MRP members election opposed<\/p>\n
Nethy Dharma Somba, The Jakarta Post, Jayapura<\/p>\n
A prominent Papua opposition figure on Thursday rejected
\nelections for the Papuan People's Council (MRP), as the head of
\nthe council's election committee flew to Jakarta to hand over the
\nnames of MRP members to be installed on the council to the
\ncentral government.<\/p>\n
Tom Beanal, the chairman of the Papuan Customary Council
\n(DAP), said the election was unfair as the government had
\ninterfered in the process.<\/p>\n
Tom revealed that government officials through the Nationhood
\nUnity Office had chosen pro-government leaders to represent their
\nconstituencies without a fair election. The government also never
\nprovided an opportunity for people to elect their own
\nrepresentatives, he said. He said the appointment of the MRP
\nmember for Timika had never been approved by the public.<\/p>\n
\"There was no election, and suddenly an MRP member
\nrepresenting the area has been chosen,\" said Tom.<\/p>\n
The election of MRP members was similar to the so-called \"Act
\nof Free Choice\" in 1969, which led to the incorporation of Papua
\ninto the Indonesian republic. The 1969 ballot was unfair as the
\ngovernment had arranged the outcomes to ensure that Papua was
\nincorporated into Indonesia, said Tom.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, the chief of the MRP election committee, Tony
\nRahail, went to Jakarta from Jayapura on Thursday in order to
\nproceed with the hand-over of the list of MRP member's names to
\nthe central government. The central government will inaugurate
\nMRP members on Oct. 29.<\/p>\n
Back in Jayapura, Papua Governor JP Salossa on Thursday
\nappointed 13 officials to manage the MRP secretariat in Jayapura.
\nThe officials, who would serve MRP members, would start carrying
\nout daily duties on Monday, or two days after the MRP members
\nwere installed.<\/p>\n
The establishment of the council is a consequence of Law No.
\n21\/2001 on special autonomy for Papua province.<\/p>\n
According to the law, the council has the authority to approve
\ncandidates for governor and for members of the People's
\nConsultative Assembly (MPR), as well as giving recommendations
\nand approval for any cooperation between the Papua administration
\nand other parties. The council must also facilitate the
\naspirations of Papuans and help guarantee the protection of their
\nhuman rights, in addition to finding solutions for disputes on
\nrights issues.<\/p>\n
The MRP consists of 42 members with 14 representing
\ntraditional communities, 14 representing women and 14 others
\nrepresenting religious communities. While representatives of
\ntraditional and women's communities are elected through popular
\nballot, religious representatives are chosen by religious
\ninstitutions across Papua. The MRP members represent 14
\nconstituencies in the province with each constituency determined
\nbased on cultural similarity.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/mrp-members-election-opposed-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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