(27)To Government of the Republic of Indonesia and Federal Government of Australia!

The indigenous peoples of Timor-Rote-Sabu-Alor have the right to claim their own Gugusan Pulau Pasir.

We know that,You know that and They all know that!

WHY WE HAVE TO WAIT UNTIL THIS TIME TO CLAIM THE OWNERSHIP OF THE GUGUSAN PAULAU PASIR?

First, Australia claims the Gugusan Pulau Pasir in barbaric ways and completely inhuman.

Second, 'We are the Indigenous Peoples of Timor-Rote-Sabu-Alor, Not Foolish People!

Third, "The Republic of Indonesia is a large and dignified country", and we must be able to solve everything we face.

Fourth, 'There are no cases that we cover and we have to talk as what it is and what is true is true and what is wrong is wrong'.

Fifth, "This is the Right Time for Us to Demand that Australia-Indonesia Immediately Return the Gugusan Pulau Pasir that is ours.".

This is briefly conveyed:

1. In 1971-1972 the Indonesia-Australia Agreement was drawn up on the determination of certain sea floor boundaries.

2. In 1973 the Indonesia-Australia Agreement was drawn up on certain sea boundary boundaries between Indonesia-Papua New Guinea.

3. Until 1973-1974, the Kupang Regency Government still issued a 'road letter' for fishermen / people who wanted to sail to the Gugusan Pulau Pasir cluster.

4. Australia-Indonesia signed a 1974 Memorandum of Understandong (MoU) on the rights of traditional fishermen in the Gugusan Pulau Pasir.

5. The 1974 MoU was revised again in 1981 and 1989 so that Australia could freely control the Gugusan Pulau Pasir.

6. Australia unilaterally measures and determines the Australian Fishing Zone, which is only 80 km away from Rote-Ndao Regency.

7. Australia increases and enforces the Fishery Zone by unilaterally enforcing it as the Australian Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ) which applies throughout Australia.

8. On 14 March 1997 Indonesian Foreign Minister Ali Alatas and Australian Foreign Minister Alexander Downer signed the “Exclusive Economic Zone Agreement and Certain Seabed Boundaries” which includes the Gugusan Pulau Pasir.

9. The 1997 agreement never took effect because it was never ratified, and it is impossible to ratify it again because East Timor has become a sovereign State.                                              

10. In 2003 the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Indonesia published a white paper, entitled "Defending The Country Enteringthe 21st Century". It is written very clearly about "? Indonesia-Australia Border.

(quote) Border State line agreement between R Iand Australia covers the ContinentalShelf Agreement and Exclusive Eco-nomic Zone which refers to RI-Autralia agreement signed on March14th 1997. The RI-Australia new stateline around the area of Timor gapshould be discussed trilaterally withTimor Leste (end quote).……. The Australia-Indonesia Agreement includes the Gugusan Pulau Pasir.

11. On 30 April 2003 the Indigenous Peoples of Timor-Rote-Sabu-Alor held a meeting at the Center for the Kingdom of Insana, North Central Timor District - East Nusa Tenggara Province which produced Insana's Declaration.

12. On 11 June 2011 in Niki-Niki, the Indigenous Peoples issued a "Reaffirmation of the Insana Declaration of 2003".

13. Since 2003-2011, after the existence of the Insana Declaration and the Reaffirmation of this 2003 Insana Declaration,as the Indonesian people have been waiting until the right moment for us to claim the Gugusan Pulau Pasir.

14. Now is the best time for us to renegotiate the existence of the Gugusan Pulau Pasir and the Timor Sea as a whole.

15. Like it or not, we have to do it because East Timor and Australia have canceled all previous agreements and have replaced them with a New Agreement in the Timor Sea waters.

Related to the above matters, we urge the Ministers to:

1. Immediately cancell all the Indonesia-Australia Treaty that had been made since 1971-1997 in the Timor Sea, then renegotiate it using the “median line” in determining the new and permanent boundaries in the Timor Sea waters between Indonesia-Australia.

2. Immediately hand over the Gugusan Pulau Pasir back to the indigenous people of Timor-Rote-Sabu-Alor.

3. For us indigenous peoples, Timor-Rote-Sabu-Alor land and water are life.

Thank you!

Ferdi Tanoni