This email is an awareness about Australia's racial discrimination towards a group of Black people who were born Australian citizens.
I am the president of a Indigenous Black group of Papuan people who were born as Australian citizens, and wish to reacquire their Australian citizenship but are denied on racially grounds.
Our web site is
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/RevivedPapuaBesena
and our email address is Revived PapuaBesena@yahoogroups.com
For those who are unaware of this group of people, this is the background.
The Papuan are the Indigenous people of the South-east corner of the island of New Guinea, now part of the country Papua New Guinea.
The Island of New Guinea was colonized by the Dutch, Germany, and the British.
Dutch New Guinea , located on the Western side of the island was colonized by the Dutch as part of the Dutch East Indies, annexed by Indonesia, became province of Irian Jaya, now renamed West Papua.
Germany New Guinea, located on the north-east of the island colonized by Germany, which included Nauru and Yap (Federated Sate of Micronesia) captured by Australian military after World War One in 1914, handed over to the League of Nations in 1921, as the League of Nations Trust Territory of New Guinea, annexed by Japan during World War Two.After World War Two it became United Nations Trust Territory of New Guinea, Nauru administered jointly by Australia and New Zealand, yap incorporated into the United States Trust Territory of Micronesia.
New guinea , became the United Nations Mandated Australian Administrated Trust Territory of New Guinea. On 16th September 1975, illegally joined with the Australian Territory of Papua to be Papua New Guinea.
British New Guinea, located on the South-east corner of the New Guinea island, was annexed by the colony of Queensland in 1884 to counter the Germans, later became British New Guinea, in 1905 became part of the Federation of Australia as the Australian Territory of Papua under the "Papua Act of 1905"
On 16th September 1975 illegally joined to UN trust territory of New Guinea which was a separate state.
Federation of Australia
1901, the colonies of New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia and Western Australia, formed the Federation of Australia
1905, Territory of Papua joined the Federation under the "Papua Act 1905"
1911, Northern territory joined the Federation
Citizenship
Prior to the "Nationality and Citizenship act no 83 of 1948", all resident in Australia were British subjects, under this act all resident in Australia including Papua( Indigenous and non-indigenous) became Australian citizens. The definition of Australia in section 5(1) of this Act states the "Australia includes the Territory of Papua and Norfolk Island".
British subject in UN Trust Territory of New Guinea had to apply and were granted Australian citizens, all other residents and indigenous persons were granted the status of "Australian Protected Persons"
Any persons born after 26th January 1948 were free born Australian citizen.
Fuzzy Wuzzy Angels
During World War Two, the only ever land war fought on Australian soil was along the Kokoda track and Milne Bay which was in the Australian Territory of Papua. The indigenous were in the Papuan Infantry which assisted the Australian Military, they were also Australian soldiers too, sadly Australia doesn't recognize them. The attitude of the Australian government towards the indigenous peoples was and still is the racial discrimination "White Australia Policy".
Betrayal of Papuan by Australia
The union of the Territory of Papua, which was part of the federation of Australia and the United Nations Trust Territory of New Guinea which was a separate state was illegal and without referendum to see if the Papuan residents (both Indigenous and non-indigenous) wanted to unite with New Guinea, or remain with Australia, or have a separate state.
This was because Papua is not landlocked to mainland Australia. Its like giving Tasmania to New Zealand or America giving Alaska to Canada or Russia, or Britain giving Gibraltar to Spain or North Ireland to Ireland because these Territories are not landlocked with its mainland. Contrary to popular belief the Territory of Papua was not a colony of Australia, but a part of Australia.
Apply of Australia citizenship
Under the Dept of Immigration form 119 "application for a certificate of Australian citizen, page 4 section 4 is for Papuans, however under the Act No 278 of 1980, "Papua New Guinea Independence (Australian citizenship of young persons)" allows person who were under the age of 19 to reacquire the Australian citizenship, but only White Papuan automatically were given citizenship, it discriminates against the Indigenous Black Papuans, allot of Indigenous Papuans parents were illiterate and lived in rural and country areas, and were denied any right to apply.
Revived Papua Besena has been set up to register all Papuan who were born before 16 September 1975 to force the Australia government to recognize our right to reacquire our citizen. This is also a movement to push to secede from New Guinea.
The Papuan people resent being always refereed to New Guineans or the country as New Guinea, and the Pidgin language and not Motu as our language. We are also becoming a minority in the main towns in Papua.
We strongly urge the Australian government to take serious note of this matter, before there is a civil war. We the Papuan reserve that right to resort to civil war, should our plight is not recognized by Australia.
We welcome any advice, support, assistance, or dialogue, which would be greatly appreciated.
Jonathan Jay jon,Baure
President
Revived Papua Besena
jingarj3@yahoo.com.au
181 Wentworth Avenue
Pendle Hill 2145
Sydney, NSW
mob ph 0403 655 721