Indonesia deports four Australians for demonstrating in Papua

Four Australians were deported from Indonesia’s Papua region yesterday, the immigration department said, after they allegedly took part in demonstrations demanding independence for the restive province.

Impoverished Papua, where a low-level insurgency against Indonesian control has simmered for decades, has seen two weeks of mass protests and deadly riots sparked by anger over racism and fresh calls for self-rule.

The four foreigners entered the island region on a yacht through the port of Sorong on August 10, Indonesian immigration official Erlangga Dwi Saputra told AFP.

They were “suspected of taking part in demonstrations demanding Papua’s independence in front of Sorong mayor’s office”, the local immigration department said in a statement.