In 2020, a representative of the Indonesian government, in response to the Vanuatu government’s call for a UN fact-finding mission to West Papua, accused Vanuatu and other PIF Island states of interfering in Indonesian domestic issues. She went on to say that Indonesia is the “third largest “democracy” in the world and one of the largest in Asia. In that speech, she stated that Indonesia was in favor of a “win-win approach” to the issue of West Papua. I will come back to this important claim, but what is democracy? And why do countries such as Russia, North Korea, Indonesia, etc. claim to be democratic? The quick answer to this is that they are acting like one! Let me explain:
Democracy is not just about elections. A democratic government is one that respects the rights and freedoms of its citizens, and whose institutions are there protect them. There are many institutions in a democratic system or government that work together to protect the will of the people, not the will of the government. Those institutions must work together to maintain peace, order, and freedom for the citizens. On the contrary, a government that claims to be democratic while destroying the freedom of its citizens is not democratic but an authoritarian regime.
A democratic government is one that protects freedom. A democratic government was described by Abraham Lincoln this way—is a government “of the people, by the people, and for the people,” meaning that the people created the government by way of election and support to provide and protect their rights, freedom, and security.
A democratic government is one that is the opposite of a unitary system. It has many institutions. In Western democracy, there are three branches of government: 1. The Legislative Branch 2. The Executive Branch 3. The judicial branch. These three branches hold equal power. In other words, they check each other to ensure none of them is more powerful than the other. Deviating from this means moving toward tyranny and dictatorship.
All these features disqualify Indonesia as a democratic country. In most cases, Indonesia closely resembles the Chinese government or North Korea. If the Indonesian government could pass a regulation that outlawed the cultural symbols of our indigenous people and the judicial branch agreed with it, means the government is not a democratic government but a dictatorship. If laws were passed to take away the lands of our indigenous people for the pleasure of the state and then the court didn’t do anything about it, that government is an authoritarian government, not a democratic one. And if that government can arrest citizens and lock up peaceful protesters for speaking up against the government, often with no “due process,” that government is not a democratic one!
Our views are not shaped by hypothetical events, they are based on facts and direct evidence. Most of us are former political prisoners. Some of us spent decades behind bars for speaking up against the Indonesian government, past and present. We were jailed for doing what many people in democratic countries are doing: expressing their views, even those that are against their governments. And because Indonesia does not have a democratic system, public speech is treated as a threat to the state!
So, what is this “win-win approach” that Indonesia claims should be attained if West Papuans want self-determination? We want to know what this approach is because if Indonesia wants a peaceful solution, we are ready for it. However, they must act like a democratic country, stop criminalizing speech, and come to the negotiation table so we can discuss. We need to speak to each other boldly and without fear about our issues. But we know Jakarta won’t agree with it or like it because they are not interested in the truth or in our view!
The Washington Solution calls for Indonesia to consider our points of view or arguments as a first step. We should come together and find a lasting solution to the half-century-old conflict in West Papua! Guns, bombs, and assassinations won’t fix anything. As such, we urged the Indonesian government to respect our delegation and treat them with dignity and respect as they make their way to their families. Treating them as criminals will not help the Indonesian public image; it will only solidify our arguments that we are not the aggressors; the Indonesian government is.
Central to the Washington Solution is the idea that the US government should take the leading role in bringing together both sides to renegotiate the most pressing issues in West Papua. We believe that the West Papuan/Indonesian conflict cannot be resolved with guns and bombs, but by peaceful negotiation and mutual understanding of the issues. As in the 1950s and 1960s, when the US led negotiations between the Netherlands and Indonesia, the USG should also take a lead in this to prevent more deaths and violence. We urge the US government to take an active role in this conflict and help resolve the issues we are facing today. We hope Indonesia will listen to our leaders, consider our views, and find lasting solutions to this conflict that has resulted in the deaths of half a million people. There’s no other way to resolve our issues; they must be resolved when both sides understand their sides of the conflict and work toward resolving their differences.
#FreeWestPapua
#Free Melanesia
Thank you.
Herman Wainggai
Executive Director
West Papua Human Rights Center
Washington, D.C.
United States of America