John Joseph Herron (4 September 1932 – 25 February 2019) was an Australian politician, ambassador and surgeon who was a Liberal member of the

Australian Senate The Senate is the upper house of the bicameral Parliament of Australia, the lower house being the House of Representatives. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Chapter I of the Constitution of Australia. There are a t ...

from 1990 to 2002, representing

Queensland ) , nickname = Sunshine State , image_map = Queensland in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Queensland in Australia , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = Australia , established_title = Before federation , establishe ...

. From 1996 to 2001 he was the Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs. From 2002 to 2006 he was the Australian Ambassador to Ireland and the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

Medical career

Herron was educated at the

University of Queensland , mottoeng = By means of knowledge and hard work , established = , endowment = A$224.3 million , budget = A$2.1 billion , type = Public research university , chancellor = Peter Varghese , vice_chancellor = Deborah Terry , city = B ...

where he graduated in medicine and surgery. He received registrar training at

Royal Brisbane Hospital The Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital (RBWH) is a tertiary public hospital located in Herston, a suburb of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia. It is operated by Metro North Health, part of the Queensland Health network. The hospital has 929 be ...

and Princess Alexandra Hospital. He was a Fellow of the

Royal Australasian College of Surgeons The Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (RACS) is the leading advocate for surgical standards, professionalism and surgical education in Australia and New Zealand. Known by its common acronym RACS, it is a not-for-profit organisation, sup ...

, The Royal College of Surgeons England, The

Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd) is a professional organisation of surgeons. The College has seven active faculties, covering a broad spectrum of surgical, dental, and other medical practices. Its main campus is located o ...

and the

Australian Medical Association The Australian Medical Association (AMA) is an Australian public company by guarantee formed as a professional association for Australian doctors and medical students. The association is not run by the Australian Government and does not regu ...

. He was also chief surgeon at Mater Misericordiae Hospital in

Brisbane Brisbane ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Queensland, and the third-most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of approximately 2.6 million. Brisbane lies at the centre of the South ...

, before embarking on his political career. In 1989, Herron was appointed the Queensland branch President of the

. He has also been Chairman of the

and Chairman of the Australian Association of Surgeons of Queensland. He was an officer in the

Royal Australian Army Medical Corps The Royal Australian Army Medical Corps (RAAMC) is the branch of the Australian Army responsible for providing medical care to Army personnel. The AAMC was formed in 1902 through the amalgamation of medical units of the various Australian coloni ...

and a

squadron leader Squadron leader (Sqn Ldr in the RAF ; SQNLDR in the RAAF and RNZAF; formerly sometimes S/L in all services) is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is als ...

in the

Royal Australian Air Force "Through Adversity to the Stars" , colours = , colours_label = , march = , mascot = , anniversaries = RAAF Anniversary Commemoration ...

Politics

Herron was president of the Queensland branch of the Liberal Party from 1980 to 1984. In 1990, he ran for the Senate, successfully gaining a Queensland seat. He was one of a group of Coalition members of parliament who founded the

Lyons Forum The Lyons Forum was a ginger group or informal political faction comprising some federal members of conservative Australian parliamentary parties. It was formed in the early 1990s and was active both in Liberal Party of Australia parliamentary lead ...

, a conservative

ginger group The Ginger Group was not a formal political party in Canada, but a faction of radical Progressive and Labour Members of Parliament who advocated socialism. The term ginger group also refers to a small group with new, radical ideas trying to a ...

. In 1994, he became Parliamentary Secretary to the Shadow Minister for Health and Chairman of the Senate Community Affairs References Committee. When the

Coalition A coalition is a group formed when two or more people or groups temporarily work together to achieve a common goal. The term is most frequently used to denote a formation of power in political or economical spaces. Formation According to ''A Gui ...

government was elected in 1996, Herron was appointed as Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs, until he was replaced by

Philip Ruddock Philip Maxwell Ruddock (born 12 March 1943 in Canberra) is an Australian politician and the current mayor of Hornsby Shire. Ruddock is a member of the Liberal Party of Australia and currently the state president of the party's New South W ...

