A wave of solidarity
* East Timor Massive pro-Timorese demonstrations have been held accross Australia. Trade unionists, East Timorese and solidarity activists have been making their presence felt daily. Sydney Monday, September 6: A protest outside Garuda Airlines was called by the NSW Labor Council. Two hundred people gathered to hear trade union and solidarity activists. Michael Costa, Labor Council secretary, threatened work bans in appropriate workplaces. The offices were occupied and protesters chanted Indonesia out, UN in!" Despite police threats, the group was determined to remain and demanded to meet with Garuda management. After demonstrators noisily blocked the entrance to the building for 10 minutes, Garuda agreed to receive a delegation. Tuesday, September 7: A protest was called by the East Timorese community at the United Nations Information Office. About 300 people gathered and after about an hour marched through the city to state Parliament House and Premier Howard's office.
Construction workers walked off city building sites, and onlookers cheered and joined the rally, swelling it to 2000. At Garuda Airlines, there was a large police presence to prevent an occupation. 219
That evening, an unusually broad range of students, solidarity activists, trade unionists, peace and social justice campaigners came together in an emergency planning meeting. Thursday, September 9: Protesters assembled at the Garuda check-in counter at the international airport. Members of the Timorese community and their supporters were joined by CFMEU members who walked off an airport construction site, doubling the size of the protest to 1000. The Australian Services Union, which covers check-in staff, ordered their members off the Garuda counter. The Garuda flight was cancelled. The next day a 800-strong protest was held at the international airport.
1000 high school students gathered at the Town Hall after walking out of classes to show their solidarity with the East Timorese people. They were joined by tertiary students who then marched to the Garuda offices to occupy them once again! Melbourne
Melbourne's first major demonstration was called by Timorese young people and the National Council of Timorese Resistance (CNRT) and backed by the Victorian trade union movement. In less than 24 hours, more than 1000 people were mobilised for the September 6 rally. Meeting on the steps of Parliament House, they heard Abel Guterres from the CNRT. He urged the crowd to pressure the Australian government to take action to stop
The rally marched to the building where the federal cabinet was meeting. Foreign minister Alexander Downer was willing to meet only with a small
* 1859: Timor divided between Portuguese
### N TROOPS OUT
BLAST TIMOR Толу мом тв рео delegation from the rally.
The crowd was addressed by trade union leaders, Shirley Shackleton, widow of murdered journalist Greg Shackleton, and representatives of the East Timor Human Rights Centre and ASIET. All speakers condemned Canberra's cooperation with the Indonesian regime. Demands were made for the Australian government to cease military aid and training to the Indonesian military and to sever diplomatic ties. Trade unions representatives promised industrial action against Indonesian commercial interests. September 8: more than 1,500 people gathered outside the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade is located, to demand the sending of peacekeeping troops. The rally was chaired by Leigh Hubbard, secretary of the Victorian Trades Hall Council. Speakers included Catholic Bishop Hilton Deakin. September 10: The culmination of the week's activities was a 30,000 strong rally and march. Churches, unions, building workers, high school and university students, solidarity activists and the Timorese community were all represented. A 300-strong contingent left Melbourne University and was joined by workers and passers-by, swelling to 1000 by the time it joined the rally.
Demonstrators marched past the heavily guarded Garuda office to Parliament House. On the steps, 700 high school students, who had walked out of school in a national high school walkout organised by Resistance, stood with placards reading "Stop the rapes, stop the killings, free East Timor now".
INDONESIA
Area: 14,870 sq. km
EAST
Population: 830,000
TIMOR
Religion: 96% Christian
Economy: Little or no industry:
coffee-growing
GDP: $113 million
(50% from government spending)
6
International Viewpoint #315 October 1999 fast and Dutch West • 1945: Portuguese crush Timorese rebeilion, restoring rule after japanese occupation * 1949: Indonesia gains independence from the Netherlands * 1974; Coup in Portugal paves way to and of colonial rule • 1975: indonesia invades East Timor
1976: Indonesia annexes East Timor; UN does not recognize the move • 1991: Dili massacre of East Timorese protesters • 1992: Indonesians capture rebel leader
Xanana Gusmao • 1996: Nobel Peace Prize awarded to independence activist fose Ramos-Horta and Catholic Bishop Carlos Ximenes Belc • 1998: Suharto's fall opens way for an
Indonesian withdrawal
Darwin September 10: Over 400 students walking out of school at lunchtime. Sarah Pinto, a 15-year-old East Timorese, opened the student rally. She explained that the walkout was held to celebrate the courage of the people of East Timor who had, despite the terror of the last few months, told the world clearly that they wanted independence, but also to condemn the Indonesian military's refusal to respect the vote. The students demanded that the Austra-
lian government and the United Nations act immediately to stop the violence. In reply to some teachers and students' query as to why the walkout was necessary, Pinto said,"All young people have the responsibility to act against injustice in the most public way they can: on the streets"
That afternoon's rally of 1500 people was the largest in Darwin (population 70,000) since the anti-Vietnam War protests in the 1970s. The rally was addressed by many East
Timorese people, young and old, and non-Timorese who had been evacuated
Green Left Weekly journalist Sam King addressed the rally, having arrived from Dili that afternoon. He told the crowd, "Many Timorese in the last few days have asked, Why did weren't willing to defend us against the Indonesian military? We told you the Indonesian government would do this if we voted for independence.
The rally participants unanimously committed to rally every week and take any other action necessary to make the Australian and other governments send peacekeepers to East Timor and force the Indonesian military to leave. * Source: reports in Green Left Weekly. This issue went to press before the 15 September demonstrations accross Australia. For more information contact ASIET on 9690 1032 (Sydney), 9635 8449 (western Sydney) or the CFMEU East Timor hotline on 9394 9494. Email <asiet@peg.apc.org>.