A Timorese View on Justice for Suharto's Crimes

A Timorese View: Time to End Impunity for Suharto's Crimes in Indonesia and Timor-Leste

Tetum: Agora mak tempu atu hapara impunidade ba krime sira Suharto nian iha Indonesia no Timor-Leste

Bahasa Indonesia: Sekarang Saatnya Memutus Impunitas untuk Kejahatan Soeharto di Indonesia dan Timor-Leste

some excerpts:

The tragedy of 1965-1966 is part of a long history of massacres by the Indonesian military. As East Timorese, we know very well the brutality of the Indonesian dictator's regime. I was born after the initial Indonesian invasion in 1975, but grew up under the occupation. As a young student, I saw the Indonesian military intimidate and abuse youth suspected of supporting East Timorese independence. We were not safe anywhere: Suharto's troops would seize us at home, school or on the streets; many were never seen again. I watched helplessly as soldiers murdered my cousin, Luis Gusmão Pereira, in a public market in Triloedae-Laga. 

....

The chains of impunity remain strong in Indonesia; U.S. leaders who supported crimes against humanity in Indonesia and elsewhere continue to avoid accountability and punishment. The U.S. and Indonesia claim they are democratic and law-abiding nations, but they openly resist holding their own officials accountable.

East Timorese demonstrate for justice.
Photo by Karen Orenstein/ETAN.

In the U.S.? Watch Alias Ruby Blade Online - One week only!

Alias Ruby Blade: A Story of Love and Revolution tells the tale of Kirsty Sword Gusmao as a young Australian activist who adopts the alias Ruby Blade while working for the underground Timorese resistance in Indonesia. It is currently showing during the Tribeca Film Festival in NYC.

You will need to create a Tribeca account and log in you can watch three Tribeca Film Festival  2013 feature films and four short films.

Then go to http://www.tribecafilm.com/online/competitions/film/513238201c7d76a6bb000084-alias-ruby-blade-a-story- . 

All films expire at 11:59 pm on April 28.

Please note: All TFF features and shorts are restricted to viewers in the United States only.

SYNOPSIS of Alias Ruby Blade

Veteran documentary editor and producer Alex Meillier takes a turn in the director’s chair to tell the remarkable story of documentarian-turned-activist Kirsty Sword Gusmão. Beginning with only a simple curiosity in the islands to the north of her native Australia, she becomes a forceful advocate for the tiny nation of Timor-Leste and a lynchpin in its harrowing, decade-long struggle for independence. Meillier turns Gusmão and her team’s firsthand footage of the revolution into an insider’s guide to the personalities and secret networks that kept it alive. Along the way, we meet the charismatic leader of the resistance, Xanana, whose relationship with Kirsty would redefine the cause for which they both were fighting. 

Alias Ruby Blade is an engaging portrait of a revolution with deep resonance in the events of the Arab Spring. By focusing his film on the movement’s most unlikely member, who in turn becomes one of its most indispensable agents, Meillier gives a personal edge to the individual sacrifices and courage needed to create a new democracy in modern times.  ­Arthur Ryel-Lindsey for Tribeca Film Festival

more info www.aliasrubyblade.com

2012 | 78 minutes | Documentary Feature

For details about upcoming showings in the New York-area at the Tribeca Film Festival and Montclair Film Festival go to http://etanaction.blogspot.com/2013/04/nyc-showings-of-alias-ruby-blade-story.html

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Copies of Kirsty Sword Gusmao's book, Woman of Independence, are available from ETAN. http://etan.org/resource/books.htm#B47Copies of Kirsty Sword Gusmao's book, Woman of Independence, are available from ETAN. http://etan.org/resource/books.htm#B47

NYC showings of Alias Ruby Blade: A Story of Love and Revolution

UPDATE 2: Watch Alias Ruby Blade online - one week only (until April 28). Details here

UPDATE: Alias Ruby Blade is also showing at the Montclair (NJ) Film Festival, Saturday, May 4, 2013, 1 pm. Also showing is the Act of Killing, the widely acclaimed documentary about the killings in 1965-66 Indonesia: Sunday, May 5, 6:15 pm.  

http://www.tribecafilm.com/filmguide/513238201c7d76a6bb000084-alias-ruby-blade-a-story-

Alias Ruby Blade:
A Story of Love and Revolution

SCREENINGS

FRI     4/19    8:30 PM AMC Loews Village 7 - 3        
 BUY TICKETS
SAT     4/20    4:00 PM AMC Loews Village 7 - 2       
 BUY TICKETS
TUE     4/23    3:30 PM Clearview Cinemas Chelsea 6 
 BUY TICKETS
SAT     4/27    3:00 PM AMC Loews Village 7 - 1      
 BUY TICKETS

Q and A with Director Alex Meillier after all screenings.

SYNOPSIS

Veteran documentary editor and producer Alex Meillier takes a turn in the director’s chair to tell the remarkable story of documentarian-turned-activist Kirsty Sword Gusmão. Beginning with only a simple curiosity in the islands to the north of her native Australia, she becomes a forceful advocate for the tiny nation of Timor-Leste and a lynchpin in its harrowing, decade-long struggle for independence. Meillier turns Gusmão and her team’s firsthand footage of the revolution into an insider’s guide to the personalities and secret networks that kept it alive. Along the way, we meet the charismatic leader of the resistance, Xanana, whose relationship with Kirsty would redefine the cause for which they both were fighting.

Alias Ruby Blade is an engaging portrait of a revolution with deep resonance in the events of the Arab Spring. By focusing his film on the movement’s most unlikely member, who in turn becomes one of its most indispensable agents, Meillier gives a personal edge to the individual sacrifices and courage needed to create a new democracy in modern times.   --Arthur Ryel-Lindsey

Program: World Documentary Competition

2012 | 78 minutes | Documentary Feature

Directed by: Alex Meillier
Premiere: North American
Cinematographer Shane Sigler
Cast Kirsty Sword Gusmão, Xanana Gusmão, José Ramos-Horta
Director Alex Meillier
Screenwriter Tanya Ager Meillier, Alex Meillier
Producer Tanya Ager Meillier, Richard Keddie
Editor Tanya Ager Meillier, Alex Meillier
Director of Photography Shane Sigler
Executive Producer Abigail E. Disney, Gini Reticker, Silvio Salom
Composer Paul Brill

Film website: www.aliasrubyblade.com





Copies of Kirsty Sword Gusmao's book, Woman of Independence, are available from ETAN. http://etan.org/resource/books.htm#B47