The 1969 Papua referendum

Reading your editorial titled Spotlight on Papua (The Jakarta Post, July 16, in response to the recent publication of declassified U.S. documents by a private Washington-based research group, which raises questions about Indonesia's takeover of the disputed territory 35 years ago, I find it necessary to make some comments.

Quoting the sixth and seventh paragraphs, it said: "It should be remembered that when Indonesia gained its independence in 1945, the country comprised more than 400 ethnic groups, encompassing Stone Age to modern civilization. Indonesian leaders believed that the most efficient way to hold the referendum was through tribal chiefs. Even today the vast and rugged province, which is 10 times the size of the Netherlands, is still acutely underdeveloped. When the referendum was held some Papuan tribes still lived in Stone Age societies. Language was a big barrier as Indonesian was new in the province and the tribes' dialects were alien to Indonesian officials."

An argument to justify your claim above is that, due to the rugged geographical location and illiteracy of the Papuans at that time, 1,025 hand-picked Papuans who voted in favor of integration with Indonesia through an "Indonesian-style referendum," known as musyawarah (consultation or deliberation) in 1969, would be the best method, instead of exercising a one- man, one-vote plebiscite as guaranteed in article 18 of the New York Agreement.

The agreement reads, "All adult Papuans have the right to participate in an act of self-determination, to be carried out in accordance with international practice".

Honestly and truthfully, I'd like to underline the point that your claim above is definitely baseless, misleading and untrue. Why? As you know, in 1971, all eligible Papuan voters (not just appointed representatives) had, from all walks of life -- Stone- Age tribesmen to semi-modern society -- proven themselves to successfully participate in Indonesian general elections, two years after Dutch New Guinea was incorporated into the Republic of Indonesia through the 1969 plebiscite. The facts, however, showed that the backwardness, underdevelopment and high levels of illiteracy before and after two years of integration remained the same.

Also, the language barrier, as you claimed above, did not, in reality, turn out to be a large obstacle. After receiving some briefing on methods and polling procedures from appointed bilingual officials, the entire process was successful.

JOHN FATIE Tembagapura, Papua