Papuan protesters narrow minded over autonomy: Salossa

Nethy Dharma Somba, The Jakarta Post, Jayapura

A three-day evaluation of regional autonomy in Papua ended on Friday, with one of the most contentious issues raised being the appointment of civil servants in the province.

The issue was brought to the forefront amid prolonged protests by native Papuans, over the appointment of civil servants hailing from outside Papua. Such protests have been frequent since 2001, when the central government began its regional autonomy drive, which allowed regional administrations to have bigger roles and more power in administering their territories.

The most recent protest concerned the inauguration of the head of the Papua Fisheries Office, Astiler Maharadja, and the inauguration of the head of the Finance Bureau at the Papua Secretariat, Paul Onibala.

The protesters, during the inauguration ceremony on Oct. 11, objected to the appointment of the two as they are not native Papuans. They said their appointment dampened the spirit of regional autonomy, as it failed to make Papuans the masters of their own land.

Not all Papuans, however, agree. Papua Governor Jaap Salossa, a native Papuan, expressed concern over the mounting protest, saying that the protesters had narrowly defined regional autonomy.

He criticized the common perception among Papuans, including top government officials, that all strategic posts should automatically go to native Papuans, following the implementation of regional autonomy.

"They think that all posts should go to native Papuans. They disregard meritocracy, and that is wrong.

If we indulge this false perception, it will keep Papuans dumb," said Salossa.

Ignoring the protest, Salossa said that the provincial administration would continue to fill strategic posts with both Papuans and non-Papuans, based on their achievements and intellectual criteria.

He said this would benefit native Papuans and the administration in the end, as it would motivate Papuans to work harder to enhance their professional skills, to compete with fellow Indonesian citizens outside the province.

Besides, the best people for the job would run the provincial administration, which would benefit all residents of Papua, both natives and outsiders, he said.

A similar view was expressed by the rector of Cenderawasih University, Frans Wospakrik. He said that a narrow view of regional autonomy could spark conflicts between native Papuans and outsiders.

He added that regional autonomy should motivate Papuans to work harder to compete with people from other regions, so that the quality of human resources in Papua would be on par with that of other provinces.

Separately, Budy Setyanto, the director of the Institute for Civil Society in Papua, said the implementation of regional autonomy in Papua had not met expectations.

Budy criticized the provincial budget's allocation this year, He said most of it had been set aside for civil servant and councillor expenses (73 percent), compared to 27 percent for public services.