Don't let West Papua become the next Timor-Leste, exiled independence leader warns Australia

West Papuan independence leader Benny Wenda has called on Prime Minister Scott Morrison to make a public condemnation of Indonesia's bloody crackdown on pro-independence protesters.

Benny Wenda believes the unrest in West Papua could become another "East Timor", referencing the country's bloody struggle for independence.

Benny Wenda fears the unrest in West Papua could become another "East Timor", referencing the country's bloody struggle for independence. Source: SBS News

The exiled West Papuan independence leader has called on Prime Minister Scott Morrison to condemn Indonesia's recent crackdown on pro-independence protesters or risk the situation becoming the "next East Timor".

Speaking to SBS News from Oxford in the United Kingdom, where he fled in 2003 after escaping a 25-year prison sentence for his involvement in a protest, Benny Wenda said the situation in West Papua was "very similar" to the bloody struggle for independence that took place in Timor-Leste - also known as East Timor - 20 years ago.

"That's why I am calling [for] UN intervention because I don't want this to end up like East Timor," he said.

Benny Wenda fears the unrest in West Papua could become another "East Timor", referencing the country's bloody struggle for independence. Source: SBS News