BREAKING NEWS
Search

Xanana Gusmao calls on Australia to respect international law in Timor Sea dispute

The father of East Timorese independence, Xanana Gusmao, has called on Australia to respect international law over maritime boundaries in the Timor Sea.
Speaking outside a landmark conciliation hearing in The Hague, East Timor's first president told the ABC that Australia's conduct in the dispute was being watched by the rest world.
"Australia used to tell others to respect international law," he said. "They must now show us that they also abide by international law."

A history of treaties in the Timor Sea 

  • In 1989 Australia and Indonesia signed the Timor Gap Treaty when East Timor was still under Indonesian occupation. 
  • East Timor was left with no permanent maritime border and Indonesia and Australia got to share the wealth in what was known as the Timor Gap.
  • In 2002 East Timor gained independence and the Timor Sea Treaty was signed, but no permanent maritime border was negotiated.
  • East Timor has long argued the border should sit halfway between it and Australia, placing most of the Greater Sunrise oil and gas field in their territory.
  • In 2004 East Timor started negotiating with Australia again about the border.
  • In 2006 the CMATS treaty was signed, but no permanent border was set, and instead it ruled that revenue from the Greater Sunrise oil and gas field would be split evenly between the two countries.
On the second day of hearings — held in the Permanent Court of Arbitration — Australia made the case that the commission did not have jurisdiction over the dispute because both parties had already agreed to put on hold any negotiations over a permanent maritime boundary for 50 years as part of the 2006 CMATS Treaty.
At stake in the dispute are boundaries in the oil and gas rich Timor Sea worth tens of billions of dollars.
Foreign Minister Julie Bishop said Australia respected international law and the treaty reflected that.
"Australia stands by the existing treaties which were negotiated in good faith and is an agreement fully consistent with international law," she said in a statement.
However Mr Gusmao said Australia has avoided accountability by withdrawing from international agreements.
"Two months before [East Timor's] independence [in 2002] Australia withdrew from the binding convention under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea," he said.
This means any decision made by the commission can not be enforced on Australia.
At the hearings Australia has argued that East Timor had benefited from the 2006 treaty.
Gary Quinlan, from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), said: "In addition to providing a stable revenue stream to Timor-Leste, the Timor Sea Treaties have enabled that country to benefit from Australia's considerable expertise in offshore oil field regulation".
Mr Gusmao, who led the East Timorese resistance during the Indonesian occupation, told the ABC achieving sovereignty over maritime borders was critical to him and his people.
"I spent 17 years in the jungle, seven years in prison. I can not see the common sense here. It is so unfair."
Story Source:
The above post is  enterily coppied from materials provided by ABC NEWS Australia. 


TAG

nanomag

Ho RETI, imi sei acessu informasaun ho lalais


0 thoughts on “Xanana Gusmao calls on Australia to respect international law in Timor Sea dispute