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Thank you Sue for your kind introduction and Simon (Forrest) can I acknowledge your warm welcome and can I reciprocate by paying my respects to the Whadjuk people of the Noongar nation, the traditional owners of the place that is now known as Perth. I thank you for allowing me on your country. I salute the Elders who are here today, those that have gone before us, and those who are yet to come.

I also acknowledge Ministers with us here today; Ambassador Don Mackay joining us from New Zealand by video link; and many friends and colleagues from the disability and human rights community.

I also want to make mention of the fact that we are 130kn south west of an area of great significance to the Aboriginal communities of western NSW, which is now called Mutawintji National Park - the first park to be handed back to its Traditional Owners under the NSW National Parks and Wildlife Act in 1998. [1] The caves and overhangs in the park have been transformed into expansive galleries of Aboriginal rock art, and it comes as no surprise that they have formed the backdrop for ceremonies for at least 8,000 years.

When I first entered the law 'benchbooks' were closely guarded, leather bound books into which judges carefully entered notes as a case progressed - usually I thought adverse comments and exclamation marks about one's arguments or less than flattering remarks about one's principal witness. These books seemed to be some kind of secret code to the outcome of cases and never saw the light of day.

I feel very honoured to have been invited to contribute to this symposium. As a theme for today's discussion, I have chosen the notions of regionalisation and responsibility within Asia and the Pacific. I believe that the ability to accept responsibility for our neighbourhood, and to generate cooperative regional dialogues and actions to fulfill that responsibility will be the key to meeting the challenges and opportunities human rights will face in the new century.

I was invited to pick my own topic for discussion. As an ex-judge being invited to speak to students of the law, I assumed that I was expected to speak on something related to the administration of the law from a judge's perspective. And as President of Australia's Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission (HREOC), I assumed I was expected to mention the role of human rights promotion in our legal system.

I would like to begin by acknowledging the traditional owners of the land on which we meet, the Wurundjeri People of the Kulin Nation, and pay my respects to their elders past and present.