1,000 Papuans convene to discuss partition policy

1,000 Papuans convene to discuss partition policy

Nethy Dharma Somba, The Jakarta Post, Jayapura, Papua

Nearly 1,000 Papuans from all walks of life began a two-day
meeting sponsored by the local legislative council on Monday to
seek a solution to the central government's controversial
decision to split Papua into three provinces.

The policy has encountered strong rejection from local people
across Papua and triggered week-long clashes between groups
supporting and opposing partition, killing at least five people
and injuring a dozen others.

Papua Governor J.P. Salossa opened the meeting, calling on all
Papuans to articulate their thoughts on the division policy.

"I believe that we, Papuan people, have to share all things
regarding this land by promoting dialog. If I, as the governor,
am confused on how to govern this territory following the
controversial policy, then how about my people?" he asked.

"On the one hand, the central government will consider that
I'm standing against it if I refuse to implement the policy, but
on the other hand, people may think that I am violating the
mandate to enforce the autonomy law in this land," Salossa said
as quoted by Antara.

President Megawati Soekarnoputri has been criticized for
making a blunder as she issued in mid-August Decree No. 1/2003 to
accelerate the creation of West and Central Irian Jaya provinces.

Irian Jaya is the former name of Papua.

The decree was to implement Law No. 45/1999 on the formation
of West and Central Irian Jaya and North Maluku provinces and of
Paniai, Mimika, Puncak Jaya and Sorong regencies.

Implementation of the law was delayed by former president B.J.
Habibie due to strong opposition from Papuans, and his successor
Abdurrahman "Gus Dur" Wahid maintained the postponement.

Gus Dur later introduced Law No. 21/2001 on special autonomy
for Papua, which recommends the establishment of the Papua
People's Assembly (MRP), which would have the authority to
approve or reject any important decisions on the province.

As of today however, the MRP has not yet been established and
the central government was even reviewing the political role of
the assembly.

"I don't mind if the government insists on splitting Papua
into three provinces, but its implementation should ensure the
enforcement of the autonomy law as well," Salossa said.

Like the governor, Papua legislative council speaker John Ibo
was among those opposed to the partition.

Ibo urged the government to cope with the arguments for and
against the policy correctly by brushing aside their own
interests; otherwise, it could spark new problems in Papua.

"We hope that after hearing arguments from all the Papuan
people, we can construct a strategic policy to develop this land
and promote harmony among communities," he said on the sidelines
of the meeting.

Papua council had allocated Rp 1 billion (US$113,363) from the
2003 budget to finance the meeting.

Present included noted constitutional law expert Sri Soemantri
who also criticized the policy and argued that it failed to
promote basic principles in the country's legal system.

"The government could not just arbitrarily implement Law No.
45/1999 without taking into consideration Law No. 21/2001 on
special autonomy for Papua.

"From the legal point of view, the law on special autonomy for
Papua has stronger grounds than the previous legislation,"
Soemantri said.

To prevent more problems, he proposed the government set up a
team, consisting of officials from the central government and the
provincial administration and local community figures, to settle
the issue.

"It is the right time for the country to implement the
autonomy law because it accommodates the aspirations and basic
rights of the Papuan people, who have long been dealt with
unfairly," Soemantri said.

The mountainous, 411,000-square-kilometer territory has a
population of about 2.2 million, and is rich in natural
resources.

Papua has experienced sporadic armed insurgences that have
sought independence since Indonesia took control of the territory
in 1963 from Dutch colonialists.