{{Short description|Politician Academic and Author }} {{Use dmy dates|date=December 2015}} {{Use Australian English|date=December 2015}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Ronan Lee | image = Ronan Lee profile photo 2019 (cropped).jpg | caption = Lee in 2019. | office = Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly for Indooroopilly | term_start = 17 February 2001 | term_end = 21 March 2009 | predecessor = Denver Beanland | successor = Scott Emerson | office2 = Parliamentary Secretary to the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice and Minister Assisting the Premier in Western Queensland | premier2 = Anna Bligh | term_start2 = 24 April 2008 | term_end2 = 5 October 2008 | office3 = Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Main Roads and Local Government | premier3 = Anna Bligh | term_start3 = 13 September 2007 | term_end3 = 24 April 2008 | office4 = Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Communities, Minister for Disability Services Queensland, Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships, and Minister for Seniors and Youth | premier4 = Peter Beattie | term_start4 = 30 January 2007 | term_end4 = 13 September 2007 | office5 = Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Communities, Disability Services, Seniors and Youth | premier5 = Peter Beattie | term_start5 = 21 September 2006 | term_end5 = 30 January 2007 | birth_name = Ronan Oliver Lee | birth_date = {{birth date and age text|4 January 1976}} | birth_place = Republic of Ireland | death_date = | death_place = | party = {{plainlist| * Greens {{small|(since 2008)}} * Labor {{small|(2001–2008)}} }} | education = {{plainlist| * St Columban's College * St Patrick's College, Cavan * St Teresa's National School }} | module = {{Infobox academic | child=yes
| alma_mater = {{plainlist| * Deakin University {{small|(PhD)}} * Monash University * {{nowrap|University of Queensland {{small|(BA)}}}} }} | main_interests = Genocide<Br/>Rohingya<br/>Hate Speech<br/>Myanmar<br/>Asia<br/>Politics | workplaces = Loughborough University | notable_works = {{URL|https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/myanmars-rohingya-genocide-9780755602483/ | Myanmar’s Rohingya Genocide: Identity, History and Hate Speech}} }} | occupation = {{hlist|Writer|Academic|Politician}} | website = {{URL|www.ronanlee.com}} }} '''Ronan Oliver Lee''' (born 4 January 1976) is an Irish Australian former politician and research fellow in the {{URL|https://www.lborolondon.ac.uk/institutes/media-creative-industries/ |Institute for Media and Creative Industries}} at {{URL|https://www.lborolondon.ac.uk/ |Loughborough University London}}.<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.lboro.ac.uk/news-events/news/2022/january/lboro-welcomes-new-cohort-doctoral-prize-fellows/|title = Doctoral Prize Fellows Loughborough University|date= 5 January 2022 |access-date=12 May 2022 }}</ref> He was previously a visiting scholar at Queen Mary University of London's International State Crime Initiative. His research focusses on Myanmar, the Rohingya, genocide, and hate speech.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://theconversation.com/profiles/ronan-lee-126612|title = Ronan Lee}}</ref> He was formerly a political advisor and Labor and later Greens member of the Queensland State Parliament. Lee represented the seat of Indooroopilly since he was first elected as a Labor Party member in 2001.
Lee had a background in environmental activism and joined the Queensland Greens in 2008 citing the Bligh Government's inaction on climate change and environment protection.<ref>{{cite news|title=Blow to Anna Bligh as Ronan Lee quits Labor for Greens|url=http://www.news.com.au/couriermail/story/0,23739,24449291-3102,00.html|accessdate=6 October 2008|date=6 October 2008|first1=Patrick|last1=Lion|first2=Steven|last2=Wardill|website=News.com.au}}</ref> Since leaving Parliament in 2009 Lee has run his communications and lobbying business and traveled extensively in Myanmar (Burma).
