The Jakarta Post reported that church leaders and political activists are calling for “dialogue” with the Indonesian government to end violence in West Papua. JP reports:
A number of religious figures and prominent human rights activists have called for dialogue to end violence in Papua, where incidents of violence continue as a result of conflict between armed separatist groups and the military and police.They urged the central government, pro-Papuan-independence groups, armed rebel groups and indigenous Papuans and their leaders to start building trust in Indonesia’s easternmost region.
The call for peace and dialogue was raised during a press briefing at the Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI) office on Thursday in Jakarta. Among the notable figures who participated in the joint statement were former first lady Sinta Nuriyah Abdurrahman Wahid and her daughter Alissa Wahid, who is a prominent activist and one of the female leaders of the country’s largest Muslim organization, Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), activist Usman Hamid and former attorney general turned human rights campaigner Marzuki Darusman.
The report fell short on a few facts. For instance, Indonesia doesn’t want to talk about issues pertaining to its so-called sovereignty over West Papua. In order to hold a direct discussion with the Indonesian government—a debate that includes all parties—Indonesia must agree to face the facts of how it came to be the West Papuan colonizer. Just how exactly did Jakarta come to be in control of a land that had no connection to Indonesia in the first place? They need to accept the fact that indigenous West Papuans have strong questions and opinions about Indonesian colonial authority. Yes, we know from experience that Indonesia will never accept such public dialogue because it will only expose its illegal occupation of our homeland.
History
Indonesia broke away from the Netherlands shortly after World War II. After a few failed attempts to regain control of Indonesia, the Dutch government backed down, recognized Indonesia’s right to independence, and allowed it to annex all the little islands within its territory. However, the Dutch government retained West Papua, arguing that the indigenous people deserved their own country because they are a distinct people who have no connection to Indonesia. The newly formed Indonesian military, however, wanted to take West Papua by force.
A few attempts to capture West Papua by military force were repelled by a far more superior Dutch force in West Papua, but Indonesia never stopped. Toward the end of 1961, as the Dutch administration and Indigenous West Papuans hoisted the West Papuan ‘Morning Star’ flag and the national flag of the Netherlands in show of solidarity, Indonesian forces invaded West Papua. That invasion was also thwarted, and Indonesian soldiers were captured and imprisoned.
After Indonesia exhausted all military resources to annex West Papua, President Sukarno turned to the United Nations. He manipulated the system to his advantage and it worked.
The New York Agreement
Fearing that Indonesia could fall into the hands of the Soviet Union, the United States began holding meetings with other democratic countries on the issue of Southeast Asia and the possible expansion of the Soviet Union (USSR) in that region. Attending the meetings were representatives of the Netherlands and Indonesia; the meetings were exactly what the Indonesians had wanted. However, absent from these negotiations were the representatives of West Papua, a nation of about a million people.
Together, they (US, Britain, Australia, the Netherlands, and Indonesia) signed the ‘New York Agreement’, which was a document endorsing the “transfer” of West Papuans from its former colonial master, the Netherlands, to an emerging Asian colonial power, the Republic of Indonesia. All these were done without the participation of West Papuans, a clear violation of international law and the anti-slavery laws of all democratic countries.
How the transfer was executed
To transfer a nation of almost a million people from one colonial power to another, the UN democratic powerbrokers, led by the US, Britain, and Australia, utilized the UN apparatus as a cover. They pressured the Netherlands to leave West Papua to give way to a democratic election. Then, when an election was announced, it would be dubbed the ‘Act of Free Choice’, which was a mockery of every democratic principle known to men. They did so know full well it was a ploy—a huge lie to mislead the world and the indigenous people of West Papua.
In 1969, the UN envoy to West Papua and a small contingent of UN security forces arrived in West Papua to set up the election. Before the election took place, the UN Security Team abruptly departed West Papua and turned over the security of the election to the very country that wanted West Papua in the first place, Indonesia. The fox was now guarding the hens.
In the ensuing days, the Indonesian forces rounded up 1025 indigenous people, sequestered them, and coerced them to vote in support of the integration of West Papua and Indonesia. The result of the election was 100% in favor of Indonesia occupying West Papua, as predicted.
Indigenous people saw what was happening and protested, but armed soldiers and police quickly crushed the protest. Indigenous West Papuan leaders were arrested and jailed, while others escaped to nearby countries where they lived until they passed on. Others who witnessed what happened that day are still alive today.
The UN Complicity
In spite of evidence of coercion of indigenous voters and the questionable nature of the election, the UN-appointed envoy to West Papua, Fernando Ortiz Sanz, certified the result of the election, which gave Indonesia the so-called authority to colonize West Papua. Declassified documents showed that the Nixon government supported the result of the sham election of 1969, all to prevent the Soviet Union from taking over Indonesia.
The lasting consequences
This is the history that Indonesia doesn’t want people to know, and this is why a public dialogue with Indonesia poses a serious threat to Jakarta. It is for this reason that tens of thousands of West Papuans have been jailed for decades; others have been murdered. It is simply to keep them from talking. It is this questionable history that Indonesia regards any discussion of it as a “threat” to the state.
Our Washington Solution – what should be done
In order for all factions and the Indonesian government to come together and talk about finding a solution, the Indonesian government must first allow West Papuans to vote for their own self-determination. Like the vote in East Timor two decades ago, West Papuans deserved the right to determine their future without pressure or threat from Indonesia. It is the right thing to do—a right they were denied in 1969. This can be done by holding a referendum on the Indonesian occupation of West Papua, much like the independence referendum held in New Caledonia on France’s occupation of that Melanesian land. Indonesia can do the same. If the majority of West Papuans voted to keep Indonesia, so be it. If they voted for independence, Indonesia must abide by international obligations and make sure that a peaceful transition of power takes place.
Again, West Papuans, including our West Papuan Human Rights Center in Washington, D.C., are willing to sit down with Indonesian leaders or government representatives to talk about these issues. But we also know for a fact that Indonesian zero-tolerance toward peaceful protests is why peace talks never happened. Many peaceful protestors were jailed for simply marching and waving West Papuan flags. Many of them were sentenced to two decades behind bars. They served decades behind bars for exercising their democratic right to protest!
In our Washington Solution, we outlined a pathway to peace. If Indonesia is willing to sit down and talk to our elected leaders in West Papua and us here in the United States, we can end this today!
Until Indonesia is ready to talk, we are here!
Herman Wainggai
CEO, West Papuan Human Rights Center
Washington, DC
United States of America