East Timor
WikiLeaks’ cables reveal:
Portugal’s intelligence chief accused Australia of “fomenting unrest” in East Timor
By Patrick O’Connor, April 25, 2011
The Australian government, then led by John Howard, targeted Alkatiri because of his perceived alignment with rival powers, especially Portugal and China.
East Timor: Alleged 2008 “coup” plotter accuses Prime Minister Gusmao of political manipulation
By Patrick O’Connor, January 6, 2011
Gastao Salsinha, one of the leading participants in the so-called “coup” attempt in East Timor on February 11, 2008, has spoken out against Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao in an interview with Dili newspaper Tempo Seminal.
The strange end of the 2008 “coup” affair
East Timorese president frees men jailed over alleged assassination attempts
By Patrick O’Connor, October 18, 2010
East Timorese President Jose Ramos-Horta pardoned the men convicted over a supposed double assassination attempt in 2008 targeting himself and Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao.
“Alarm bells” ring for Australian government over deepening China-East Timor ties
By Patrick O’Connor, August 27, 2010
The Australian cited unnamed senior diplomatic analysts who said that “China’s foray into what has been traditionally regarded as ‘Australia’s sphere of interest’ had set alarm bells ringing in Canberra.”
Australia-East Timor conflict intensifies over Greater Sunrise gas project
By Mike Head, June 9, 2010
A bitter dispute between Australia and East Timor over a giant gas and oil project in the Timor Sea has worsened.
Acquittal in East Timor marks collapse of official “coup” story
By Patrick O’Connor, March 11, 2010
A court last week acquitted dual East Timorese-Australian citizen Angelita Pires of all charges relating to an alleged assassination plot in 2008, in which President Jose Ramos-Horta was shot.
Australian military vehicle responsible for elderly woman’s death in East Timor
By Patrick O’Connor, February 13, 2010
The death of Gracinda da Costa in an apparent road accident involving an Australian military vehicle has highlighted the blanket immunity enjoyed by the intervention force in East Timor.
Further questions raised in East Timor “assassination” trial
By Patrick O’Connor, January 30, 2010
An ongoing trial relating to the alleged failed assassination of East Timor’s president and prime minister has raised further serious questions about the murky affair.
Australian imperialism, the 1999 East Timor intervention and the pseudo-left
By Patrick O’Connor, November 2, 2009
September marked the tenth anniversary of the Australian-led military intervention into East Timor. It is also a decade since a layer of pseudo “left” groups organised “troops in” demonstrations—performing a vital service for the Howard government and the Australian ruling elite.
Ten years since East Timor’s independence vote
By Patrick O’Connor, August 31, 2009
Yesterday marked the tenth anniversary of the referendum that saw nearly 80 percent of the East Timorese people vote to secede from Indonesia and become a separate nation-state.
East Timor: Trials begin over 2008 Horta-Gusmao “assassination attempt”
By Patrick O’Connor, July 18, 2009
Initial court proceedings in East Timor have underscored the numerous unanswered contradictions and far-reaching political interests involved in the events of February 11, 2008.
East Timorese prosecutors charge 28 people over 2008 “coup attempt”
By Patrick O’Connor, March 19, 2009
A serious investigation into the instigators of the February 11 events would begin with the question Cui bono?—who benefits? An inquiry along these lines would immediately look at the roles of Prime Minister Gusmao and the Australian government.
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