Tapol wishes to pay deep tribute to Lord Avebury who died on 14 February 2016

Tapol, the British-based campaign for human rights, peace and democracy in Indonesia, wishes to pay deep tribute to Lord Avebury who died on 14 February 2016.

Lord Avebury was TAPOL's Honorary President, and one of Westminster's leading human rights campaigners. Amongst other things, he was a founder member of Parliamentarians for East Timor, which was a key part of the international solidarity movement for East Timor. At the time, East Timor was illegally occupied by Indonesia. Journalists and NGOs were prohibited from entering, and even churches had difficulty visiting. There were numerous massacres, and agricultural activities were often restricted, causing serious of food shortages. Lord Avebury supported all Tapol's efforts to condemn the situation there, and took the initiative to issue statements on many occasions. Through the Parliamentarians for East Timor, he was instrumental in creating an international alliance of parliamentarians on the situation, and he led a delegation to the United Nations on the issue, accompanied by parliamentarians from Japan and Australia.

He was also an adviser to the Humanitarian Dialogue Centre in Geneva in early negotiations that eventually led to the conclusion of a peace agreement in Aceh, northern Sumatra, in 2005. Plus he supported our campaigns regarding the situation in West Papua, which continue to this day. Tireless in all these campaigns, the principle of human rights was embedded in his bones.

In marking the loss of this great human rights advocate, Tapol would like to celebrate his contribution to the struggle for human rights in Indonesia, and in particular in East Timor, Aceh and West Papua.  The world is poorer for losing his voice on these issues, but we hope and trust that Lord Avebury's legacy will be to ensure that the ongoing struggle for human rights, peace and democracy in these regions continues to get the international attention that it merits.

For a video of Lord Avebury speaking on behalf of TAPOL please see: http://tinyurl.com/ha52ads