The Independence of East Timor

The Independence of East Timor
Author: Clinton Fernandes
Publisher: Apollo Books
Total Pages: 288
Release: 2011
Genre: History
ISBN: 9781845194284

This book is a history of the struggle for independence after East Timor was invaded by Indonesia in 1975. The occupation, which lasted 24 years, was immediately resisted through guerrilla warfare and clandestine resistance. A continuum of effort between the armed freedom fighters in the mountains, the resilience of urban supporters, and international activism and support eventually brought about liberation in September 1999. Given that the Timor rebels did not have a land border with a friendly state, had no external supplier of weapons and no liberated area in which to recover between guerrilla operations, their successful resistance is unique in the history of guerrilla warfare and independence struggles. Equally uncommon was an unexpected weapon in the struggle -- a remarkable display of strategic non-violent action. This is the first study to integrate all the major factors in East Timor's independence struggle. The multi-dimensional perspectives addressed in this volume include Indonesian, US and Australian diplomacy; Indonesian military operations and activities against the populace; East Timorese resistance at all social levels; human rights abuses; the issue of oil; and international diplomacy resulting from global solidarity activism.

Crossing the Line

Crossing the Line
Author: Kim McGrath
Publisher: Black Inc.
Total Pages: 159
Release: 2017-08-12
Genre: Nature
ISBN: 1925435741

For fifty years, Australia has schemed to deny East Timor billions of dollars of oil and gas wealth. With explosive new research and access to never-before- seen documents, Kim McGrath tells the story of Australia’s secret agenda in the Timor Sea, exposing the ruthlessness of successive governments. Australia did nothing to stop Indonesia’s devastating occupation of East Timor, when – on our doorstep – 200,000 lives were lost from a population of 650,000. Instead, our government colluded with Indonesia to secure more favourable maritime boundaries. Even today, Australia claims resources that, by international law, should belong to its neighbour – a young country still recovering from catastrophe and in desperate need of income. Crossing the Line is a long-overdue exposé of the most shameful episode in recent Australian history. ‘Revelatory, extraordinary and compelling – an absolute must-read.’ —Peter Garrett ‘Crossing the Line is an unassailable exposé of Australia’s ruthless pursuit of resources in the Timor Sea. A timely and definitive book.’ —José Ramos-Horta ‘Kim McGrath has trawled the national archives to produce the smoking gun on Australia’s callous betrayal of the people who supported our commandos in World War II, and on the immoral and unlawful appropriation of their oil.’ —Paul Cleary Kim McGrath has been published in the Monthly and has long experience working in government and policy development. She is Research Director at the Bracks Timor-Leste Governance Project, which provides policy advice to the Timor-Leste government.

Timor-leste/australia Conciliation, The: A Victory For Unclos And Peaceful Settlement Of Disputes

Timor-leste/australia Conciliation, The: A Victory For Unclos And Peaceful Settlement Of Disputes
Author: Hao Duy Phan
Publisher: World Scientific
Total Pages: 338
Release: 2019-02-26
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 9811202729

On 11 April 2016, Timor-Leste initiated a compulsory non-binding conciliation proceeding against Australia under Annex V of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) on its maritime boundary dispute with Australia in the Timor Sea. On 6 March 2018, the parties signed a settlement treaty on the basis of the proposal of the Conciliation Commission. Two months later, the Conciliation Commission issued its report, marking the conclusion of the first ever conciliation proceeding under Annex V of UNCLOS.This book provides detailed analyses of the proceedings and a step-by-step account of the conciliation process, as well as its wider implications for dispute settlement under UNCLOS and beyond. The various chapters explore a wide range of issues, including an overview of conciliation as a means of dispute settlement and the conciliation procedure in UNCLOS, as well as the origins and historical background of the maritime boundary dispute between Timor-Leste and Australia. The book also provides a comprehensive examination of each step of the conciliation proceedings, including the role of the Conciliation Commission, the Conciliation Commission's Decision on Competence, the issue of joint development, and the Maritime Boundaries Treaty, which Timor-Leste and Australia concluded as the legal outcome of the conciliation proceedings. Critically, the book offers insightful perspectives from Australia and Timor-Leste on the conciliation process. The book is an important contribution to the research and analysis of the Timor Sea conciliation. As one of the first books on the case, it will raise awareness and bring more familiarity with conciliation as a viable and effective dispute settlement process, thereby encouraging states to consider conciliation as a means to settle their disputes.

