Commemorating a Cold War Story that Won’t Fade
Fifty years after the Balibo Five were killed while attempting to document the Indonesian invasion of East Timor, the families of the fallen journalists still seek truth, accountability, and acknowledgment. On a timeline shaded with memory and injustice, Evan Shackleton walked the same dirt his father did half a century ago in Balibo, Timor-Leste. The emotions stirred are a precise blend of grief, anger, and a stubborn insistence that the truth deserves to be heard.
The Balibo Five: A Night That Changed Timor-Leste and The World
Greg Shackleton, Gary Cunningham, Brian Peters, Malcolm Rennie, and Anthony Stewart—Channel 7 reporters who became known as the Balibo Five—set out to cover the Indonesian invasion in 1975. They were killed in Balibo, just days before Roger East, an ABC journalist, met a similar fate in Dili. The tragedy became a symbol of the brutal realities of wartime reporting and a flashpoint in debates over Western complicity and documented truth about the East Timor crisis.
A Long Shadow of Inquiries and Claims
For decades, the question that persisted in the minds of families and reporters alike was: who bears responsibility for these deaths? The 2007 coroner’s inquiry found that Indonesian military forces deliberately killed the five men, with Yunus Yosfiah named as a leading figure. Yosfiah’s later roles in government and politics have added complexity to the pursuit of justice, fueling the sense that accountability has remained elusive.
The Quest for Justice in a Political Landscape
The inquest sparked renewed scrutiny and a renewed but interrupted push for accountability. The Australian government faced criticism for what many perceive as a cautious stance toward Indonesia during and after the crisis. While the inquiry identified a pattern of responsibility, prosecutions have not materialized, and no formal apology has been delivered to the families. The Australian Federal Police later dropped a 2014 war crimes probe for insufficient evidence, a decision that hardened the belief among relatives that justice was being selectively administered or withheld.
Contested Legacies and Ongoing Hope
In the years since, the Balibo files—key records that could shed further light on the killings—have not been released. A spokesperson for the Australian government has acknowledged the enduring grief and pledged continued commitment to transparency, while noting that access to official records remains governed by existing laws. The Indonesian government has focused on broader diplomatic ties with Timor-Leste, rather than formal apologies for these murders, leaving families to navigate a difficult patchwork of memory, diplomacy, and unresolved questions.
A Personal Journey Home and a Public Mission
For Evan Shackleton, returning to Balibo is both a personal pilgrimage and a public duty. His first visit in 2002 was marked by reluctance; today, he brings his family to bear witness to a history that refuses to be written out of memory. He sees in Timor-Leste a community that treats press freedom as a living ideal—an environment where banners honoring the Balibo Five line streets and schools benefit from a trust that funds education and public life through the Balibo House Trust in Melbourne.
Contemporary Reflections: The Cost of Silence
As the anniversary approaches, the families’ message remains clear: the injustice lies not only in the deaths of five journalists, but also in the ongoing silences surrounding them. The idea that truth should be accompanied by accountability resonates with people who want journalism to be protected and truth-telling to be supported by governments rather than marginalized by political expediency. The current political climate does not erase the longing for a formal resolution, but it does embolden the families to keep pushing for records release and public acknowledgment.
Moving Forward: Names, Narratives, and a Timorese Promise
In Balibo and across Timor-Leste, the memory of the Balibo Five persists as both a memorial and a call to action. The Balibo House Trust continues to support local communities, ensuring that the legacy of these journalists informs generations about press freedom and human rights. For Evan Shackleton, the journey is personal, but the mission is communal: to honor the fallen by insisting that the truth be told, and that justice, however delayed, remain a shared goal of both Timor-Leste and Australia.
A Note on the Road Ahead
The families remain hopeful that archives will be opened, apologies offered, and perpetrators held accountable. Until then, the Balibo Five’s legacy endures in the banners that adorn Balibo, in the classrooms supported by the Balibo House Trust, and in the steadfast resolve of those who insist on truth as the foundation of justice.