Lee grew up in Ballyjamesduff, County Cavan, Ireland and his family migrated to Brisbane, Australia when he was a teenager. He was educated at St Patrick's College, Cavan, St Columban's College, Caboolture, and the University of Queensland, where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/documents/explore/parliamentaryrecord/sections/ParlRecord_p1_2_Memb52Parl_pp4_93.pdf|title=Members of the 52nd Parliament|work=Queensland Parliamentary Record 2006–2009: The 52nd Parliament|publisher=Queensland Parliament|page=43}}</ref> Lee has a Master of International Relations from Monash University, writing a thesis titled ''A Politician, Not an Icon. Aung San Suu Kyi's silence on Myanmar's Muslim Rohingya''.<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Lee|first=Ronan|date=July 2014|title=A Politician, Not an Icon: Aung San Suu Kyi's Silence on Myanmar's Muslim Rohingya|journal=Islam and Christian–Muslim Relations|volume= 25, 2014 - Issue|issue=3|pages=321–333|doi=10.1080/09596410.2014.913850|s2cid=144456661}}</ref> Lee has a PhD from Deakin University. His PhD thesis was titled "Myanmar's Rohingya Genocide: Rohingya Perspectives of History and Identity" and addressed the identity, history, and politics of the Rohingya. Lee is the author of ''Myanmar's Rohingya Genocide: Identity, History and Hate Speech'' published by Bloomsbury Publishing's IB Tauris imprint.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/myanmars-rohingya-genocide-9780755602476/|title = Myanmar's Rohingya Genocide}}</ref>
==Myanmar (Burma)== Lee has traveled extensively in Asia and has a particular interest in the politics of Myanmar. He was one of the few westerners to experience Myanmar's 2010 elections and met Aung San Suu Kyi shortly after her release from house arrest.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.smh.com.au/national/day-i-met-aung-san-suu-kyi-20101205-18l3s.html|work=The Sydney Morning Herald|title=Day I met Aung San Suu Kyi}}</ref> He is currently researching the situation involving the Muslim Rohingya people in Myanmar's western state of Rakhine and tweeted the cover of his Masters of International Relations thesis 'A Politician, Not an Icon. Aung San Suu Kyi's silence on Myanmar's Muslim Rohingya'.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://twitter.com/Ronan_Lee/status/340638238433755136|title=Masters dissertation done. 'A politician not an Icon' #AungSanSuuKyi's silence over #Myanmar's #Muslim #Rohingya.pic.twitter.com/Cjg9xmAhZq|first=Ronan|last=Lee|date=31 May 2013|website=Twitter.com|accessdate=3 January 2018}}</ref> Lee's PhD involved research with the Rohingya community in Bangladesh, Myanmar and Thailand and he was frequently published academic articles and op-eds about Myanmar's politics, the Rohingya's human rights, hate speech and genocide.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://ronanlee.com/journalarticles/|title=Journal Articles, Op-Eds, Media|date=14 June 2011}}</ref> Lee is the author of "[https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/myanmars-rohingya-genocide-9780755602476/ Myanmar's Rohingya Genocide: Identity, History and Hate Speech]" published by Bloomsbury Publishing's IB Tauris imprint.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.bloomsbury.com/uk/myanmars-rohingya-genocide-9780755602476/|title = Myanmar's Rohingya Genocide}}</ref>
==Environment activism== Lee has been involved with environment causes since his youth and is best known for his involvement with The Wilderness Society who welcomed his decision to join the Greens.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wilderness.org.au/regions/queensland/wilderness-society-welcomes-the-greening-of-the|title=Wilderness Society welcomes the greening of the Queensland parliament|work=The Wilderness Society|publisher=The Wilderness Society Australia|date=5 October 2008}}</ref>
During his time in Parliament Lee campaigned to end broadscale land clearing in Queensland a practice often involving dragging a heavy chain strung between two bull dozers to remove every tree, contributing to Queensland having the sixth highest rate of land clearing in the world. A ban on most clearing in Queensland came into force in January 2007.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wilderness.org.au/campaigns/land-clearing/qld_landclearing|title=Land Clearing in Queensland |date=18 February 2011|work=The Wilderness Society (QLD) |publisher=The Wilderness Society Australia}}</ref>
