The Timor
Sea Justice Campaign ( TSJC)
on March 31 ran an anonymous
confidential memo which it said
suggests more bullying behaviour
by Australia over the contested
maritime boundary between the two countries . TSJC spokesperson, Tom Clarke, Director of Communications at Human
Rights Law Centre, said nobody
could vouch for
the memo’s authenticity
.However , a decision had been made
to post a copy online as, if genuine,
details of its contents
would be in the
public interest .
The comments attributed to the Australian official , he continued, fit the
pattern of bullying behaviour that he
has come to expect from the Australian Government in the
dispute over Timor’s oil and gas resources.
Saying the dispute “cannot and will not be quarantined” is a not-so-thinly-veiled threat. If this memo is authentic, I think fair-minded Australians would be disgusted by our Government’s bullying behaviour,” said Clarke.
Saying the dispute “cannot and will not be quarantined” is a not-so-thinly-veiled threat. If this memo is authentic, I think fair-minded Australians would be disgusted by our Government’s bullying behaviour,” said Clarke.
In 2002, two month’s before East Timor became independent, Australia withdrew
its recognition of the maritime boundary jurisdiction of the International
Court of Justice and the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea. As this left
East Timor with no legal avenue in which to
challenge Australia’s refusal to establish permanent maritime boundaries,
Australia was able to jostle the tiny new nation into a series of temporary
deals that all short-change East Timor.
Clarke said Australia’s behaviour throughout the dispute has been like that of a schoolyard bully. “Australia has snubbed international law and short-changed East Timor out of billions of dollars, it stands accused of spying on our tiny neighbour for economic gain. Yet our Government seemingly wants to throw a hissy fit because East Timor has the audacity to simply ask for what it is legally entitled to.”
Clarke said Australia’s behaviour throughout the dispute has been like that of a schoolyard bully. “Australia has snubbed international law and short-changed East Timor out of billions of dollars, it stands accused of spying on our tiny neighbour for economic gain. Yet our Government seemingly wants to throw a hissy fit because East Timor has the audacity to simply ask for what it is legally entitled to.”
In 2005, a number of Timorese NGOs had their funding cut from AusAid after they had endorsed an open letter criticising the Australian Government’s refusal to establish permanent and equitable maritime boundaries with East Timor in accordance with international law.
"Australia needs to stop trying to throw its weight around and instead focus on doing the right thing. To move forward, our Prime Minister, Tony Abbott, should enter fresh negotiations with Timor to establish permanent boundaries with East Timor half way between the coastlines,” Clarke added.
CONFIDENTIAL MEMORANDUM
From
: (Blanked out).
To : His Excellency, Prime Minister ( Xanana Gusmao ).
Cc
: Minister for
Natural Resources, Minister for the Council of Ministers, Minister for Finance.
6 March 2014
Confidential briefing
note on
meeting between (blanked out )
and Australian Ambassador to Timor-Leste Peter Doyle.
I met
with the
new Australian Ambassador, Peter Doyle yesterday, 5 March
2014. I assumed it would be a quick
courtesy meeting but the Ambassador
used it as an opportunity to 'send' a message to
the Timor-Leste Government through
me.
We met at a
café near the Australian Embassy. I
was accompanied by (blanked out ).The Ambassador was unaccompanied.
The
Ambassador made the
following comments that
I have no doubt he assumed l would communicate
to you:
.
He said the Timorese leadership is naïve to think
the CMATS arbitration and maritime boundary
issue will not affect the bi-lateral relationship. He said the issue
cannot, and will not, be quarantined. He repeated this point a number
of times, to emphasise his message that
Australia is unhappy about the
public nature of the dispute
and that it
will affect the bi-lateral
relationship.
.
The Ambassador said the Australian
Attorney-General, George Brandis made comments to the media
about the illegality of the
actions of some of the parties. He pointedly suggested we should
read the transcript of
the Attorney General's comments. (The transcript of the
Attorney-General's interview on Skynews is attached. I
have highlighted the
most interesting comments.)
.
The Ambassador claimed Timor-Leste is
going to run out of money as the budget is unsustainable
and shale gas will
drive down the price
of natural gas.
.
The Ambassador claimed the Timorese
people he
talks to don't understand the current dispute.
He said they think they will get a decision that
will deliver a "win"
for Timor-Leste when
in his view this is
not the case. In turn I gave the
Ambassador the following messages:
.
The ASIS and
ASIO raids are hard
to understand - they
breached Timor-Leste's internationally
recognised rights to
confidential legal advice and they benefitted
Timor- Leste by making
the spying allegations public.
.
The ICJ
(International Court of Justice ) case was a big win for
Timor-Leste
.
Timor-Leste is very
close to lndonesia
and has many other friends in the region.
. Australia
is isolating itself in the region.
For a background
see ABC report http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-03-17/australia-warns-east-timor-over-maritime-boundaries-case/5324192
ADDITIONAL ITEMS OF INTEREST
PM Xanana Gusmao recently
went to Perth to take part in a function to raise funds for the Special
Air Services Regiment and to speak
about the investment opportunities in Timor -Leste . A 26 member delegation of Timorese veterans , the first visit of
its kind, will be deployed to Perth,
Melbourne, Sydney and Canberra on Anzac Day to
walk in solidarity with their Australian counterparts. Many Timorese were killed by Japanese during
WW11 for helping Australian troops trapped on the island .
