The West Papuan independence leader Benny Wenda says he has no idea why he was blocked from travelling to the United States last week.
West Papuan independence activist Benny Wenda. Photo: Supplied
Mr Wenda was hoping to travel from London, where he lives in exile, to Los Angeles for a speaker's tour of California and Hawai'i at the invitation of Free West Papua groups in the US.
But when he checked in at Heathrow Airport, an alert came up on his passport, and he was taken in for questioning by an official from the US Homeland Security Department, who then revoked his 10-year business visa.
Mr Wenda says he was last in the US only a few months ago and has no idea why his visa has suddenly been revoked, but he's certain it's to do with his work in West Papua.
"I'm just confused. At a human level, I feel a little bit disappointed but, yeah. Now I'm trying to use my lawyer and she's trying to find out why my visa is invalid."
Benny Wenda.