Mega's move to split Papua unconstitutional: Expert
Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Opposition continues to mount against President Megawati Soekarnoputri's decision to partition the province of Papua into three smaller provinces.
Claiming that the decision contradicted Law No. 21/2001 which grants the province special autonomy, constitutional law expert Harun Alrasyid emphasized that the decision would only "turn the clock back" to 1999 when Papuan people took to the streets to protest any such split.
"We can't split the province just like that because it is culturally one. I am against it (the split)," Harun said during a weekly House of Representatives (DPR) open discussion on Friday.
President Megawati Soekarnoputri issued decree No. 1/2003 partitioning the province into three -- Papua, Central Irian Jaya and West Irian Jaya provinces -- despite public protests against the move.
The decree, issued on Jan. 27, was supposed to follow up law No. 45/1999 on the establishment of North Maluku, Central Irian Jaya, and West Irian Jaya provinces. The law was largely opposed by Papuans in 1999.
Harun, a lecturer at the University of Indonesia (UI), suggested that legislators seek clarification on the motives behind the policy.
Papua-born legislator Simon Patrice Morin, who also spoke at the seminar, revealed that the House had urged the government to focus on the implementation of the special autonomy law in the resource-rich province.
According to Simon, whether or not the legislators would seek further clarification depended on the response of Megawati to the House's recommendation.
Papua, currently the country's largest province, is inhabited by only 2.2 million people including thousands of transmigrants from other areas of Indonesia.
The decision to split Papua was made in 1999 by then president B.J. Habibie, but its implementation was delayed by his successor former president Abdurrahman Wahid.
Article 76 of the special autonomy law for Papua stipulates that any decision to divide up the province must be approved by the Papua People's Assembly (MRP) and the Papua Legislative Council (DPRD).
The MRP has not yet been established.
Harun emphasized that a presidential instruction which violated an existing law would not have to be implemented by state officials. "Since it contradicts the law, it can be ignored," he added.
He emphasized that the split of Papua did not follow normal procedures. According to him, any formation of a new province should follow the five steps -- first, there must be a proposal from the governor and the legislative council; second, the president should consult the consultative council for regional autonomy (DPOD); third, the president makes a draft law; fourth, the House DPR deliberates on the draft law; and fifth, the president enacts the bill into law.
Simon, meanwhile, said that the issue must be approached from the legal perspective. He reiterated that the House had sent a letter to the President, calling for an effective implementation of the special autonomy law for Papua.
"I don't want to see my brothers in Papua being fooled," Simon said.