Rabat – John Paul Quinn, Australian public servant, Minister and Ambassador to several countries throughout his career, was sadly a victim of the tragic air crash of “La Caravelle” between Rabat and Paris on September 12, 1961.

The honorable Ambassador is far from being forgotten. On September 13, 2021, the Australian Embassy in Morocco, which opened in Rabat in May 2017, organized a gathering to commemorate the diplomat, as well as all the other victims of the tragic plane crash.

A remarkable career

Ambassador Quinn was a man “worthy of praise and congratulation” as described by Cristobal Lopez Romero, Archbishop of Rabat. Romero told of how Quinn was able to obtain, in 1938, a French government scholarship to pursue a Ph.D at the Sorbonne University in Paris, one of the most prestigious universities in France.

Unfortunately, his studies were cut short by the outbreak of World War II, when he was forced to return to Australia.

Australian politician Robert Menzies highlighted how “his stay in Paris during the anxious pre-war period undoubtedly broadened his outlook, and it was probably then that his aims were crystallized.”

Menzies, who served as Prime Minister of Australia from 1939 to 1941, wrote a short book about the late Ambassador. He explained that Quinn joined the Department of External Affairs “immediately after his return to Australia.” Quinn later began his career with stints serving in Singapore, The Hague, London, and South Africa, where he served as Acting High Commissioner between 1951 and 1952.

In 1952, he was named Australia’s first Minister to the associated States of Indo-China, then nine years later, Australia’s first Ambassador to the United Arab Republic (UAR), the sovereign state which briefly united Egypt and Syria at the time.

A tragic accident

On the evening of September 12, 1961, the Sud Aviation Caravelle aircraft left Paris for Rabat. The flight was uneventful until approaching the Rabat-Sale Airport, when the plane hit the ground before reaching the runway.

The aircraft was completely destroyed on impact, resulting in the tragic death of 77 people, including diplomats and crew members.

“At the time, this dramatic episode revealed the strength of the ties that existed within the international community. On the ground, His Majesty the King of Morocco authorized the organization of the first rescue efforts and Morocco immediately provided valuable emergency help,” affirmed Philippe Maurel, second counselor at the French Embassy in Rabat.

“We recall, today, diplomats’ dedication to serve their countries, their engagement and devotion while performing their duties, having to face different challenges and risks,” said Nadia El Hnot, Director of the Moroccan Academy for Diplomatic Studies, during the commemoration ceremony at the Australian Embassy in Rabat.

A venerable diplomat, loving father and friend

John Quinn was a truly memorable figure in the lives of all his colleagues, friends and family members.

In his book, Menzies recalls Quinn’s admirable skills and professionalism, as well as his endearing personality.

Looking back on his days with John Quinn in a Sydney highschool in Australia in the 1930s, the Australian politician mentioned the diplomat’s “natural aptitude for languages” and his peculiar sense of humor which was “stimulated at the oddities of human nature and by verbal wit, which was probably part of his great love of language.”

Len Barsdell, former officer at the Australian News and Information Bureau, said: “John Quinn will always be remembered as a man of cultivated mind, of high principles, happy in his family, never eager to display his obvious talents but always attentive to the interests of others.” As far as political thinking goes, Quinn’s colleagues described him as “long-sighted, precise, original, nationalist and somewhat disposed to pessimism.”

However serious in his professional activities, Ambassador Quinn was known for being a warm-hearted friend who brightened the lives of those who knew him, as recounted by Barsdell.

“My father was a highly professional and gifted Australian diplomat who conquered many formidable challenges,” said Ambassador Quinn’s son when asked to speak of his father.

In addition to being an occasion to remember the late Ambassador, the event at the Australian Embassy in September also served to celebrate the strong ties between Morocco and Australia.

Bilateral relations between the two countries have experienced significant progress in the past few years, especially after the opening of the Australian Embassy in Rabat in 2017.

“As we are celebrating this year the 45th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between our two countries, I would like to recall the excellent relationship between Morocco and Australia, which is undergoing tremendous momentum,” said Nadia El Hnot.

Michael Cutts, Australian Ambassador to Morocco, seems eager to build on the achievements of former ambassador Berenice Owen-Jones, whose three-year tenure in Morocco was instrumental in bringing Moroccan-Australian ties to new heights.