No plan for martial law in Papua: Susilo

No plan for martial law in Papua: Susilo

Nethy Dharma Somba, The Jakarta Post, Jayapura, Papua

Unlike the conflict-plagued province of Aceh, the central
government does not have any immediate plans to impose martial
law to wipe out the independence rebels in Papua, but is hoping
for a peaceful solution instead, the chief security minister said
here on Wednesday.

"There will be no martial law in Papua because the problems in
this province can be handled properly and violence will be
avoided for as long as possible," he said.

Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono made the statement while speaking to
students and teachers at the University of Cendrawasih (Uncen) in
the town of Abepura, Papua.

Fears have surfaced that the government would soon impose
martial law in Papua and other troubled regions following the war
in Aceh, where civilians have reportedly suffered most from the
frequent battles between rebels and troops.

Susilo said Papua currently was troubled by two substantial
problems -- one with economic disparity (in relation to the
western parts of Indonesia), and the other with separatism.

"The two problems pose a serious threat to national unity and
territorial integrity, if not addressed adequately," he added.

The central government officially signed into law the Papua
special autonomy package in 2001, with which the resource-rich
province was supposed to receive greater shares of its economic
resources, but there have been many snags and full implementation
is yet to be realized.

The police have reportedly made some attempts to appease the
separatist groups with nonviolent measures.

Susilo said the special autonomy was part of an effort to
solve the economic and separatist problems in Papua "peacefully,
honorably and justly".

"If the Papuan people's welfare improves, the wish to secede
from the country will die down," added the coordinating minister
for political and security affairs.

However, despite the special autonomy law, the economic
disparities remain wide between Papua other provinces and the
various separatist groups have been pressing ahead with their
independence movements.

The latest violent incident took place on Monday, when police
shot dead one Papuan, wounded two and detained two others as they
hoisted a separatist flag to mark what they called the New
Melanesian anniversary.

Analysts have said that separatism would not stop because the
central government in Jakarta had failed to fulfill their
promises to seriously enforce and implement special autonomy in
the nation's easternmost province.

Susilo said that should separatists continue with their
campaign, peace and prosperity would never come to Papua.
"Therefore, the government will press ahead with efforts to fight
separatism," he added.

The senior minister added that President Megawati
Soekarnoputri's government had put the Papua problems near the
top of its agenda for the 2003-2004 period.

"Indonesia's integrity is final, so the government will never
allow any more provinces to secede," he said, noting that most
foreign countries supported the country's integrity after East
Timor successfully gained its independence in 1999.

Monday's dialog at Uncen was presided over by the state
university rector Frans Wospakrik and no antigovernment protests
took place on Wednesday, the final day of Susilo's two-day visit
to Papua.