Ireland
Sadly our " stake in Ireland's struggle" (GLW #35) includes training SAS deathsquads in WA. New Zealand SAS have operated in the Six Counties of N. Ireland. One of them boasted, in a reunion circular, of being familiar "with the shape of an Irishman's head".
The four SAS who murdered very popular Sinn Fein Councillor Eddie Fullerton, in his own home, spoke English "with unfamiliar accents". Were they Australians (even Australians with Irish names) getting their hands in the blood of a Freedom struggle, so that Hawke, and his criminal friends, could snort and guffaw at the next carousal?
Denis Kevans
Wentworth Falls
Pubs
Social and innate streetwise brainpower is only obtained through years of attending hotels and clubs to drink brain creation fluid called alcohol and mingling with other alcoholic types.
People who stay at home are social cripples and brainless wowsers. They are the enemy we must all fight. They are a threat to us and our great fun way of life. Only we know things and have any brains. We even listen to tribal music and disco drivel.
Never mix with a stay at home personality. It's trouble. Go to the pub and enrich your mind today.
Wayne Perkin
Mount Pleasant
Free speech
With the possible sale of the Fairfax newspapers to Kerry Packer's consortium likely to restrict even further the breadth of debate within the press it seems appropriate to praise free speech.
Free speech should not simply be tolerated; it should be welcomed. When the views expressed are contrary to our own we should respect the courage that was necessary on the part of the speaker to so lay themselves open to criticism.
It is only through open dialogue between opposing viewpoints that the accountability of ideas and "facts" can be tested. It is therefore unfortunate that an ever-more conservative mainstream press relegates dissenting voices to the alternative media where never the twain shall meet. Speech is not really free when those with the most money can speak the loudest.
Should freedom of speech include the right to express racist views in an attempt to stir up racial hatred? Racism is a symptom of problems which will not go away when we censor its expression. It is better that we meet such intolerance with rational arguments and also a compassionate concern about the painful experiences which can make a person so insecure that difference alone seems a threat. If these people cannot freely express their feelings to us they will continue to seek others like themselves who will foster and encourage their hatred while the very real problems which give rise to it will go unaddressed.
Intolerance and paranoia breed in an atmosphere of silence and repression. Old wounds can only be healed when they are allowed to see the light of day.
Human nature, at this point in our evolution, being what it is, conflict and hostility are unavoidable, but when violence is the last resort of the inarticulate, a war of words is by far the best kind.
And who knows, if we encourage each other to express our feelings freely, and if we listen to what is said, we may find that, day by day, there are more of "us" and less of "them".
David Munn
South Brighton SA
East Timor
I was impressed with your issue 20/11/91 and the range of news about the East Timor massacre. I think you carried a more comprehensive description of the massacre than any other newspaper I have seen, which was good. I note that you have contacts and correspondents in other parts of the world, such as in Poland. May I urge you to ask your contacts to translate some material on East Timor and publish it widely in their countries? I appreciate that many countries have their own economic and social problems. Nevertheless, they do have a vote in the UN. People like Jose Ramos Horta want to have East Timor brought on again in the UN, but this would be counter-productive unless a majority of countries are pro-Timor. Again, there are a lot of issues which concern people at this time.
However, in relation to East Timor, for the first time in 15 years there is now a real chance for a breakthrough. If everyone who is sympathetic joins in now, maybe the Timor problem can be solved.
In my view, the issues which require immediate attention here in Australia include these:
Encouraging the Australian government to extend its acceptance of the concept of a negotiated settlement between Indonesia and the Timorese to include UN involvement;
Promoting the idea of a referendum under UN auspices, for the Timorese to express their right to self-determination;
Promoting the idea of the UN placing the Timor issue back on the general assembly agenda;
Pushing for a suspension of Australian military assistance to Indonesia;
Pushing for an international arms embargo against Indonesia;
Encouraging the Australian Government to demand a proper inquiry into the massacre, with the participation of international observers, eg from the UN;
Projecting news about East Timor internationally, eg to Latin America and Africa, where president Suharto will soon be going for a visit to gather support for his regime.
James Irving
Middle Park Vic
East Timor cop-out
Firstly, I would like to congratulate Green Left Weekly for its comprehensive coverage of the East Timor massacre.
The massacre is the latest in the widespread genocide practised in esian government, a policy actively implemented since its annexation of East Timor in 1975. Approximately one in three Timorese has died from famine, war and slaughter by the Indonesian military. This blatant abuse of human rights is met with the most pragmatic approaches by both the US and Australian governments. Both avoid tackling the issue of whether Indonesia has a right to be there in the first place. Instead, they continually make vague references to "a peaceful solution". This wimpish cop-out is all too familiar. We should campaign to have a total review of Indonesia's brutal presence in East Timor. The Australian government must stop being so economically opportunistic and imperialist in its approach to relations in this region. The oil from Timor Gap, which will benefit the rich few, is red from the blood of the Timorese people this government has betrayed.
As the warfair (AIDEX) is currently in progress in Canberra, let us not forget the role of the Australian and US governments in giving military aid to Indonesia and training its military personnel. Aid between countries should aim to alleviate poverty and to improve people's lives. Perhaps there should be a redefinition of the word "aid".
The issue of East Timor should be continuously on our minds. The East Timorese are dying or being tortured, even as we speak. It is urgent that all of us, who are concerned about human rights and seeing justice done, support the struggle of East Timor. The "Talks" Campaign intends to open round table negotiations between the East Timorese people, including the resistance, and Indonesia under UN auspices. To receive more information or to show your support, contact the ACFOA Human Rights office on (03) 417 7505 or write to them at: 124 Napier St., Fitzroy 3065.
Vannessa Hearman
Melbourne