A Papuan Christmas is an earlier poem on West Papua, written for an exhibition on West Papua as part of Human Rights Week in Hobart, Tasmania, in 1997. West Papuan refugee, Rex Rumakiek, attended the opening, with a talk by Tasmanian politician, John White MP, who later that day read the poem out in the Tasmanian Parliament, so that it is now permaently recorded in the Hansard.
A Papuan Christmas
Far away in Europe
in 1848
the island of New Guinea
was carved up like a Christmas Cake
A quarter to the Germans
a quarter to the Brits
and half for the Dutch
a three way split
Did anyone ask the Papuans
Did anyone say please?
Were they invited to the party?
Or was someone being mean?
Far away in Europe
half way round the world
the destiny of Papua
was legally upheld
Now the people cry
“Freedom from the yoke
freedom from the colonialist
who treat us like a joke!”
Jaqi
Bluh
December
1997
Mark Bowling, 14 March 2016, Asia Pacific Report
https://asiapacificreport.nz/2016/03/14/new-report-tells-of-murder-kidnapping-and-torture-in-west-papua/
https://asiapacificreport.nz/2016/03/14/new-report-tells-of-murder-kidnapping-and-torture-in-west-papua/
"Allegations of recent military and police intimidation, beatings and torture, kidnapping and murder in West Papua, have been documented in a new Church report. The report documents Muslims being radicalised in the once predominantly Christian Papuan provinces, and “very active” Muslim militias that burn down Papuan houses. The report was compiled by the Brisbane Catholic Justice and Peace Commission’s Shadow Human Rights Fact Finding Mission to West Papua, following a visit to West Papua last month.” ~ "It refers to a slow motion genocide happening and states that “the Indonesians want to replace the Christian religion with Islam”."
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