East Timor’s U.N. occupation discussed at conference
The rise of independence movements in East Timor, West Papua and Bougainville will be discussed at a conference at The University of Queensland tomorrow.
Former Reuters correspondent and conservationist Julian McKinlay King, based in East Timor, will discuss the agenda today at 4pm.
Mr McKinlay King will examine colonisation, invasion, exploitation and genocide leading to resistance and independence in East Timor, and correlate it with political developments and guerrilla action in West Papua and Bougainville.
Mr McKinlay King said the indigenous (fourth world) people in these regions had learned to defend themselves against advanced military nations. How they succeeded and lessons which could be learned from their struggles would be presented.
His talk is entitled Resisting Cultural and Eco-genocide at the Centre/Periphery Interface: Lessons from East Timor under Global Occupation. It will be accompanied by previously unpublished documentary footage of guerrilla action and indigenous religious practice in East Timor.
His PhD studies are co-supervised by UQ’s Dr Richard Hindmarsh of the Contemporary Studies program.
Mr McKinlay King’s discussion is part of a conference on culture and environmental awareness hosted by The University of Queensland from July 2-5.
Environment, Culture and Community: How do we deal with the environmental challenges of the 21st century? is being held on the St Lucia and Ipswich campuses, featuring a range of prominent national and international speakers.
Convenor Dr Ruth Blair, from UQ’s School of English, Media Studies and Art History said the conference explored the role of communities and cultures in developing and sustaining environmental awareness.
Papers are addressing a range of current issues from genetic engineering to salinity.
The conference website is at http://emsah.uq.edu.au/conferences/ecc/
Media: for more information contact Mr Julian McKinlay King, or Dr Ruth Blair (telephone 07 3365 2590, email r.blair@mailbox.uq.edu.au)
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