Tag: West Papua independence
West Papua: ‘We’re proud Fijians today’ over Rabuka support
By Felix Chaudhary in Suva
"We are proud Fijians and Melanesians today" -- Fiji Council of Social Services executive director Vani Catanasiga said this in...
Rabuka backs call for West Papuan independence group to fully join...
By Kelvin Anthony, RNZ Pacific digital and social media journalist, and Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist
Fiji's Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka is the first Fijian...
NZ government ‘intervened’ to stop operation to save pilot, says Jakarta
RNZ Pacific
Indonesian security forces were about to launch a rescue operation for a pilot held hostage in Papua before New Zealand intervened, reports ABC...
Wenda hopes to get plight of West Papuan people to PIF...
By Felix Chaudhary in Suva
Recognising Indonesia’s sovereignty is one thing.
However, failing to allow West Papuans a seat at regional discussion tables like the Pacific...
Wenda calls on West Papuan rebels to release kidnapped NZ pilot
RNZ Pacific
A West Papuan independence movement leader, Benny Wenda, says the release of New Zealand pilot Phillip Mehrtens held hostage by armed rebels is...
Indigenous Papuan negotiators walk to forest hideout to seek release of...
Jubi News in Jayapura
An indigenous Papuan negotiation team has traversed rugged highlands forests in the Indonesian-ruled Melanesian province in search of the New Zealand...
Indonesia to negotiate with West Papuan rebels for NZ pilot’s release
By Tria Dianti in Jakarta
Authorities in Indonesia’s Melanesian province Papua will negotiate with indigenous pro-independence rebels to secure the release of a New Zealand...
Papuan cat-and-mouse over NZ pilot taken captive by ‘freedom’ rebels
BACKGROUNDER: By David Robie
Papuan independence rebels are playing a desperate game of cat and mouse with Indonesian authorities over their hostage taking last week...
Why a NZ pilot is a pawn in the West Papua...
ANALYSIS: By Camellia Webb-Gannon, University of Wollongong
“Phil Mehrtens is the nicest guy, he genuinely is -- no one ever had anything bad to say...
Accepting Indonesia into MSG ‘a mistake’, admits Natuman
By Len Garae in Port Vila
Former Vanuatu Prime Minister Joe Natuman says allowing Indonesia -- by former Prime Minister Sato Kilman -- into the...
Rescue mission underway for NZ pilot held hostage in Papua, say...
RNZ News
Indonesian police and military have launched a joint mission to rescue a New Zealand pilot who was seized by rebels as a hostage...
Human rights researcher pleads for West Papuan rebels to free NZ...
By Finau Fonua and Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalists
A researcher at Human Rights Watch in Jakarta is calling for the immediate release of the...
Indonesian security forces ‘have no idea’ where NZ pilot hostage is
Jubi News in Jayapura
Indonesian security forces do not know the whereabouts of the New Zealand pilot taken hostage by the West Papua National Liberation...
Indonesian rights researcher slams kidnapping – efforts to free NZ pilot
RNZ News
An Indonesian human rights researcher has condemned the Papuan rebels who have taken a New Zealand pilot hostage and gone into hiding in...
NZ Papua hostage: Pilots warned to take precautions in ‘danger’ zone
By Kate Green , RNZ News journalist
A former New Zealand pilot says flying for an Indonesian airline can be dangerous, and those who do...
Papuan rebels seize NZ pilot hostage, set local plane on fire,...
RNZ Pacific
Pro-independence rebels in Indonesia's Papua province have seized a New Zealand pilot as hostage after setting a small commercial plane on fire when...
Yamin Kogoya: While West Papuans face an ‘existential threat’ under Indonesia,...
ANALYSIS: By Yamin Kogoya
"We are part of them and they are part of us," declared politician Augustine Rapa, founder and president of the PNG...
Pacific churches call for boycott of Indonesian products over Papua
By Shayal Devi in Suva
In solidarity with West Papua, the Pacific Conference of Churches (PCC) has called for a boycott of all Indonesian products...
Happy West Papua Day – and the brutal truth about where...
COMMENTARY: By Yamin Kogoya
On 30 June 2022, the Indonesian Parliament in Jakarta passed legislation to split West Papua into three more pieces.
The Papuan people's...
Pacific marks 61st year flying of Papua’s banned Morning Star flag
By Lydia Lewis, RNZ Pacific journalist
Reports of threats by Indonesia against "Free West Papua" activists have come to light on the anniversary of the...
Filep Karma: A Papuan human rights hero and huge loss...
OBITUARY: By Andreas Harsono in Jakarta
Filep Karma, a prominent Papuan activist and former political prisoner, was found dead yesterday on a beach in...
Morning Star flag protester in West Papua dies of mystery illness
RNZ Pacific
One of eight West Papuan activists who raised the banned Morning Star flag of independence in a protest last December has died.
Zode Hilapok's...