The following message has been sent to the people of PNG, by Benny Wenda, who chairs the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP). Next week there is going to be an important summit in Port Moresby. This should also be of interest in Australia, because our nation has been involved in the situation in West Papua, and because the Melanesian peoples are our close neighbours. Our government should stop supporting the Indonesian occupation.

As Chairman of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) and on behalf of your Melanesian brothers and sisters just across the border, I am appealing to all activists and solidarity groups in PNG for your urgent help.

The ULMWP will be representing our people at the Melanesian Spearhead Group Leaders’ Summit taking place in Port Moresby next week and seeking full Membership for West Papua. The time is right to see the Melanesian community welcome their brothers and sisters in West Papua as equals and we need you to raise your voices in solidarity to ensure our message is heard.

The West Papuan people continue to suffer brutality at the hands of our oppressors daily. International experts are in agreement that what is taking place is nothing less than a genocide against indigenous Papuans. Without intervention, our people will not only soon be a minority, they will also be in very real danger of being wiped out entirely. I urge you to join with us as Melanesians to do everything in your power to stand up for the survival of West Papuans, for the children of the next generation, before it’s too late.

The MSG has long been founded on the principles of advocating for the right to self-determination of all Melanesians and pioneered support for our brothers and sisters in Kanaky to have their voices heard in an independence referendum. We call on them now to also acknowledge the political aspirations of the West Papuan people, who have, in vast numbers expressed their will for self-determination and assistance from the international community, via their petition to the United Nations. Our people risked their lives to add their names and to have their cry for freedom heard. Please hear this cry and rise up with us- your brothers and sisters need your help and are relying on the compassion of the people of PNG, and our Melanesian family.