Amnesty Exeter Invites Papua’s Separatist Leaders in London

January 22nd, 2008 was the first time in the year of 2008 Amnesty Exeter (Exeter Amnesty International Group) invites West Papua  separatist leaders, Mr Benny Wenda & Mr Richard Samuelson. Mr. Benny Wenda who is Papuan gives talk about Human Right Issue in West Papua. He says Human Right violation in West Papua is committed by Indonesia Military toward West Papuan Peoples. Those propaganda was an old stories that Mr. Wenda keep echoing in UK. He also says that there is no freedom at all, and only killing, torture, imprisonment and intimidation. so we need international attention and keep an eye on the West Papuan Peoples. In contrast, the real situation in West Papua Indonesia is far from Mr. Wenda propaganda, that is a new democratic atmosphere is gradually developed.

Exeter Amnesty Society, an open organization, usually campaigns around campus and meets every week to write letters about issues that matter. Benny Wenda is from West Papua. He and a fellow countryman, who both fled their homeland and are now in happy life in the UK. Meanwhile, Richard Samuelson is Co-Director of  Free West Papua Campaign, Oxford, Inggris and he also runs website http://www.freewestpapua.org.  Samuelson who has ever said that Papua is bloody map and it has been almost 40 years, creates an intelligence network to undermine the right of West Papuan to develop their own homeland under special autonomous law. The network links London, Berlin, Washington, Canberra and Den Haag and maybe any other areas in the world.

Hopefully the world can see and judge the development in Papua Indonesia fair enough to understand the complexity of the problem. Efforts by Papua’s Separatist Leaders outside Papua are just worsening the conflict in Papua. We are Papuan who live and die in our own land do not need any assistance from political opportunist. All want is simply a freedom to develop our land from poverty into wealthy.