Irianese refugees told to return home

Irianese refugees told to return home

The Jakarta Post, Jayapura

Authorities in Irian Jaya called on 3,000 Papuans who crossed the
borderline to remote areas in Papua New Guinea (PNG), to return
voluntarily in order to provide a better future for themselves.

Budiman Kayoga, deputy regent of Jayawijaya, said the
Indonesian government would give the refugees a guarantee on
their political rights and equal treatment and opportunities, as
it had done with other Papuan people, should they voluntarily
return to their home villages in the province.

"The government does not want the refugees to remain in exile
under unhealthy circumstances and without good future prospects
because of the political situation in the province. It would be
better for them to come back to their home villages to live
normally," he said upon his arrival from a border liaison meeting
in the PNG town of Madang here on Tuesday.

The refugees fled their home villages in Wamena and Merauke
regency to seek a better life in PNG. Most have declined to
return for fear of being mistreated by local security
authorities.

Kayoga said the Irian Jaya administration would coordinate
with the central government and PNG authorities to persuade the
Papuan refugees to return because they were living under
difficult circumstances in the neighboring country.

"If the refugees come back home, they will be welcome and
their safety will be guaranteed on condition that they do not
disrupt security," he said.

He conceded the Papuan people had taken refuge in the
neighboring country after receiving political propaganda from the
Free Papua Separatist Movement (OPM) that they would have a
better life and their political rights would be guaranteed.

Kayoga, who also made a field tour of the refugee camps, said
most refugees had objected to returning home as they had
frequently been intimidated into believing that they would be
killed by security authorities if they returned.

"I told the refugees that that was untrue and the political
situation in Indonesia had changed," he said.

Maj. Gen. Mahidin Simbolon, chief of the Cenderawasih Military
Command overseeing Irian Jaya, said security authorities would
treat the refugees humanely and respect their political rights
because they were Indonesians.

"The most important thing is that the refugees should be aware
of their obligations and rights as citizens and behave well if
they come back home," he said.

Meanwhile, in Mimika, the local military subdistrict arrested
seven rebels and seized 10 guns and many rounds of ammunition in
a joint operation with the local police to crack down on
separatist activities in the regency.

Lt. Col. Djamaluddin, chief of the local military, said the
rebels had been arrested when they held a meeting at a vacant
house in Kali Kopi Village.

The seven identified as EK, IN, OW, YA, SN, EK and TN, are
still undergoing intensive interrogation by the local police.