Championships in 1951 and 1952. Returned to Australia
in 1955.
- Foundation member of the NSW Council for Civil Liberties.
- Practiced as a barrister at the NSW Bar and taught law,
part time, at Sydney Technical College 1955/1962. Moved to
Canberra 1962 to work as Senior Lecturer in Law at the Australian
National University. Returned to the Bar, in Canberra in 1966,
continuing to teach law part time until being elected, as
an Australian Labor Party candidate, to the House of Representatives
of the Australian Parliament in 1970.
- Appointed a Queens Council [QC] in 1973.
- Acted as defence counsel for many anti-Vietnam war activists.
- Elected as part of the Whitlam Labor Government in 1972.
- Minister for the Australian Capital Territory and also
the Northern Territory 1972/1973.
- Minister for Secondary Industry and Supply 1973/1974
- Minister for Manufacturing Industry 1974/1975
- Minister for Customs and Excise, 1975 and finally
- Attorney-General of Australia 1975.
- Parliamentary delegate to the Australian Constitutional
Convention 1973.
- Chairman, House of Representatives Privileges Committee
1973.
- Member of the National Executive of the Australian Labor
Party 1971/1975.
- Leader Australian Parliamentary Delegation to Sweden, Denmark
and the USSR 1973. As Minister for Manufacturing Industry,
in 1974, made official visit to England, France, Sweden, the
then two republics of West and East Germany and the then Czechoslavakia.
- Leader of the Australian Delegation to 5th UN Congress on
Crime and Punishment in Geneva 1975.
- For many years President of the Australian/ Soviet Friendship
Society.
- After the dismissal of the Whitlam Government in 1975 and
its subsequent defeat at the 1975 election, moved to Sydney
in 1976 and returned to practice at the ACT and NSW Bars.
Practiced as a QC.
- Appointed a Justice of the Supreme Court of NSW in 1982.
- President, NSW Branch of the Australian Institute of International
Affairs 1983/1985.
- Councillor of Australian Academy of Forensic Sciences, 1983/1986.
- Retired from the Supreme Court in 1992.
- Became President, Australia Esperanto Association, 1992/1997.
Chairman, Local Organising Committee of 82nd Universala Kongreso
de Esperanto in Adelaide in 1997.
- Chairman, NSW Serious Offenders Review Council 1997/2000.
BOB ST JOHN
One of the foundation members of the CCL was Bob St John, a
young lawyer who joined the Council to add his voice to the
growing number of protests about the unacceptable behaviour
of police in NSW both on the beat and in the courts.
Ex-Navy, a graduate of Sydney University, Bob St John was always
available as a 'CCL lawyer' and made his presence felt in court
in the cause of civil liberties, defending the underprivileged
, notably Aborigines, supporting the right to protest, and challenging
the unlawful practices if many police. He championed the victims
of the infamous vagrancy laws, as well as demonstrators against
government policies on Vietnam and against apartheid in South
Africa. In 1964 St John led the way in the CCL's first victory
- the acquittal of the Aborigine, Ken Brindle, accused of using
insulting words to a policeman. Charges like 'offensive behaviour'
- frequently brought by police against demonstrators - quickly
lost their status as a sure means of conviction under the scrutiny
and eloquence of Bob St John. He was a tough advocate - always
impressive in court. As CCL founder, Ken Buckley recalls, "I
remember sitting in court as a spectator and learning how apt
was the nickname of 'the Bear' for Bob St John - a number of
police witnesses were often mauled."
In 1966 the success of the appeal by the authors of Oz magazine
against their conviction for printing an obscenity can be attributed
largely to the anti-censorship campaign of the CCL which Bob
St John actively supported.
He was President of the Council for Civil Liberties from 1970
to 1974. His elevation as Judge of the Federal Court in 1977,
a clear acknowledgment of his contribution to justice in Australia,
deprived the CCL of one of its most effective advocates. He
occupied other judicial positions in Australian courts as well
as that of Chief Justice of Western Samoa. He was made a life
member of the Council for Civil Liberties in 1975 and retired
from the judiciary in 1986 to return to the Bar.
© 2001 Scott
& Dorothy Campbell, All rights reserved
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