East Timor
"End the occupation"

On March 14 a public meeting at Adelaide's Irish Hall unanimously 
supported a resolution calling for action, from the Australian Government 
and the UN, to ease growing tensions in East Timor and help clear the way 
to Timorese independence. The meeting, organised by the Campaign for an 
Independent East Timor, called on the UN to coordinate the distribution of 
humanitarian aid and for the release of jailed East Timorese leaders, 
including Xanana Gusmao, who is under house arrest.

Dr Michael Sullivan, political lecturer at Flinders University, gave an 
analysis of the current situation in East Timor.

Dr Sullivan was critical of former Prime Minister Gough Whitlam's attack on 
Labor's Foreign Affairs spokesman, Laurie Brereton, who criticised past 
Labor leaders, including Whitlam, for their complicity in failing to oppose 
Indonesia's bloody annexation of East Timor.

He was also critical of the policies of former Australian diplomat, Richard 
Woolcot, policies he described as being wrong from the beginning.

Dr Sullivan emphasised that it is "absolutely essential" for an 
international peace-keeping mission to be stationed in East Timor. Also, a 
massive humanitarian aid program is vital to avoid further disaster, as so 
many professionals (doctors, nurses, teachers, etc) had fled East Timor and 
because the Indonesian military is in control of food distribution.

While the Australian Government is implementing a "forward defence policy" 
(including doubling the number of combat ready troops to 3,000) in response 
to events in Indonesia and East Timor, Dr Sullivan said the appropriate 
responses are humanitarian aid and peace-keeping programs.

These are "more relevant to meet human needs and develop peace and security 
in the region".

The resolution adopted by the meeting notes that:

* events are moving rapidly in East Timor and there is now a stronger 
possibility for the East Timorese to achieve independence than there has 
been for the past 24 years provided that there is appropriate support from 
the UN and democratic governments;

* the messages coming from the Indonesian regime seem to be contradictory 
about its real intentions to allow an act of self-determination or 
independence;

* there have been exploratory talks between Xanana Gusmao and leaders of 
the pro-Indonesian militias towards developing reconciliation, but, East 
Timorese civilians are still being tortured, raped and murdered by the 
Indonesian forces and the militias;

* some of these crimes are extremely brutal and include the dismembering of 
victims, and so far, most have never been officially investigated by the 
UN;

* on the other hand, the Council of National Timorese Resistance (CNRT) has 
ordered resistance forces to halt military activity;

* the Australian Government has now committed itself to a taskforce that 
may go to East Timor for peace-keeping purposes. However, it is very 
grudging regarding the issue of independence for East Timor, although it 
claims to support an act of self-determination;

* Mr Howard until recently has assumed that the Indonesian military can 
remain to protect the civilian population despite the fact that it has been 
responsible for genocide and gross violations of human rights during its 
years of illegal occupation;

* Indonesia and Portugal have agreed to a process for determining the will 
of the East Timorese regarding autonomy, which has received a mixed 
response from the CNRT;

* John Dowd, of the International Commission of Jurists has expressed 
concerns about Australia being the only nation involved in a peace-keeping 
mission given its past record on the East Timor issue;

* there may shortly be a famine in East Timor due to the Indonesian 
military taking most of the rice supplies for its own purposes.

"This meeting believes that peace and justice will only come to East Timor 
when there is a concerted international effort to ensure that Indonesia 
withdraws all of its forces, the militias are disarmed and disbanded and 
the people of East Timor have the right to participate in a genuine act of 
self determination."

The public meeting called upon the UN to:

1) Urgently coordinate the activities of relief agencies to distribute 
humanitarian aid in East Timor;

2) Negotiate the release of East Timor's respected leader, Xanana Gusmao, 
so that he may participate in the continuing UN peace talks between 
Indonesia and Portugal;

3) Send an international peace-keeping force with sufficient personnel and 
resources to East Timor to:

* maintain law and order and protect the civilian population from the 
excesses of the Indonesian military and militias;

* oversee the complete withdrawal of Indonesian troops;

* disarm and disband pro-Indonesian militias and supervise an act of self-
determination for the people of East Timor;

4) Urge all member nations to cooperate with a ban on all military 
co-operation with Indonesia which should include:

* no sales of arms, military equipment, aircraft, ships or spare parts;

* no military aid;

* no provision of training for personnel of the Indonesian armed forces;

* no joint exercises with Indonesian armed forces;

* no exchange of intelligence information;

5) Conduct investigations of massacres and other human rights violations — 
including the Alas Massacre of 1998;

6) Pressure the Indonesian Government to pay reparations for its crimes in 
East Timor;

7) Urge those governments that have provided arms and military equipment to 
Indonesia during its illegal occupation of East Timor to provide aid to 
East Timor which is at least equivalent to their income from military 
sales.

The meeting called on the Australian Government to:

1) Co-operate with the UN in its peace-keeping and self-determination 
roles;

2) Cease all military cooperation with Indonesia and cease the Australian 
Government's recognition of East Timor's incorporation into Indonesia;

3) Revoke the shameful Timor Gap Gap treaty;

4) Channel aid to East Timor through Ausaid, East Timor Relief Association, 
APHEDA, Community Aid Abroad and other reputable aid organisations, but not 
agencies of the Indonesian Government;

5) Allow East Timorese refugees in Australia to remain here until the 
Indonesian military withdraws from their country, making it safe to return;

6) Make an official apology to the East Timorese people for the long period 
of official Australian betrayal and give an official thank you for East 
Timor's costly support of Australia during World War II.

The resolution is being sent to the Australian Government and the UN 
Secretary-General.