Honest and open-minded talk about Aceh and West Papua is rare in Indonesia. Yet some Indonesians recently came together in London to have just such a conversation.
TAPOL in the press
Is Aceh being turned into the world of Alice in Wonderland? There is a British novel called Alice in Wonderland.
Post-tsunami reconstruction in Aceh is difficult work. It is not made any easier by the public being rendered illiterate by the process.
Irresponsible statements from politicians in Jakarta is the last thing Acehnese need at this time, post-disaster. Yet this is what we hear from members of the House of Representatives in Jakarta, as they issue statements criticizing the peace talks in Helsinki.
President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono is scheduled to visit the United States, the European Union (EU), and Japan. Before leaving the country, the President needs to be informed about the growing international campaign for peace in Papua, as manifested in the so-called "Geneva Appeal on West Papua."
At the recent Asian-African summit in Jakarta, the Indonesian government has once again demonstrated its instinctive mistrust of fundamental freedoms by its response to an international meeting on West Papua.