APSNet Semi-Weekly Bulletin, June 29, 2009

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"APSNet Semi-Weekly Bulletin, June 29, 2009", APSNet Semi-Weekly Bulletin, June 29, 2009, https://nautilus.org/apsnet/apsnet-29-june-2009/

APSNet 29 June 2009

  1. Aussie spy data points to Papua murder cover-up
  2. Indonesia: Military tells watchdog to ‘eat’ report on Papua
  3. Peace is our best defence
  4. Timor PM faces calls to resign
  5. Japan, TNI seek to increase cooperation
  6. Australia has most ecstasy labs: UN
  7. US vote a spur for push on ETS
  8. New radar ready for rollout in Afghanistan

1. Aussie spy data points to Papua murder cover-up, Tom Hyland, Age, 2009-06-28

New details of secret Australian surveillance of Indonesia’s Papua province have emerged, revealing that Australian officials believed Indonesian military weapons were used in the murder of two US citizens. The new documents show President Yudhoyono stalled in the face of US pressure to allow the FBI to investigate the killings, which Indonesian police initially blamed on the military.

  • Murder at Mile 63, S. Eben Kirksey and Andreas Harsono, Andreas Harsono Blog, April 09, 2007-04-09
  • Criminal collaborations? Antonius Wamang and the Indonesian military in Timika, Eben S. Kirksey and Andreas Harsono, South East Asia Research*, Volume 16, Number 2, July 2008* *subscription required
  • Shoal Bay Receiving Station, Australian Defence Facilities, Nautilus Institute

2. Military tells watchdog to ‘eat’ report on Papua, Markus Junianto Sihaloho and Reuters, Jakarta Globe, 2009-06-25

The military struck back bitterly against accusations that members of elite special forces had acted with impunity in Papua to detain, torture and beat up ordinary citizens. “Let them eat the report,” Military spokesman Air Vice Marshall Sagom Tamboen said of New York-based Human Rights Watch. “We do not need to comment on it because Indonesia is a sovereign country that has police to enforce laws.”

3. Peace is our best defence, Malcolm Fraser, Age, 2009-06-29

The white paper suggests that “within the time frame of this white paper the US will continue to rely on its nuclear deterrent capability”. This at a time when Obama aims for the abolition of nuclear weapons, when the Australian Government has established a special commission chaired by former foreign ministers of Australia and Japan to set out a road map for the abolition of nuclear weapons, and at a time when significant figures in many countries are talking about the irrelevance of nuclear weapons to the defence of any country.

4. Timor PM faces calls to resign, Tom Allard, Age 2009-06-27

Xanana Gusmao, East Timor’s Prime Minister and independence hero, is facing calls for his resignation amid allegations he personally signed off on a lucrative contract that benefited his daughter. According to documents obtained by East Timor’s Fretilin opposition, Mr Gusmao awarded a $US3.5 million ($A4.4 million) contract for rice imports to Prima Foods, a company it says is partly owned by his daughter Zenilda.

5. Japan, TNI seek to increase cooperation, Novan Iman Santosa, Jakarta Post, 2009-06-27

The Japan Self-Defense Force is seeking closer cooperation with the Indonesian Military (TNI), particularly in the fields of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. Jun Honna, a professor of international relations from Ritsumeikan University in Kyoto, said both forces could use their combined experiences in disaster relief as the basis of their leadership in consolidating the ASEAN Security Community (ASC)

6. Australia has most ecstasy labs: UN, Anne Davies, SMH, 2009-06-26

Large quantities of pseudoephedrine and ephedrine are being imported by air cargo flights into Australia, which has grown into one of the biggest markets for amphetamines and ecstasy in the region, a United Nations report on the world drug trade has warned. There are signs the manufacture of synthetic drugs has gained traction in South-East Asia, and the report warns of Australia’s porous borders, which are allowing methamphetamine and its precursor chemicals to be easily imported for use in laboratories.

7. US vote a spur for push on ETS, Christian Kerr, Australian, 2009-06-29

Malcolm Turnbull has thrown a lifeline to the government for its emissions trading scheme. The Liberal leader indicated the Coalition would support an amended ETS when parliament returned from the winter recess in August. Mr Turnbull said emissions trading had become “a more intense issue and focus” since the US House of Representatives passed the Clean Energy and Security Act.

8. New radar ready for rollout in Afghanistan, Mark Dodd, Australian, 2009-06-24

An upgrade of army’s weapon-locating radar systems could soon see their deployment to Afghanistan to provide an early-warning capability for Taliban-launched rockets of the type that killed Private Gregory Sher.

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Richard Tanter,
Project Co-ordinator