PAPUA
Dialog Damai Papua-Indonesia adalah Jalan Terbaik Ditulis oleh Socratez Sofyan Yoman
Jumat, 28 Oktober 2011 22:38
Oleh : Socratez Sofyan Yoman
Kita mengikuti bersama kondisi terakhir di Tanah Papua yang disampaikan melalui berbagai media massa maupun kita saksikan langsung tentang terjadinya Kekerasan dan kejahatan kemanusiaan yang dilakukan oleh aparat keamanan TNI dan POLRI, kelompok OPM sejati maupun OPM binaan dan juga dari Orang Tak di Kenal (OTK). Menyikapi kekerasan dan kejahatan kemanusiaan yang terjadi di Papua ini mendapat berbagai opini, pikiran, pendapat dan tanggapan yang disampaikan belakangan ini.
Saya berterima kasih dan memberikan apresiasi kepada setiap orang dan manusia mempunyai kepeduliaan dan memberikan perhatian tentang penderitaan yang dialami oleh penduduk sipil di Tanah Papua. Berbagai komentar dan pendapat yang kita dengar dan ikuti adalah ada yang mengatakan bahwa pemberontakan rakyat Papua karena kurangnya perhatian dalam aspek kesejahteraan, kurang adanya infrastruktur yang memadai, pejabat Papua yang tidak peduli, karena orang asli Papua minimnya dalam Sumber Daya Manusia (SMD), rakyat Papua banyak yang miskin dan bodoh, tidak ada konsep yang jelas tentang pembangunan Papua, dana Otonomi Khusus sebanyak 29 Triliun tidak digunakan dengan baik tapi dinikmati oleh segelintir orang. Bahkan ada komenter yang lebih ekstrim, yaitu separatisme di Papua harus ditumpas demi kepentingan keutuhan Negara. Presiden Republik Indonesia, Hj.Dr. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono menegaskan bahwa :”Kita cinta damai tetapi NKRI harga mati”.
Posisi Penguasa Indonesia
Ketika rakyat Papua dengan elegan dan cerdas menawarkan dialog damai, jujur, bermartabat dan setara dengan Pemerintah Indonesia, penguasa menjawab dengan mengirim aparat keamanan dalam jumlah besar ke Papua untuk membantai rakyat sipil di Papua. Para pejabat selalu dan terus-menerus membuat pernyataan-pernyataan intimidatif yang mencederai hati nurani rakyat Papua dan juga melukai nilai keadilan dan kesamaan derajat sebagai sesama anak bangsa. Penguasa Indonesia selalu menyatakan Integrasi Papua ke dalam Indonesia sudah final. Sejarah Integrasi sudah final. PEPERA 1969 adalah final. NKRI adalah harga mati. Siapapun mengkhianati NKRI akan ditumpas.
Pernyataan-pernyataan yang arogan, kejam dan tidak elegan seperti ini, gagal memenangkan hati rakyat Papua untuk mencintai Indonesia. Pemerintah menjauhkan hati rakyat Papua dari rasa memiliki Indonesia dengan perilaku dan watak yang kejam dan tidak manusiawi. Penguasa gagal mendengar dan memahami jeritan suara hati dan bisikan nurani rakyat Papua. Pemerintah Indonesia tidak pernah bertanya kepada rakyat Papua. Karena itu Penguasa Indonesia gagal mengintegrasikan rakyat Papua ke dalam ke-Bhineka Tunggal-Ika-an Indonesia. Penguasa Indonesia hanya berhasil mengintegrasikan ekonomi, wilayah secara politik dengan kekuatan TNI dan POLRI dan juga dengan berbagai produk undang-undang dan regulasi yang tidak berpihak pada penduduk asli Papua.
Presiden Republik Indonesia, Hj. Dr. Jend.TNI (Purn.) Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono belum atau lamban memenuhi janji melalui pidato Kenegaraan 16 Agustus 2006 untuk menyelesaikan persoalan Papua dengan pendekatan dialog damai. Janji terbaru sang Presiden RI, SBY, dalam pidato kenegaraan 16 Agustus 2011 adalah Masalah Papua diselesaikan dengan hati. Rakyat Papua sedang menantikan dialog damai dan penyelesaian dengan hati dari Pemerintah Republik Indonesia.
Dalam mewujud-nyatakan spirit Presiden, telah ditunjuk oleh SBY seorang utusan khusus (special envoy), dr. Farid Husein, untuk merintis dengan mengadakan pendekatan dan komunikasi awal terhadap semua orang di Papua di berbagai level. Farid Husein mempunyai tugas besar dan berat tapi mulia, yaitu memulai menanam benih-benih kasih, keadilan, kejujuran, kesamaan derajat sebagai sesama manusia. Husein akan dan terus mengadakan pertemuan dengan kelompok OPM, kelompok politik, pemimpin adat, tokoh-tokoh rakyat Papua yang ada di Papua dan di Luar Negeri seperti: Rex Rumakiek, Otto Ondowame, Benny Wenda, Otto Mote, dan ratusan bahkan ribuan orang Papua di luar Negeri. Para pemimpin Gereja akan bekerja sama dengan Dr. Farid Husein untuk mengawal proses dialog damai antara Pemerintah Indonesia dan rakyat Papua. Tetapi, sayang, usaha-usaha SBY ini dinodai dengan Panglima TNI dan POLRI mengirim pasukan TNI dan POLRI ke Papua untuk menindas rakyat Papua dan menjaga sumber daya alam di Tanah Papua dengan stigma rakyat Papua adalah separatis, OPM dan Makar.
Posisi Rakyat Indonesia
Rakyat Papua dapat memahami posisi rakyat Indonesia dalam menyikapi gejolak dan permasalahan di Tanah Papua. Rakyat Indonesia pada umumnya belum mengetahui dengan benar dan tepat masalah Papua. Oleh karena itu, tidak heran, mereka (Rakyat Indonesia) selalu menilai perlawanan rakyat Papua adalah melawan Indonesia. Walaupun demikian, tidak sedikit rakyat Indonesia yang sangat prihatin tentang kekerasan dan kejahatan kemanusiaan, ketidakadilan yang dialami penduduk asli Papua. Rakyat Indonesia pada umumnya tidak tahu sejarah dan kebudayaan serta latar belakang penduduk asli Papua. Orang asli Papua adalah rumpun Melanesia yang beda jauh dengan penduduk mayoritas Indonesia adalah berumpun Melayu. Ketidaktahuan orang Melayu (Indonesia) tentang orang Melanesia (Papua) adalah wajarkarena orang-orang Luar Papua tidak pernah diajarkan di sekolah-sekolah dari SD-PT sejarah dan keberadaan penduduk asli Papua. Sebaliknya, sejarah dan keberadaan, kebudayaan dari luar Papua diajarkan di Papua dari SD-PT secara paksa untuk menerima sejarah dan keberadaan orang lain. Karena itu, wajar, kebanyakan penduduk Indonesia marah dan tidak suka dengan penduduk asli Papua yang sedang menuntut rasa keadilan, kesamaan hak dan penghormatan terhadap martabatnya.
