Jakarta – In a mainly Muslim nation dominated by Javanese culture, few Indonesians know much about the remote and mainly Christian province of Papua, beyond the stereotype of tribesmen living in the forest.

Now Javanese film-maker Garin Nugroho has made what he calls the first feature film made in Papua, a love story set against the separatist movement in Indonesia's easternmost province.

Aku Ingin Menciummu Sekali Saja (I Want To Kiss You Just One Time) confronts issues of race, religion, cultural identity and human rights which Mr Nugroho said are important for the whole country, not just Papua.

The film opened in Jakarta cinemas on December 27. "We have a problem with multiculturalism," said Mr Nugroho, who wrote and directed the movie dedicated to the murdered Papuan separatist leader Theys Hiyo Eluay.

Mr Eluay led the pro-independence Papua Presidium Council, which favours dialogue with Jakarta. His rise to power, subsequent arrest on subversion charges and then his murder and funeral are told through news reports televised at the home of Arnold, the film's central character.

Black Papuan faces fill the screen. Just one character has the paler skin common in Java and the western Indonesian islands.

The story revolves around Arnold, his obsession with an attractive, pale-skinned young woman played by Indonesian soap opera actress Lulu Tobing, and his pretty school friend, Sonya, who loves him.

In the film, the Papuan Morning Star flag, now banned in Papua, is shown. Mr Nugroho said government intelligence agents visited him during the 12-day shoot but did not interfere in his work with the actors, none of whom except Tobing is a professional.

Papua, formerly a Dutch possession, came under Indonesian control in 1963. Separatist sentiment is widespread in Papua. It is caused partly by what many see as a plundering by Jakarta of the vast, jungle-clad province's mining and other natural resources, as well as years of human rights abuses by Indonesian security forces.

A key message of the film, Mr Nugroho said, is that love gives courage, but he denied it made a statement in support of Papuan independence. He said he prefers Papua to remain part of what he calls Indonesia's multicultural family.