Following the success of the tree clearing campaign Lee shifted focus with a campaign to protect Queensland's remaining wild rivers, the environment issue for which he has been most closely associated.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wildlife.org.au/conservation/issues/2009/wildrivers.html|title=Let all Queensland's wild rivers run|date=March 2005|work=Wildlife Queensland|publisher=Wildlife Preservation Society of Queensland}}</ref>
Sponsoring Parliamentary ePetitions and working with peak environment groups again including The Wilderness Society, the Wildlife Preservation Society of Queensland and the Queensland Conservation Council to promote grassroots campaigns and lobbying of MPs and bureaucrats. Queensland's Wild Rivers Act was passed in 2005 with the first "wild river declarations" in 2007 with protection for Gulf of Carpentaria river systems Settlement Creek, Morning Inlet, and the Gregory and Staaten Rivers, and the waterways of Fraser and Hinchinbrook Islands. Since then the Queensland Government protected river systems on Cape York Peninsula – the Archer, Stewart and Lockhart River Basins and the Wenlock River.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wilderness.org.au/campaigns/river-protection/queenslands-wild-rivers/queenslands-wild-rivers|title=Queensland's Wild Rivers|date=22 September 2010|work=The Wilderness Society|publisher=The Wilderness Society Australia}}</ref>
Lee is opposed to nuclear power and campaigned against nuclear power and uranium mining in Queensland. As a Green MP Lee introduced two private member's Bills to Parliament aiming to permanently ban uranium mining and uranium exploration. Both bills received their first reading in parliament but lapsed once the 2009 Queensland election was announced and the parliament dissolved.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/lee-push-to-ban-uranium/story-e6freoof-1111117719059|title=Greens MP Ronan Lee in bid to ban uranium|first1=Rosemary|last1=Odgers|first2=David|last2=Barbeler|date=10 October 2008|newspaper=Courier Mail|publisher=News Queensland}}</ref>
==Parliamentary career== In 2001, Lee obtained preselection for the seat of Indooroopilly and surprised many by defeating former Queensland Liberal Leader Denver Beanland in the state elections that year.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/elections/archive/qld/results/2001/Indooroopilly.htm|title=Election Archive Indooroopilly - 2001|last=|first=|date=|website=ABC News|access-date=19 January 2018}}</ref> The surprise result was mainly due to two factors: the huge margin that re-elected the Beattie Labor Government and the strong grass-roots campaign employed by Lee.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ambitgambit.com/2008/10/06/ronan-lee-puts-lnp-one-closer-to-winning/|title=Ronan Lee puts LNP one closer to winning|last=Graham|date=6 October 2008|website=Ambit Gambit|access-date=19 January 2018}}</ref> In 2003, Lee made a parliamentary speech which noted Bengali language was spoken by hundreds of millions of people worldwide and advocated the teaching of Bengali language in Queensland schools.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://documents.parliament.qld.gov.au/speeches/spk2003/Ronan%20Lee%20spk%20Indooroopilly%2020031009-1.PDF |title=Parliament Debate Education and Training|date=9 October 2003}}</ref> In 2004, Lee was re-elected to his seat and during this term he campaigned against the Labor government's asset sales including the privatisation of parts of Queensland's electricity industry.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://mobile.abc.net.au/news/2006-04-26/energy-firms-sale-to-boost-future-fund/1739656|title=Energy firms' sale to boost 'future fund'|date=26 April 2006}}</ref> In 2006, he won a third parliamentary term when he defeated the Liberal Party's Peter Turner. During this term, Lee was made a Parliamentary Secretary.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/members/former/bio?id=4116577412|title = Former Member Details | Queensland Parliament}}</ref>
