The World Via The UN Must Condemn Australia For Bullying and Stealing The Timor Sea From The Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste

When Timor-Leste gained its independence from Indonesia on May 20th, 2002, the boundary of its Timor Sea which it shares with Australia had yet to be settled. The Australia-East Timor disputes over maritime boundaries in the Timor Sea have been simmering for a long time. Both Australia and East Timor brought the dispute before the Permanent Court of Arbitration in the Hague for arbitration However, Australia pre-empts the case of being decided by the court in favour of East Timor when its Foreign Minister, Julie Bishop and its Attorney General George Brandis jointly declared , " In line with our pre-existing legally binding treaties, ( with Indonesia and not recognized by Timor-Leste government ) Australia will not accept the jurisdiction to conduct hearings on maritime boundaries." This is tantamount to Australia not accepting the tribunal's award on the disputes

Australia in fraudulently referring to its pre-existing treaties with Indonesia as fait accompli does not hold water because they have never been recognized by the East Timorese government and people. However, an interim Timor Sea Arrangement was signed between Australia and the United Nations Transitional Administration in East Timor (UNTAET ) in July, 2001. The Timor Sea Treaty between Australia and East Timor took effect in April, 2003, and both parties consensously agreed on the exploitation of resources and on January, 2006 , they signed the agreement on certain Maritime Arrangements in the Timor Sea in which both agreed to share the dispute for 50 years and make a 50-50 split on the profits in the disputed Greater Sunrise region.

However, according to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea ( UNCLOS ) most oil and gas resources in the Timor Sea fall within East Timor territory. Thus the East Timorese government attempts to settle border disputes with Australia via negotiations on law which was later turned down by Australia.

East Timor protested to to an Australian spying scandal in 2012 , when Australia on the pretext of giving aid to East Timor was able to steal vital information regarding the Timor Sea negotiations which put East Timor to great disadvantage and this intensified the maritime disputes.East Timor then demanded negotiations with Australia to settle the disputes via bilateral talks. Australia has yet to agree to bilateral talks and in the meantime it refused to accept the PCA arbitration case.

Australia was too quick to condemn China in the recent fake and bogus tribunal over the South China Sea issue and its Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull cynically claimed , " It is an important decision , it is one that has been made in accordance with international law and it should be respected by both parties, and indeed by all parties and claiments." It is a shame its Foreign Minister , Julie Bishop doesn't seem to agree when it is applied to Australia's cheating and stealing of East Timor's territorial seas and resources. Julie Bishop reiterated Australia's committment to exercising its rights to freedom of navigation ( referring to South China ) and in her own words to ignore the ruling  would be a serious international transgression " and that Australia would stand with the international community in calling for both sides to treat the arbitration (no doubt illegal and illicit ) as final and binding.

This has exposed the hypocrisy and double standard of Australia for that opinion might have been taken more seriously if Australia followed up on its hollow commendation for multilateralism and international law with adherence to those ideals itself in the context of its disputes with East Timor Republic. In the present case Australia is both bullying East Timor and stealing its territorial seas , thus depriving East Timor of its rightful sovereignty over the Timor Sea.

It must be remembered that for its own shameful and selfish ends , Australia is the only country in the world that endorsed the 1975-1999 Indonesia occupation of East Timor during which more than 180,000 East Timorese soldiers and citizens were killed. Australia was complicit in the atrocities and the only Western nation to recognize Indonesian annexation of Timor-Leste , a means to an end , ensuring the ratification of the 1989 Timor Gap Treaty, between Australia and Indonesia which favoured Australia.

Southernglory1
Thursday, 8th September,20