Spirit of Independence: A Journey through West Papua

As I stand next to a lively fruit market on my first day in West Papua's biggest city, Jayapura, a local rushes across the road to greet me. He's smartly dressed, as is his son whose hand he holds. 'Hello, where are you from?' he says, wiping sweat from his forehead. Before I can answer he moves closer and whispers in perfect English. 'I have no job and no future. The Indonesians have taken everything from us. I hope you can tell the world.' Without any further conversation, he thanks me for my time and disappears into the crowd. It's a sentiment echoed throughout resource-rich West Papua, the last frontier of Indonesia - from the highland rainforests to the vast white coast and shabby streets of Jayapura.