Posisi Rakyat Papua
Pemerintah Indonesia, aparat keamanan TNI dan POLRI dan rakyat Indonesia pada umumnya jangan keliru dalam menilai dan marah serta menindas penduduk asli Papua. Rakyat Papua bukan bangsa primitif, dan juga bukan bangsa yang tidak mempunyai budaya dan peradaban. Penduduk asli Papua adalah manusia-manusia secara turun-temurun yang mempunyai sejarah, budaya, nilai-nilai hidup dan pandangan hidup. Rakyat Papua adalah tuan dan orang-orang merdeka, yang berada, hidup, di atas tanah leluhur dan tanah milik mereka dengan damai dan adil sebelum Missionaris, Belanda dan Indonesia datang menduduki dan menjajah Papua. Rakyat Papua bukan bodoh dan miskin. Penduduk asli Papua adalah manusia-manusia yang mempunyai pandangan hidup yang jelas dan bermartabat.
Yang menjadi masalah dan dipersoalkan penduduk asli Papua selama 4 (empat) dekade sejak 1961- 2011 ini adalah hak politik rakyat dan bangsa Papua yang dikhianati oleh PBB, Amerika Serikat, Belanda dan Indonesia. Rakyat Papua sadar. Rakyat Papua tahu. Rakyat Papua mengerti. Rakyat Papua pintar. Rakyat Papua cerdas. Rakyat Papua bukan bodoh dan miskin yang selama ini dinilai oleh orang-orang luar Papua.
Sejarah Integrasi Papua ke dalam wilayah Indonesia melalui Maklumat TRIKORA, di Jogjakarta, 1 Desember 1961, Perjanjian New York 15 Agustus 1963 yang dibuat dan ditanda tangani oleh Indonesia dan Belanda yang dimediasi Amerika tanpa melibatkan penduduk asli Papua, penyerahan Papua dari United Nations Temporary Administration (UNTEA) ke dalam wilayah Indonesia secara administrasi 1 Mei 1963 sebelum PEPERA 1969, dan pelaksanaan PEPERA 1969 yang cacat hukum dan moral dengan kekuatan moncong militer Indonesia, kekerasan dan kejahatan kemanusiaan yang menyebabkan pelanggaran HAM berat dan kematian penduduk asli Papua di tangan TNI dan POLRI, kegagalan pelaksanaan UU No. 21 Tahun 2001 tentang Otonomi Khusus, marginalisasi penduduk asli Papua, eksploitasi sumber daya alam, penghancurkan hutan dan perampasan tanah milik rakyat untuk lahan pemukiman Transmigrasi, lahan kelapa sawit, pengambilan kayu secara illegal yang dibeking aparat TNI dan POLRI, dan dominasi ekonomi para migrant, deretan masalah ini adalah akar masalah Papua yang sangat kompleks. Rakyat Papua telah tiba pada kesemipulan bahwa Indonesia telah gagal membangun rakyat dan bangsa Papua Barat. Oleh karena itu, rakyat Papua telah kehilangan kepercayaan kepada Pemerintah Indonesia. Karena Pemerintah Indonesia menyembunyikan seluruh dosa dan kejahatan ini dengan berlindung dalam stigma orang Papua separatis, anggota OPM, dan pembuat makar tanpa bertnaya dan melihat substandi akar masalah Papua.
Menghindari Internasionalisasi Masalah Papua
Pejabat Negara dan Penguasa TNI dan POLRI bahkan rakyat Indonesia selalu mengatakan bahwa kita harus menjaga, mewaspadai dan menghindari internasionalisasi masalah Papua Barat. Ini pernyataan yang sangat keliru, karena masalah Papua memang sejak dulu persoalan yang berdimensi internasional. Pembuatan Perjaniian New York 15 Agustus 1962 yang dimediasi Amerika adalah keterlibatan masyarakat Internasional. Dalam pelaksaan PEPERA 1969 diawasi oleh perwakilan PBB, Dr. Fernando Ortiz Sanz dari diplomat Bolivia adalah keterlibatan Internasional. Hasil PEPERA 1969 diperdebatkan dan dicatat (take note) dalam Sidang Umum PBB tahun 1969 adalah keterlibatan masyarakat internasional. Pembentukan UU No. 21 Tahun 2001 yang disahkan oleh DPR RI juga didukung oleh PBB, Uni Eropa, Amerika Serikat dan Negara-Negara Asing lainnya adalah persoalan internasional. Jadi, yang jelas dan pasti: Persoalan Papua adalah masalah Internasional.
Jangan lupa bahwa Badan Intelijen Negara (BIN) juga mempunyai andil besar mengkampanyekan masalah Papua di Luar Negeri dengan loby-loby yang dilakukan selama ini. Pemerintah dan masyarakat Internasional juga bertanya, ada apa dengan Papua atau ada terjadi apa di Papua atau ada sembunyikan apa di Papua? Perilaku aparat keamanan TNI dan POLRI yang kejam dan tidak manusiawi di Papua telah memberikan gambaran jelas dan mendapat perhatian dari masyarakat dunia Internasional dalam semangat solidaritas.
Rakyat Papua menghargai dan menghormati pemerintah Indonesia yang berjuang dengan pendekatan kekerasan militer untuk mempertahankan sumber daya alam Papua dengan membunuh penduduk asli Papua, sebaliknya pemerintah Indonesia juga harus menghargai dan menghormati perjuangan rakyat Papua untuk mempertahankan kehormatan dan harga diri rakyat Papua dan demi masa depan anak cucu rakyat dan bangsa Papua di atas tanah leluhurnya. Rakyat Papua tidak melawan Indonesia tetapi rakyat Papua melawan ketidakadilan, kekerasan dan kejahatan kemanusiaan.
Jurang Pemisah Yang Besar Antara Papua-Indonesia
Ada jurang pemisah yang perlu dijembatani. Pemahaman tentang sejarah integrasi Papua yang dipahami Pemerintah Indonesia sangat jauh berseberangan dengan yang dipahami oleh rakyat dan bangsa Papua. Akar masalah Papua yang sesungguhnya adalah sejarah integrasi Papua ke dalam wilayah Indonesia. Jadi, untuk menyelesaikan masalah Papua tidak bisa dengan pendekatan kekerasan dan keamanan atau tidak cukup dengan UU dan berbagai bentuk Peraturan dan juga tidak bisa dengan pendekatan kesejahteraan. Orang Papua bukan lapar. Orang Papua bukan miskin. Orang Papua tidak mati karena lapar di atas tanah mereka. Orang Papua mati dan miskin karena pendekatan kekerasan dan kejahatan kemanusiaan yang dilakukan Negara secara struktural dan sistematis. Penyelesaian yang bermartabat dan manusiawi adalah dialog damai tanpa syarat yang dimediasi pihak ketiga yang netral. Pihak ketiga yang netral harus dilibatkan karena pihak ketiga seperti: PBB, Amerika dan Belanda yang terlibat langsung memasukkan Papua ke dalam wilayah Indonesia tidak boleh berada di luar konstruksi dialog damai ini. Shalom. Tuhan memberkati kita.