in a January 2001 ministerial reshuffle. In April 2000 a scandal occurred while he was Aboriginal Affairs Minister in the Howard Government. Herron tabled a report in the Australian Parliament that questioned whether or not there ever actually had been a "Stolen Generation", on the semantic distinction that as "at the most only 10% of Aboriginal children" has been removed, they did not constitute an entire "generation". The Stolen Generation affair was soon parodied in a web-based game that invited users to virtually steal his ten children, and in reply Herron threatened the producers of the game (Russ Weakley and Peter Firminger) with legal action in the

Supreme Court of Queensland The Supreme Court of Queensland is the highest court in the Australian State of Queensland. It was formerly the Brisbane Supreme Court, in the colony of Queensland. The original jurisdiction of the Supreme Court allows its trial division to h ...

. Herron was admonished by Electronic Frontiers Australia: "In a free society, it is completely unacceptable for politicians to use threats of legal action to silence their critics," said EFA Board member, Dale Clapperton. "Senator Herron has completely overreacted to a humorous parody of his handling of the 'Stolen Generation' issue." Herron had no further response or action regarding the legal threat; the affair remained a significant moment in his political career. Herron became president of the Queensland Liberals again between 2001 and 2002. Herron successfully recontested his Senate seat in the 2001 election, but resigned a year later to be appointed to a diplomatic posting to Ireland as the Australian Ambassador to Ireland and the

. On his return to Australia, Herron was appointed chairman of the

Australian National Council on Drugs The Australian National Council on Drugs (ANCD) describes itself as "the principal advisory body to Government on drug policy and plays a critical role in ensuring the voice of the community is heard in relation to drug related policies and s ...

, and The Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital Foundation.

Honours and awards

Herron was a Knight Commander of the

Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem The Equestrian Order of the Holy Sepulchre of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Equestris Sancti Sepulcri Hierosolymitani, links=yes, OESSH), also called Order of the Holy Sepulchre or Knights of the Holy Sepulchre, is a Catholic order of knighthood under ...

, and during his tenure as Australian Ambassador to Ireland and the Holy See was made a Papal

Knight of St Gregory The Pontifical Equestrian Order of St. Gregory the Great ( la, Ordo Sancti Gregorii Magni; it, Ordine di San Gregorio Magno) was established on 1 September 1831, by Pope Gregory XVI, seven months after his election as Pope. The order is one of ...

. On 11 June 2012, he was named an Officer of the

Order of Australia The Order of Australia is an honour that recognises Australian citizens and other persons for outstanding achievement and service. It was established on 14 February 1975 by Elizabeth II, Queen of Australia, on the advice of the Australian Go ...

for "distinguished service to the Parliament of Australia, to international relations through diplomatic and humanitarian roles, to professional medical associations, and to the community." Herron was awarded the Bancroft Medal of the A.M.A. (QLD), the Justin Fleming Medal of the Australian Association of Surgeons, and a Citation by the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons. In 1994, he worked as a volunteer doctor in

Rwanda Rwanda (; rw, u Rwanda ), officially the Republic of Rwanda, is a landlocked country in the Great Rift Valley of Central Africa, where the African Great Lakes region and Southeast Africa converge. Located a few degrees south of the Equator ...

, where he saw the aftermath of some of the atrocities committed there, an experience that would lead him to push strongly for Australia's support for the creation of the

International Criminal Court The International Criminal Court (ICC or ICCt) is an intergovernmental organization and International court, international tribunal seated in The Hague, Netherlands. It is the first and only permanent international court with jurisdiction to pro ...

. On 2 May 2000 he received the Humanitarian Overseas Medal for his service as a Care Australia medical officer during the Rwandan crisis and the Australian Service Medal. On 4 May 2012, he was awarded Australian Catholic University's highest honour, Doctor of the University.

Death

Herron died on 25 February 2019, aged 86. A State Funeral was held at the Cathedral of St Stephen in Brisbane on 1 March.

References

External links

Dr John Herron

{{DEFAULTSORT:Herron, John 1932 births 2019 deaths Members of the Australian Senate Members of the Australian Senate for Queensland Ambassadors of Australia to Ireland Ambassadors of Australia to the Holy See Officers of the Order of Australia Liberal Party of Australia members of the Parliament of Australia Knights of the Holy Sepulchre 21st-century Australian politicians 20th-century Australian politicians