Thursday, 18 May 2023

Shirley Shackleton

Ryan BATCHELOR (Southern Metropolitan) (09:44): I rise today to pay tribute to the late Shirley Shackleton, a constituent and fearless campaigner for the people of Timor-Leste, who died earlier this year and whose life’s work, the documentary film The Circle of Silence, premiered a few weeks ago at the Astor Theatre. Shirley was a force of nature. Her husband Greg was murdered in Balibo, Timor-Leste, in 1975 while working as a journalist covering the impending Indonesian invasion alongside four other men that we now know as the Balibo Five. Not even a makeshift Australian flag they painted on their house could protect them once the invading army decided their cameras were a threat. They were killed in cold blood by the Indonesian military to silence them. Shirley relentlessly lobbied governments in Australia and Indonesia to expose the truth of what happened in Balibo. She was a staunch supporter of the Timorese people’s fight for independence, and she was dearly loved by our tiny neighbour.

Her legacy includes the Balibo House Trust, of which she was a life board member. The trust was created by the Victorian government under Premier Steve Bracks, who today remains its patron. Its work over two decades has restored the flag house in Balibo, opened a learning centre, built classrooms at schools, established a dental clinic, restored the fort and established a veterans museum. Their work is an exemplar of the enduring relationship between Victoria and Timor-Leste – a relationship we must all work to sustain. I was fortunate enough to spend time working for the trust when I was living in East Timor, getting to know Shirley and the other families. So today I would like to take this time to acknowledge Shirley and her impact. She will be missed but never forgotten, and her fight must live on in us.