Penulis: Ketua Umum Badan Pelayan Pusat Persekutuan Gereja-Gereja Baptis Papua.
komentar :
john |91.47.92.xxx |Y-m-d H:i:s
Pertanma saya akan mengatakan bahwa Indonesia adal ah bentuk
negara kesatuan, yang mana terdiri dari berbagi macam suku
bangsa yaitu bangsa Melayu, Pol inesia dan Melanesia. nama
Indonesia tidak mewakil i satu suku atau Ras tetapi terbentu
k dari kata In dochina dan poli dan Mela-Sia. sangatlah kerd
il di masa sekarang masih berpikir dan mempetak-petakan ma
nusia dengan latar belakang suku dan ras. padah al tahu bahw
a di Amerika, Afrika selatan dll dalam negara2 tersebut hid
up berbagai macam ras dan dam ai. Mengapa OPM selalu mengang
kat isu RAS untuk me mperjuangkan Papau merdeka. Ini adalah
sangat keja m, Semua manusia sama dimata Tuhan, manusia hany
a beda luarnya. seorang pendeta harusnya meniup angi n keda
maian bukannya permusuhanhttp://bintangpapua.com/opini/16167-dialog-damai-papua-indonesia-adalah-jalan-terbaik
KOMENTAR DIATAS SALAHITU. BACA DI
http://kkampjogya.multiply.com/..
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Cry for Freedom from the Heart of West PapuaBy Kim Peart
Tasmnian Times 21.11.11 1:55 am
When young Australians drape themselves in the Southern Cross flag, they do not risk being shot by the Police or military for doing so, or being sent to jail for up to 20 years.
Once men did die under the stars of the first Southern Cross flag, at Eureka on the 3rd of December 1854, when they dared stand up against oppression and fight for what they believed in. They also gave us the legend of the diggers, which has become adopted by Australian soldiers since those dark days on the Gallipoli killing fields. Source :http://tasmaniantimes.com/index.php?/weblog/article/cry-for-freedom-from-the-heart-of-west-papua/
Thousands of West Papuans march through Jayapura, defying the Indonesian police and military, risking death to call for the freedom, as the Asia-Pacific leaders meet in Bali.
Since the Morning Star flag first flew in West Papua on the 1st of December 1961, when 1970 was set as the year for independence, it has been a poignant symbol of West Papuan freedom.
When Indonesia became the new colonial power in western New Guinea in 1963, they destroyed all symbols of West Papuan independence, including all Morning Star flags and began a brutal campaign of suppression aimed at absorbing half of Melanesian New Guinea into Asian Indonesia.
Many times over the years West Papuans have been shot on sight or sent to jail for up to 20 years, for daring to raise the West Papuan flag and call for freedom.
A West Papuan congress, marking the 50th anniversary since the first held under Dutch rule in October 1961, was brutally broken up by police and military with guns, water cannon, whips and boots, when the West Papuans dared to claim that they had a right to self-determination and freedom from Indonesia’s long oppressive rule of their ancient island home. Seven West Papuans were killed, hundreds arrested and many were tortured.
On the 17th of November thousands of West Papuans marched through the streets of Jayapura, calling for freedom, as the leader of the free world, President Barrack Obama met with Asia-Pacific leaders in Bali. Many had the Morning Star flag painted on their bodies, clearly challenging the Indonesian police and military to shoot them, risking their lives to stand in their flag of freedom. [1]
As the 50th anniversary of the raising of the West Papuan flag fast approaches on the 1st of December, we can only hope that further atrocities will be avoided, as West Papuan courage in the face of Indonesian tyranny is strong and their desire for freedom is very great.
The whole West Papuan question could have been settled in 1969, when the United Nations was supposed to help Indonesia run a vote on self-determination. If a true plebiscite had been held, it is quite clear that the West Papuan people would have voted for freedom, just as happened in East Timor when they had the chance to vote in 1999.
Instead of a free and fair vote on self-determination, Indonesia was allowed to run the whole show, selecting 1025 men to be lectured under the shadow of guns, before stepping over a line drawn in the dirt. Is that a vote?
In his recent speech to the Australian parliament, President Obama was very strong on human rights and freedom, declaring, “History is on the side of the free.” and “Prosperity without freedom is just another form of poverty.”
President Obama pointed out how Australia was the first nation to give women the vote and so it should be quite confrontational to all Australian women, all East Timorese women, all women of the World, that not one woman was allow to vote in West Papua in 1969 in “The Act of Free Choice”, more often referred to as the Act of “No” Choice, or the Act “Free” of Choice.
The United Staes member of Congress, Eni Faleomavaera, writing with Donald Payne in an article published in The Jakarta Post on 18 November, called for the 1969 referendum on independence to be re-examined.
“In his statement before the UN against apartheid, Nelson Mandela said, “It will forever remain an accusation and challenge to all men and women of conscience that it took so long as it has before all of us stood up to say enough is enough.” The same can be said of West Papua. In 1990, Nelson Mandela also reminded the UN that when “it first discussed the South African question in 1946, it was discussing the issue of racism.” On the issue of West Papua, we believe we are discussing the same.” [2]
Why did Australia so willingly go along with the colonial hand-over of half of Papuan New Guinea to Indonesia in 1962? Was it because we were still living under the White Australia policy and hadn’t yet given all Australian Aborigines citizenship and the right to vote?
Are we grown-up and mature enough now to look at the West Papuan issue and see that an injustice has been allowed of the most monstrous proportions? Will we wake up and do what is right, follow the lead of United States congress members and call on the United Nations to explain why the West Papuan people should not be permitted the vote that they were cheated of in 1969?
Our silence on this issue may only mean the continuing echo of bullets in West Papua, as Indonesia continues to beat all thoughts of freedom from the West Papuan heart and kill many more while doing so.
It was another United States president, Woodrow Wilson, who said in 1918, “No right anywhere exist to hand people about from sovereignty to sovereignty as if they were property in a game.”
The West Papuan people were handed from Dutch to Indonesian colonial rule as if they were property, as if they were slaves. Will the World continue to tolerate this absolute betrayal of human rights, or finally decide that the West Papuan people are deserving of liberty?
In 1962 the Indonesian Government signed an agreement in New York, which stated:
“The eligibility of all adults, male and female, not foreign nationals to participate in the act of self-determination to be carried out in accordance with international practice,”
This did not happen. The West Papuan people were cheated of their right to self-determination in what was no more than a fraudulently manipulated sham vote to steal half of New Guinea from the rightful owner.
It is an odd coincidence that the first Southern Cross flag was also raised for the first time on the 1st of December 1854. It was perhaps this unusual convergence of dates that drew a West Papuan, John Rumbiak, to Eureka in December last year to participate in the dawn vigil beneath the Southern Cross.
Has the moment now arrived when Australian’s will find the heart and courage to stand up and call on all our politicians to act on West Papua and join an international movement to bring justice and a free choose to the people of West Papua?
Many Australians once worked along-side the Dutch preparing West Papuans for independence and many still live who remember those days. We helped to built the expectations of the West Papuan people sky high for freedom and then walked away like it never mattered.
If we now decide that it is high time to do what is right and allow a fair go for the people of West Papua, then we may begin to see the way toward our own full independence as a nation, with a new Southern Cross flag to fly in our skies and even consider the anniversary of the raising of that first Southern Cross flag as a more appropriate national day for Australia.
[1] http://www.abc.net.au/news/2011-11-17/west-papuans-demand-referendum/3676732
[2] http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2011/11/18/to-indonesia-step-and-end-systematic-abuses-west-papua.html
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Unrest in Indonesia's Papua under scrutinyBy Aljazeera
Exclusive report on eastern Indonesian region wracked by dispute over wages and calls for autonomy.Human rights organisations have called on Barack Obama, the United States president, to address abuses in West Papua during the his visit to Indonesia.
