The story of the Balibo 5, Australia-based journalists murdered by Indonesian troops in 1975, and the subsequent murder of another Australian journalist, Roger East, is the subject of a new film by Robert Connolly. (I haven’t seen it yet, but I plan to in the next couple of days, and will write a review either here or in the September Tribune). Before I've even seen it, however, I've had cause to get Very Angry.

I have to disclose an interest here: I know someone who is deeply involved, so my anger is somewhat greater than usual. I’ll try to keep this vaguely sensible, but I urge you to do some follow-up reading.

Today, Saturday August 15th, in The Australian (links at the bottom of this article) are two pieces on the subject. One is a film review by Evan Williams, who, conveniently for The Australian’s unendingly pro-Indonesia stance, was a Whitlam staffer at the time of the murders. Why let objectivity get in the way of your owner’s agenda? The other is a story by Caroline Overington regarding repatriation of the 5’s remains for possible DNA analysis.

Let’s go with Overington’s bit first, remembering at all times that The Australian appears to be the leak-ee of choice for the AFP (terrorism raids last week, batting for the AFP over their disgraceful, politically-motivated prosecution of Dr Haneef etc etc etc).

She quotes the AFP as saying that the families of the murdered journalists are to blame for delays in their investigation, because the families supposedly can't agree on repatriation of the journalists' remains. Apparently the remains are so crucial that the investigation can't move forward without them.

The Inquest heard from a large number of eyewitnesses, and with all the evidence before it, the Court found that the Balibo 5 were, in fact, dead, and that they had, in fact, been murdered by Indonesian troops. Do we really need to repatriate what amounts to not much more than a shoebox full of dirt and ashes, and put it through DNA testing to the mitochondrial level, to be satisfied that they are dead? It’s not like they disappeared into the jungle and have been living a Colonel Kurtz existence for the last thirty-four years.

However, fabricating a delay beyond their control on this non-issue serves the AFP’s purpose, and Overington happily gives them the column inches and the bald headline.

The AFP have sat on this for nearly two years (it was referred to them formally in Jan 2008) . They did not make any contact with the families at all; family enquiries of the AFP had to go through DFAT, who would relay a "we'll investigate and get back to you". In September 2008 the AFP were about to have a meeting on repatriation with the A-G’s office and DFAT, but cancelled it due to everyone having the flu, and they have not, to my knowledge, met in any meaningful way on the subject since.

The only contact the AFP initiated with the families was a letter sent to each of them a few days before the film’s premiere at the Melbourne International Film Festival.

The extent of the AFP’s investigation of these war crimes appears to have been to prepare press releases that will shine the best possible light on themselves and, as usual, blame others for their own inaction.

On to the second article that got me mad: Evan Williams’  film review.

Most of it is luke-warm-to-positive on the film itself, but once the review wanders into what the film actually means for us and our previous governments, it suddenly gets surreal. As I said, Williams was a Whitlam staffer at the time of the murders, so, like the loathsome Richard Woolcott, he has a legacy to protect.

East Timor was a Portuguese colony until 1975. Portugal was a very poor colonial master, and, when it was time to go, put no effort into establishing some kind of government or even law for the people to get along with once they left. All this is true, but it is an extremely long, and sick-making bow to draw, for Williams to say that “The real villain of 1975 was Portugal”. I don’t believe it was Portuguese troops invading and murdering civilians and Australian journalists, I think that was actually Indonesia, wasn’t it?

This is like saying the biggest villain in the Rwandan genocides was Rwanda’s old colonial boss Belgium – it wasn’t Belgians rounding up and killing thousands of civilians, and it certainly wasn’t Belgium sitting around at the UN threatening to possibly send a strongly-worded letter in a fortnight’s time.

The villains in East Timor’s tragedy are Soeharto’s Indonesia, and the Western nations that sat on their hands and appeased him.

For Williams to say that the view of Australia (and every other Western government) was that the best thing for East Timor was “incorporation with Indonesia after a short period of self-determination” is to ignore the fact that this opinion was held while the Vietnam War was just fizzling out, but the fear that had caused it (communist influence in Asia) was still running strong. There was also, of course, the matter of huge oil and gas reserves in the Timor Sea, and the potential for exploiting them with a friendly dictatorship. So, desperately eager to prop up the bloodthirsty Soharto on the “he might be a son of a bitch, but he’s our son of a bitch” principle, the West went scurrying around appeasing the vicious bastard, quick to sign whatever treaties with him they could, and make some bucks out of his corruption.

Another of Williams' complaints is that Australia sent troops to East Timor in 1999, and the film doesn’t mention that at all. I didn’t realise that a film had to congratulate John Howard to get more than three stars. But that’s The Australian for you.

Check out the movie poster attached to this Shout – the quotes in it are from our own Dear Leader Kevin. They polled well at the time, but I guess he’s had other priorities since then. Probably the same priorities that have made it too difficult to respond to emails or letters from the families asking when anything is going to be done, or even said.

Lots of people have a lot to answer for on this issue, and the thing that's making me furious is that no-one is answering anything. I think it's time they did.

More to come, once I’ve digested the Coronial findings, and gone through Overington's interview with Woolcott.

OVERINGTON:

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25931566-601,00.html

WILLIAMS:

http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25914564-15803,00.html

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