West Papuan asylum seekers on Christmas Island have told Greens senator Kerry Nettle their families have been terrorised by Indonesian security forces since their journey to Australia.

Some of the 43 West Papuans rang their families on Saturday to hear that an Indonesian task force was in West Papua asking questions about their asylum bid, Senator Nettle said in Perth today.

"They heard about a task force of Indonesian security forces that had travelled from Jakarta... to ask questions about this group of asylum seekers and their trip to Australia," Senator Nettle said.

"When they contacted their families on Saturday evening they heard from their families that they were being terrorised, that's the word they used, by Indonesian security forces that had come over from Jakarta."

The 36 men and seven children arrived on Cape York last week after a five-day voyage from West Papua aboard a rickety boat. All were transferred to the immigration processing facility on Christmas Island.