Papuan council to begin work soon<\/p>\n
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The Papuan People's Council will begin work on Sept. 2, when the
\n42 people recently selected to the council are sworn in.<\/p>\n
The special committee selecting the council members announced
\non Friday the names of the 42 council members, who represent
\nreligious, tribal and women groups. The new members will take
\npart in a week-long training course from Friday to next Thursday
\nin the provincial capital Jayapura.<\/p>\n
The chairman of the selection committee, Abdul Hakim Ahmad,
\nsaid the council would oversee both Papua and West Irian Jaya
\nprovinces.<\/p>\n
Set up under Law No. 21\/2001 on special autonomy for Papua,
\nthe council has the power to promote the basic rights of Papuans
\nand to consult with the provincial legislature on the
\ngubernatorial election.<\/p>\n
However, the council is little more than a symbolic
\ninstitution with none of the power it was originally promised.
\nThe central government had originally said it would give the
\ncouncil the power to endorse crucial policies, including the
\npartitioning of Papua into smaller provinces, before backing away
\nfrom this pledge.<\/p>\n
This allowed the government of president Megawati
\nSoekarnoputri to reinstate the decision to divide Papua into
\nthree provinces: Papua, West Irian Jaya and Central Irian Jaya.<\/p>\n
The Constitutional Court, however, only upheld the
\nestablishment of West Irian Jaya province as a separate region
\nfrom Papua.<\/p>\n
Papuan legislature member Jan L. Ayomi said he expected the
\nimmediate inauguration of the Papuan council members now that the
\nprovince was preparing for a direct gubernatorial election.<\/p>\n
In the absence of the council, the provincial legislature
\nwould scrutinize the gubernatorial candidates and their running
\nmates.<\/p>\n
The local election commission declared five pairs of
\ncandidates had passed the preliminary screening for the election,
\nscheduled for Oct. 5. They are JP Solossa and Paskalis Kossay
\n(Golkar Party and the Indonesian Unity and Justice Party),
\nConstan Karma and Donatus Mote (United Papua Parties Alliance),
\nLukas Enembe and M.Mus'Sad (Across Archipelago Parties
\nCoalition), Barnabas Suebu and Komarudin Watubun (New Papua
\nParties), and Dirk Henk Wabiser and SP Inaury (Prosperous Papua
\nCoalition).<\/p>\n
The provincial legislature must complete the administrative
\nscreening of the candidates by next Thursday, before the Papuan
\nPeople's Council can endorse them.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/papuan-council-to-begin-work-soon-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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