I have signed up to the letter below. The contact to add your name is at the bottom of the letter. I have addended also a December, 2006 statement by the East Timorese government on the Cuban medical aid.
MATCH IT!
Prime Minister of Australia
Mr Kevin Rudd, MHR [also to other ministers]
January 2008
Dear Prime Minister
Re: Australian and Cuban education assistance to Timor Leste
We the following academics, writers, organisations and NGO workers observe these developments, on education assistance to Timor Leste:
• over 2002-2007 the number of University scholarships offered by the Australian Government to students from Timor Leste declined from 20 per year to 8 per year
• over 2003-2006 the number of medical training scholarships offered by the Government of Cuba to students from Timor Leste increased from 50 to 1,000
There are currently 800 students from Timor Leste studying medicine with the Cubans. This makes it probably the biggest aid program in medical training, per capita, in the world. Adult literacy training in Timor Leste is now also dominated by the Cubans.
So far there have been two Australian reactions (government, media, NGO) to Cuban programs in ‘our’ region. One was to ignore, snipe at or seek to undermine the Cubans, as perceived ‘competitors’. The other is to respond with a generosity that matches them. We urge your government to strengthen this latter path and MATCH the Cuban scholarship offer.
Cuban health and education programs are recognised and commended by the World Health Organisation and U.N.E.S.C.O.. But Australia also has great capacity to share through its schools, universities and teachers. There is a great deal of goodwill in our country towards the East Timorese, despite the damage done by the oil and gas dispute and the recent crisis.
We urge your government to begin a large scale public education program for the East Timorese, matching the Cuban offer of 1,000 scholarships, in areas in which we have great capacity, such as teacher training. We emphasise that the measure of support should be through the extent of human capacity building, not through a dollar sum.
The ordinary people of East Timor deserve nothing less from a rich and powerful neighbour that has so often let them down.
Yours sincerely
Dr Tim Anderson, Political Economy, University of Sydney
John Pilger, filmmaker and author
Professor Frank Stilwell, Political Economy, University of Sydney
Pat Anderson, Board Chairperson, Cooperative Research Centre for Aboriginal Health
Dr Ben Bartlett, Leader PHC Program, Cooperative Research Centre for Aboriginal Health
Dr Meredith Burgmann, Former President of the NSW Legislative Council
Lee Rhiannon MLC, Greens member of NSW Legislative Council
Professor Stewart Firth, Head of the Pacific Centre, Australian National University
Shirley Shackleton, East Timor activist
AID/Watch
Union Aid Abroad - APHEDA
Max Lane, Indonesian Studies, University of Sydney
Dr George Morgan, University of Western Sydney
Dr Bob Boughton, University of New England
Dr Duncan McDuie-Ra, Development Studies, University of New South Wales
Peter Weitzel, teacher and union activist
Stephanie Lusby, Policy and Advocacy Director, Jubilee Australia
Jessica Bommer, Jubilee Australia
Dr. Danielle Celermajer, Director of Global Studies, University of Sydney
Dr. Robert Austin, Honorary Fellow, History, University of Melbourne
Peter Boyle, Democratic Socialist Perspective National Secretary
Emma Murphy and Stuart Munckton, Green Left Weekly Editors
Pip Hinman, Action in Solidarity with Asia and the Pacific
Dr James Arvanitakis, Humanities and Languages, University of Western Sydney
Eko Waluyo, Indonesian Solidarity, Sydney
Giovanni Ebono, Ebono Institute
Kerry Lawrence, Australia Cuba Friendship Society
Anna McCormack, Southside Peace Group, Brisbane
Associate Professor Peter Sainsbury, Public Health, University of Sydney
Assoc Prof. Winton Higgins, Institute for International Studies, University of Technology Sydney
Ross Johnston, Principal Consultant, Bushwork Consultants
Stephen Langford and Jefferson Lee, Australia East Timor Association
Janette McLeod, Brisbane
Alan Roberts, Climate Change Action Network
Contact:
Dr Tim Anderson
Email:
t.anderson@usyd.edu.au
Tel: 0418-604-488
Postal: PO Box 109, Glebe, NSW 2037
cc.
