Corbyn made
the comments during an address to the UK-based International Parliamentarians
for West Papua (IPWP).
“What we’re looking at is
a group of people who did not enjoy their rights during a period of
decolonization, did not enjoy the rights bestowed to them by the UN charter and
by the statutes on decolonization,” Corbyn said, as reported by the Guardian.
He will advocate for free
vote support to be added to the party’s platform as it reflects ambitions to
base foreign policy decisions around human rights, he said.
“I want these issues to
become central to our party’s policies in the future and above all I want to
see an end to environmental degradation and destruction and the right of people
to be able to make their own choice on their own future.”
West Papuan separatist
leader Benny Wenda, who has been living in political exile in London since
2003, led the group in signing a declaration dubbed the Westminster Declaration
in support of a referendum and criticizing the 1969 “act of free choice” as
void, according to the IPWP statement.
Meanwhile, support for
the cause voiced by Australian senator Richard di Natale, leader and West
Papuan spokesman for minor party the Greens, prompted the Indonesian Embassy in
Canberra on to the offensive.
In a string of tweets
published on Friday, the embassy disputed claims made by the campaign and reaffirmed the government’s
plans to revitalize infrastructure in the region.
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