The Tolpuddle Martyrs: Injustice Within the Law

Description

In his introduction to this new edition of Herbert ('Doc') Evatt's brilliant account of the six rural labourers transported in 1834 for swearing an oath of solidarity, Geoffrey Robertson argues that the case should inspire the Rudd Labor government to legislate for a bill of rights in Australia today.

Herbert Vere Evatt (1894-1965) was an Australian judge, lawyer, politician, and writer who presided over the United Nations General Assembly (1948-1949) and helped draft the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Geoffrey Robertson Q.C. is a human rights barrister and visiting professor at Queen Mary University of London.

'Evatt carefully traces how the law was used against these vulnerable men by those with more money and power in the locality ... Geoffrey Robertson's elegantly written introduction to this re-issue of Evatt's treatise suggests that the Doc's recognition that law can be a vehicle for injustice was pivotal in inspiring his personal commitment to establishing guarantees of basic human rights in modern society.' * Journal of Australian Political Economy * 'Showcasing the careful scholarship and precise intellect for which the author was known, the book comes with a new introduction written by eminent lawyer and author Geoffrey Robinson ... This work still resonates strongly with contemporary debates over new legislation passed in a number of western democracies, including Australia, where rights to a free and fair trial, timely justice, freedom of expression and association, among others, are being limited or entirely compromised.' -- Erik Eklund * Labour History * 'When set against the background of such triumph, failure and tragedy, it would be easy to overlook or underestimate Evatt's very considerable achievements and abilities as a historian. The Tolpuddle Martyrs perhaps finds him at the height of his intellectual powers. This book is a remarkable exercise in scholarly discipline and objectivity; one in which the passionate advocate of social justice is balanced by the jurist ... ' -- Frank Bongiorno * Australian Journal of Politics and History *