Man for all seasons book launch

I begin by greeting everyone in the languages of the realm of New Zealand, in English, Māori, Cook Island Māori, Niuean, Tokelauan and New Zealand Sign Language.  Greetings, Kia Ora, Kia Orana, Fakalofa Lahi Atu, Taloha Ni and as it is the evening (Sign)

I then specifically greet you: - (the central reason for us being here), Ken Douglas; David Grant, biographer and author; Nicola Legat, Publishing Director of Random House New Zealand; present and former Members of Parliament, Hon Phil Goff, Hon Darren Hughes, Hon Annette King, Luamanuvao Hon Winnie Laban, Hon Trevor Mallard, Graham Kelly, Hon Wyatt Creech Hon Philip Burdon; Distinguished Guests otherwise, notably Mayors Jenny Brash and Kerry Prendergast; Ladies and Gentlemen.

It has been a pleasure to accept the invitation to be here for the launch of David Grant’s latest book, Man For All Seasons: The Life And Times of Ken Douglas.  I have been asked to do the launching and just before I do, I would like to speak a little of Ken Douglas’ contribution to New Zealand and the significance of what is a handsome looking book.

Biographies are a popular form of non-fiction.  Accounts of the lives of historical figures gives an insight into the past through seeing the perspective of the life of another individual.  As they are frequently centred on the lives of well-known people, we can be shown the qualities that brought them to fame, and sometimes the infamy.  Biographies are - as Ken has noted in The Dominion Post article and in the Chris Laidlaw Radio NZ interview, on the weekend just past -  enigmatic.

I bring to mind some pithy things written by British barrister and writer of the last century, Philip Guedalla who wrote for example, that “histories repeat themselves and that historians repeat each other and that biography is a region bounded on the north by history, on the south by fiction, on the east by obituary and on the west by tedium”.  In other words there is a challenge for biographies need to earn their stripes with those who read them.

For biographies of those who are still with us, the reader’s interest is magnified, particularly if the work is not authorised.  We readers come to such books with a multitude of motives—to know more of a well known figure’s role in notable events, and to know more of the qualities that brought them to public attention, as well as, of course, finding out what was really happening underneath what may have been in the public domain.

The fear of having your life and your actions placed under the microscope by a biographer was well noted by the 19th century author and playwright, Oscar Wilde who wrote with both foresight and wit that:- “Biography lends to death a new terror.” 

With David Grant’s biography, Man for all seasons: The Life And Times Of Ken Douglas, now reaching the shop shelves, that is now a reality for our guest of honour, Ken.  One could have reason to be afraid, very afraid!  Ken was, however, we have learned, a willing participant and as David Grant writes in the introduction, his subject wanted him to be absolutely honest and to write a “warts and all” biography.

For those who come to Ken’s life with preconceived notions, they will be surprised by the many layers that have been uncovered.  Not all of them, at least from the perspective of an outsider, sit comfortably together.  The book, of which I have enjoyed reading a pre-release copy, produces many surprises. As David Grant notes:

“Douglas has lived a life full of contradictions—the truck driver who has parleyed with heads of state, the failed student who now holds an honorary doctorate, the lifelong Marxist who now sits on boards with admiring capitalists, the crumpled-cardigan-wearing coarse-tongued trade unionist who in 1999 collected, in a well-tailored suit, both the Order of New Zealand, the country’s highest honour, awarded to only 20 living New Zealanders, and an honorary doctorate from Victoria University of Wellington.  Needless to say, these contradictions do not marry easily into a logical and cohesive whole.”

It was on one of those boards that David refers, the Asia 2000 Foundation, later renamed the Asia New Zealand Foundation that I came to meet Ken Douglas, first in 1998.

