Why should Papua aspire to full independence?<\/p>\n
Pradana Boy ZTF, Malang<\/p>\n
The factors that have caused Papuans' desire to be free from
\nIndonesia cannot easily be determined. Papua's desire is rooted
\nin many different factors ranging from the issues of race,
\nculture and socio-political rights to economic reasons. It can
\nalso be argued that, by and large, there are two opposing views
\nregarding Papua's demand to be independent: Keeping its status as
\na provincial state of Indonesia on the one hand, and freedom from
\nIndonesia as an independent state on the other hand.<\/p>\n
Discovering the origins of Papua's aspiration to gain
\nindependence will lead us to the long history of Dutch occupation
\nin the region, Indonesia's attempt to integrate this region into
\nits territory and also Papua's struggle to defend its identity as
\nMelanesian in the midst of a modernization wave and of outsider
\npolitical influence.<\/p>\n
Basically, the problem of Papua has been caused by the
\nIndonesian government. The Indonesian government tends to hide
\nthe real history of Papuans. John Rumbiak, a Papuan scholar
\nsuggests that Papua's independence is not an easy thing to decide
\nwhether for Indonesia or Papua. He identifies the Indonesian
\ngovernment in Papua as meaning nothing but a new form of
\ncolonialism.<\/p>\n
It is ironic that, given their richness in natural resources,
\nPapuans are left impoverished. Colonial powers that are mainly
\nforeigners (sometimes foreigners also refers to Indonesians from
\na Papuan viewpoint) exploit Papuan resources without involving
\nindigenous Papuans in doing so. They have been benefiting from
\nthe exploitation of Papua's rich natural resources with no
\nconcern for the Papuans themselves.<\/p>\n
This policy is also accompanied by what Rumbiak calls a racist
\npolicy. He states: \"When Jakarta transmigrates 'expert'
\nagriculturalists from Java it is also being racist, because
\nPapuans already know how to use the land.\"<\/p>\n
Furthermore, Rumbiak proposes that possible ways to solve all
\nproblems occurring in Papua are dialog and non-violent
\napproaches. Violence and a militaristic approach would only
\nworsen the situation and decrease the trust of Papuans in the
\nIndonesian government.<\/p>\n
The most forceful factors that have caused Papuans to desire
\nto be free from Indonesia are the militaristic \"approaches\" that
\nhave killed thousands of Papuans. Through dialog, it would be
\nclear what Papuans require from Indonesia and what the Indonesian
\ngovernment should do about Papua.<\/p>\n
They propose three fundamental questions:<\/p>\n
First, Papuans want to know about their history.<\/p>\n
Second, they want Jakarta to handle and address systematic
\nviolations of their civil and socio-economic rights.<\/p>\n
Third, they want to speak up about their identity crisis as a
\nMelanesian group within Indonesia.<\/p>\n
However, the Papuans should be aware of the necessary
\npreparations to achieve independence and of what would need to be
\ndone once independence was achieved. The absence of this
\nawareness would only lead Papua into further trouble.<\/p>\n
The difficulty of integrating Papua into Indonesia is
\nrelated to identity. They do not identify themselves as
\nIndonesians, but as Papuans.<\/p>\n
Many Papuans believe that they belong to a sovereign modern
\nnation state, which was established on Dec. 1, 1961 through the
\nraising of the flag.<\/p>\n
When Habibie took over power from Soeharto, a group of Papuan
\nleaders demanded that Habibie grant what had been granted to East
\nTimor: autonomy or independence. When Abdurrahman Wahid came to
\npower, he seemed to be more accommodative of Papua. The first
\nthing he did was to change the name of the region from Irian Jaya
\nto its original name of Papua.<\/p>\n
Unfortunately, his government's generosity was wrongly
\nperceived as the readiness of Jakarta to give independence to
\nPapua.<\/p>\n
In conclusion, the problems that accompany the issue of West
\nPapuan independence must be carefully weighed. On the one hand,
\nthe Indonesian government should be honest about West Papuan
\nhistory and truthful in relating the process of Papua's
\nintegration into Indonesia. On the other hand, from Papua's side,
\nit should be realized that creating an independent modern state
\nis not simple.<\/p>\n
The writer is a lecturer at the Muhammadiyah University of
\nMalang, currently studying at the Australian National University,
\nCanberra, Australia<\/p>",
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