The Inhuman treatment to West Papuan refugees in PNG

DAVID FEDELE


West Papuan Refugees in Papua New Guinea
Last week on this website we featured a documentary by Australian Filmmaker David Fedele, He have been working on another project while filming Bikpela Bagarap in PNG.

There is evidence of major mistreatment of West Papuan refugees by Papua New Guinea, a country where they have sought refugee. The footage shows evidence of refugee camps in Papua New Guinea being burnt down and footage of women and children crying in hysterics on their return after hiding in the jungle. This is clear evidence of contravention of the UN Charter for Refugees and Human Rights by a UN member state.

To give some background, Special Operation Sunset Merona (led by the Papua New Guinea police and army) burnt down villages/camps of West Papuan Refugeess in and around Vanimo, Sandaun Province, Papua New Guinea in January 2011. Most of these refugees had residency papers and had been legally in Papua New Guinea for many years. (they had fled persecution in West Papua at the hands of the Indonesians)

This story is very much still a relevant story. Though the footage was taken earlier in the year, our contacts have informed us that Sunset Merona still has a presence in Vanimo, and all of the refugees (MEN, WOMEN AND CHILDREN) that fled into the bush are 6 MONTHS LATER STILL HIDING TO AVOID CAPTURE AND BEATING, AND POSSIBLE RISK OF BEING TURNED OVER THE THE INDONESIAN GOVERNMENT, WHERE THEY WOULD FACE CERTAIN DEATH. It goes against every element of the UN Charter for Refugees or which Papua New Guinea is legally bound.

He's making an attempt to get this footage to as wide an audience as possible - to raise awareness of how these West Papuan refugees are being treated by PNG.

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