Change of mood on West Papua issue

AVINESH GOPAL, Fiji Times Online, Wednesday, August 17, 2016

Update: 12:23PM PACIFIC Islands Association of NGOs executive director Emele Duituturaga says the groundswell of support for West Papua across the region is the ideal build up to the upcoming Forum Leaders meeting in Federated States of Micronesia.

Ms Duituturaga made the comments after presenting the issue of West Papua to the Regional Civil Society Forum in Suva last week.

“There is definitely a change of mood across the Pacific on this issue as they begin to understand the severity of the human rights abuses and violence faced by West Papuans and the colonial history,” she said in a statement today.

“Our CSO forum heard of issues raised in national consultations and what other CSO partners had echoed and we were pleased to hear that there is widespread support from CSO partners across the region for this as a priority regional issue.

“So it is heartening to see West Papua under the list of initiatives for leaders consideration in the summary of recommendations compiled by the Forum Specialist Sub-Committee on Regionalism.”