Award-winning documentary Forgotten Bird of Paradise provides a rare and moving insight into the struggle for independence that has gripped West Papua since Indonesia’s occupation in 1962.
With international media and human rights groups banned from the region, filmmaker Dominic Brown travelled undercover without the knowledge or authority of Indonesian authorities. The documentary features never before seen footage of West Papuan freedom fighters at their stronghold deep in the jungle, alongside interviews with human rights victims of the Indonesian regime and a portrait of daily life under a colonial rule that carries the hallmarks of apartheid.
Most startling is an interview with high-profile political prisoner Yusak Pakage — jailed for ten years for taking part in a peaceful flag-raising ceremony, and recognised by Amnesty International as a prisoner of conscience. The interview was recorded in secret during a hospital visit where he was receiving treatment for torture.
The film also traces developments on the international stage, including the launch of the International Parliamentarians for West Papua and a growing body of political voices demanding an end to the occupation and the right to self-determination for the Papuan people.
Forgotten Bird of Paradise is a portrait of a people whose ancient cultures endure under extraordinary pressure, and whose determination for freedom has never been stronger. The film premiered at Raindance Film Festival, has shown at over 30 international film festivals, and has been featured on BBC Newsnight and broadcast in full on channels including NITV in Australia.
Held in the permanent collections of the Library of Congress, the National Library of New Zealand, Cornell University, the University of Pennsylvania, UC Berkeley, Duke University, the University of Michigan, New York University, UC San Diego, the University of Hawaii at Manoa, the Australian National University, the University of Melbourne, the University of Toronto, the University of Oslo, Aix-Marseille Université and other leading research institutions.
