‘The fig leaf of self-determination’: the triumph of realism in Australia’s response to the 1975 East Timor Crisis

Indonesia’s 1975 invasion of Portuguese Timor was more than an authoritarian state violating a defenceless neighbour’s sovereignty. The Timor Crisis involved the convergence of major post-war forces: decolonisation of European empires, the Cold War, and the United States’ recalibration of its South East Asian role. This thesis examines the Crisis afresh from a range of perspectives and multi-archival sources. Hitherto, activists have dominated, bringing to attention Indonesia’s malefactions and holding to account those in the West who abetted Indonesia in this tragedy. Why did liberal Australia look away, and even be culpably involved in Indonesia’s invasion of Timor? This thesis argues that in addition to these larger global factors, Australia’s security and new policy of Asian engagement were paramount. Following the European powers failure to protect Australia during the Second World War, and departure from the region, Australia had to relate to its neighbours in a new way. The Timor Crisis was contextualised by Australia’s turbulent relationship with Indonesia, at times supporting Indonesian independence, to opposing it over West New Guinea, and in Confrontation, facing off militarily. With Sukarno deposed, Australia no longer perceived Indonesia a threat. Following Whitlam’s 1972 election, Australia accelerated Asian engagement, seeking acceptance as an independent member of the region. As the Carnation Revolution delivered Portugal’s African colonies to Marxists, Indonesia was determined to deny a communist outpost within its archipelago. Australia’s new policy was now tested: adhere to the norm of self-determination, or pursue engagement with Indonesia, with the social and political differences of both nations on stark display. This thesis shows that Australia’s liberal ideals are abstractions, abandoned in the face of realpolitik, clearly demonstrated in the witches’ brew of the global geopolitical elements that combined to generate the Timor Crisis