The campaign, headed by US-based group Human Rights Watch, comes after several months of unrest in the eastern Indonesian province.
VIDEO Link: http://www.aljazeera.com/news/asia-pacific/2011/11/201111194134492932.html
man rights organisations have called on Barack Obama, the United States president, to address abuses in West Papua during the his visit to Indonesia.
The campaign, headed by US-based group Human Rights Watch, comes after several months of unrest in the eastern Indonesian province.
A central issue facing Papuans is their alleged ill treatment by the Indonesian unit of the US mining company Freeport-McMoRan.
Step Vassen, Al Jazeera's Indonesia correspondent, reports that the workers at the gold and copper mine, who earn an average of $1.50 per hour, are demanding a pay rise of 300 per cent. Freeport Indonesia has offered them an increase of only 35 per cent.
The controversial Grasberg mine is reportedly the most profitable in the world, yet the miners say their salaries are far lower than international norms.
Papuans have been protesting over their alleged treatment by Freeport and some have resorted to illegally extracting gold from a broken pipeline that belongs to the company.
Up to 20km of pipes were vandalised after thousands of miners went on a strike more than two months ago. The broken infrastructure has paralysed the mine and pushed some impoverished Papuans to search for gold on their own.
Two striking workers were shot by police and three were killed by unidentified gunmen in October.
On Friday, unidentified gunmen killed a mining company guard and wounded two policemen in a patrol car near the mine, according to Wachyono, a spokesperson for the Papua province police who uses only one name.
US concernSpeaking to Al Jazeera on Saturday from Jakarta, Andreas Harsono, Indonesia consultant at Human Rights Watch, said Papua has had to endure at least five waves of violence since it was taken over by the Jakarta government.
"They feel they are being treated as a colony of Indonesia," he said. "The Indonesian government had promised to give special autonomy to Papua ... but Papuans do not feel this has happened."
Harsono said the issue with Freeport is very contentious , and has been so since the company entered Indonesia in the late 1960s.
"Indonesia officially took over Papua in 1969, but gave Freeport the contract for Papua beforehand," he said. Harsono said Papuans argue that Indonesia signed a contract for land that was not theirs to give away.
Another sensitive issue concerns the reaction of the Indonesian government to a pro-independence gathering that took place in Papua last month. Security forces broke it up, leaving three people dead and over a hundred others injured.
When Hillary Clinton, the US Secretary of State, expressed concern about abuses in Papua last week, the Indonesian government responded with irritation. Now, with Obama visiting, Indonesia has said Papua is not on the agenda, but many people believe it is an issue that cannot be avoided.
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Indonesian president defends military in PapuaAKARTA | Sat Nov 19, 2011 8:00am EST
Nov 19 (Reuters) - Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono defended on Saturday the actions of its military in remote Papua province following accusations of human rights abuses and the recent killing of three people. Source
Three people were killed on Oct. 19 as police and military tried to disperse a political meeting in Abepura, a sub-district of Papua, a resource-rich yet underdeveloped province with a simmering separatist insurgency and heavy military presence.
The government's national human rights commission found strong evidence of excessive acts that led to rights violations.
Human Rights Watch and other rights groups have called on U.S. President Barack Obama to address the issue when he met Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in Bali during an East Asia Summit.
But Yudhoyono said on Saturday there was accountability and military personnel who committed crimes would be investigated.
"The world must know that in Papua there are armed cells who are launching attacks at us, including at an area of a firm there," he said, referring to a mine run by Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc where a worker was killed by gunmen on Thursday.
"When our soldiers are doing self-defense then it can't be categorised as violating human rights."
Yudhoyono said Papua was not specifically discussed during his meeting with Obama in Bali.
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Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) akan Mengizinkan West Papua Melamar sebagai Status PeninjauPosted on November 12, 2011
Posted at 20:55 on 11 November, 2011 UTC
Terjemahan PMNews dari sumber: http://www.rnzi.com/pages/news.php?op=read&id=64348
West Papua akan diberikan kesempatan untuk melamar diri menjadi peninjau dalam MSG.
Direktur Jenderal sekretariat MSG di Port Vila, Peter Forau, memberitahukan kepada Radio Vanuatu bahwa hal ini telah disetujui minggu lalu pada pertemuan para Menlu MSG.
Akan tetapi, Forau mengatakan status peninjau bagi West Papua dimaksud dibentuk sebagai bagian dari kelompok yang mewakili Indonesia.
Pada KTT MSG di Fiji pada Maret lalu, Indonesia diberikan status peninjau.
Salah satu anggota MSG ialah Kanaks dari Gerakan Kaledonia Baru (ed, Melanesia).
News Content © Radio New Zealand International
PO Box 123, Wellington, New Zealand
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Hasrat Referendum Untuk Papua Merdeka Written by inilah com
Friday, 18 November 2011 02:40
Oleh: Ikrar Nusa Bhakti
Kamis, 17 November 2011 | 08:27 WIB
Diberikannya referendum bagi Timor Timur (Kini Timor Leste) untuk menentukan nasib sendiri apakah akan tetap berada di dalam Negara Kesatuan Republik Indonesia (NKRI) ataukah memilih berpisah pada 1999, telah memberi inspirasi bagi sebagian orang Papua (dan Aceh) untuk juga diberikan hak yang sama.
HeadlineBagi orang Papua, kalau Timor Timur yang jumlah penduduk dan geografisnya jauh lebih kecil dan lebih miskin dari Papua saja bisa merdeka, mengapa Papua tidak? Sementara di sebelah timur Papua, yakni Papua Niugini (PNG) yang sama-sama berumpun Melanesia dengan Orang Papua, sudah menjadi negara merdeka diberikan oleh Australia sejak 16 September 1975.
Ketika UU No 21/2001 tentang Otonomi Khusus Papua diberlakukan sejak 2002, orang Papua pun terbelah antara yang memilih jalur O (Otonomi) dan jalur M (Merdeka). Bagi sebagian elite Papua yang memilih jalur M, merdeka bukanlah suatu yang perlu dipersiapkan. Segalanya bisa diatasi begitu mereka merdeka.
Bagi mereka, merdeka berarti mereka dapat menikmati alam kebebasan dari tindakan aparat TNI atau Polri yang kadang luar biasa tidak manusiawinya terhadap orang-orang Papua. Ada juga yang melihat bahwa merdeka berarti mereka tidak perlu bekerja. Merdeka juga berarti bahwa pemerintah harus memberikan segalanya kepada rakyat termasuk membangun dan memelihara rumah bagi rakyat.
Kemerdekaan memang dipersepsikan macam-macam oleh orang Papua, baik mereka yang berpikir secara sederhana maupun yang sudah berpikir secara komprehensif dan rumit.
Bagi mereka yang memilih jalur O, kemerdekaan Papua bukanlah sesuatu yang mudah. Selama ini mereka juga sudah menyatu di alam kemerdekaan bersama Indonesia. Kini tinggal bagaimana mereka secara bersama mengisi kemerdekaan dalam bingkai NKRI. Tapi pada saat yang sama mereka juga sangat kritis pada aparat keamanan yang bertindak sewenang-wenang terhadap sesama saudara sebangsa dan setanah air asal Papua.
