Merdeka and the Morning Star

An important addition to UQP's internationally acclaimed Peace & Conflict Studies series West Papua is a secret story. Unfolding on the western half of the island of New Guinea, hidden from the world, in a place occupied by the Indonesian military since 1963, is a remarkable nonviolent struggle for national liberation. In Merdeka and the Morning Star, Jason MacLeod, a movement insider and academic, reveals the trajectory and dynamics of civil resistance in West Papua, where there have...
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An important addition to UQP's internationally acclaimed Peace & Conflict Studies series West Papua is a secret story. Unfolding on the western half of the island of New Guinea, hidden from the world, in a place occupied by the Indonesian military since 1963, is a remarkable nonviolent struggle for national liberation. In Merdeka and the Morning Star, Jason MacLeod, a movement insider and academic, reveals the trajectory and dynamics of civil resistance in West Papua, where there have been protests, boycotts, strikes and other nonviolent actions against repressive rule. This is the first in - depth account of civilian - led insurrection in West Papua, a movement that has transitioned from guerrilla war to relentless nonviolent resistance. MacLeod analyses several case studies including: tax resistance that pre - dates Gandhi's salt march by two decades; strikes by mine workers at the world's largest gold and copper mine; daring attempts to escape Indonesian rule by dugout canoe; mass occupations of parliament, and, the collection of a petition in support of joining the Melanesian Spearhead Group, where signing is to risk being shot dead. Merdeka and the Morning Star is a compelling book for all those interested in Indonesia, the Pacific, self - determination struggles and non - violent ways out of occupation.