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| Benny Wenda and Free West Papua Campaign supporters with Andrew Marr after being interviewed for BBC news |
Report from Benny Wenda witnessing the Scottish referendum on independence
September 26, 2014
enny Wenda speaking to thousands of Scottish people the day before the Scottish independence referendum
Last Thursday I was invited to witness and and to count the votes in
the Scottish referendum on independence. I was able to witness how easy
it is to democratically ask the people what they want for their futures.
This was what is guaranteed under international law to our people in
West Papua. An act of self determination to international standards,
which is a referendum, so that we can freely choose our own future. I
wish to thank the Scottish SNP, the Radical Independence Campaign and
the Scottish people for their invitation to witness their act of self
determination and for their continued support.
Here in Scotland we watched as the people were freely allowed to
express their own opinion. There was no intimidation, no violence. This
is real democracy. No one was threatened to vote one way or another. The
UK is now a leading example to other nations of the world in democracy.
The Indonesian government claims that the West Papuan people
relinquished our sovereignty to Indonesia with the 1969 Act of Free
Choice. We West Papuan people call this act the Act of No Choice. We
urge all international observers to please investigate what happened in
1969. The Indonesian government has always claimed that the Act of Free
Choice was free and fair and that we West Papuan people freely chose to
join with Indonesia. On behalf of my people in West Papua I say that the
Act of Free Choice was not free and fair. It was not to international
standards. It was a fraud. 1025 people were handpicked by the Indonesian
army and were forced, intimated and threatened by a ruthless military
regime to join Indonesia. The world is now finding out about how our
sovereignty was stolen from us. In October 2013 the Prime Minister of
Vanuatu at the time, Moana Carcassas told the UN that, in reference to
the Act of Free Choice, “We must not be afraid if the UN has made some
mistakes in the past. We must admit our mistakes and correct them”
Benny Wenda and Free West Papua Campaign supporters with Andrew Marr after being interviewed for BBC news
In West Papua all we ask is that we have our right of self
determination, to international standards, under international law. So
that, like the Scottish people we can choose our own future. Whether we
choose to be with Indonesia or to be independent is up to us, the West
Papuan people. It is our sovereign right and no one has the right to
fraudulently take it away from us. We will never stop until we have our
right of self determination.
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