Dalam konteks ini mereka juga masih ingat akan kata-kata Marcus Kaisiepo, anggota Dewan New Guinea (Nieuw Guinea Raad) asal Biak yang menulis di majalah Penjoeloeh (Penyuluh) edisi September 1945 yang diterbitkan para Eks-Digulis (Tahanan Politik Indonesia yang dibuang Belanda di Boven Digul) di Brisbane, Australia yang antara lain berbunyi: “Sekarang adalah zaman kemerdekaan. Orang Indonesia dan Orang Papua adalah Saudara. Orang Indonesia jangan menguasai jabatan dan kedudukan. Jangan pula menguasai kekayaan di Papua. Selama persoalan-persoalan tersebut masih ada, antara orang Indonesia dan orang Papua akan selalu ada persoalan.” Kalimat itu masih dapat kita baca di buku karya almarhum A. Mampioper, Jayapura Dalam Perang Pasifik.
Gerakan Papua Merdeka sejak Mei 1998 telah berubah dari pendekatan sporadik para militer yang menyerang pos-pos ABRI dan Polisi, menjadi suatu gerakan politik. Awalnya mereka ikut dalam Jakarta Informal Meeting (JIM) di kantor Wakil Presiden RI pada November 1998 yang difasilitasi Sekretariat Negara.
Kelompok elite Papua dikoordinasi oleh Willy Mandowen, dosen bahasa Inggris di FKIP-Universitas Cendrawasih dalam suatu organisasi bernama Forum Rekonsiliasi Rakyat Irian (FORERI).
Singkat kata, para elite politik, budaya dan agama asal Papua yang bernama Tim 100 pimpinan Tom Beanal, bertemu Presiden B.J. Habibie pada Februari 1999. Pada pertemuan itu mereka menyatakan Papua ingin menarik diri dari Republik Indonesia.
Mereka juga tidak mengganggu NKRI karena toh setelah Timor Timur lepas dari Indonesia, NKRI juga tidak mengalami gejolak. Sikap keras mereka ini yang kemudian membuat pemerintah pusat di Jakarta merasa enggan berdialog lagi dengan para elite Papua.
Dulu, gerakan Papua Merdeka mendapatkan simpati dari negara-negara berumpun Melanesia (PNG, Vanuatu, Fiji, Solomon Islands) yang tergabung dalam Melanesian Sperhead Group (MSG) ditambah Nauru yang masuk wilayah Polinesia. Mereka juga didukung kelompok gereja seperti Melanesian Council of Churches dan Australian Council of Churches. Kini dukungan itu semakin kecil.
Dukungan kini malah datang dari gereja di AS, International Lawyers for West Papua, International Parliament for West Papua yang mengadakan seminar kecil di Oxford pada 2 Agustus 2011 bertajuk “Papua: Road to Freedom.”
Mereka juga menggunakan jaringan East Timor and Indonesia Alert Network (ETAN) yang dulu membantu kemerdekaan Timor Timur. Tapi di Australia kini semakin kecil dukungan terhadap Papua merdeka. Sebagai negara, Australia juga terikat Traktat Lombok yang ditandatangani dengan Indonesia pada 13 Oktober 2006.
Prinsip utama dari perjanjian keamanan itu adalah “Kedua negara tidak boleh membantu atau memberikan tempat di wilayahnya untuk mendukung gerakan-gerakan separatisme yang ada di kedua negara.”
Hingga kini tidak ada negara yang terang-terangan mendukung Papua Merdeka. Tapi, bila kebrutalan TNI dan Polri terhadap orang-orang Papua semakin menjadi-jadi, bukan mustahil negara-negara barat seperti AS, negara-negara Eropa Barat dan Australia menerapkan Humanitarian Intervention untuk membantu kemerdekaan Papua.
Atas nama Responsibility to Protect bisa saja Barat mendukung kemerdekaan Papua, seperti halnya mereka mendukung kemerdekaan Kosovo.
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Separatisme
Hip Hop Perlawanan demi Papua Merdeka| yuli | Sabtu, 23 Oktober 2010 | 04:25 WIB
Potongan ilustrasi dalam video lagu berirama hip-hop yang dengan lantang mengobarkan perlawanan Papua atas kekuasaan Jakarta.
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TERKAIT:
* How US Sees Indonesia Troops' Involvement in Papua Torture Video
* 290 Kekerasan Aparat di Papua Dibiarkan
* Sahkan RUU Perlindungan Pembela HAM!
* TNI Akui Kebenaran Video Papua
* Usut Tuntas Pelanggaran HAM oleh TNI
JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com — Perjuangan menuju Papua merdeka dari Indonesia tidak hanya digelar lewat senjata dan diplomasi, tetapi juga lagu.
Sebagaimana video kekerasan aparat terhadap rakyat Papua yang mencoreng reputasi Indonesia, lagu perjuangan dari Papua kali ini juga disebarkan melalui situs YouTube.
Lagu dalam video berdurasi 2,53 menit itu diberi keterangan sebagai "The Sound of Freedom from the next generation of West Papua.!!! Papua merdeka.!!!!"
Ilustrasi visualnya berupa foto seputar seremoni gerakan Papua merdeka, tetapi juga ada yang ironis. Lirik dalam lagu yang dikemas beraliran hip hop itu mengutuk bukan saja Indonesia, melainkan juga Belanda dan Amerika Serikat.
"(XXXX- diedit) Indonesia sama saja dengan Pemerintah Belanda. Torang dua mau diam-diam bunuh saya," demikian bunyinya. Torang adalah kependekan "kita orang" dalam dialek Papua.
Amerika Serikat dikutuk karena perannya dalam menjembatani sengketa antara Indonesia versus Belanda dalam memperebutkan Papua barat. "Amerika, Belanda, Indonesia. Kamu dulu jual torang, ya? 15 Augustus 62, ya? Di New York, heh?" demikian olok-olok di lagu itu.
Tanggal 15 Augustus 1962 merujuk pada perundingan di New York yang menyepakati penyerahan Papua Barat oleh Belanda kepada Indonesia, dengan beberapa persyaratan. Perundingan itu dikutuk separatis Papua karena tidak melibatkan wakil Papua sama sekali.
Tetapi ada ironi di ilustrasi video itu. Meski mengutuk Belanda, mereka juga merengek minta perhatian Kerajaan Belanda.
Pada video lagu itu ditampilkan poster bertuliskan, "Why are you SILENT about Indonesian GENOCIDE in WEST PAPUA?" Lantas, dilengkapi pula dengan foto jajaran kursi di gedung parlemen Belanda.
http://nasional.kompas.com/read/2010/10/23/04254293/Hip.Hop.Perlawanan.demi.Papua.Merdeka-14
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Indonesia admits its troops involved
How US Sees Indonesia Troops' Involvement in Papua Torture Video| Jimmy Hitipeuw | Sabtu, 23 Oktober 2010 | 03:59 WIB
The victims were thought to be from the restive eastern province of Papua
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http://nasional.kompas.com/read/2010/10/23/0359077/How.US.Sees.Indonesia.Troops.Involvement.in.Papua.Torture.Video.
JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Indonesia admitted Friday that its soldiers had tortured Papuan detainees who were seen in an online video being beaten and humiliated, and promised a thorough investigation. The footage showed the soldiers applying a burning stick to the genitals of one of the unarmed men and threatening another with a knife as they interrogated them over the location of a weapons cache.
