Australians want peace, not war

Australians want peace, not war

The assumptions and speculation that Australians might become
an easy target of terrorist attacks due to Australian involvement
in the Afghanistan war and planned war against Iraq, had been in
the public domain long before the tragic events at Sari Club and
Paddy's. The ASIO Report released in April contained the same
warning.

The Bali bombing has not changed this public attitude. Despite
a media blackout on Oct. 13, one day after the blast,
approximately 45,000 people rallied through the streets of
Melbourne, protesting that politicians refrain from using the
lives lost in the Bali bombing as a means of pushing ahead their
war agenda.

One day before the national day of mourning for the Bali
victims, Anglican Archbishop of Perth Dr. Peter Carnley also
expressed his grave concern over the safety of Australians and
said, "Given the bombing of Afghanistan and the dispersal in
disarray of al-Qaeda and Taliban forces, and Australia's high-
profile support for President George Bush's stance in relation to
a possible war on Iraq, it was surely only a matter of time
before Australian lives were sacrificed in some form of
retaliatory action".

Of course, this is debatable and needs to be proven. However,
these concerns are shared by the Australian public and not
limited to my own opinion. Furthermore, I believe it is in
Canberra's interests to respond to such a strong public
sentiment.

This sentiment does not show any sign of declining in the near
future. On the contrary, a number of antiwar groups in Sydney
have recently joined forces and established a new coalition in
order to organize a bigger "walk against the war" on Nov. 30
based on the slogan "No war with Iraq! No Australian
involvement!"

Ambassador, my heart lies with those Australians who want
peace and oppose war. I feel deeply for those whose protests have
fallen on deaf ears and yet, they are the vulnerable ones. For
this reason, I have no intention of withdrawing my concerns over
politicians who are busy promoting "fear and insecurity" in order
to shape public opinion to suit their own designs, as appeared in
The Jakarta Post. I firmly believe that we should end this spiral
of violence and avoid an unnecessary war.

As mentioned in your letter, I write here as a person who has
known Australia and Australians very closely for many years. As
one of the promoters and founding fathers of the center, it is my
wish to see Australia develop mature and comfortable relations
with its immediate region. In this regard, "spreading fear and
insecurity" following the bombing, would only poison our two
communities. This should be discontinued if we want members of
our plural communities to rebuild mutual trust and tolerance.

DR. RENI WINATA, Director, Australian Studies Centre,
University of Indonesia