Inquest into the death of Brian Raymond Peters, one of the Balibo Five
Deceased
Brian Raymond Peters
Demographics
29y, male
Date of death
1975-10-16
Finding date
2007-11-16
Cause of death
Wounds sustained when shot and/or stabbed deliberately by members of the Indonesian Special Forces
AI-generated summary
This is a coronal finding into the deaths of five Australian-based journalists (four of whom were not Australian citizens) killed in Balibo, East Timor on 16 October 1975. Extensive witness testimony and intelligence material confirmed the journalists were deliberately killed by Indonesian Special Forces (Captain Yunus Yosfiah and others), not accidentally in crossfire as officially claimed. The journalists clearly identified themselves as Australians and journalists while surrendering, but were shot and/or stabbed by orders from Yosfiah, likely emanating from senior military commanders. Their bodies were then incinerated and a prolonged cover-up campaign was orchestrated. The coroner found the killings constituted grave breaches of the Geneva Conventions and referred the matter to the Commonwealth Attorney General for potential war crimes prosecution.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Contributing factors
- Deliberate orders by Captain Yunus Yosfiah to kill journalists to prevent revelation of Indonesian military involvement
- Strong circumstantial evidence orders emanated from Major-General Benny Murdani and Colonel Dading Kalbuadi
- Journalists' judgment to remain in Balibo despite warnings and opportunities to escape
- Indonesian military policy to deny presence of Indonesian forces and eliminate witnesses
- Identification of journalists as Australians and journalists did not afford protection as expected
Coroner's recommendations
- Australian Government should liaise with next-of-kin of the Balibo Five to ascertain and facilitate their wishes regarding the continued internment of remains in Jakarta
- A national industry-wide Safety Code of Practice for journalists should be developed in conjunction with and endorsed by Australia's media organisations
- Referral to Commonwealth Attorney General regarding potential breaches of Division 268 of the Commonwealth Criminal Code (war crimes under Geneva Conventions)
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