A message about ETAN from Noam Chomsky

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Thank you for your support.

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A special message for you from Noam Chomsky

Dear all:

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I have admired and supported ETAN from the very beginning. In fact, I was the organization’s first donor. I still believe that contribution was one of the best investments I have ever made for political and social change. I write to you today to urge you to join me in making such an investment.

I know you agree that the East Timor and Indonesia Action Network continues to play an important and vital role in promoting human rights and justice for the peoples of Indonesia, Timor-Leste and West Papua. I know you also believe, as I do, that thanks to ETAN's and your efforts, East Timor became the independent nation of Timor-Leste more than a decade ago.

ETAN successfully worked to shift U.S. policy from provider of a blank check to the brutal Indonesian military to a supporter of East Timor's right to self-determination.

But trouble continues in West Papua, and ETAN is there to tackle it. As it did so effectively for the East Timorese people, ETAN is working to change U.S. policy to support the rights of West Papuans.

ETAN actively monitors ongoing threats to human rights, defending activists in Indonesia, West Papua and Timor-Leste. ETAN continues to press for justice on behalf of the victims of U.S.-backed policies that had such devastating impacts on the people of Timor-Leste, and that continue to have similarly devastating effects on the people of West Papua and Indonesia. And finally, ETAN continues to call for key U.S. figures -- like Henry Kissinger -- to be brought to justice for their roles in backing genocide and crimes against humanity.

I consider the shameful crimes committed against the people of West Papua to be a major scandal, one that those in the West have much to answer for. As I told the Jakarta Postlast March, "What happened in East Timor was because the U.S. and its allies supported it for 25 years. West Papua is the same. As long as the U.S. … and [other] Western powers support atrocities, they are carried out with impunity, just like their own atrocities are."

ETAN understands this. Among its advocacy and educational efforts, ETAN:

·    is campaigning for unconditional freedom for West Papuan political prisoners;

·    is advocating to let the sunshine in by opening access to the region to journalists and other international observers;

·    has highlighted the role of the U.S. mining giant Freeport McMoRan;

·    regularly responds to the all-too-frequent reports of human rights violations in West Papua;

·    continues to oppose (as it has done from the start) U.S. support for Indonesia's security forces that repress West Papuans; and

·    closely monitors events in West Papua, including publication of the well-regarded monthly West Papua Report with the West Papua Advocacy Team.

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But ETAN can only continue this hard-hitting advocacy with your support. Please donate today. Much remains to be done.

ETAN is on the forefront of efforts to hold both Indonesian and U.S. officials accountable for human rights violations.

Despite some progress, the legacy of U.S.-backed dictator Suharto remains. Indonesia's new defense minister, retired General Ryamizard Ryacudu, has a history of excusing rights violations by his soldiers, threatening human rights critics, and asserting the military's right to meddle in civilian affairs. ETAN's widely-cited criticism of his appointment have put Indonesia’s newly elected President on notice we will be watching what he does, not just what he says on human rights.

ETAN has launched a campaign calling for the U.S. to declassify and release all it knows about Indonesia's Rwanda-style 1965 massacres in Indonesia—that the CIA itself concluded were "one of the worst mass murders of the 20th century"—and to acknowledge the U.S. role in the crimes. If you haven't yet done so, please sign ETAN's petition demanding the release of the records and acknowledgment of the U.S. role.

And ETAN remains a world-class source of information, but that cannot continue without your support. Please give generously so ETAN’s unique work can continue.

ETAN's e-mail lists, website, and twitter feed are praised as irreplaceable sources of information and analysis. More than 3400 journalists, policy makers, activists and students ­subscribe to ETAN’s long-running east-timor email listserv, to stay informed about news and analysis about Timor-Leste. Many of you rely on this and ETAN's similar services on Indonesia and West Papua.

Clearly, ETAN’s work remains essential. But it can only do that work with the active and generous support of people like you, who believe in human rights, justice and accountability for the peoples of Timor-Leste, West Papua, and Indonesia.

Your support is crucial. Thank you for joining me in giving generously.
Sincerely,

 /s/

Noam Chomsky

P.S. Please consider becoming an ETAN Sustainer by making a monthly donation by credit card. Help put ETAN on a firmer financial footing, see information here.