Govt gears up for MRP establishment

Govt gears up for MRP establishment

JAKARTA: As the September deadline draws near, the Papuan
provincial government has begun disseminating information to
public on the planned establishment of the Papuan People's
Assembly (MRP).

The MRP, a consultative body to represent the cultural
interests of the Papuan people, will start work in September this
year.

"The most difficult part of our task is surely dividing the
electoral areas because we're not dividing them by territory but
by culture. For example, Mimika and Asmat are in different
territories, but embrace a similar culture," he told reporters.
The MRP will have 42 members, which will include three groups of
14 representatives consisting of cultural leaders, religious
leaders and women. Meanwhile, Salossa also added that the
President had agreed to the plan to turn Papua into five
provinces, but such a plan required the approval of the MRP
before being passed into law. -- JP