Balibo Five

The Balibo Five was a group of journalists for Australian television networks who were based in the town of Balibo in East Timor (then Portuguese Timor) who were killed on October 16, 1975 by Indonesian troops mounting incursions, prior to the Indonesian invasion on December 7 that year.Cite news |url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/new-search-for-answers-on-balibo-five/2005/10/16/1129401145681.html |title=New search for answers on Balibo Five |first=Les |last=Kennedy |publisher=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=2005-10-17 |accessdate=2007-02-12]

The group

The group was made up of two Australians, reporter Greg Shackleton, 27, and sound recordist Tony Stewart, 21, and a New Zealander, cameraman Gary Cunningham, 27, for HSV-7 (Seven Network) in Melbourne, and two Britons, cameraman Brian Peters, 29, and reporter Malcolm Rennie, 28, working for TCN-9 (Nine Network) in Sydney.cite web |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/bristol/content/news/2001/02/03/timor.shtml |title=Bristol jouralist may have been murdered |publisher=BBC |date=2001-02-03 |accessdate=2007-02-06] cite web |url=http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/72805 |title=IPI seeks fresh investigation into 1975 and 1999 cases of killed journalists |publisher=IFEX |date=2006-01-16 |accessdate=2007-02-06]

While the men were aware that Indonesian troops were to mount an attack on the town, they believed that as Australian journalists, they would not be considered military targets. Greg Shackleton was filmed painting an Australian flag and the word 'AUSTRALIA' on the wall of a house.

The Indonesian military justified its killing of the camera crews on the grounds that they were 'communists', and sympathisers with the FRETILIN party in Portuguese Timor; however most historians think they were killed to prevent them exposing the Indonesian incursions. The men's remains were taken to Jakarta for burial, without the consent of their families.

The level of prior knowledge within the Australian government of Indonesian plans to attack Balibo and target journalists to prevent Indonesian military involvement being demonstrated is debated. [ABC Radio:PM [http://www.abc.net.au/pm/content/2007/s1926243.htm Govt received detailed warnings about Balibo attack, court told Thursday, 17 May , 2007] retrieved 9January 2007]

Advocacy

Greg Shackleton's widow, Shirley, became an outspoken supporter of East Timor's fight for independence in Australia. Other relatives were so traumatised by the event that for many years they did not pursue the matter any further. It was not until 1994, that Brian Peters' sister, Maureen Tolfree, became involved with the East Timor issue, having heard of a demonstration in her home town of Bristol against the sale of BAE Hawk fighter jets to Indonesia.cite web
url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/hometruths/20031201_death_in_east_timor.shtml
title=Death in East Timor: Interview with Maureen Tolfree
publish=BBC Radio 4
date=2003-12-01]

Malcolm Rennie's mother, Minna, later became involved with the issue until her death, as did his cousin Margaret Wilson.cite web
url=http://www.etan.org/et2005/october/08/15anivrs.htm
title=Anniversary of Balibo Five deaths brings renewed call for answers
publish=The Herald
date=2005-10-15]

In 2006, the International Press Institute sent a letter to United Nations Secretary-General, Kofi Annan, to express concern that UN investigators had failed to fully investigate the deaths of the Balibo Five, as well as 3 other journalists killed in Timor-Leste in 1975 and 1999, and to request that the UN reopen their investigations.

2007 Inquest into death of Brian Peters

Brian Peters was a journalist that went to East Timor to investigate the deaths of the five men and was also killed. On 5 February 2007, the New South Wales (NSW) Coroner's Court began an inquest into his death.cite news
url=http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2007/s1840561.htm
author=Emma Alberici
publisher=ABC Local Radio
work=The World Today
title=Balibo five death hearing begins
format=transcript
date=2007-02-05
accessdate=2007-02-05]

On the first day of the inquest, Yunus Yosfiah, former Minister for Information in the Habibie Government in Indonesia in 1998 and 1999, was accused of having led the 1975 attack in Balibo. Allegations were also raised that the journalists' bodies were dressed post-mortem into military uniforms and posed with weapons to make them appear to have taken an active part in the fighting.

The Australian media reported that the DSD intercepted an Indonesian military radio communication suggesting that the five were killed on the orders of superiors.

An eyewitness account described seeing the five men before they were killed. "At this point Indonesian Army Captain Yunus Yosfiah and his team shot the journalists who were unarmed with their hands in the air ... I saw them shoot. A lot of them were firing. They fired towards the white people."

