Dear friend of West Papua,

Thanks for your continued support for the campaign as we work towards the goal of justice, democracy and freedom in West Papua.

In this newsletter we share news of:

• West Papua solidarity resolution passed by the Western Sahara support committee
• NGO group Peace Brigades International forced out of West Papua
• Appeal to people to contact the UK Government over training and funding of the Indonesian military
• West Papua solidarity event at the London School of Economics (LSE)
• Forthcoming demos outside the BP AGM, Indonesian Embassy, and the headquarters of BP and Rio Tinto

We are delighted to have received notification that the Norwegian Support Committee of Western Sahara has passed a resolution demanding that Indonesia ends its occupation of West Papua and lets the people hold a referendum in which they can decide their own future. Similarly to the West Papuan people, the Saharawi people have suffered from years under Morrocan colonial rule. We stand shoulder to shoulder with them in their struggle:
http://www.vest-sahara.no/index.php?parse_news=single&cat=49&art=1652

UK NGO group 'Peace Brigades International' has finally been forced out of West Papua, citing the oppressive working conditions the Indonesian authorities imposed on them. Following on from the expulsion of the International Committee of the Red Cross, as well as the continuing military build-up in the region, we are obviously deeply concerned by this latest development, and urge the international community to continue to push the issue with the Indonesian Government. The most important first step is for UN peacekeepers to be sent to the central highland region as a matter of urgency.

We are also asking people to contact the UK Government, asking them to stop their arms deals with the Indonesian Government and to stop funding scholarship programs for soldiers from the Indonesian army. Many people will be unaware that the Ministry of Defence uses UK taxpayers money to sponsor members of the TNI to attend ‘Defence and Security Management' courses at the University of Jakarta.

In the current climate of economic austerity, we believe UK taxpayers will be sickened to discover that their taxes are being used to fund a military force that has brutally oppressed the Papuan people for decades, killing over 400,000 people.

Please share your concerns with the UK Foreign Office via the feedback form on the following link (select South East Asia Pacific in options):

http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/ministerial-feedback-form

Thursday 14^th April – DEMONSTRATE FOR WEST PAPUA! Two demos in one day in London. In the morning we will be joining people from around the world outside the BP AGM. The Free West Papua Campaign will have a presence highlighting BP's role in funding genocide in West Papua. Join us outside the Excel centre in docklands around 10.30 am. We will then move on to our regular demonstration outside the Indonesian Embassy in Grosvenor Square from 2 till 3pm. If you are in London, please come and join us.

Benny Wenda will also be speaking at a public meeting about BP on the evening of 12^th April in Bethnal Green, London. For more info please see: http://www.no-tar-sands.org/

Next month we are delighted that students from the London School of Economics (LSE) will be hosting a West Papua solidarity event on 24th May. Included in this, students will sign a declaration calling on the university governing body to cut all ties with the Indonesian regime. The following day, 25th May, we will be holding a demo outside the headquarters of BP, Rio Tinto and also the Indonesian Embassy.

For all the latest campaign developments please check our website. You can also find us on Twitter @freewestpapua and also on Facebook.

On behalf of the West Papuan people who continue to suffer terrible on a daily basis under Indonesian colonial rule, we thank you for your on-going support for the campaign. Please do anything you can to help raise this issue at a local and national level, and help stop the genocide that is taking place in West Papua.

Free West Papua

Merdeka

Benny Wenda
Leader of the West Papuan Independence Movement in the UK
www.freewestpapua.org