1) Australian consular staff threatened West
Papuans with police, Dfat admits
2)
Indonesian Army Withdraws Fighter Jets from Australia
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1) Australian consular staff threatened West Papuans with police, Dfat admits
Admission contradicts previous government denials that activists who scaled Australian consulate walls were threatened
Officials from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade have now confirmed consular staff in Bali threatened to call the police if a group of West Papuan activists did not leave the Australian compound.
Three West Papuan activists entered the Australian consulate in Baliin early October in a protest that coincided with the Apec summit in Bali – an embarrassing development for Australia and the then newly elected Abbott government, given acute Indonesian political sensitivities about the pro-sovereignty movement in the Papua provinces.
The activists wanted to call on the Australian government to pressure Indonesia to release all Papuan political prisoners and open the province to routine scrutiny by foreign journalists. The three men scaled the security fence and entered the Australian consulate just after 3am on 6 October.
Immediately after the incident, the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said in a statement: "We can confirm that three individuals from Indonesia’s Papua provinces delivered a protest letter at the Australian consulate general in Bali this morning to Australia’s consul general. The three men left the consulate voluntarily before 7am."
This statement contradicted the first-hand account of the activists, who insisted they departed because Australian officials threatened to call the local police or the military.
The foreign minister, Julie Bishop, denied on ABC Radio shortly after the incident that threats were made. "I'm advised that no threats were made," she said. "Indeed, I understand we called them a taxi ... when their friend who was to pick them up didn't turn up.”
Appearing before a Senate estimates hearing on Thursday, Dfat officials conceded the West Papuans were in fact told police would be called if they refused to leave the consulate.
That answer came in response to a series of questions from the Greens senator Richard Di Natale, who has expressed concern about the safety and wellbeing of the activists since the incident.
Other Senate crossbenchers, including the Democratic Labour party senator John Madigan and the South Australian independent Nick Xenophon, have also raised concerns about the safety of the three men.
The Dfat officials indicated it was protocol in cases such as the October protest to tell activists that police will be called if they don’t depart.
Dfat deputy secretary Paul Grigson said Australian diplomatic posts were not a “place of automatic sanctuary” and could not operate effectively if they were treated as such.
Di Natale asked the officials could he take it then from their broad answer about protest protocols that the West Papuans were told police would be called if they didn’t leave? “Yes senator,” Grigson told the hearing.
Grigson said the activists had also been told they could seek a conversation with the consul general at another point if they agreed to leave.
Di Natale asked the officials, given concerns about human rights abuses in Papua perpetrated against sovereignty activists, and the concerns activists have about any entanglements with police, whether the threat to call the authorities endangered their safety. “I don’t accept that senator,” Grigson said.
He argued the method of response was a judgment call for the head of post, “which I support”.
Prime minister Tony Abbott at the time issued a public rebuke to the activists. “Australia will not give people a platform to grandstand against Indonesia,” Abbott told reporters at the Apec summit in October.
“We have a very strong relationship with Indonesia. We are not going to give people a platform to grandstand against Indonesia. I want that to be absolutely crystal clear.”
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2) Indonesian Army Withdraws Fighter Jets from Australia
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Indonesian National Army has temporarily halt its military cooperation with the Australian administration by withdrawing six F-16 fighter jets from a joint-excercise in Darwin.
"The jets will be returning to Indonesia by Thursday [November 21]," said Indonesia National Army Chief of Staff General Moeldoko.
The Chief of Staff mentioned that the jets were supposed to participate in a joint military exercise between the two nations in November 24. Moreover, General Moeldoko confirmed that several operations have also been temporarily stopped such as joint patrols and military educations.
The call was made in relation to the government's stance in response to the wiretapping activities conducted by the Australian Government. Any forms of cooperations related to information and intelligance exchange will later be re-assessed.
General Moeldoko claimed that such action will inevitably disturb the bilateral relation between the two nations. However, he claimed that the Army will attempt to keep things balanced.
PRIHANDOKO
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