Australia has recently issued a new map claiming massive areas surrounding the Aussie mainland and island possessions (some of which we have “excised” for refugee reasons). The gap in the thick red line brings back memories to East Timor campaigner Robert Wesley-Smith, who explains the story behind the ‘missing link’.
Why there’s no thick red line near ET
Re the map of Australian maritime claims (CLArion, June 2012): it was interesting to see the massive gap in the Australian-claimed boundary near East Timor, writes long-time ET supporter, Rob Wesley-Smith.
“There used to be a line claimed by Australia – just south of the Timor coast, so to speak – and enunciated endlessly by then-Foreign Minister Alexander Downer and PM John Howard over a couple of decades,” he said. “But it was opposed by activists, including noted Canadian jurist and oceanographer JJ Smith, who did his Masters associated issues. I tried my best to get the new ET leaders to not sign the proposed Timor Sea treaty, which usurped much of the area also claimed by Timor.
“In fact it turns out – despite Downer’s claims about Australia’s territory going to the edge of the continental shelf, which he thought was at the deep trench just south of the Timor land mass, thus giving Australia claims to the oil and gas riches south of that trench – that, in fact, the ‘Australian’ continental shelf extends under ET to the join between the two ‘plates’, which is north of Timor. When the plates pushed together, the mountains of Timor got pushed up, and to compensate there was the deep trough to the south.
“So one could argue, as I did, that really Timor had claims on Australia!” Mr Wesley-Smith said.