West Papua’s journey towards Freedom took another historic step forward when Benny Wenda, Leader of the West Papua independence movement in the UK, discussed justice for West Papua with the Rt Hon. David Cameron M.P., Leader of the Conservative Party & Leader of the Opposition in the United Kingdom Parliament.
Benny Wenda, together with Richard Samuelson, Co-Director of the Free West Papua Campaign (UK), briefed Mr Cameron on the West Papuan people’s right to self-determination and on the injustice perpetrated by Indonesia via the sham 1969 Act of “Free” Choice, in which 1,026 selected Papuans were forced at gun point to vote for Indonesian rule.
Mr Cameron also received details of the horrific and systematic human rights abuses committed by the Indonesian military and police against hundreds of thousands of innocent Papuans throughout Indonesia’s 44 year long occupation of West Papua. One case specifically raised with Mr Cameron by Benny Wenda was that of Filep Karma & Yusak Pakage, tortured and jailed by Indonesia for 15 & 10 years respectively for peacefully raising West Papua’s independence flag in 2004.
After hearing the evidence, Mr Cameron said that one of the roles of the Official Opposition in the British Parliament is to probe and question the Government. Mr Cameron therefore promised that the Conservative Party’s Foreign Affairs team will question the Government on its policy towards West Papua, especially about West Papua’s right to self-determination.
Free West Papua :: Papua Merdeka 