Papua in sight – Barriers and beyond
By Madelyn van Rijckevorsel
Published by Madelyn van Rijckevorsel, Amsterdam, December 2023
ISBN 978-90-9037905-0
Can be ordered via
This 80-page book entails a concise, well-documented and up-to-date 8000-word essay, 16 pages of color photographs and an extensive literature list.
The summary on the back cover reads as follows:
“Right now, obscured by a blockade of foreign media and humanitarian organizations, one of the least known and longest unresolved subnational conflicts in the Pacific is spiraling out of hand.
For over 60 years, the former Dutch colony of Papua on the western half of the immense tropical island New Guinea, has been the site of repression by Indonesian security forces and resistance by the Indigenous Papuan population. Widespread abuses of human rights and the desire for self-determination fuel the unrest.
The current situation is marked by militarization, increasing bloodshed and very high numbers of internally displaced persons. National and international interventions to achieve de-escalation are urgently needed.
The author’s first-hand experiences, gathered from her own travels and field research, supplement an exposé of the complex historical and sociopolitical root causes of the conflict.”
Madelyn van Rijckevorsel (b. 1950) is a Dutch-American former medical doctor specialized in youth health care and international public health. Between 2010 and 2017 she made multiple trips to Papua, Indonesia, spending a total of 25 weeks in the region while independently researching maternal and child health care including the cultural and sociopolitical context, and immersing herself in daily life. Since her travels, she has continued to dedicate herself to exploring the situation in Papua. Her extensive network in Papua, elsewhere in Indonesia and in the Netherlands provided her with many interviews and opportunities.
