Closer to home, and it's emerged that Indonesian embassy officials tried to invoke a security treaty with Australia early this month to try to stop a gathering in Canberra.

The Australian Capital Territory government has confirmed the recently-signed Lombok treaty was raised in a meeting about a cultural event being held by people who had moved to Canberra from Papua and West Papua in Indonesia.

Presenter: Jeff Waters

Speakers: Yahuda Korwa, Papuan community member; Andrew Robb, Australian opposition foreign affairs spokesman

Waters: Earlier this month... a group of young ethnic Melanesians now living in Canberra... started to organise what they billed as a cultural evening for people from Indonesia's Papua and West Papua provinces. It was to take place in a multicultural venue owned an operated by the Australian Capital Territory government. But then... with only days to go... one of them... Yahuda Korwa... was told the venue was no longer available.

Korwa: Act government talk to me and then they said oh dear sorry, you can't do the west papua cultural night in here because indonesian embassy staff came to here and they said you can't talk political issues in here.

Waters: An ACT government spokeswoman has confirmed there was an approach by Indonesian embassy officials... who invoked the Lombok security treaty... arguing that a political event shouldn't take place in a government building.

But the party did eventually go ahead... after organisers argued back... saying the event was purely cultural.

A spokesman for the Indonesian Embassy in Canberra declined an invitation to be interviewed on the matter... but confirmed representations were made. He said it was the embassy's duty to ask that Australian government buildings not be used for promoting separatist activities.

Yahuda Korwa says it was unfair that the group was asked to explain itself.

Korwa: We came to australia 2006 two years ago because we know in australia is a free country so we can do anything in here.

Mister Korwa was one of more than 40 Indonesians who travelled to Australia in an open boat... seeking political asylum. When they were granted refugee status, it started a diplomatic row, which resulted in the signing... earlier this year of the Lombok Treaty. It underlines Australia's respect for Indonesia's sovereignty over its provinces... and was an agreement negotiated by the previous coalition government.

The coalition's current Foreign Affairs spokesman, Andrew Robb, says that while the treaty shouldn't be used to stop cultural events... political meetings should not be allowed in government buildings.

Robb: There is a tendency from some quarters I think to try and read a lot more into the Lombok Treaty. If the events are purely cultural and not political...

Waters: Well what if they are political, what if someone asks to have a political meeting?

Robb: ...Well the government should not be seen in any situation to aid and abet actions which are of a political nature.