Civic honour for Balibo murder victim

KENT BLECHYNDEN/The Dominion Post

SPECIAL PLACE FOR "MARTYR": Mayor Kerry Prendergast, left, and Gary Cunningham's aunt, Patricia McGregor, at the memorial site.

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A "true hero" killed in the line of duty is to be recognised in Wellington as an investigation continues into his 1975 murder.

Cameraman Gary Cunningham was gunned down with four other journalists in East Timor by invading Indonesian forces, while on assignment for Australia's Channel 7.

Though the Indonesian Army initially said the men were caught in cross-fire, it later emerged they were slain to prevent reports of the invasion reaching the world.

Mr Cunningham, who lived in Wellington until he was 21, would be pleased to live on in Mt Victoria's Charles Plimmer Park, where a commemorative plaque, park bench and tree was to be erected, aunt Patricia McGregor said.

She wished her brother, Gary's father, Jim – who died in 2001 – was still alive to see the memorial.

The New Zealand Government had not helped the family get answers, she said.

"The Government ... wouldn't do anything to give us any satisfaction on what had happened and what was going on ... and successive governments have just sort of shelved it, so in the end the family just gave up trying to find out [what happened]."

Indonesian Committee for Human Rights chairwoman Maire Leadbeater, who organised the memorial with Media Freedom Committee secretary Tim Pankhurst, called Mr Cunningham "a true hero" Wellington should be proud of. "As far as the East Timorese are concerned, he's a martyr."

A war crimes investigation was done by Australian Federal Police last year, and a "powerful" film, Balibo, would be released in New Zealand on February 18.

Ms Leadbeater hoped the memorial would provoke action from the Government.

"Successive governments have just turned their back on it ... this is at least some recognition."

Wellington Mayor Kerry Prendergast said she hoped the memorial would precipitate Government action. "I hope the Government will look at this and say: `It's time that past wrongs are put right'."

- © Fairfax NZ News