Papua legislature rejects establishment of new provinces

Papua legislature rejects establishment of new provinces

Nethy Dharma Somba and Kanis Dursin, Jayapura, Papua

The Papua Legislative Council (Papua DPRD) rejected on Monday
the government decision to split up the province into three
provinces and vowed to file a judicial review with the Supreme
Court against a presidential decree endorsing the establishment
of the provinces of Central and West Irian Jaya.

Papua DPRD chairman John Ibo argued that indigenous Papuans
were not yet ready to take up the challenge posed by the two new
provinces, and that splitting up Papua into three provinces now
would only benefit non-Papuans, who would be recruited to fill
vacancies in the bureaucracy.

"All DPRD members reject the government decision to create new
provinces in Papua," John said before a group of over 2,000
student protesters inside the Papua legislature compound in
Jayapura on Monday.

"And then thieves would come in and rob the province," John
said to thundering applause with cries of "merdeka", or
"independence", from the crowd.

John was referring to presidential decree No. 1/2003 on the
establishment of Central Irian Jaya and West Irian Jaya
provinces, as well as the creation of Paniai, Mimika and Puncak
Jaya regencies and Sorong mayoralty. The decree, issued by
President Megawati Soekarnoputri on Jan. 27, 2003, was a follow-
up to law No. 45/1999 on the same issue.

Under law No. 45/1999, Papua was already divided into three
provinces: Papua, which covers the area along the border it
shares with Papua New Guinea, including provincial capital
Jayapura in the north, Wamena in the center and Merauke in the
south; Central Irian Jaya, which covers Biak, Serui, Enarotali,
Mulia, Nabire and Timika; and West Irian Jaya, which covers
Sorong, Manukwari and Fak-fak.

Following the enactment of the law in 1999, which many saw as
an attempt to weaken the secessionist movement in the province,
students and civil society activists in Papua staged street
rallies to protest the ruling. The protests peaked with the
occupation of the Papua Governor's office in Jayapura for three
days.

The protests prompted the Papua legislature to hold a plenary
meeting and issue decree No. 11/1999 rejecting the splitting of
Papua into three provinces. The government later issued a decree
delaying the implementation of law No. 45/1999.

John said the legislature would once again send DPRD I decree
No. 11/1999 to the central government to remind President
Megawati that Papuans were still opposed to the plan to create
the new provinces.

He added that the local legislature, the governor and
students, as well as civil society activists, would set up a team
to analyze the decree and prepare to file a judicial review with
the Supreme Court against the ruling.

He accused President Megawati of deceiving the Papuans by
splitting up the province, despite an earlier understanding that
the province would not be split until the Papuans were ready to
fill the additional positions which would be created in the
bureaucracy.

"When DPRD members and Governor (J.P. Solossa) met with
President Megawati in Jakarta, she told us that the new provinces
would not be created unless the Papuans themselves were ready and
requesting it. Now that she has issued the decree, she is
cheating us," John said. He did not say that he himself had met
with Megawati.

He stressed that Papuans were not opposed to the idea of
splitting the province, "but let the people decide what they
want."

"We have been cheated repeatedly, and now we are not only
cheated, but also intimidated," John said without elaborating.

Over 2,000 students from a total of 12 universities and other
higher learning institutes in Jayapura, Abepura and Sentani
detained a truck convoy from Abepura, some eight kilometers
outside the provincial capital, to Jayapura, protesting the
central government's decision to split up and establish several
regencies and a mayoralty in Papua province.

"We want the central government to revoke its decision to
accelerate the establishment of Central and West Irian Jaya
provinces," said John Baransano, senate chairman of the Abepura-
based Protestant theological school, STT I.S. Kijne.

The protesters also charged that presidential decree No.
1/2003 contradicted law No. 21/2001 on Papua's special autonomy
status, especially article 76, which stipulates that the
establishment of new provinces in Papua should be conducted with
the approval of the Papua People's Assembly (MRP) and the Papua
House of Representatives (DPRP), after seriously taking into
account socio-cultural unity, the readiness of human resources,
and economic ability, as well as future development.

The MRP has not yet been established, although the Papua
legislature submitted the draft of a ruling on the establishment
of MRP to the central government six months ago, which remains
unsigned for unknown reasons.

The government granted special autonomy status to Papua in
2002 to appease indigenous people who had long harbored
resentment over development policies, which they considered to
have marginalized Papuans.

A minority secessionist movement has been fighting for Papuan
independence since the 1960s.