1) Editorial: Streamlining Papua
2) Govt acknowledgement of past crimes
crucial for peaceful Papua
3) Members of Papua Independence Group to Turn Themselves In as
Proof of Innocence
4) 'The National Police are getting worse':
watchdog
-----------------------------------------------------
1) Editorial: Streamlining Papua
The Jakarta Post | Editorial | Fri, 06/29/2012 9:56 AM
Issues on Papua — and its sister West Papua — have always drawn
the interest of both domestic and international communities. Both regions are
as attractive as the country’s capital Jakarta and resort island of Bali.
While Jakarta is the center of gravity for politics and the
economy of the country and Bali remains a magnet for foreign tourists, the
provinces of Papua and West Papua are rich in natural resources and beauty —
many of which have yet to be explored or tapped. It is the two regions’ natural
resources and beauty, as well as the political sensitivities of their history,
that have made these regions sexy and hotly debated subjects.
As the police continue to investigate and pursue suspects in a
series of shooting incidents that wracked both Papua and West Papua provinces
in the last few months, and as separatism remains a thorny issue, proposals
calling for the establishment of four new provinces, from the existing two
provinces, are yet another test of the Jakarta-initiated “Special Autonomy
Status” in both provinces.
Three regions in Papua and one in West Papua are looking to
become new provinces in the hope of reversing sluggish development under former
and current administrations. The petitioners have urged the Papuan Consultative
Assembly (MRP) to issue a recommendation approving their formation.
The four proposed provinces are named South Papua, Central
Papua, Teluk Cendrawasih (currently part of Papua province) and Northwest Papua
(currently part of West Papua province), each comprising several regencies and
municipalities.
Since the introduction of regional autonomy over a decade ago,
Indonesia has seen the formation of 205 new autonomous regions — seven
provinces, 164 regencies and 34 municipalities. In total, the country now has
529 autonomous regions: 33 provinces, 398 regencies and 98
municipalities.
The government declared a moratorium in 2009 against the
formation of new regions in light of the fact that the new regions were largely
under-performing in four areas: Good governance, public services,
competitiveness and social welfare. Still, proposals for additional regions
have continued to be put forward and the House of Representatives agreed on
bills for the creation of 19 new regions (one province and 18 regencies) in
April.
Aspirants do have legitimate grounds in pursuing the creation of
the new provinces, citing gaps in public service delivery. Many people at the
grassroots level claim to still be waiting to benefit from the special autonomy
status granted to both Papua and West Papua provinces.
But, their proposals were no less controversial, as they
apparently neglect the principles of efficiency and appropriateness. According
to 2010 data, the population of Papua stood at 2,833,381 with West Papua at
760,422. Both are relatively densely populated regions. Establishing new
provinces — and regencies — will only lessen the size of each province and
regency, and trigger serious problems in the availability of infrastructure and
skilled manpower to fill new governmental posts in each new provincial and
regency administration. These limitations exclude considerations of the
financial capacity of both the local and central governments to support the
whole process until the new provinces and regencies are financially and
institutionally capable of standing on their own two feet.
Their proposals also come at a bad time. Although the country
has booked significant economic growth in the past few years, its economy is
not completely immune to the potential impacts of international economic or
financial crisis.
It is indeed within their rights to demand the establishment of
new provinces and regencies, but the final decision on whether to endorse their
proposals should also consider the overall impact on the country’s financial
condition and development programs.
--------------------------------
2) Govt acknowledgement of past crimes
crucial for peaceful Papua
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | National | Fri, 06/29/2012 3:43 PM
The cycle of violence in Papua has deep roots back in the
earliest days of Indonesia’s history as a nation.
The victims and witnesses of human rights abuses still feel the
grief today.
In a joint report released on Friday, the International Center
for Transitional Justice (ICTJ) and the Institute for Human Rights Study and
Advocacy (ELSHAM-Papua) reviewed Papua’s recent history, including the 2001
Papua Special Autonomy Law governing the relationship between the province and
Indonesia, within a transitional justice framework.
“Even as we were conducting this research, new outbreaks of
violence and cases of gross human rights violations continued to take place,”
ELSHAM director Ferry Marisan said in a joint press statement.
“We interviewed more than 100 victims, many of whom have
profound feelings of distrust, deeply rooted in the past and direct experiences
of human rights abuses today. Official acknowledgement of this violent past is
a prerequisite to building peace in Papua.”
The NGOs said reconciliation would remain elusive unless these
grievances were recognized and addressed in a practical way through a
transitional justice strategy.
Such a strategy, they said, should include truth-seeking,
criminal accountability, reparations, institutional reform to prevent
recurrence of human rights violations, and a focus on the rights of indigenous
women.