According to evidence presented, the fifth Balibo victim locked himself in a bathroom but was stabbed in the back with a special forces knife when he emerged.

Mark Tedeschi QC, in his closing statement to the inquest, stated, "There is incontrovertible evidence, including eyewitness accounts, that Indonesian troops deliberately killed the Balibo five newsmen. At least three of the journalists were shot after an order was given by Captain Yunus Yosfiah and the fifth man was stabbed by officer Christoforus Da Silva. It is highly unlikely the Captain would have made the decision to kill the newsmen without the sanction of his superior officers. There is enough evidence to refer the case to the Commonwealth Director of Public Prosecutions to consider prosecuting two unnamed people for the war crime of wilful killing."

The NSW coroner investigating held that "The Balibo Five ... were shot and or stabbed deliberately, and not in the heat of battle" in order to silence them from exposing Indonesia's 1975 East Timor invasion. [Cite news |url=http://www.smh.com.au/news/national/killed-to-silence-them/2007/11/16/1194766918197.html |title=Balibo Five deliberately killed: coroner |publisher=The Sydney Morning Herald |date=2007-11-16 |first=Hamish |last=McDonald]

Feature film

A feature film about the killing of the men, to be called " Balibo", is under development by Arena Films in Australia, with Robert Connolly as director and David Williamson as screenwriter.cite web
url=http://www.arenafilm.com.au/aboutconnolly.html
title=Robert Connolly producer / director / writer
publish=Arena Film
date=2007-03-02] The film is to be based on "Cover-Up", by Jill Jolliffe, an Australian journalist who met the men before they were killed. The book has been a source of controversy because of its criticism of some of the people involved in the campaign for justice.cite web
url=http://news.scotsman.com/international.cfm?id=266052004
title=New row over journalists' deaths 30 years ago
publish="The Scotsman"
date=2004-03-07] Filming began on June 30 2008,cite web
url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2008/04/29/2230065.htm |title= Movie stars looking to bed with Darwin locals
publish="ABC"
date=2008-04-29] with Anthony LaPaglia playing the part of Roger East, another Australian journalist, who went to investigate the deaths of the Balibo Five, only to be killed the day after the Indonesian invasion cite web
url=http://abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/09/28/2045993.htm?section=justin |title= LaPaglia leads Balibo five thriller cast
publish="ABC"
date=2007-09-28] and Oscar Isaac as José Ramos Horta, now the country's President.cite web
url=http://www.urbancinefile.com.au/home/view.asp?a=14465&s=news_files |title= BALIBO IN PRODUCTION
publish= Urban Cinefile]
date=2008-07-03] Filming in Dili began on July 31, 2008, with United Nations police closing off roads, to allow the scenes to be filmed.cite web
url=http://afp.google.com/article/ALeqM5iTL-50sFQUd1pCCR572_dGGQOwAA |title= E Timor capital shuts down for movie invasion remake
publish= Agence France Presse]
date=2008-07-31]

The five journalists are played by Damon Gameau as Greg Shackleton, Gyton Grantley as Gary Cunningham, Nathan Phillips as Malcolm Rennie, Mark Winter as Tony Stewart and Thomas Wright as Brian Peters. cite web
url=http://www.urbancinefile.com.au/home/view.asp?a=14465&s=news_files |title= BALIBO IN PRODUCTION
publish= Urban Cinefile]
date=2008-07-03]

ee also

*Roger East

References

External links

* [http://sunday.ninemsn.com.au/sunday/feature_stories/article_1437.asp"Sunday" report on Balibo memorial Nine Network Australia]
* [http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/hometruths/20031201_death_in_east_timor.shtml BBC Radio 4 Death in East Timor - Interview with Maureen Tolfree]
* [http://www.geoffhook.com/archive/get_archive.cgi?
]
* [http://www.ifex.org/en/content/view/full/72805 Press group seeks fresh investigation into Balibo five] - IFEX
* [http://www.democracynow.org/article.pl?sid=06/11/13/1517242 DemocracyNow!'s interview with Shackleton's widow, Shirley. "15 Years After East Timor Massacre, Calls for Accountability Continue"]
* [http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,20867,21622683-2702,00.html New focus helps crack Balibo Five film] "The Australian"
* [http://www.latenightlivetimor.net/?p=24 ABC Radio National blogging from Balibo] "Australian Broadcasting Corporation"
* [http://www.contentfilm.com/index.php/film_tv/contentfilm_international/new_films/451.html ContentFilm International : Balibo]