Like many New Zealanders, I knew of Ken Douglas through his profile in the New Zealand media, where his work in the trade union movement was well known and that bluff speaking, cardigan wearing image was frequently on television.  He had been the first elected secretary-treasurer of the Federation of Labour and in 1987 was the first president of the newly formed Council of Trade Unions, a position he held for 12 years.   In particular, he played a pivotal role in the tumultuous transition which the New Zealand trade union movement faced in the 1980s and 1990s.

Working together on the Asia New Zealand Foundation board, I quickly realised there was much much more to Ken than the hardnosed union man.  I was soon struck by his keen intellect and his grip of international affairs and the exposure he had had to a number of international political figures.

Equally apparent was his ability to approach things strategically.  Ken would of course put this in his own inimitable fashion saying things like “these people have put themselves in this situation.  We need to be thinking about how they are going to get out of it at the other end–and to see about helping them.”  This would then establish the core issues needing to be addressed and then what was needed to work towards a resolution.  His best attribute, in my respectful estimation, has been to confound his colleagues about whether Ken Douglas is a conservative liberal or a liberal conservative.

When one hears the words “trade unions” and “Asia” in the same breath, one almost expects the next words to be uttered should be “protecting jobs of New Zealanders.”   Ken was as keen as anyone to ensure all New Zealanders had the right to work. 

He has, however, long recognised New Zealand’s future is as a part of the wider Asia-Pacific region and not just being a distant outpost of Europe.  Ken intuitively grasped that New Zealand needed to adapt to meet Asia’s rapidly changing dynamics and that New Zealanders needed to better understand the importance of Asia in their future.

Since coming to the Governor-General role, Susan and I have encountered Ken in a number of settings.  As a member the ONZ the Order of New Zealand, there has been the pleasure of meeting him at occasions for that group at Government House.  As a local government councillor we have met him in relation to work and events in Porirua and we have discussed such things as the ways in which New Zealanders generally, may best celebrate Waitangi Day. 

Ken is a sports follower and a long term member of the Rugby fraternity and currently the NZRFU Board.  He remains a really good person to sit alongside at Stadium matches, for general conversation as well as through him being wired up with a good radio, so you always get to hear the nature of the infringement.  I learned early on that he was a “real” Rugby man and that mention of how well the Warriors might have done or how well Stacey Jones was playing would be met with another Ken Douglas trademark — polite, non-committal but firm dismissal.

The title Man For All Seasons immediately brings to mind the Robert Bolt play, A Man For All Seasons, about the life of Sir Thomas More, the 16th-century Chancellor of England, who refused to endorse Henry VIII's wish to divorce Catherine of Aragon.  

The lives of these two men are more than just centuries apart.  More was made a saint—a title I am not sure Ken would ever accept!  More was a wealthy establishment figure—Ken was not. I don’t think that St Thomas More would ever have been as hard bitten as that 1940s boy from Northland nicknamed “Doony”.  More was executed for his beliefs, whilst Ken has instead deflected, stared down or withstood the verbal slings and arrows of those taking umbrage at his views and principles.

What does, however, connect the lives of these two men – More and Douglas - is a commitment to principle.  The best thing about reading David Grant’s well-researched biography is that it brings together the multiple strands of Ken’s life.  The book does not resolve all the differences in Ken’s life other than to reinforce a view of Ken as a person remaining committed to the welfare of the New Zealand community.

When Ken was awarded a doctorate from the Victoria University of Wellington in 1999, the citation opened with the following words:- “A career of nearly half a century of tireless service on behalf of ordinary New Zealanders is deserving of recognition.”

I couldn’t agree more.  The book underlines the contribution of an outstanding New Zealander.  I want to congratulate you, David Grant, for your work in writing this biography and Random House for publishing it. 

It therefore gives me great pleasure to come to the launching and to declare Man For All Seasons: The Life And Times Of Ken Douglas officially launched.

And on that note of congratulation, I will close in New Zealand’s first language Māori, by offering everyone greetings and wishing everyone good health and fortitude in your endeavours.  No reira, tēnā koutou, tēnā koutou, kia ora, kia kaha, tēnā koutou katoa.