E D I T O R I A L

Our Historical Mission
It has often been argued that unions would cease to exist when employers civilised workplaces. Our historical mission would have been fulfilled and we could pack up and spend out time enjoying the equitable society that would be the fruit of our victory.

F E A T U R E S

Interview: Something Smells
The Postal Union's Jim Metcher lifts the lid on the very strange goings-on in Australia Post

Cole-Watch: Credibility Crisis
Counsels Assisting the Cole Royal Commission face a humiliating public back down in an effort to bring some balance to proceedings, reports Jim Marr.

Unions: Union Cities
Labor Council's Adam Kerslake has returned from the USA with some new ideas on community unionism

Industrial: Lib Men Gang Up Against Working Mums
Working women are in danger of missing out on an adequately funded paid maternity leave scheme, if recent bleatings are acted upon says ACTU President Sharan Burrow.

History: Eureka!
Neale Towart finds an alternative to Baden-Powell’s imperialist scouting movement, where the youth of Australia was fed such radical ideas as solidarity, collective action, equal rights and internationalism.

East Timor: Don’t Rob Their Future
After 24 years of often brutal Indonesian occupation East Timor on 20 May 2002 finally achieved their independence, writes HT Lee.

Review: Black Chicks Say It All
Dorothy can be whatever colour she wants to be and black chicks can talk about anything, writes Tara de Boehmler

Poetry: Self Regulation
While President George W Bush,leader of the heart of unregulated capitalism, has responded to the recent spate of corporate cowboydom by whipping out a swathe of new corporate controls, Australia's Prime Minister has responded with a feathered touch.

N E W S

Cole to Hear of Criminal Takeover Conspiracy

Mad Monk Stamp on Aussie Post

Calls To End Woodlawn Logjam

ANZ Fined Over Freedom Of Speech Breach

Hotels Eat Up Living Wage

Qantas Union's Gorilla Tactics

Shearers Black Ban Their Hall Of Fame

Democrats Fire Shot for Workers

Teachers Walk Out At Aust College of Technology

Rail Operators Off Track

Airport Security Worker Spat At And Assaulted

CBA Workers Say Enough Is Enough

Union Made Songs For Masses

Doco Dishes Dirt On Howard’s Gas Wrangle

Activist Notebook

C O L U M N S

The Soapbox
Cole Comfort
The election of a federal coalition government in 1996 marked the advent of an aggressively anti union agenda that continues to be played out to this day, writes Paul Davies

The Locker Room
Salary Crap
Phil Doyle goes wading through the hypocrisy and hubris, and discovers where the smell is coming from.

Postcard
All At Sea
It’s on again - the coastal battle between the maritime unions, the government and the shipowners, reports Zoe Reynolds.

Week in Review
The Dogs of War
The battle drums were a-rattling across this wide, brown land and Jim Marr was getting a bit tetchy

Bosswatch
Speak No Evil
The majority of Australian firms stay silent on options they offer their executives as John Howard continues to stonewall corporate law reform.

L E T T E R S

WHAT YOU CAN DO

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Don’t Rob Their Future

But we all remembered what happen there in September 1999. Most Australians were horrified by the Indonesian army (TNI) sponsored militia violence and destruction. The country was systematically reduced to ash and rubble. And more than 70% of East Timor's infrastructure was damaged or destroyed.

Many of you took to the streets in protest and you cheered when the Australian led Interfet intervened. You opened your hearts and wallets for the suffering East Timorese. And you did so because as Australians you believe in helping the underdog and giving them a fair go.

Your support was unconditional. You did not expect payment in return for Australia's involvement.

But Howard and Downer seem to have other plans--the Timor Gap oil and gas as payment.

East Timor was forced to signed an unfavourable treaty with Australia on the day of their independence.

Howard claimed Australia was generous by giving East Timor 90% of the share.

However, the truth is East Timor is getting less than 40% of the oil and gas resources--resources that rightfully belongs to them.

The Timor Sea Treaty, set up the JPDA--a joint petroleum development area that is much much smaller than the seabed boundary area East Timor under international law is entitled to have.

Only resources within the JPDA are shared 90:10 in favour of East Timor. But the baulk of the oil and gas resources fall just outside the boundary of the JPDA. And although these resources belong to East Timor, Australia is claiming these resources as wholly Australian.

There are three main oil and gas field involved:

· Bayu-Undan--a gas field that lies wholly within the JPDA

· Greater Sunrise--a much larger gas field to the east of Bayu-Undan--but only 20% of the field falls within the JPDA--Australia is claiming the remaining 80%.

· Laminaria/Corralina--an oil field that is just outside the western border of the JPDA

The estimated oil and gas reserve for the three fields is 3.3 billion barrels of oil equivalent (BOE). The estimated revenue is US$66 billion in present day value and the royalties--the total governments' take would amount to US$30 billion--between now and 2050.

But East Timor's share is only 1.3 billion barrels or less than 40% even though the resources belong to them. And East Timor will also miss out on the industrial spin-off worth millions of dollars and thousands of jobs because the gas will be piped to Darwin instead of East Timor.

Howard and Downer also decided early this year to shoot the referee by withdrawing from the jurisdiction of the International Court of Justice dealing with maritime boundary dispute. This means East Timor will be forced to negotiate directly with Australia over any seabed boundary dispute between the two countries.

This David and Goliath battle clearly disadvantage East Timor--the poorest country in Asia.

East Timor's entire budget for the year 2002-2003 is only US$70 million. And that comes mainly from overseas donations--including from Australia.

Even a modest 5% increase in revenue East Timor gets from the oil and gas resources would amount to hundreds of millions of dollars--more than Australia's entire contribution to the East Timor campaign since September 1999.

Think of what East Timor can do with that money. Think of how many schools, classrooms, hospitals, health clinics, roads and other infrastructure that money can provide. Think of how many jobs those additional services would also provide.

Australians believe in fair play. But what is happing here is definitely not that.

The Timor Gap resources belong to East Timor. Are we going to stand by and allow Howard and Downer rob East Timor off billions of dollars of their income when more than 40% of their population lives on less than one dollar a day?

East Timor deserves a better deal. Give them a fair go--don't rob their future.

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Last Modified: 15 Nov 2005