West Papua: Open Letter to Indonesian President
In an open letter to the Indonesian President, the
Below is a letter written by Joe Collins of the
Dear President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono,
On behalf of the Australia West Papua Association (Sydney), I am writing to you with great concern for the safety of the Reverend Socretez Sofian Yoman, who is head of the
The Rev Socretez Sofian Yoman is a human rights advocate and has worked tirelessly to improve the human rights situation in
We are increasingly concerned for Rev Yoman¹s personal safety as he has been receiving a large number of threats and intimidation by telephone and text in recent times. He was also threatened at gun point. Rev Yoman reported that a pistol was pointed directly at him and he was verbally threatened after a church service in Jayapura on Sunday [29 July 2007].
This intimidation has not only being confined to Rev Yoman but also to a number of individuals and organisations in both West Papua and
The intimidation of West Papuan students and NGO organisations by the security forces will only lead to an increase in tension and instability in
Yours sincerely
Joe Collins Australia West Papua Association (Sydney)