Vale Maurice de Rohan
by Vincent Ciccarello
The death in London last month of South Australian Governor-elect
Maurice de Rohan AO OBE
has special resonance for the University of South Australia.
A civil engineering graduate of the South Australian Institute of Technology, one of the University’s former institutions, Maurice de Rohan was awarded the honorary degree of Doctor of the University in 2003 in recognition of his contributions to UniSA.
In addition to his significant promotion of UniSA’s scholarship campaigns, in 1999 Dr de Rohan supported the establishment of the University’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) project, a series of seminars and the construction of a website that provided a first point of contact where interested people could access worldwide research on CSR.
The project received funding from the Herald of Free Enterprise Charitable Trust, created after the 1987 maritime disaster in which 192 people including the de Rohan’s daughter Alison and her husband died, when a cross-channel ferry capsized.
From 1990, Dr de Rohan was chairman of the Trust. He was also founding chairman of the Herald Families Association, and awarded an OBE for his work in helping family members come to terms with the tragedy, to improve safety of roll-on, roll-off ferries and to seek justice by making the company legally accountable for the disaster. Indeed, Dr de Rohan was instrumental in changing corporate responsibility law in the UK.
In support of the nomination to honour Dr de Rohan in the coming Australia Day Order of Australia awards, Chancellor David Klingberg AM described him as a friend of the University.
"Maurice always spoke highly of his personal association with the University through his early days at the Adelaide Technical High School and then the School of Mines and the South Australian Institute of Technology. Not only has the University lost a great supporter, I mourn the passing of a wonderful personal friend and mentor over the last 40 years. We are delighted that he was awarded an AO, which is fitting recognition of his great contributions to South Australia and Australia," Chancellor Klingberg said.
An Officer of the Order of Australia medal was awarded to Dr de Rohan at a special bedside presentation ceremony at a London Harley Street clinic hours before his death.
In addition to serving as Agent-General for South Australia from 1998, Dr de Rohan played a critical role in encouraging investment in SA, seeking export opportunities, attracting tourists and raising awareness of the state’s cultural and artistic activities.
Vice Chancellor Denise Bradley AO said, "Maurice was a rare person – warm, sociable and always open to new ideas. He offered an enormous amount of help to South Australian organisations seeking support in ventures in the UK and Europe. UniSA is one of the benefactors of his generosity, knowledge and excellent connections in the UK."
Dr de Rohan was a founding partner of the business later known as Kinhill Engineers. Among his many other roles and awards were chairman of the Cutty Sark Trust, chairman of Disaster Action, member of the council of the Maritime Trust, chairman of the Cook Society, and member of the supervisory board of the Menzies Centre for Australian Studies. In 2003 he was awarded a Centenary Medal for his services to the public sector as Agent General for South Australia.