NT student union 'adopts' East Timor prisoners

By Bernie Brian

DARWIN — The student union at the Northern Territory University has adopted two students of the University of East Timor (UET) as associate members. Jose Antonio Belo is a 23-year-old English student from Kelikai Bacau and Jose Gonco Pinto is a 22-year-old student from Dili.

These students were leaders of a peaceful demonstration held outside the UET on January 9 to remind delegates to the UN-sponsored talks between the foreign ministers of Indonesia and Portugal that the East Timorese themselves must have say in their future.

The demonstration was brutally attacked by the Indonesian security forces. A student from NTU, Tony Jefferies, was an eyewitness and believes that many of the 16 students arrested on the day were beaten and later tortured by Indonesian authorities. Jose Belo has since been jailed for 17 months.

The proposal to adopt these students as associate members came from the Resistance Club and the Student Supporters of East Timor. Belo and Pinto were singled out for support because the NTU and the UET have recently signed a Memorandum of Cooperation which aims to facilitate greater understanding between the two bodies.

The university administration tried to persuade the student union not to adopt this proposal because it would threaten similar agreements with other universities in the region — especially in Indonesia.

However, East Timor community leader Jose Gusmao has questioned the worth of such cooperation in the light of attempts by university authorities in Dili to replace East Timorese teaching staff with Javanese.

Sally Mitchell from Resistance told Green Left that she would like to see other universities adopt East Timorese students. "It's a very simple proposal but may mean the difference between life and death for our fellow students in Suharto's jails."

From GLW issue 189