Papua bill endorsed in flurry before recess

The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The House of Representatives rushed to pass the special autonomy bill on Papua (Irian Jaya) into law at midnight Monday after a last-ditch effort to solve the contentious issue of revenue sharing.

The House and the government eventually agreed to grant the Papuans a majority of the revenue from the province, namely 80 percent of revenue from forestry and fishery and 70 percent from oil and gas.

Initially, the House demanded that 80 percent of revenue, including tax and royalties, be granted to local administrations, but the government rejected the proposal.

The government, nevertheless, wanted 30 percent of the revenue, especially from oil and gas as well as mining.

After heated argument, the House then agreed to let Minister of Home Affairs Hari Sabarno consult with President Megawati Soekarnoputri, who had just arrived from Shanghai where she attended the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit.

Upon arrival from Shanghai, Megawati immediately convened a special meeting with her ministers at Halim Perdanakusuma Airport to discuss the latest development on the deliberation of the special autonomy bill on Papua.

After the meeting, Minister of Defense Matori Abdul Djalil told reporters that the government could not accept the proposed revenue sharing of up to 80 percent for the province.

"The government decided that revenue sharing should be 70 percent for the local administration and 30 percent for the central government," Matori said.

Also attending the airport meeting were Vice President Hamzah Haz, Coordinating Minister for Political and Security Affairs Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, Minister of Home Affairs Hari Sabarno, Minister of Foreign Affairs Hassan Wirayuda.

Hari Sabarno then returned to the House in the evening and discussed the revenue-sharing issue with the House's special committee.

Finally, the House agreed to allocate the province 80 percent of revenue from forestry and fishery and 70 percent of revenue from oil, gas and mining to local people through local administrations.

Nevertheless, revenue sharing from oil, gas and mining will be reviewed after 25 years, and during that time, the government will compensate Papuans with an increased budget from the central government for education and health care.

In addition, Hari Sabarno said the government was committed to increasing the amount of the general allocation fund, plus the education and health care fund for next year's budget from the initial figure of Rp 3.5 trillion (US$350,000) to Rp 6 trillion.

"We hope that the House will also help us find a source of funds to increase funding from Rp 3.5 trillion to Rp 6 trillion," Hari said before attending the plenary session.

While the House was in its plenary session, dozens of Papuans gathered outside the meeting room to demand that the House postpone passing the bill into law until the Papuans were consulted on the bill.

Earlier in the day, hundreds of Papuans gathered outside the building to await the House's decision. A band of Papuans played traditional songs and danced to mark the historical moment for Papuans.

All of the House's 10 factions eventually approved the bill to be passed into law, with some factions adding notes. Some hoped that the bill would curb the secessionist movement in the easternmost province.

Other important issues in the Irian Jaya special regional law include allowing the people to have their own flag, anthem and change of the name of the province from Irian Jaya to Papua.

The Papuan bill is the first to be endorsed in the House's target of passing seven bills, including the Papua bill, before the House goes into recess on Oct. 24.

The House is slated to pass the anticorruption bill and the oil and gas bill on Tuesday. It is scheduled to debate the budget bill on Tuesday, and is expected to endorse it on Wednesday. Also on Wednesday, the House is scheduled to approve the controversial police bill.

The House is scheduled to go into recess this week to allow enough preparation for the convening of the Annual Session of the People's Consultative Assembly, the members of which two-thirds are also House members. The session is slated to start early November.