The Black Rose Scholarship celebrates the legacy of Aprila Wayar, the first female West Papuan novelist, and an influential figure in Papuan journalism and activism.

Aprila's debut novel “Rootless Black Rose” tells the story of life under the Indonesian occupation through the lens of an urban middle class Papuan woman, and her spirit of resistance under the chains of motherhood, marriage, career, and bitter family secrets.

Aprila passed away in Yogyakarta on 18 October 2025 after a 14-month battle with stroke. She is survived by minor daughters JC and DC, who we recently enrolled at a reputable boarding high school in Yogyakarta.

We need to raise $25,000 by the end of November 2026 to secure three years of school and boarding for two girls. As of now, we have already secured $3,700, which we have paid out in school and boarding down payments. We are expecting to fundraise a few thousand dollars from digital book sales of Aprila's “Rootless Black Rose”, and about $19,000 from pledges.