From the Age Melbourne.
Bob Hawke, one of the nation's greatest public figures and a hero of the Australian Labor Party, has died on the eve of an election the former prime minister just one day ago predicted would be won by the party he led for nearly a decade.
The Labor legend died aged 89 on Thursday surrounded by family in his Sydney home, drawing to a close one of the most significant chapters in Australian political history.
"Today we lost Bob Hawke, a great Australian – many would say the greatest Australian of the post-war era," his wife, Blanche d'Alpuget, said in a statement.
"Bob was dearly loved by his family, and so many friends and colleagues. We will miss him.
"The golden bowl is broken."
Mr Hawke's death has rocked the federal election campaign. The former Labor leader, who was prime minister from 1983 to 1991, on Wednesday wrote an open letter to Australians backing Opposition Leader Bill Shorten to win Saturday's election against Prime Minister Scott Morrison.
In a statement on Thursday night, Mr Shorten said Mr Hawke was a "leader of conviction – and a builder of consensus".
"In Australian history, in Australian politics, there will always be B.H. and A.H: Before Hawke and After Hawke. After Hawke, we were a different country. A kinder, better, bigger and bolder country," Mr Shorten said.
"The Australian people loved Bob Hawke because they knew Bob loved them, this was true to the very end.
"At our Labor launch I told Bob we loved him, I promised we would win for him. I said the same to him the next day at his home, when I visited.
Hawke backs Shorten as 'consensus' leader in new open letter
"I gave the man who inspired me to go into politics a gentle hug, I tried to tell him what he meant to me, what he meant to all of us. I couldn’t quite find the right words, few of us can, when we’re face to face with our heroes.
"But Bob knew. He knew what he meant to Australia, he knew what he had achieved for the country. He knew he was loved, right to the end."
Paul Keating, who served as treasurer under Mr Hawke and defeated him in a leadership ballot to become prime minister in 1991, said the death also represented the passing of "a partnership we formed with the Australian people".
"Bob possessed a moral framework for his important public life, both representing the workers of Australia and more broadly, the country at large," Mr Keating said on Thursday night.
"Bob, of course, was hoping for a Labor victory this weekend. His friends, too, were hoping he would see this."
Mr Hawke will be laid to rest in a private service to be attended by Ms d'Alpuget and his children. A memorial service will be held in Sydney in coming weeks.
"Bob Hawke and Paul Keating and their governments modernised the Australian economy, paving the way for an unprecedented period of recession-free economic growth and job creation," Ms d'Alpuget said.
"Bob’s consensus-style approach of bringing together the trade union movement and the business community boosted job opportunities while increasing the social wage through Medicare and extra financial support for low-income families.
OBITUARIES
Labor's golden boy who transformed a nation
"Together with his highly talented cabinets, he foresaw the Asian Century and positioned Australia to take full advantage of it through a program of sweeping economic reforms.
"Among his proudest achievements were large increases in the proportion of children finishing high school, his role in ending apartheid in South Africa, and his successful international campaign to protect Antarctica from mining.
"He abhorred racism and bigotry. His father, the Reverend Clem Hawke, told Bob that if you believed in the Fatherhood of God then you must also believe in the Brotherhood of Man. Bob would add today the Sisterhood of Women."
That is All. RIP Sir...
....... I'm a lucky bugger! I've got 2 of em!
Originally Posted by Rogue Dung Beetle