Mr Stephen Smith MP, Minister for Foreign Affairs
Mr Bob McMullan MP, Parliamentary Secretary for International Development Assistance
Mr Duncan Kerr SC MP, Parliamentary Secretary for Pacific Island Affairs
+++++
EAST TIMOR GOVERNMENT STATEMENT
MEDIA RELEASE
Dili, November 15 2006
Timor-Leste medical students in Cuba 'the best and most disciplined'
Timor-Leste's 498 students in Cuba are considered to be the best among thousands of overseas people studying medicine there – in terms of results and discipline, according to Vice-Minister of Health Luis Lobato. "Our young people are a credit to all of Timor-Leste as they work hard and show great discipline," Mr Lobato said. "I am told by Cuban authorities that they are the best.
"The kindness, sincerity and generosity of the Cuban people and
Government is overwhelming. Despite all it is currently doing for
Timor-Leste, Cuba is taking another 200 of our students in the coming months."
Twenty one other countries have people studying medicine in Cuba, which is a poor and developing nation but with one of the best health systems in the world – in some cases far better than in the United States, where public hospitals in some instances are no better than hospitals in developing countries.
Cuba also has 302 doctors working throughout Timor-Leste. More than 120 of these doctors are specialists working in hospitals in Dili, Maliana, Baucau, Suai, Oecussi and Maubissi. Although the Timor-Leste Government initially contributed a modest amount to the costs associated with the program, the Cuban Government now pays the wages of all its doctors and charges our medical students nothing for studies.
Prime Minister Dr José Ramos-Horta today praised the commitment and courage of the Cuban doctors helping Timor-Leste.
"During the worst of the crisis in May, June and July our Cuban doctors stayed unconditionally in the villages and hospitals with the patients and the people, providing the much-needed moral, medical and psychological support," Dr Ramos-Horta said.
"This is in contrast with American Peace Corp volunteers, who, even
though there was not the slightest threat to their safety and well-being in rural areas, were given orders by the US administration to leave our country.
"The Cuban courage and commitment is also in contrast with the Japanese. JICA, the Japanese International Co-operation Agency, abruptly interrupted its co-operation in Timor-Leste, even though there was never any threat to Japanese nationals, particularly in the rural areas."
The original scholarship program between Cuba and Timor-Leste was discussed on the sidelines at a summit meeting of the Non-Aligned Movement in Kuala Lumpur in 2003 when President Xanana Gusmão met Cuban President Fidel Castro and 50 medical scholarships were offered at that time. Dr Ramos-Horta was there in his capacity as Foreign Minister.
Subsequently, the Cuban Government raised the number of scholarships to a maximum of 1000.
"Thanks to the generosity of another relatively poor nation, when we have at least 500 of our students complete the course and return – together with the ones studying in Timor-Leste and other countries – we will have a ratio of doctors-to-population as high as that of any developed country," Dr Ramos-Horta said.
"Timor-Leste has been blessed by having many nations as real friends, but I must ask: what greater gift can we receive than a guaranteed health system for our people? This is the gift from the people of Cuba."
The Prime Minister stressed that Timor-Leste did not interfere in the internal affairs of other countries and their choice of political system.
"The US and Cuba might not have diplomatic relations and have been in a state of "no war, no peace" for the past 40 years or so," Dr Ramos-Horta said, "but Timor-Leste has good solid relations with both.
"The Cubans treat our young people wonderfully. They are allowed to practise their religion without interference and I have asked our church whether they could send a chaplain to Cuba to minister to our students' spiritual needs.
"I have also asked Bishop Carlos Belo to visit our students and he will do this soon."
Last Monday the Prime Minister and Vice-Minister for Health addressed a gathering of several hundred parents and other relatives of the students in Dili. Dr Ramos-Horta told the gathering that all of Timor-Leste was very proud of the commitment the students were making to the nation.
Timor-Leste has other medical students in Indonesia, Portugal, the
Philippines, Fiji, Malaysia and Australia.
"When our doctors return in 2012 I hope we will have one doctor for
every village," Dr Ramos-Horta said.