Shua Garfield, Hobart
Sixty people heard Cecilio Freitas, chair of East Timor People's Action, and Greens senators Bob Brown and Kerry Nettle speak at an April 26 forum on "oil and self-determination: Iraq and East Timor". The meeting was organised by the University of Tasmania Greens.
Pointing out that East Timor is the poorest country in Asia, Freitas said, "Australia is very aggressive ... Our poverty shouldn't be seen by any other nation as a chance to do injustice. From April 16-18 thousands of East Timorese people protested in front of the Australian embassy. They stood up against the illegal occupation of their oil [fields]."
Brown pointed out that the Australian government is seeking to take over 80% of the royalties from oil extracted from the Greater Sunrise fields, which lie entirely within East Timorese seabed territory according to the standards of international law.
Brown called for the Australian government to "go back to the negotiating table with an independent umpire". He also called on activists to "re-establish the East Timor [solidarity] movement until we right this wrong". He quoted from a letter sent to him from an East Timorese citizen: "There's a rising tide of concern in East Timor that we've traded one occupier for another."
"The best job our troops could be doing is withdrawing themselves", was Nettle's take on the occupation of Iraq. "We shouldn't be surprised by the brutality of the situation if we understand that the occupation is for political and economic control, not humanitarian reasons."
In response to the idea that troop withdrawal would lead to civil war, Nettle cited journalist Robert Fisk: "There is no talk among Iraqis about civil war. In 1917-20 it took the British three years to unite the Sunni and Shia against them. The Americans have taken only one year to do the same." She also noted that where local elections have been held in southern Iraq, secular parties have done well.
From Green Left Weekly, May 5, 2004.
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