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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2013-09-25 Daily Xml
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JOHANNESEN, MR J.

The Hon. T.A. FRANKS (15:51): I rise today to pay tribute to Greens campaigning manager for the re-election of Senator Sarah Hanson-Young—Jacobus Johannesen. Jacob was known as Sarah's campaigning manager internally in the party, but he was also less formally known as the 'campaign mastermind' behind Sarah's campaign. Jacob was an amazing person, never sparing a moment to waste his short life and always standing up for justice.

Jacob was a young man of many achievements. Indeed, he had had a very full life. He had excelled in studies, he travelled the world, and he had run many small business enterprises. We learnt of this at his funeral, held on Friday 13 September, as Jacob never made it to the federal election: he passed away on 5 September, just a few short days before the poll.

At that time, many in the Greens were in shock because we did not realise that Jacob had lived his short life with cystic fibrosis, when it was difficult just to breathe let alone pack so many achievements into his life. To many around him, it came as a great shock at the time to learn that he had this disease because we never for a second doubted his energy, commitment and expertise in the campaign. Jacob was, indeed, the campaign mastermind behind Sarah's campaign.

We also learnt at his funeral that he was very cool—but then again we already knew that. We knew that he was a hipster and certainly the music, which was unfamiliar to many at the funeral, went some way to underscoring that hipster status, including I See a Darkness by Bonnie 'Prince' Billy and tributes to Elliott Smith, with pictures of Jacob standing in front of the Wall of Solutions which is a tribute to the short life of Elliott Smith.

Jacob was all about solutions, and that is why he was committed to the Greens. His friends paid tribute to the impact that his involvement with the campaign had on the last days of his life. Indeed, his mother said that he had shared with her that he was very much where he wanted to be and contributing to the utmost of his talents. He was at the top of his game, and we thank him. When he passed away everyone had written off Sarah's chances, and I must pay tribute to Jacob's role in creating what was an outstanding campaign. His design work, his skills with IT, his ability to multitask and be part of an incredibly creative team were an enormous asset to Sarah's campaign. I know that she will never forget the contribution he made.

All who worked with Jacob remarked on his laugh and the joy he had. He had a particular laugh, and certainly the fact that I am making this speech today in parliament I hope would give him cause to have a little laugh. One of his colleagues asked me to share that his least favourite politician was the Hon. Ann Bressington—I hope this will cause him to laugh wherever he is now. In the days since Jacob has passed, we have all had cause to reflect on what is, indeed, important.

Comrade Jacob, as my staff member Yesha referred to him, was a fellow soy latte-sipping Greens voting hipster, and assorted other stereotypes we in the Greens are labelled with, and happily so. Along with his comrades or fellow hipsters or, indeed, simply colleagues Sarah, Noah, Ali, Amy, Michael, Katy and Yesha, I say that we will never forget you, Jacob, and I wish to share the words that you shared with us at your funeral from a book called Essays by Michel de Montaigne. It states:

Wherever your life ends, it is all there. The advantage of living is not measured by length but by use; some men have lived long and lived little; attend to it while you are in it. It lies in your will, not in your number of years, for you have lived enough. Did you think that you would never arrive where you never ceased going? Yet there is not road but has its end and, if company can comfort you, does not the world keep pace with you?

In honour of Jacob's very short and very long 32 years, I pay tribute to Jacob.

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