Indonesia's troubled Papua fears for future<\/p>\n
It was a typical Sunday in a village not far from the highland
\ntown of Wamena in Indonesia's restive Papua province. Word spread
\nthat police from the feared elite mobile brigade were on their
\nway.<\/p>\n
Villagers, wearing their best clothes at a Mass in a church,
\ndropped their prayer books and fled, said one village elder. Many
\nran for the mountains that ring this mainly Christian region of
\nthe world's most populous Muslim nation.<\/p>\n
The police never came that Sunday a few months ago, but the
\nincident demonstrates the fear of the security forces across the
\ngiant province.<\/p>\n
Following the military's fresh offensive in Aceh province on
\nthe northern tip of Sumatra island, in which more than 800 people
\nhave been killed since May 19, independence and religious leaders
\nworry the country's other separatist hot spot will be next.<\/p>\n
What happens in Papua, formerly Irian Jaya, will say much
\nabout how far Indonesia is prepared to go to keep the archipelago
\ntogether. Foreign investors, eyeing the province's vast natural
\nresources, will be watching in particular.<\/p>\n
Already, Jakarta's plan to split Papua into three provinces
\nhas sparked discontent, and in recent weeks at least four people
\nhave been killed in clashes. That could start a fresh cycle of
\nviolence.<\/p>\n
"This just showed how scared people are. Villagers are still
\ntraumatized by past military operations," said the elder, who
\nasked that neither his name nor that of the village be used.<\/p>\n
Larger in area than Japan, Papua has had an unhappy history
\nsince Indonesia wrested control from former colonial ruler the
\nNetherlands in 1963. The United Nations later sanctioned a vote
\nby hand-picked local representatives that has been called unfair.<\/p>\n
Jakarta says it has brought development to Papua, introducing
\nmodernity to people who only recently have emerged from the Stone
\nAge. The army denies charges of rights abuses.<\/p>\n
But a 10-day trip through this untamed region on the western
\nside of New Guinea island, where some tribesmen wear nothing but
\npenis sheaths, shows many Papuans want independence, having lost
\nfaith in the government of President Megawati Sukarnoputri,
\nespecially since she signed the plan to split Papua in January.<\/p>\n
Intimidation of Jakarta's opponents had grown, some said.<\/p>\n
Another potential flashpoint could be violence with migrants
\nfrom other parts of Indonesia. They comprise at least one third
\nof Papua's population and control the economy.<\/p>\n
"Living here, being part of this community, part of these
\npeople, you feel like there is a systematic agenda from Jakarta
\nto create conflict," said Benny Giay, a respected Protestant
\nchurch leader, wearing a knitted pouch for his handphone which
\nhad Papua's banned independence flag woven on it.<\/p>\n
Community leaders said Jakarta's plan to split up Papua was a
\nresponse to a growing movement of political and religious figures
\nbacking independence.<\/p>\n
The declaration of one separate province was postponed last
\nmonth after rival groups fought with spears and four people were
\nkilled. The government argues that splitting up Papua will make
\nit easier to spread the province's wealth.<\/p>\n
But at the heart of any debate about Papua is the military,
\nwhich has about 10,000 troops in the province.<\/p>\n
Papua, also called West Papua, helps the generals meet
\nshortfalls from the state budget, which only covers a third of
\ntheir operational needs, through protection for foreign
\ninvestment projects and the military's own businesses.<\/p>\n
"West Papua for the military is a treasure trove," said Denise
\nLeith, an Australian academic and author of The Politics of
\nPower: Freeport in Suharto's Indonesia.<\/p>\n
"That's one reason why they would be far less willing to let
\ngo of West Papua than they ever were with East Timor."<\/p>\n
The military and the Jakarta elite are still chastened by East
\nTimor's loss in 1999, when the former Portuguese colony voted in
\na UN-sponsored ballot to break from Indonesian rule.<\/p>\n
Papua military chief Major-General Zainal Nurdin dismissed
\nthreats from a dwindling band of rebels called the Free Papua
\nOrganization (OPM) who have fought for independence for decades.<\/p>\n
What concerned Nurdin was a civilian movement whose members,
\nhe said, were using "clever" ways to pursue independence, such as
\nlinking their agenda to human rights, traditional land usage
\nissues and demands for a revision of Papua's history.<\/p>\n
"It's like this. If this is not handled seriously now, later
\nit will become worse," he said.<\/p>\n
Nurdin said this group of "educated" people could be anyone.<\/p>\n
Indeed, there was a flowering of openness in Papua after the
\ndownfall of former autocratic President Suharto in 1998.<\/p>\n
Tribal and community leaders established the Papuan Presidium
\nCouncil, which sought independence peacefully. It stole the
\nspotlight from OPM.<\/p>\n
Then, in November 2001, special forces soldiers killed the
\npresidium's leader, Theys Eluay. Some were jailed, with the
\ntoughest sentence three-and-a-half years.<\/p>\n
Nurdin said if people were scared of the military, it was
\nbecause of the past, not post-Suharto military policies.<\/p>\n
He said there was no need for martial law similar to that
\nimposed in Aceh. Accusations that the military wanted to create
\nconflict were nonsense while charges that the generals were using
\nPapua to make money were "vulgar", he said.<\/p>\n
"Why would it be good to be in a conflict area? That's very
\ntiring. That's why I said if there are groups who still don't
\nlike us, they will seek any reason (to attack us)," he said.<\/p>\n
That doesn't wash with Eluay's replacement as leader of the
\npresidium, Tom Beanal.<\/p>\n
"For 40 years we have been deceived. Every policy has been
\nmade with the intention of getting rid of the Papuans," he said.
\n-- Dean Yates<\/p>",
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