by Jorge Aroche

Sierra Leone - A Decade of Darkness and Barbarism

by Olga Yoldi

The brutal violence that the Revolutionary United Front inflicted on defenseless civilians during the war sent a chilling reminder that the battle to defeat evil is never over. Sierra Leone’s recent history is a story of greed, corruption, brutality and political failure. It presents the West with the most profound ethical and moral issues of our time. Olga Yoldi writes.

One Step Closer To Deportation

by Peter Williamson

Despite completing their sentences, and a finding that their continued detention is a breach of human rights, 3O Vietnamese refugees remain in prison pending deportation some day to Vietnam. Peter Williamson reports on their continuing struggle to return to their homes and families.

Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court

by Dr Helen Durham

Dr Helen Durham of the Australian Red Cross calls for Australian ratification of the Rome Statute to establish an International Criminal Court.

An Unnoticed War

The West Papuan Struggle for Independence

John Otto Ondawame: Working for West Papua’s Independence

by Prabha Gulati

Dr John Ondawame is a leading West Papuan academic, activist and member of the West Papua Presidium Council. He was recently awarded a PhD in political science by the Australian National University. His thesis titled One People, One Soul: West Papuan Nationalism and the Organisasi Papua Merdeka (OPM)/Free Papua Movement, calls for peaceful dialogue between Indonesia and people of West Papua. In an interview with Prabha Gulati, John Ondawame gave a history of his involvement in the West Papuan struggle for independence. He is currently coordinator of the West Papua Project at the Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies, University of Sydney.

STARTTS In East Timor

by Olga Yoldi

STARTTS assisted in the establishment of a mental health clinic in Dili to help people recover from trauma. Mariano Coello, Jorge Aroche, Julie Savage, Marc Chaussivert and Dr Andrew McNaughtan, shared their experiences working in East Timor with Peter Williamson and Olga Yoldi in a round table discussion.

Families in Cutural Transitions

by Monica Lamelass and Elisabeth Pickering

A joint STARTTS/ NSW DET program is achieving good results in helping refugee school children and their families adjust to their new lives in New South Wales. The program is even being trialled with families from non-refugee communities. At the Diversity In Health Conference, in Sydney in May, Elisabeth Pickering and Monica Lamelas presented a paper titled A Holistic Approach to Families in Cultural Transitions - STARTTS and DET Working Together. This is an edited excerpt.

Part of the Global Clamour


by Peter Williamson

On 26 June, to commemorate the UN International Day in Support of Victims of Torture, about 1OO people gathered in the State Library of NSW for a Friends of STARTTS/Amnesty International seminar on the rehabilitation of victims of torture. Peter Williamson reports

Minister’s Statement on Victims of Torture


by Hon. Craig Knowles

On 26 June, Craig Knowles, the NSW Minister for Health, was asked a question in Parliament about the services provided to victims of torture in New South Wales.
Here is his reply.

Abyssinian Chronicles

by Moses Isegawa

It is not often that a book dealing with life in Uganda captures the imagination of Western prose readers. Moses Isegawa’s thinly-disguised autobiographical narrator Mugezi matures from a wide-eyed boy observant of village life to a politically astute adult having experienced personal loss against a background of national tragedy.

As if I am not there: A Novel About the Balkans

by Slavenka Drakulic

 Beautiful People

by Jasmin Dizdar