Talk:Australian government accused of hypocrisy over World Court statement

Original reporting

Jefferson Lee, NSW Branch of the Australia-East Timor Association

I conducted a phone interview with Jefferson Lee from the NSW Branch of the Australia-East Timor Association. Quotes in the article attributed to Mr Lee came from this interview. - Borofkin 00:24, 11 November 2005 (UTC)

Spokesman for Minister for Foreign Affairs

I conducted a phone interview with a spokesman for the Minister for Foreign Affairs. Below are my notes. - Borofkin 04:44, 11 November 2005 (UTC)

maritime boundaries should be resolved by negotiation - we have done with all the other countries we negotiate with.

our maritime boundaries with east

maritime boundaries are an issue of sovereignty

"The minister has not been hypocritical. Maritime boundaries should be resolved by negotiation. This is how we have done it with all other countries we have negotiated with. Maritime boundaries are an issue of sovereignty"

Comments from Tom Clarke, Co-ordinator, Timor Sea Justice Campaign, Melbourne

The following comments were received by me via email. - Borofkin 03:04, 11 November 2005 (UTC)

11-11-05

“The Australian Government’s decision to withdraw from the maritime boundary jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice (ICJ) and the International Tribunal on the Law of the Sea (ITLOS) just two months before East Timor’s independence, seriously undermines the Government’s legal arguments in relation to the contested gas and oil resources in the Timor Sea. Why would you withdraw from a court, if you thought the outcome would be in your favour?”

“If current principles of International Law were followed, a permanent maritime boundary would be established along the median line, half way between East Timor and Australia. This would result in East Timor receiving billions of dollars in gas and oil royalties that it’s legally entitled to. Instead our Foreign Minister, Alexander Downer, and his posse, blatantly refuse to let the ‘independent umpire’ settle the dispute and are bullying the poorest country in Asia out of billions of dollars.”

“By picking and choosing specific parts of the ICJ’s jurisdictions that it does and doesn’t want to acknowledge, the Australian Government demonstrates that it does not take International Law seriously. Our Government has some shocking double standards.”

“It’s like a driver being caught for speeding, but just before they get pulled over they announce that they wont be recognising the jurisdiction of the local courts. It would be a joke! Yet this is what the Australian Government has done in relation to its unilateral depletion of East Timor’s petroleum resources. Unfortunately, when we’re talking about the Australian Government taking millions of dollars while East Timorese children are dying of preventable diseases, it really is no laughing matter.”

Tom Clarke

Co-ordinator, Timor Sea Justice Campaign, Melbourne.

www.timorseajustice.org

Comments from Associate Professor David Reeve , Department of Chinese and Indonesian, University of New South Wales

The following was received from Associate Professor David Reeve via email. - Borofkin 04:44, 11 November 2005 (UTC)

Foreign policy is a tricky business, with lots of strands. And there are always tensions between any country's idealism and interests. It often happens that different bits of foreign policy thrust may seem to be contradictory, but it's a complex world, and any government is trying to play lots of notes simultaneously. In this case I think Downer can be quite genuine in his congratulations, while the advocacy groups have a good opportunity to highlight their perfectly logical views. Everyone seems to have won on this one.