Magai: 'Papuan officials are destroying Papua.'

Magai: 'Papuan officials are destroying Papua.'

19 June 2011 - The chairman of Commission A of DPRP. Ruben Magai has warned that the destruction of Papuan resources is being intensified by the activities of a number of senior officials in the Land of Papua.”Some of these officials are 'playing games', shielded by a variety of problems which continue to play havoc with the lives of the Papuan people. There is no question of these people taking sides with the weakest people in society. All they are interested in is furthering their own interests.”

“It is a public secret,” he said, “that Jakarta is continuing to manipulate things, causing the continued destruction of Papua. There is no space for democracy, the policies being pursued have nothing whatsoever to do with promoting the welfare of the Papuan people here.”

Ruben said that Papuan bureaucrats should be fighting to promote the interests of the people, but this is simply not happening. “Papuan officials are also contributing to the destruction of Papua,” he said.

The general view here in Papua is that OTSUS, the special autonomy law, has failed. The government should be opening itself up, making an evaluation of the situation and providing space for these discussions. “But nothing of the kind is happening, which means that the issue will continue to be raised in demonstrations, in seminars, in media reports and other forums.”

The Papuan people have for many years been raising their voices about the failed implementation of OTSUS, calling for OTSUS to be returned to Jakarta. At the very least, there should be some response. Last Thursday, dozens of people in the Coalition of People United for Justice (KRPBK) expressed these views.

The Papuan people's aspirations are regarded by the government as matters of no importance. The DPRP went to Jakarta to raise these issues but to no avail. “As representatives of the people, we feel extremely unhappy with this situation. All the efforts we have been making have led nowhere. On one occasion, we submitted a concept to Commission A of the Indonesian parliament, the DPR, which was accepted at the time, but there was no follow-up at all. This was a great disappointment,” he said.

The Land of Papua continues to be turned upside down, with unpopular measures, with acts of violence, with human rights violations which are never resolved, with the abuse of freedom of expression, with the introduction of laws which are unacceptable, as a result of which the rights of civil society are never upheld.

“This is the reality of the situation in Papua today,” said Magai.

ENDS

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