“We are at risk of repeating the past through using force to
deal with unrest, instead of opening a process of genuine dialogue. The first
step is acknowledgment,” said New York-based ICTJ senior associate Galuh
Wandita.(mtq)
-----------------------------
3) Members of Papua Independence Group to Turn Themselves In as
Proof of Innocence
Banjir Ambarita | June 29, 2012
Jayapura. A person claiming to speak
for the West Papua National Committee (KNPB) says members of the
pro-independence group will soon surrender themselves to Indonesian authorities
as proof of their innocence in relation to the series of shootings that have
rocked Jayapura in recent weeks.
Victor Yeimo, who said he was the KNPB
spokesman for international affairs, said the organization was not responsible
for the attacks, which have killed at least eight people, mostly
civilians.
Mako Tabuni, the deputy chairman of the KNPB, was shot dead on June
14 during a police raid to find those responsible for the attacks. He was
accused of being one of the perpetrators.
A riot erupted in Jayapura the same day,
soon after his death, in protest of the shooting.
The KNPB and Indonesian
rights organizations alike have slammed Mako’s killing. Indonesian authorities
have defended it, saying Mako tried to resist arrest and grab a gun belonging
to a police officer.
By surrendering themselves to police, Victor said the
KNPB hopes authorities will no longer find a reason to scapegoat its
members.
“Police must investigate the mysterious shooters that have been doing
all those actions instead of continually accusing the KNPB of being behind all
of them. As proof of our non-involvement, all of the members of the KNPB are
ready to turn ourselves in to the [Papua] Police,” Victor said in Jayapura on
Thursday.
He alleged that a massive conspiracy was behind the shootings and
subsequent KNPB scapegoating, accusing the central government of playing a
major role, supported by the police and military.
“The police have accused the
KNPB of being the perpetrator behind the series of shootings, but they can
never legally prove the accusation.
The KNPB, in our fight, never exercises a
method of violence.
“If we used violence, then it is a setback to our fight,”
Victor said, adding that if any KNPB member committed a violent act, they did
so on an individual basis and not on behalf of the organization.
He did not
mention exactly when the KNPB members would turn themselves in to the Papua
Police, only saying it would be in the “near future.”
------------------------------
4) 'The National Police are getting worse':
watchdog
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | National | Fri, 06/29/2012 3:15 PM
Indonesia Police Watch (IPW) released on Friday a sobering
report on the state of the National Police, just days away from its 66th
anniversary, which falls on July 1.
The report showed that police behavior and accountability has
been on a general decline over the past three years.
For instance, IPW reports an increasing number of police
personnel dismissals, which it says is a reflection of worsening police
behavior.
IPW says that 429 police were dismissed in 2009. This number
decreased to 294 in 2010 but jumped even higher in 2011 to 474.
"There have been 12,987 police personnel who have violated
National Police code of conduct in 2012 thus far. However, we'll have to wait
until December to find out how many of these violators will be dismissed,"
IPW chairman Neta S. Pane said on Friday, as quoted by tribunnews.com.
Neta said that some of the key problems of police conduct
included the use of torture and intimidation by police personnel when dealing
with issues.
Then there were also instances of violence including shootings
and excessive force. In 2011, IPW says that police shot 97 innocent civilians.
Of these, 19 were killed.
So far in 2012, there have been 18 cases of police brutality
involving 34 of its officers. Eight of these cases were related to the misuse
of weapons. Ten were torture cases.
Neta says that bad behavior on the part of the police has the
effect of making people more violent and combative.
For instance, IPW reports that 65 police stations were
vandalized and burned down in 2011, whereas 2010 saw only 20 reports of such
incidences.
In the first five months of 2012, IPW said that 28 police
officers had been attacked.
If this trend of public-police conflicts were to continue, IPW
says that the two sides could end up becoming sworn enemies.
"All of this has to be stopped. The National Police elite
and President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s government have to care about this
grave situation," Neta said.
In order to help improve the police's image, IPW said that the
National Police leadership should fire its deviant officers.
"The National Police elite have to realize that now is not
the time to blindly protect those among their ranks who are deviant. These
deviants have to be fired," Neta said.
The reason why these violations of police standards occur, the
IPW said, was because of the low level of awareness among those at the top of
the police hierarchy of the situations facing those on the ground.
Adding to the problem was the National Police's swelling
bureaucracy, which IPW notes includes 261 generals.
What results is a lack of enforcement of internal controls, so
that rule-breaking personnel do as they please and avoid the punishments that
the IPW says they deserve.
On this point, the IPW pointed to an example in June where North
Sumatra Police did urine samples of their ranks and found that 114 of their
personnel had used drugs. However, these police weren't punished, but rather
were quarantined.
"If the police discovered a civilian in that kind of
scenario, the civilian would definitely have been firmly processed. This shows
how the National Police is still discriminatory," Neta said.
"The government, the House of Representatives and the
public have to build external watchdog institutions that prevent bad behavior
in the police and help guide them along the path of reform.
"What is really needed to maximize the police's work
performance is to strengthen the system of oversight and to better coordinate
police personnel in the field," he said. (png)
--------------------------------------------------------------
