1. Vital Vote for Torn East Timor
2. Joint Operation Prevents Indonesian Terror Attacks
3. Australian Army Reservists Leave for Solomons
4. Fiji: Forum Eminent Persons’ Group Report
5. Fiji: Aussie Mine Accused of Abuse
6. Papua New Guinea – Australia Development Cooperation Strategy 2006-2010
7. Antarctica: Why Neglect a Territory That Is There Just for the Taking?

Austral Policy Forum 07-09A – Preview of the 2007 East Timor Presidential Elections – Helen Hill

1. Vital Vote for Torn East Timor, John Kerin, AFR*, 2007-04-05

   The outcome of the East Timorese presidential poll and the parliamentary elections that follow will determine how long Australian troops stay and the climate for future Australian investment. “It would be better for Australia if either the Gusmao-Ramos Horta group or the Fretilin group gets up, says Alan Dupont. “Otherwise we could see a repeat of the situation before last year’s unrest with a government split down the middle.”
   * Subscription required.

   • East Timor: Police Back on the Streets, Karon Snowdon with Brigadier Mal Rerden, Alcino Barris and Gaspa Sanpao, ABC, 2007-04-04 [Audio]

   • Catholic Church Enters East Timor Elections, Lindsay Murdoch, Age, 2007-04-05

   • I’ll Bring Home Oil Millions: Gusmao, Stephen Fitzpatrick, Australian, 2007-04-05

   • Over 2,000 Observers to Monitor Next Monday’s Landmark Elections in Timor-Leste, Press Release, UN, 2007-04-03

   • Map of East Timor, ReliefWeb, 2006-12-31 [PDF]

      

2. Joint Operation Prevents Indon Terror Attacks, Patrick Walters, Australian, 2007-04-04

   A joint operation between Indonesia’s national police and their Australian counterparts has smashed a suspected terrorist cell in East Java and led to the arrests of eight men linked to Jemaah Islamiah. Australian Federal Police Deputy Commissioner John Lawler said the arrests were a watershed in co-operation between Australia and Indonesia.

    

3. Australian Army Reservists Leave for Solomons, Pacific Magazine, 2007-04-04

   More than 100 Army Reservists drawn from NSW based units will soon deploy overseas to RAMSI. The Reservists will work alongside personnel from NZ, Tonga, and PNG as they support the Royal Solomon Islands Police and participating Police Forces who are responsible for law and order in the Solomon Islands.

   http://www.pacificmagazine.net/news/2007/04/04/australian-army-reservists-leave-for-solomons

   • Australian Troops on Standby to Assist in Solomons, ABC, 2007-04-05

      

4. Forum Eminent Persons’ Group Report, Fiji, 29 January – 1 February 2007 [Primary source, PDF]

   This report makes recommendations for a way forward for Fiji, beyond the recent military coup. The immediate next step recommended would be to reconvene Parliament and restore Constitutional government drawn from the elected Parliament. The EPG believes that, regrettably, this is unlikely to occur.

    

5. Aussie Mine Accused of Abuse, AAP, Australian, 2007-04-04

   The Fiji Human Rights Commission (FHRC) has said it found evidence Emperor Gold breached human rights provisions at its Vatukoula Gold Mine, in the north of Fiji’s main island, Viti Levu. Dr Shaista Shameem from FHRC said a meeting had been called for April 23 with representatives from Emperor Gold, the Australian Government and the British Government.

    

6. Papua New Guinea – Australia Development Cooperation Strategy 2006-2010, AusAid, April 2007 [Primary source, PDF]

   The Strategy will support PNG to reduce poverty and promote sustainable development. It will focus on four core areas: improved governance and nation building; sustainable broad-based economic growth; improved service delivery; a strengthened response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic. It aims to reflect a genuine partnership between PNG and Australia, driven by Papua New Guinea ownership and leadership.

    

7. Why Neglect a Territory That Is There Just for the Taking? Anthony Bergin and Marcus Haward, Age, 2007-04-04

   The Antarctic faces the direct effects of climate change, with potential impacts on sea ice and marine ecosystems, as well as on terrestrial Antarctica. Given these challenges, there are eight steps that we should consider to advance our Antarctic interests.

   • Antarctic Progress Report 2006, Australian Government Antarctic Division, 2007-01-23

   • Antarctica, Wikipedia

   • Antarctic Treaty Secretariat

   • Political and Territorial Maps of the Anctarctic Region, Perry-Castañeda Library Map Collection, University of Texas at Austin

      

Austral Policy Forum 07-09A: Preview of the 2007 East Timor Presidential Elections – Helen Hill

Helen Hill, of Victoria University, writes that the forthcoming presidential election in East Timor will be crucial: “because they will either bring to a halt the undercurrents of violence that have wracked the country for a year, or they will lead to an escalation of that violence.” She explains the constitutional and political background and lists the eight candidates and their backgrounds. Hill expresses doubt about the certainty that many foreign observers have shown about the chances of the present Prime Minister, Nobel Prize winner Jose Ramos Horta, succeeding his ally, the current President Xanana Gusmao. Hill concludes by noting that “hostility towards Australian troops, particularly as they refused to come under United Nations (‘blue beret’) command, has been an underlying theme” of the campaign.

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