PDI-P campaigns for Papua split

Fabiola Desy Unidjaja and Kurniawan Hari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Although the government's decision to split Papua into three smaller provinces has met with strong resistance from Papuans, the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI Perjuangan) insists that the policy be implemented.

The party, which is chaired by President Megawati Soekarnoputri, urged the government immediately to inform people about the decision to divide Papua province.

"The people should understand that the separation of Papua into three provinces is not meant to hamper the implementation of special autonomy," the party's deputy chairman, Roy B.B. Janis, who also heads the party's faction in the House of Representatives, said on Tuesday.

Separately, legislator Simon Patrice Morin said he and other Papuan-born lawmakers had warned the President that the instruction she issued to speed up the process of splitting Papua violated Law No. 21/2001 on special autonomy for Papua. The legislators have demanded that the presidential instruction be revoked.

Having 422,000 square kilometers of territory, Papua, the country's largest province, is inhabited by only 2.2 million people.

According to the presidential instruction, the province will be divided into Central Irian Jaya, West Irian Jaya and Papua.

The decision to divide the province was made in 1999 under president B.J. Habibie, but the implementation of the policy was delayed by his successor, Abdurrahman Wahid.

Article 76 of the special autonomy law for Papua stipulates that any decision to divide up Papua province must be approved by the Papua People's Assembly (MRP) and the Papua Legislative Council (DPRP).

The presidential instruction on the division of Papua violates the special autonomy law because the government did not receive approval from the MRP and DPRP, Simon, of the Golkar Party, said. The MRP has not yet been established.

The Papua Legislative Council has announced its opposition to the policy. The council said it would file a lawsuit with the Supreme Court to fight the policy.

Speaking to the media after PDI Perjuangan's weekly meeting, led by Megawati, party deputy chairman Roy said the establishment of new provinces in Papua required the full support of the people.

"We cannot rush to implement the policy as the government has to make sure people are ready to enforce it," Roy said.

The division of the province has sparked confusion regarding the implementation of the special autonomy law, which gives the province 70 percent of all revenue from natural resources in Papua.

PDI Perjuangan treasurer Noviantika Nasution said after the party's meeting that Megawati had ordered Minister of Home Affairs Hari Sabarno to travel to Papua to resolve the controversy.

"The President said the minister of home affairs will meet with provincial legislators in the near future," she said.

Asked about the possibility of the President revoking the policy due to concern it could create economic gaps between the provinces, Noviantika said: "I cannot say whether that issue was taken into consideration by the President."

Lawmaker Simon said legislators from Papua would urge the House of Representatives to discuss the President's special instruction on the province.

There has been speculation that the policy is aimed at breaking the secessionist movement in Papua, which has existed since the 1960s.

However, the government has said splitting Papua into smaller provinces is meant solely to help boost development in the natural-resources rich but underdeveloped territory.