“Based on our preliminary report, we found that soldiers on the ground overreacted in handling those people who had been arrested,” Security Affairs Minister Djoko Suyanto told reporters.
“What they did was unprofessional.” The graphic video drew international media attention to allegations of widespread torture and abuse of activists and civilians in restive Indonesian regions such as Papua and the Maluku islands.
Rights groups including Amnesty International have demanded Indonesia investigate and punish the unidentified soldiers in the video, citing an entrenched culture of impunity in the country’s security forces. But the US government said Friday that the incident would not affect a resumption of military ties, praising Indonesia as upfront in its investigation of the video and saying it would continue to train an elite military unit.
Suyanto said the troops involved in the incident, which reportedly occurred in May in the Punjak Jaya region of eastern Papua province, would be dealt with “according to military regulations”. “It has attracted public and world attention. We’ll settle it properly,” he said.
Amnesty called for the government to appoint a national human rights commission to lead the investigation and publish the findings while ensuring the safety of investigators, victims, witnesses and their families.
“The authorities must send a clear public message to all members of the security forces in Indonesia, especially in Papua, that torture and other ill-treatment is strictly prohibited at all times and, if it occurs, full criminal investigations will begin,” its deputy director Donna Guest said.
The human rights group said it also had another video showing a Papuan political activist, reportedly arrested by police in August 2009, with severe abdominal injuries receiving no assistance just before his death. Amnesty said it wrote to police in December last year asking for details about police abuse in the Nabire district of Papua but has not received a response and is unaware of any “independent and impartial” investigation.
From December 2008 to April 2009, police had used “unnecessary and excessive force” against demonstrators, injuring at least 21 people and “repeatedly beat and otherwise ill-treated” at least 17 during and after arrests, it said.
The group also criticised Indonesia for persecuting political activists including those who display separatist symbols in restive areas such as Maluku. They called for the release of at least 22 activists charged with “rebellion” for planning a peaceful rally and possessing the outlawed South Maluku Republic (RMS) flag and membership cards.
They face a maximum penalty of life in prison under Indonesia’s harsh laws against sedition. Activists had criticised the US’ decision this year to restart military training to the elite military unit Kopassus, citing alleged human rights violations by Indonesian security forces.
But State Department spokesman Philip Crowley said Indonesia had promised a “full and independent investigation” of the video. “They have undertaken, under democratic law, specific reforms and we will continue to work with them,” he said.
“What they announced today is consistent with the terms under which we resumed limited security cooperation with Kopassus.
Sumber :
AFP
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Imparsial
290 Kekerasan Aparat di Papua Dibiarkan Adi Dwijayadi | yuli | Jumat, 22 Oktober 2010 | 23:47 WIB
Video yang diposting di YouTube ini menunjukkan dua pria Papua tengah dianiaya oleh beberapa orang yang diduga pasukan keamanan Indonesia. Salah satu personel keamanan melakukan penganiayaan dengan mengarahkan benda tumpul ke alat kelamin pria Papua tersebut.
TERKAIT:
* Djoko Bantah Operasi Militer di Papua
* TNI Akui Kebenaran Video Papua
* YouTube Hapus Video Penyiksaan di Papua
* Alat Vital Pria Papua Ini Dipukuli
JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Presiden Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono dituntut memerintahkan kepada Panglima TNI dan Kapolri agar memberikan perlindungan kepada para pembela HAM (Hak Asasi Manusia), khususnya yang berada di daerah konflik seperti Papua.
Diharapkan, petinggi institusi keamanan nasional itu dapat melaksanakan tugas sebaik-baiknya dan memproses laporan-laporan kekerasan di Papua serta menindak tegas para pelakunya.
Direktur Eksekutif Imparsial, Poengky Indarti, menilai pemerintah tidak pernah menanggapi secara serius terhadap setiap laporan para pembela HAM yang menyebut di Papua masih sering terjadi kekerasan oleh aparat terhadap sipil.
Ia mencontohkan, laporan sejumlah organisasi HAM di Papua dan Jakarta pada Mei 2008. Dalam laporan itu, setidaknya ada 290 kasus penyiksaan aparat militer dan kepolisian di Papua pada kurun waktu 1997-2007.
"Tetapi, hingga saat ini tidak pernah ada upaya pemerintah untuk menindaklanjuti laporan tersebut," ucap Poengky dalam siaran persnya, Jumat (22/10/2010) di Kantor Imparsial, Jalan Slamet Riyadi, Jakarta Timur.
Ketidakseriusan pemerintah ini terus berlanjut setelah beredarnya video penyiksaan yang diduga dilakukan aparat Brimob terhadap Yawan Wayeni dan penyiksaan oleh aparat TNI AD di Puncak Jaya baru-baru ini.
Sebelumnya, Imparsial, SKP Jayapura, Sinode GKI Papua, Progressio, dan Franciscans International pernah menyampaikan Laporan Penyiksaan di Aceh dan Papua 1998-2007 kepada pemerintah Indonesia, Special Rapporteur Anti Penyiksaan Manfred Nowak dan Komite Anti Penyiksaan PBB.
"Presiden perlu memerintahkan jajarannya untuk menghapus penyiksaan di Indonesia demi melaksanakan rekomendasi Komite Anti Penyiksaan PBB," imbuh Poengky.
Guna percepatan pemrosesan kasus pelanggaran HAM berat di Papua, Imparsial berharap Komnas HAM dan Kejaksaan Agung bisa bekerjasama dengan baik.
Ini penting agar kasus-kasus semacam itu, termasuk kasus Wasior-Wamena yang hingga saat ini masih menggantung, dapat segera dituntaskan.
Komnas HAM, lanjut Poengky, perlu dilibatkan dalam investigasi kasus-kasus kekerasan dan penyiksaan oleh aparat militer, polisi dan intelijen. "DPR sebaiknya mengawasi kinerja aparat kepolisian, militer dan intelijen dengan sebaik-baiknya agar tidak terjadi lagi pelanggaran HAM," terang dia.
http://nasional.kompas.com/read/2010/10/22/23475895/290.Kekerasan.Aparat.di.Papua.Dibiarkan
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Imparsial
Sahkan RUU Perlindungan Pembela HAM!Adi Dwijayadi | yuli | Jumat, 22 Oktober 2010 | 23:28 WIB
Dibaca: 139
JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com - Pemerintah dan DPR didesak untuk segera membahas dan mengesahkan RUU Perlindungan Pembela Hak Asasi Manusia (HAM).
Label separatis tersebut justru digunakan sebagai pembenar bagi penggunaan kekerasan aparat dengan alasan untuk membasmi separatisme.
-- Direktur Eksekutif Imparsial, Poengky Indarti
Selama ini para pembela HAM di Indonesia seringkali mendapat ancaman dan kekerasan yang dilakukan oleh aparat keamanan.
Dalam upaya perlindungan kepada para pembela HAM di Indonesia, Presiden juga didesak untuk memerintahkan kepada jajarannya agar melaksanakan rekomendasi Wakil Khusus Sekjen PBB untuk Situasi Pembela HAM, Hina Jilani.
"Tiga tahun setelah kedatangan Hina Jilani ke Papua pada Juni 2007, situasi para pembela HAM di Papua tidak mengalami perubahan. Aparat keamanan, antara lain polisi, militer dan intelijen masih melakukan kekerasan terhadap Para Pembela HAM di Papua," ungkap Direktur Eksekutif Imparsial, Poengky Indarti, Jumat (22/10/2010) di Jakarta.
