Irian Jaya to get 10,000 more civil servants: Official

JAKARTA (JP): The central government plans to recruit 10,000 new civil servants in Irian Jaya following the planned division of the province into three provinces, an official at the Ministry of Home Affairs said on Saturday.

Michael Manufandu, an official on the ministry's advisory council for autonomy affairs, said the number of civil servants was agreed upon by President B.J. Habibie following his meeting with Irianese leaders in February.

The government earlier planned to hire 5,000 new government employees in Irian Jaya, he said.

"The separation (of Irian Jaya) will require a lot of funds, and the government has allocated Rp 1 trillion (US$125 million) to reorganize the administrative organization and other infrastructure (in the province)," Manufandu said in the provincial capital of Jayapura.

The former mayor of Jayapura said Irian Jaya would be divided into East Irian Jaya, Central Irian Jaya and West Irian Jaya.

"The division is based on ethnic factors, natural resources and a number of population factors," he said.

East Irian Jaya will comprise the Jayapura mayoralty, Jayapura regency, Merauke and Puncak Jaya, with Jayapura as the capital.

Central Irian Jaya will comprise Timika, Biak Numfor, Yapen Waropen, Paniai, Mimika and Nabire, with Timika as the capital.

West Irian Jaya will comprise Manokwari, Fakfak and Sorong. Manokwari will be the capital.

According to Manufandu, the planned division was not related to growing separatist movements in Irian Jaya, saying the government began discussing the plan in 1984.

"Whether we're ready or not, Irian Jaya will be split soon," he said.

Irianese leaders told President B.J. Habibie at Merdeka Palace in February that they wanted to be the masters of their own land, while at least one tribal chief declared outright his wish for the province to become an independent state.

On the basis of a United Nations-sponsored agreement between Holland, the former colonial power of Irian Jaya, and Indonesia, West Irian became part of Indonesia in May 1963.

Ten years later, then president Soeharto renamed the province Irian Jaya (Glorious Irian).

The 421,981-square-kilometer province is three and a half times the size of Java. According to 1995 statistics, the population of the province is some two million.

The government has sent transmigrants, many of them from Java, to Irian Jaya in an attempt to accelerate economic growth there.

The presence of these transmigrants has caused conflict because locals often are unable to compete with the more experienced outsiders.

The armed Free Papua Movement also has disturbed security in the province.

The Indonesian Military reorganized the Trikora Regional Military Command overseeing Irian Jaya and Maluku on May 15 this year. Maluku now has its own military command, the Pattimura Regional Military Command.

"People who say that Irian Jaya does not have adequate human resources (to fill the new civil servant positions) underestimate the capability of the Irianese," Manufandu was quoted as saying by Antara.

He said the government soon would submit a bill on the division of Irian Jaya to the House of Representatives. (prb)