Jakarta's Plan for Dialogue with Papua

Jakarta's Plan for Dialogue with Papua Must Synchronise with local
Papuan Politics

Jakarta, 25 February 2011 - We welcome the plan for a Jakarta-Papua
dialogue that is now being pursued by the Indonesian Government.
Peaceful dialogue is the only dignified way to resolve all the
political and humanitarian problems that have persisted in Papua to
the present day. A dialogue between Jakarta and Papua can also be an
indicator of the government's seriousness in protecting and complying
with the basic rights of the Papuan people.

However, we request that the entire process of dialogue should take
full account of the aspirations of the Papuan people. In taking the
dialogue process forward, we ask that the government consistently
protects and complies with the basic rights of the Papua people by
ensuring that that there is no repetition of violations of
the Papuan human rights. The government should review the presence
of the TNI security forces and the under-cover security operations
that continue to occur.

On the other hand, we also call for the local political situation in
Papua to be reviewed along with the Papua-Jakarta dialogue that is to
be undertaken by the government. Building the confidence of the
Papuan people in the seriousness of the government is a basic
condition before a Jakarta-Papua dialogue can be held.

Bearing in mind the local political situation that is now developing,
we ask the government not to proceed with the election of members of
the Majelis Rakyat Papua which is planned for 28 February. The
MRP is an institution that was mandated by Law 21/2001 on Special
Autonomy for Papua (OTSUS). In a number of forums, the vast majority
of the Papuan people have declared that OTSUS has failed because it
has not taken sides with, given protection to, empowered and
fulfilled the basic rights of the indigenous Papuan people. This is
why the people have handed OTSUS back to the government in Jakarta.

The government has nevertheless pressed ahead with the election of a
second-term MRP in fifteen districts of Papua, in accordance with
Perdasus 4/2010. The second-term MRP is due to be sworn into office
and will consist of 75 members, of whom 42 are from the province of
Papua and 33 are from the province of West Papua.

The MRP elections are regarded by many people as having been forced
through. The DPRP has called for the MRP elections to be postponed,
while the leaders of three Protestant churches, the GKI, the KINGMI
and the Papuan Baptist Church, have called for the MRP process to be
halted. and for dialogue to take place between the Jakarta government
and representives of the Papuan people, mediated by a neutral third
party.

Moreover, the election of MRP members has not been transparent, it
has failed to comply with the electoral stages stipulated by the
Perdasus, while the counting of the votes has been deeply fraudulent.

We are afraid that forcing through the swearing in of the members of
the MRP will only reinforce the Papuan people's sense of
disappointment towards a government that lacks any understanding and
has shown no respect for local Papuan feelings.

This is why it is important to ensure that all initiatives taken by
Jakarta involve the participation of the Papuan people and take
account of their aspirations.

The creation of a special body to handle all the problems in Papua is
extremely important and should take place in parallel with the
holding of dialogue. This is extremely important in order to ensure
that the government's initiative is seen in a positive light and
free from suspicion and to ensure that the dialogue process for
which the Papuan people have hoped can be speedily realised. We also
urge the government to undertake a more comprehensive evaluation of
the implementation of development that has taken place in Papua up to
the present.

(The Alliance for Papua in Jakarta was set up as an expression of
solidarity with humanitarianism, in support of fellow human beings in
their struggle for justice and truth.)

ENDS

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