Dia mengatakan, target kekerasan adalah perorangan maupun organisasi yang memberi kritik kebijakan pemerintah, mulai dari aktivis Dewan Adat Papua hingga para pemimpin agama.
Pada April 2009, Polda Papua menyerbu kantor Dewan Adat Papua dan menangkap 17 mahasiswa yang berada di sana. Tuduhannnya, melakukan upaya makar dan membawa senjata api serta senjata tajam.
Setelah melalui proses interogasi, polisi akhirnya menahan tiga mahasiswa dengan tuduhan membawa senjata tajam dan senjata api.
Menurut Poengky, pemerintah jarang sekali melakukan upaya proses hukum tindakan kekerasan aparat keamanan. Terlebih lagi, di Papua yang sudah dilabeli sebagai daerah separatis.
Oleh karena itu, pelanggaran HAM terhadap para pembela HAM maupun masyarakat sangat jamak terjadi di Papua. "Label separatis tersebut justru digunakan sebagai pembenar bagi penggunaan kekerasan aparat dengan alasan untuk membasmi separatisme," katanya.
http://nasional.kompas.com/read/2010/10/22/23284077/Sahkan.RUU.Perlindungan.Pembela.HAM.
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Rekaman Penganiayaan
TNI Akui Kebenaran Video PapuaHindra Liu | Glori K. Wadrianto | Jumat, 22 Oktober 2010 | 12:30 WIB
Cuplikan rekaman penyiksaan yang dialami satu warga Papua yang dituduh sebagai anggota OPM. Video yang disebarluaskan melalui situs Youtube ini dilansir oleh lembaga Asian Human Rights Commission.
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TERKAIT:
* Video Penyiksaan Diteliti Kodam Cenderawasih
* Mabes TNI Diminta Segera Klarifikasi
* TNI atau Bukan, Buktikan Pelakunya!
* Panglima TNI: Kami Cek Kebenarannya
* Beredar Rekaman Penyiksaan TNI di PapuaJAKARTA, KOMPAS.com — Tentara Nasional Indonesia mengakui kebenaran isi video kekerasan berjudul "Indonesia Military Ill-Treat and Torture Indigenous Papua" yang ditayangkan YouTube sejak Sabtu lalu.
Konfirmasi kebenaran ini disampaikan Menteri Koordinator Politik, Hukum, dan Keamanan Djoko Suyanto kepada para wartawan, Jumat (22/10/2010) di Kantor Presiden, Jakarta, setelah diadakan penyelidikan oleh TNI, Kementerian Pertahanan, dan Kemenko Polhukam.
"Ada tindakan prajurit di lapangan yang berlebihan," ujar Djoko, didampingi Menteri Pertahanan Purnomo Yusgiantoro dan Panglima TNI Laksamana Agus Suhartono.
Ketiganya, dan juga menteri terkait lainnya, dipanggil Presiden Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono ke Kantor Presiden guna membicarakan soal video yang ditayangkan sejak Sabtu lalu. Djoko mengatakan, berdasarkan laporan awal, korban yang berada di video tersebut diduga adalah pelaku penembakan karyawan perusahaan yang berada di Papua, seperti Freeport Indonesia.
Korban juga diduga pelaku instabilitas keamanan di Papua. Ketika ditanya soal identitas pelaku, Djoko enggan mengatakan. Mantan Panglima TNI ini hanya mengatakan, penyelidikan saat ini terus dilangsungkan.
Saat ini, sudah ada tim khusus yang menyelidiki kasus ini. Sebelumnya, Kamis kemarin, Ketua Komisi Nasional Hak Asasi Manusia Ifdhal Kasim mengatakan, video tersebut benar. Diperkirakan, video direkam pada 12 April. Sementara korban kekerasan diduga bernama Kindeman Gire, pendeta sebuah gereja di Desa Hurage. Korban saat ini diperkirakan sudah meninggal.
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Jennifer Robinson
Jennifer Robinson is a London-based human rights lawyer.
The UN's chequered record in West Papua
In the 1960s, West Papuans were sacrificed in the name of Cold War politics - and the UN did nothing about it.
Last Modified: 21 Mar 2012 11:32
Last December, police arrested West Papuans who were celebrating the 50th anniversary of the country's independence from Dutch rule [Reuters]
London, United Kingdom - Thousands have taken part in rallies across West Papua and in Australia to mark the UN Secretary-General's (UNSG) visit to Indonesia, calling on Ban Ki-moon to revisit UN mistakes that lead to the denial of West Papuans' right to self-determination and to assist in resolving ongoing human rights abuses in Papua.
UN peacekeeping was at the top of the agenda of the UNSG's visit to Indonesia on Tuesday. West Papua was not, but many argue that it should be. After all, West Papuans are asking that the UN revisit its first - and flawed - administration of a post-conflict society. Observers hailed the success of the UN administration of East Timor and its successful transition to independence.
But few are aware of the UN's failure in its first attempt at administration in West Papua more than 40 years earlier. East Timor got a democratic vote. West Papua got a sham vote. East Timor got independence. West Papua became part of Indonesia - against its will and in breach of its right to self-determination under the UN Charter.
New evidence of torture in West Papua
Had the UN properly discharged its mandate back then, West Papuans would have celebrated more than 40 years of independence instead of having endured nearly 50 years of oppression. In that time, it is estimated that as many as 500,000 Papuans have been killed at the hands of Indonesian security forces. Yale and Sydney Universities report that the situation is approaching genocide. Papuan activists campaigning for self-determination are routinely arrested and jailed for peacefully expressing their political opinions.
The recent conviction of the Jayapura Five - including Forkorus Yaboisembut, a Papuan tribal leader - drew international condemnation from lawyers and human rights groups. Speaking from prison, Yaboisembut - a recognised political prisoner - called upon Ban Ki-moon to organise peace talks with Indonesia and to use his visit to Jakarta's new Peacekeeping Centre to negotiate the release of all political prisoners in Indonesia.
The UNSG made no public supportive comments about West Papua during his visit.
But he may have been dissuaded from doing so given the controversy caused by his comments at the Pacific Islands Forum last September.
Controversy over West Papua
At the Forum, Ban was pressed to support peaceful dialogue between West Papua and Indonesia, to put an end to human rights violations, and "to find a strategy to get Indonesia out of a land that isn't theirs". In response to media questions, Ban said that West Papua should be discussed at the Decolonisation Committee of the UN General Assembly. He emphasised that the UN would "do all to ensure" that human rights will be respected in West Papua and that "whether you are an independent state or a non-self-governing territory or whatever, the human right is inalienable and a fundamental principle of the United Nations".
Ban's comments implicitly recognise that there is a legitimate case for review of West Papua's legal status, as well as an acknowledgment that there is basis for concern regarding the human rights situation. West Papuans welcomed Ban's comments in the belief that, after a long history of UN betrayal, the UN may finally act in their interests and protect their rights under the UN Charter.
The UN act in accordance with the UN Charter? Seems a pretty reasonable expectation. But, sadly, Ban's comments were highly controversial - representing "a remarkable shift" by the UN chief on West Papua since Ban was "the first head of the UN to come out and say that". Fifteen human rights and social justice movements immediately called on Ban to appoint a special UN representative to investigate alleged human rights violations in West Papua and its political status.
