Tom Uren’s collective spirit

May 25, 2026

Thank you, Martin Flanagan (Tom Uren-no ‘woke warrior, May 24, 2026), for such a moving account of Tom Uren. I only knew Tom briefly through his support for East Timor’s liberation from invasion and barbarity. Tom joined several prominent political figures at the launch of the anti-Timor Gap oil petition campaign at the University of Melbourne in 1994. I believe, if here today, Tom would share the same solidarity for the liberation of West Papua. No people deserve barbarity, unlawful invasion, dispossession, abandonment, and decades of crimes against humanity. Leaving the crowded lecture theatre back then, Tom remarked on the surprising number of students filling the theatre for the petition launch. I acknowledged the student campus interest, and the big fella had that same radiance of collective spirit your article, Martin, and the lead-in photo displays. Keeping the faith of solidarity, often surrounded by censorship, prejudice and denial, is a fight and faith we who share this collective spirit, will never surrender. Our common bond - never accepting what is patently unacceptable. In peace & solidarity, Jim Aubrey, Genocide Rebellion-Free West Papua Chapter Australia