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Elections held but no real choice for West Papuans
Australia West Papua Association (Victoria) Press Release - April 9, 2009
The Australia West Papua Association (AWPA) Victoria is calling on the Australian Government to make an urgent diplomatic representation to its Indonesian counterpart over escalating violence in the lead up to the general elections taking place today.
Members of Melbourne's West Papuan community and supporters will hand out flyers and speak with members of the public at Flinders Street Station this afternoon before travelling to the Indonesian Consulate for a vigil in support of their friends and family back home. They will mark the occasion with traditional songs and by raising the Morning Star Flag as a reminder of the importance of free speech.
Recent large and peaceful rallies in West Papuan townships have been responded to with extreme force and violence by Indonesian security forces.
Known victims shot at a peaceful rally a few days ago in Nabire include a 10 year old boy on his way home from school and at least eight others. The security forces fired their weapons repeatedly and took a very aggressive approach to anyone in or near the area where the rally took place.
The Institute for Papuan Advocacy and Human Rights has brought many of these events to light and has photos and video footage of the events in Nabire. They can be contacted via Matthew Jamieson on 0418 291 998.
AWPA spokesperson Rickard Rumbiak said that the Australian Government must play a leadership role in the Asia-Pacific region, particularly around the protection of human rights by Australia's key trading partners and neighbours.
"No government should turn a blind eye to human rights violations because of politics. This is the road to disaster.
"The Indonesian General Election presents a hypocritical backdrop to the repression in West Papua. We are given the illusion of choice but no real power. This is why there is a widespread call to boycott the elections.
"Let us vote on demilitarising West Papua. Let us vote for free speech. Let us vote for human rights protections and equality before the law. Let us vote for economic opportunities, the protection of our ancient forests and freedom to express our traditional culture. We are prisoners living under occupation in our own land with no real power to decide anything."
More information: awpa.melbourne@gmail.com
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