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Julia Gillard said 'people like my own parents who have worked hard all their lives can't abide the idea that others might get an inside track to special privileges'. Managing similar perceptions in East Timor, where there is a tide of resentment against Australia among parts of the population, will be a challenge.
There's good reason for East Timor to opt for a tribunal to deliver justice for past crimes. But Australia cannot expect to receive a special hearing. Our attempts to push for justice for the sake of stability would be perceived as a promotion of our own self-interest.
Ugly. Rapacious. Bruising and governed by the narrowest definitions of national interest. These are a few of the descriptions that spring to mind after reading this devastating portrait of Australia’s negotiations over oil and gas resources in the Timor Sea.
Other than formal interaction between nations, the role of non-government organisations (NGOs) who provide the heavy lifting in aid relief and community building in war-torn regions is critical, as is the exercise of citizen's voices, and the involvement they have with the political processes of their country.
Madeleine Byrne explores the boundaries, both geographical and moral, between Australia and Timor-Leste.
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