APSNet for 20061102
Austral Peace and Security Network (APSNet)
Twice weekly report from the Nautilus Institute at RMIT, Australia.
Monday 2 November 2006
- Dili Gangs Linked To Political Players
- Perils of Peacekeeping
- Fiji: High Noon in Suva
- Anger in Papua over Murder Trial, Presence of Freeport
- Solomons: We Love RAMSI, But…
- US: Military Charts Movement of Conflict in Iraq Toward Chaos
- The Media’s Role in the Fight Against Terrorism
- Stern Gives Revolution the Green Light
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Dili Gangs Linked To Political Players, Lindsay Murdoch, SMH, 2006-10-31
Gangs responsible for East Timor’s violence, political intimidation, extortion and crime have been linked with powerful Timorese figures with political ambitions and the country’s main political parties says a report commissioned by AusAID. Some gangs have infiltrated East Timor’s security forces, while one group has links to former pro-Indonesian militia and has supporters in Indonesian West Timor says the report.
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Change Of Command In Timor-Leste, Media Release CPA 285/06, Department of Defence, 2006-10-30
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Closed Schools, Closed Doors for East Timor’s Children, William McKeith, SMH, 2006-11-02
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Perils of Peacekeeping, Tom Morton, ABC, 2006-10-29
It’s well known that soldiers can be traumatized by war but peacekeeping can be just as stressful with its own horrors. Australian veterans of the peacekeeping operation in East Timor have taken their own lives, committed crimes, or are living with mental illness.
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High Noon in Suva, Cameron Stewart, Australian, 2006-11-02
An extraordinary scene on the Suva waterfront demonstrated how law and order in Fiji is unravelling. On the docks, a group of Fijian soldiers demanded to pick up a large shipment of ammunition. They had no legal licence to pick up the bullets. Fiji’s Police Commissioner Andrew Hughes had refused to issue a licence. [But] the island’s military commanders simply ignored him and picked up the bullets anyway.
Coup Unlikely, Says Fiji Police Commissioner, Australian, 2006-11-02
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Anger in Papua over Murder Trial, Presence of Freeport, Markus Makur, Jakarta Post, 2006-10-31
Hundreds of people rallied in Timika, Papua, in opposition to the trial in Jakarta of seven Papuans charged with the 2002 murders of two American teachers and an Indonesian colleague employed by PT Freeport Indonesia.
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We Love RAMSI, But…, Marni Cordell, New Matilda, 2006-11-02
Despite Prime Minister of the Solomon Islands, Manasseh Sogavare’s distaste for the Australian-led mission, the fact is RAMSI is still overwhelmingly popular among Solomon Islanders. But what is noticeable when you speak to people on the ground is that any declaration of support for RAMSI always comes with a qualification.
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Military Charts Movement of Conflict in Iraq Toward Chaos, Michael R. Gordon, NYT, 2006-10-30
A classified briefing prepared two weeks ago by the US Central Command portrays Iraq as edging toward chaos, in a chart that the military is using as a barometer of civil conflict. The chart shows a sharp escalation in sectarian violence since the bombing of a Shiite shrine in Samarra in February, and tracks a further worsening this month despite a concerted American push to tamp down the violence in Baghdad.
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Australia Takes on Overwatch Role in Dhi Qar Province, Media Release MIN146/06, Defence Department, 2006-10-31
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Push for Iraq Exit Growing, Patrick Walters, Australian, 2006-10-31
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The Media’s Role in the Fight Against Terrorism, Mick Keelty. Age, 2006-10-30
The secretary general of Amnesty International has issued a plea for the federal government to bring terror suspect David Hicks home. In an open letter to Prime Minister John Howard, Irene Khan urged the government to return Guantanamo Bay inmate Hicks to Australia and try him under Australian law. She described the US detention facility at Guantanamo Bay in Cuba as a prison camp and a legal black hole.
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Stern Gives Revolution the Green Light, Tina Perinotto, AFR*, 2006-11-02
The Stern report on global warming is probably the tipping point into a revolution that needs to be as big and far-reaching as the industrial revolution in order to save the planet. While John Howard acknowledges that we’re in trouble, he is adamant (and increasingly isolated) in his position that we shouldn’t do anything unless every other country does the same. Hardly the sort of leadership of which he is so proud.
* Subscription required.-
Summary of Conclusions, Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change, October 2006 [PDF]
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Stern Review on the Economics of Climate Change, Final Report, 2006-10-31
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Global Warming: Stern Recommendations, Julie Macken, New Matilda, 2006-11-01
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