In 2008 Lee announced that he had resigned from the ALP and defected to the Greens, becoming their first Queensland MP.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2008-10-05/qld-labor-mp-jumps-ship-to-greens/531830|title=Qld Labor MP jumps ship to Greens|last=ABC|date=5 October 2008|website=ABC|access-date=19 January 2018}}</ref> Lee subsequently became one of the first MPs in Queensland to publicly support same-sex marriage.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/lee-push-to-ban-uranium/story-e6freoof-1111117719059 |title=Greens MP Ronan Lee in bid to ban uranium | the Courier-Mail |accessdate=2011-08-19 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120922144014/http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/lee-push-to-ban-uranium/story-e6freoof-1111117719059 |archivedate=22 September 2012}}</ref> As the Greens' parliamentary leader, Lee campaigned at the election for a moratorium on shale oil mining in the Great Barrier Reef, support for renewable energy, the construction of light rail in Brisbane instead of new road construction, and free public transport for young people and pensioners.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/green-alternative-to-old-parties-20090309-geaw1c.html|title = Green alternative to 'old parties'|date = 8 March 2009}}</ref>
In the 2009 election, Lee achieved a vote share of 25.93 per cent, a record vote for a Greens candidate, but failed to retain his seat, losing to LNP candidate Scott Emerson.<ref>{{cite web|title=2009 State General Election - Indooroopilly - District Summary|publisher=Electoral Commission of Queensland |url=https://results.ecq.qld.gov.au/elections/state/state2009/results/district39.html|accessdate=12 December 2022}}</ref>
==Parliamentary Secretary== Following the 2006 election Premier Peter Beattie appointed Lee Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Communities, Disability Services, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Partnerships, Seniors and Youth.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/documents/explore/parliamentaryrecord/sections/ParlRecord_p2_4_ParlSecs_pp116to119.pdf|title=Parliamentary Secretaries|work=Queensland Parliamentary Record 2006–2009: The 52nd Parliament|publisher=Queensland Parliament|page=118}}</ref> Lee's main focus was on youth policy arguing for a greater role for young people in government decision making and in favour of improved public transport services at night and on weekends.{{citation needed|date=January 2018}}
With Beattie's retirement in 2007, Premier Bligh appointed Lee Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Main Roads and Local Government.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.parliament.qld.gov.au/documents/explore/parliamentaryrecord/sections/ParlRecord_p2_4_ParlSecs_pp116to119.pdf|title=Parliamentary Secretaries|work=Queensland Parliamentary Record 2006–2009: The 52nd Parliament|publisher=Queensland Parliament|page=119}}</ref>
In this role Lee advocated for greatly increased spending on bikeways and public transport, proposing a dramatic expansion of Brisbane's CityCat ferry fleet and a new rail line to Brisbane's western suburbs. Funding for these projects he argued should come at the expense of new highway construction.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/queensland/send-citycats-to-western-suburbs-mp/2008/04/08/1207420357422.html|title=Send CityCats to western suburbs: MP|newspaper=Brisbane Times|first=Tony|last=Moore|date=8 April 2008|publisher=Fairfax Media}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/news/queensland/rail-link-for-western-bottleneck/2008/04/08/1207420385662.html|title=Rail link for western bottleneck?|newspaper=Brisbane Times|first=Tony|last=Moore|date=9 April 2008|publisher=Fairfax Media}}</ref>
In 2008 Bligh moved Lee to the newly created role of Parliamentary Secretary to the Attorney-General and Minister for Justice and Minister Assisting the Premier in Western Queensland where he was to focus on consumer protection and organising the state's No Interest Loans Scheme for low income earners. In this role Lee was critical of broad reach of the State's anti-public nuisance laws which he said contributed to the controversial and violent arrest of a homeless pensioner.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2008/s2290231.htm|title=QLD public nuisance laws under fire|work=The 7.30 Report|publisher=Australian Broadcasting Corporation|date=30 June 2008|first=Peter|last=McCutcheon}}</ref>
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== * [http://www.ronanlee.com Ronan Lee website]
{{s-start}} {{s-par|au-qld}} {{s-bef|before= Denver Beanland}} {{s-ttl |title= Member for Indooroopilly|years=2001–2009}} {{s-aft|after=Scott Emerson}} {{s-end}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lee, Ronan}} Category:1976 births Category:Living people Category:Members of the Queensland Legislative Assembly Category:Australian Greens members of the Parliament of Queensland Category:Australian Labor Party members of the Parliament of Queensland Category:21st-century Australian politicians Category:University of Queensland alumni Category:Monash University alumni Category:Deakin University alumni