Greenpeace Booted by Indonesia

(Jakarta, Indonesia) Last week the executive director of Greenpeace UK, John Sauven, was denied entry into Indonesia. Sauven was turned back by immigration officials at Jakarta’s Soekarno-Hatta International Airport.

According to the immigration office, Sauven "would bring instability and disorder."

And this week there's news that Greenpeace Forests Activist Andy Tait has been deported for "purely immigration purposes." Greenpeace has claimed foul, saying Indonesia is trying to stop "our work to end deforestation."

Obviously the Indonesians don't like foreigners coming into their country and haranguing them about the environment. In a way, it's understandable. If an activist entered my property and told me I was improperly pruning my houseplants, my first question would be, "What the hell are you doing in my house?"

Consider also that Indonesia is a nation of thousands of islands populated by a variety of ethnicities speaking scores of languages. It is hard enough to keep the peace without foreign activists stirring up s***.