Zonta Club of Brisbane 55th Anniversary Reception

The 22nd Governor of Queensland and Past Zonta International President, the Honourable Leneen Forde AC; Past Zonta International Director, Ms Judith Anderson OAM; District 22 Governor, Dr Petra Ladwig; the Zonta Club of Brisbane President, Ms Jane Keating; First Vice-President Professor Lesley Chenoweth AO; Second Vice-President and President-elect Ms Janet Prowse; Board and members; supporters and guests. 

I begin by acknowledging the Original Custodians of the lands around Brisbane, the Turrbal and Jagera people, and pay my respects to Elders past, present and emerging, and to all First Nations people here today.

Good afternoon, everyone — and welcome to Government House for this celebration of 55 years of dedication to Zonta International’s mission of empowering women and protecting their rights. 

Two years ago, when Zonta’s International Convention was held in Brisbane, I was delighted to host a welcome reception here for Zonta leaders from 18 different nations.  

As Graeme and I chatted to Zontians that evening, we heard about the inspiring programs and projects being implemented both globally and locally to build a safer, kinder and more equal world for women and girls. And it was very evident to us that, whatever their creed, culture or country of origin, Zontians today are as passionate and determined as the founders were, 106 years ago. 

It is certainly clear that the Zonta Club of Brisbane has been driven from the outset by that same passion and commitment. 

Through one of those fortunate accidents of history, the club’s first years coincided with an extraordinary era for women and women’s rights.  

Here in Australia, equal pay was introduced and Australia appointed its first woman ambassador, while, around the globe, feminism and the fight for human rights had begun to gather strength and, in 1975, the United Nations launched the Decade for Women.  

The Zonta Club of Brisbane may have been the only club in Queensland and one of only five in the whole of Australia in 1971, but Helen Reddy’s feminist anthem, “I am Woman” was topping the charts – and the Club thrived. 

Among the 40 women who joined within the first six months was a 36-year-old lawyer, Leneen Forde. In 1971, Leneen was a widowed mother of five small children so it speaks to the power of Zonta’s mission and vision that Leneen not only joined but went on to become the International President of Zonta. Today, 55 years on, she remains a committed member of the Club she helped to found. 

The Club was thrilled when Leneen was appointed as Queensland’s first woman Governor in the mid-1990s, and was later inspired by her passion for human rights seen in the heartbreaking work she did as chair of the Commission of Inquiry into Abuse of Children in Queensland Institutions.

Club members have been further inspired by other Queensland champions for equality and women’s rights, notably fellow Club member, Justice Margaret McMurdo, who headed the 2021 Women’s Safety and Justice Taskforce to examine coercive control, and Dame Quentin Bryce, who was inducted as an International Honorary Zontian in recognition of her work as chair of Queensland’s Special Taskforce on Domestic and Family Violence in 2014.

Those three exceptional women, together with the many other leaders over more than half a century in the Zonta Club of Brisbane, have ensured that the Club’s grants, awards and activities remain tightly focused on Zonta’s goals, and I wish the Club well as you continue to advocate for the changes that will create greater equality, increase the number of women in decision-making positions, and, above all, end gender-based violence.  

The Zonta Club of Brisbane can be very proud of its many achievements and the influence it has had as an advocate for women since 1971 and I wish you all a very happy 55th birthday.