But the shift in position was apparently too radical to countenance. Days later, and no doubt in response to Indonesian complaints, an unnamed "Official Spokesperson for the Secretary-General" announced in New York that his "off-the-cuff response may have led to the misunderstanding that he was suggesting the matter of Papua should be placed on the agenda of the Decolonisation Committee. The Secretary-General wishes to clarify that this was not his intention." While the correction let stand the UNSG's apparent endorsement of the need for the UN to "do all to ensure" human rights are protected in West Papua, no action has yet been taken.
It appears the UN has let West Papua down - and this is not the first time.
The UN's history in West Papua
West Papua is the western half of the island of New Guinea, just 300 km north of Australia. The other, better-known half of the island is the independent state of Papua New Guinea (PNG). The Melanesian peoples of West Papua and PNG share similar ethnicities, cultures and religions. It is merely their different colonial past that sets them apart.
West Papua (then West New Guinea) was colonised by the Dutch, but for convenience's sake was loosely administered as part of the Dutch East Indies - modern-day Indonesia. When Indonesia obtained independence after World War II, West New Guinea remained under Dutch control and was prepared for independence, as was PNG by Australia. West Papua was a Dutch colony and Non-Self Governing Territory on the path to independence. More than 50 years ago, on December 1, 1961, West Papuans raised their flag and sang their national anthem as they formally announced their independence from the Dutch.
Soon after, Indonesia invaded with political support and arms from the USSR. The US - concerned about losing Indonesia to the Russians and keen to secure lucrative mining contracts - intervened. Under US pressure, the Dutch agreed to a UN- and US-brokered settlement, the New York Agreement of 1962, providing for a UN-supervised Indonesian administration and vote for self-determination by which Papuans could choose independence or integration with Indonesia.
West Papuans were not consulted.
Under the terms of the agreement, West Papua was transferred by the Netherlands to a United Nations Temporary Executive Authority (UNTEA). Between 1962 and 1963, UNTEA had full authority to administer the territory, to maintain law and order, and to protect the rights of the West Papuans. The territory was then transferred to Indonesian administration in 1963, but on condition that it remained under UN supervision until the vote for self-determination in 1969.
Media reports from around the world at that time highlighted the need for UN vigilance in ensuring a free and fair vote. In 1962, one editorial emphasised, "there is no doubt at all about the United Nations' responsibility under the agreement - quite apart from its moral responsibility - to ensure the Papuans are allowed to exercise a free choice" and that responsibility "should need no stressing".
But the UN turned a blind eye - both to human rights abuse and the fact the voting practices did not meet international standards. The 1969 "Act of 'Free' Choice" is popularly known as the "Act of 'NO' Choice". A handpicked group of 1,022 West Papuans were coerced, under threat of violence, into voting unanimously for integration with Indonesia.
During the period of UN supervision and in the lead-up to the vote, the Indonesian military is estimated to have been responsible for the deaths of 30,000 West Papuans. Frank Galbraith, US Ambassador to Indonesia at the time, warned that Indonesian military operations "had stimulated fears… of intended genocide". Australian journalist and eye-witness Hugh Lunn reported that Papuans carrying signs saying "one man, one vote" in protest against the voting procedures were arrested and jailed. Others were killed.
The UN was aware of the repression - but did nothing about it. And, worse, it collaborated with Indonesia to prevent international criticism.
Papuans concerned over renewed US-Indonesia military ties
Meantime, the US and Indonesia were busy carving up West Papua's rich natural resources. Having signed concession agreements with US mining company Freeport in 1967, two years before the scheduled vote, Indonesia had no intention of allowing West Papuan independence (Freeport is a major contributor to Indonesia's GDP, and Kissinger was later rewarded with a place on Freeport's board).
The US agreed, but diplomatic cables reveal that it was worried that UN members might "hold out for free and direct elections" (as required by international law), frustrating Indonesia's intentions. The US discussed the need to meet with the UN Representative, Ortiz Sanz, to "make him aware of political realities" but later reported, with relief, that Ortiz conceded "that it would be inconceivable from the point of view of the interest of the UN, as well as the [Indonesian government], that a result other than the continuance of West Irian within [Indonesia]". In July 1969, a US diplomatic cable reported that the "Act of Free Choice... is unfolding like a Greek tragedy, the conclusion preordained".
West Papuans were sacrificed in the name of Cold War politics and natural resources.
UN officials admitted in private that 95 per cent of Papuans supported independence. But as UN Representative Ortiz Sanz told Australian journalist Hugh Lunn, "West [Papua] is like a cancerous growth on the side of the UN and my job is to surgically remove it". And remove it he did. In 1969, Sanz reported the vote's outcome to the UN General Assembly, noting only that "Indonesian" and not "international" voting practice was adopted. West Papua formally became a province of Indonesia.
Former UN Under-Secretary General Narasimhan has since admitted the process was a "whitewash". British diplomatic correspondence admitted "the process of consultation did not allow a genuinely free choice to be made". Distinguished international jurists dismiss the 1969 vote as a "spurious exercise", amounting to a substantive betrayal of the principle of self-determination.
Yet no action has been taken by the UN - or the international community - to redress this injustice. A growing number of international parliamentarians are calling upon their governments, through the UN, to give effect to West Papua's right to self-determination. As Archbishop Desmond Tutu, a supporter of West Papua's campaign to have the UNSG instigate a review, has asserted, "[a] strong United Nations will be capable of, among other things, acknowledging and correcting its mistakes".
Rights groups have urged the UNSG to appoint a Special Representative to investigate the situation in West Papua, including the outcome of the 1969 "Act of Free Choice" and the contemporary situation, and ask that he use his good offices to negotiate the release of political prisoners and persuade the Indonesian government to lift the ban on access to West Papua for international organisations and journalists.
But will Ban Ki-moon act?
No UN action forthcoming - yet
Since his comments last September, the UNSG has remained silent on West Papua. At his talk in Indonesia on March 20, Ban recalled his own experience as a young boy in South Korea - where he said that UN peacekeepers had been "the beacon of hope" for his people.
Like Ban, the people of West Papua once saw UN peacekeepers as their hope. But as Dr John Saltford, author of The United Nations and the Indonesian Takeover of West Papua, 1962-1969: The Anatomy of Betrayal, has said: "The Papuans had a great deal of trust in the UN, and the UN betrayed them and continues to betray them because, so far, it has refused to review its position on the issue."
As the Human Rights Council is preparing for Indonesia's Universal Periodic Review, submissions have poured in with evidence of widespread human rights abuse in West Papua - evidence that many hope will spur the UN into action. But given its history on West Papua, should Papuans place further hope in the UN?
The UNSG's remarks in Indonesia this week also urged hope in the UN, drawing on his own experience in South Korea: "Please have a bigger sense of hope, don't despair! It may be very difficult for you. But look at me. As a young boy, I was very poor. [South Korea was] almost on the verge of collapse… But because there was the United Nations, because there is still the United Nations, you can have hope... This is my message to you."
Let's hope he is not encouraging more false hope from West Papuans in the UN. Let's hope the UN will act - because if it does not, then it is simply not the organisation that its leader believes in.
Jennifer Robinson is a London-based human rights lawyer.
Follow her on Twitter @suigenerisjen
The views expressed in this article are the author's own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeera's editorial policy.
Source:
Al Jazeera
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