The Circle of Silence (AKA The Age of Living Dangerously)

The Balibó Five murders are a war crime allegedly committed by Indonesian soldiers. The Australian Federal Police started an investigation in 2009 but did not investigate in Indonesia or interview any suspects. The investigation was dropped in 2014 following advice from The Attorney General’s Department that jurisdiction did not exist for the AFP to proceed with the investigation or to lay charges because there was not an international armed conflict at the time as Indonesian troops were fighting Fretilin troops and not the formal government of Portuguese Timor. This is strongly refuted by Professor Clinton Fernandes. He asserts that Indonesia was attacking a country that had signed the Geneva Convention and this made it an international armed conflict and that jurisdiction does exist to lay charges. War crimes and justice are important themes in The Circle of Silence as are the need for ethical government and fair maritime boundaries with Timor-Leste.

The Circle of Silence will break the silence surrounding the murders of the Balibó Five. The film will tackle its three central themes; war crimes, ethical government and Timor’s oil and gas rights. This documentary has the power to create social change, promote debate, and to define the kind of society we want to live in; a society where the Australian Government’s respect for the human rights of its citizens and our neighbours takes priority over trade, oil and gas. Specifically, the impact campaign is trying to have the investigation into the Balibo Five murders reopened by the AFP and to have the contents of the grave in Jakarta repatriated to Australia for testing. This will determine if the remains of the Balibo Five were buried in Jakarta or was the funeral part of a larger cover-up of the murders.

The immediate aim is to dub the film into Tetun, one of the official languages of Timor-Leste. This was Shirley Shackleton’s wish, shortly before her death. Dubbing the film will address the impact campaign, which is to show the film widely in Timor. The film’s public screenings and its outreach campaign aim to have the Australian Government re-open the AFP war-crimes investigation into the Balibó Five murders. This will be one of the measures of success for the impact campaign. The film will have a civic education program in Australia, Indonesia and in Timor Leste. In Timor the film will be shown on national television, in the cinema, and will tour the country as part of Dili Film Works’ Travelling Film Festival. These screenings will be an important outcome for the film. A nation is built on its common stories and Timor has many but few published in any form. The Circle of Silence will contribute to building a national identity for one of the world’s newest nations.

FairTrade Films is producing the film in association with Dili Film Works, Timor-Leste’s leading producer of film and television. Dili Film Works will coordinate the impact campaign and civic education program in Timor-Leste. This will involve working with many local NGOs and government bodies. Shirley Shackleton is a board member of the Balibó House Trust whose patron is The honourable Steve Bracks, former Victorian Premier. The Balibo House Trust honours the memories of the Balibó Five by working with the Balibó Community to enrich their lives. Shirley will explore ways in which the film can be used by the Trust in a broader outreach program in Balibó.

The impact campaign will involve a petition to have the AFP investigation reopened into the murders of the Balibó Five. It is hoped that viewers will sign this petition. Another action is for diverse groups in Australia to organise screenings which can raise funds for communities in Timor-Leste. Broadly, the project’s impact campaign aims to raise awareness of human rights, war crimes and the need for fairness on the part of government in international relations.