International Maritime Boundaries

International Maritime Boundaries
Author: Jonathan I. Charney
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 500
Release: 2023-07-24
Genre: Law
ISBN: 900463410X

This is the ultimate guide to international maritime boundaries. Its unique practical features include - systematic examination of all international maritime boundaries worldwide; - comprehensive coverage, including the text of every modern boundary agreement; - descriptions of judicially-established boundaries; - maps and detailed analyses of those boundaries; - expert papers examining the status of maritime boundary delimitations in each of the ten regions of the world; - papers from a global perspective analyzing key issues in maritime boundary theory and practice; and - a cumulative index for volumes I - III. These features make International Maritime Boundaries an unmatched comprehensive, accessible resource in the field.

International Maritime Boundaries

International Maritime Boundaries
Author: Jonathan I. Charney
Publisher: Martinus Nijhoff Publishers
Total Pages: 610
Release: 1993
Genre: Law
ISBN: 9789041119544

This is the ultimate guide to international maritime boundaries. Its unique practical features include - systematic examination of all international maritime boundaries worldwide; - comprehensive coverage, including the text of every modern boundary agreement; - descriptions of judicially-established boundaries; - maps and detailed analyses of those boundaries; - expert papers examining the status of maritime boundary delimitations in each of the ten regions of the world; - papers from a global perspective analyzing key issues in maritime boundary theory and practise; and - a cumulative index for volumes I - IV. These features make "International Maritime Boundaries" an unmatched comprehensive, accessible resource in the field.

The Maritime Political Boundaries of the World

The Maritime Political Boundaries of the World
Author: Victor Prescott
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 680
Release: 2005-01-01
Genre: Law
ISBN: 9047406206

This book addresses the often vexed question of national maritime claims and the delimitation of international maritime boundaries. The number of undelimited international maritime boundaries is much larger than the number of agreed lines. The two boundaries that define the marine domain of coastal states are examined. First, the baselines along the coast may consist of low-water lines or straight lines or a combination of both. When straight lines are used they define the seaward limit of the state's internal waters. Second, the outer limits of claims to territorial seas, contiguous zones and exclusive economic zones are measured from the baselines. All states will have to delimit at least one international boundary with a neighbouring state, whether adjacent or opposite. In confined seas no state can claim the full entitlement and must negotiate international boundaries with all neighbours. Many states bordering oceans can claim the full entitlement seawards, although they will need to delimit national boundaries with adjacent neighbours.

Timor Leste

Timor Leste
Author: Andrea Katalin Molnar
Publisher: Routledge
Total Pages: 241
Release: 2009-12-17
Genre: Political Science
ISBN: 1135228841

This book provides a comprehensive country overview of Southeast Asia’s newest nation, Timor Leste (East Timor). This book focuses on its cultural and ethno-linguistic diversity, and its political history from the pre-Portuguese period up to 2009. The book pays particular attention to the historical roots of the current challenges to nation-building by reviewing the Indonesian occupation; guerrilla warfare by the Timorese against the occupiers; the politics leading up to the United Nations’ popular consultation and the vote for independence in 2002. Explaining the structure of the government and its parliamentary system, this book highlights the problems and historical and cultural underpinnings of the challenges Timor Leste faces in building a stable viable nation. The author presents a synopsis of selected issues including: language, truth and reconciliation, the Catholic Church’s political activism, internal security problems, the ‘politics of oil’, and the fact that violent conflicts, from 2005 to date, have made it necessary for the United Nation’s peacekeeping forces to return. Thus far, the book argues, Timor Leste’s nation-building efforts have been hampered by the dynamic interaction of number of national and international factors. The first comprehensive political and cultural history of East Timor to date, this book fills a gap and will be an important single reference resource for students and researchers in the field of Southeast Asian Studies, Anthropology and Political Science.

Democratic Statehood in International Law

Democratic Statehood in International Law
Author: Jure Vidmar
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 336
Release: 2013-03-28
Genre: Law
ISBN: 1782250913

This book analyses the emerging practice in the post-Cold War era of the creation of a democratic political system along with the creation of new states. The existing literature either tends to conflate self-determination and democracy or dismisses the legal relevance of the emerging practice on the basis that democracy is not a statehood criterion. Such arguments are simplistic. The statehood criteria in contemporary international law are largely irrelevant and do not automatically or self-evidently determine whether or not an entity has emerged as a new state. The question to be asked, therefore, is not whether democracy has become a statehood criterion. The emergence of new states is rather a law-governed political process in which certain requirements regarding the type of a government may be imposed internationally. And in this process the introduction of a democratic political system is equally as relevant or irrelevant as the statehood criteria. The book demonstrates that via the right of self-determination the law of statehood requires state creation to be a democratic process, but that this requirement should not be interpreted too broadly. The democratic process in this context governs independence referenda and does not interfere with the choice of a political system. This book has been awarded Joint Second Prize for the 2014 Society of Legal Scholars Peter Birks Prize for Outstanding Legal Scholarship.