1) Goodbye Indonesia--Aljazeera report
2) Human Rights Watch Slams Indonesia for Minority Rights, Imprisoned
Activists
3) Quick count
shows ‘Lukmen’ leads Papua poll
4) Papua
gubernatorial election ballots enroute to election commission
5) MIFEE-affected communities want their land back
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View at
http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/peopleandpower/2013/01/201313018313632585.html| People & Power |
1) Goodbye Indonesia -Aljazeera report |
People & Power investigates one of the world's most forgotten conflicts - the West Papuan struggle for independence.
People and Power Last Modified: 31 Jan 2013 17:55
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When the Dutch decolonised their East Indies empire after the Second World War they handed it all to the emergent country of Indonesia - all except the territory of West Papua, which forms one half of New Guinea, the second largest island on Earth. This remarkable landmass - split neatly by colonial powers into West Papua and Papua New Guinea - is like few other places in the world.
Its mountainous terrain and dense rainforests have spawned extraordinary linguistic diversity among its indigenous population, some of whom are still in uncontacted tribes. Five decades ago few, if any of these tribes, showed any desire for their land to become an extension of Indonesia, a new nation state with which they shared neither history, culture, religion nor ethnicity, but which wanted resource-rich West Papua within its borders.
The Dutch resisted Indonesia's demands for a while, beginning to invest in West Papuan education and encouraging nationalism. But eventually global realpolitik intervened in the shape of US President Kennedy. Concerned about the possibility of communism spreading across South and Southeast Asia, the Kennedy administration saw Indonesia as a useful regional ally that should be kept happy.
The Dutch resisted Indonesia's demands for a while, beginning to invest in West Papuan education and encouraging nationalism. But eventually global realpolitik intervened in the shape of US President Kennedy. Concerned about the possibility of communism spreading across South and Southeast Asia, the Kennedy administration saw Indonesia as a useful regional ally that should be kept happy.
In 1963, with American backing, the United Nations gave Indonesia caretaker rights over the territory, on condition that a referendum on independence should follow. But when the poll - named, without apparent irony, as the 'Act Of Free Choice' - took place in 1969 it was widely perceived as a sham.
From a population of around of 800,000, just over 1,000 tribal elders were selected by the Indonesians to represent the nation. Allegedly threatened, intimidated and held in seclusion, they voted as they were told. Ignoring well-founded international protests that the referendum had been rigged, the UN accepted the result and West Papua moved from being a Dutch colony to an Indonesian province.
But a West Papuan resistance movement, the Free Papua Organisation (OPM), soon started fighting back - in the first instance using bows and arrows to capture the guns of the Indonesian military. A sporadic, low level conflict has continued ever since.
But a West Papuan resistance movement, the Free Papua Organisation (OPM), soon started fighting back - in the first instance using bows and arrows to capture the guns of the Indonesian military. A sporadic, low level conflict has continued ever since.
It has never been an even fight (a few thousand unfunded guerrillas against the well-equipped modern army of the world's fourth most populous nation) and Amnesty International and other human rights groups estimate that the Papuan death toll has reached in excess of 100,000 over the years. Some believe it might be even higher, although it is hard to know for sure because the Indonesian authorities have never welcomed independent monitors and foreign reporting is banned.
Even today, 15 years after a democracy replaced Indonesia's dictatorial President Suharto, West Papua is still one of the most policed places on the planet - with approximately 30,000 security personnel dealing with an indigenous population of around two million.
According to Jennifer Robinson, from International Lawyers for West Papua, it has also become one of the most brutal places on the planet. "West Papuans have suffered all forms of human rights abuse, whether it be torture, enforced disappearances, killings, extreme restrictions upon freedom of expression," she says.
Amnesty International is equally critical. In August 2012 it said it continued to receive "credible reports of human rights violations committed by the security forces … including torture and other ill-treatment, unnecessary and excessive use of force and firearms by the security forces and possible unlawful killings. Investigations into reports of human rights violations by the security forces are rare and only a few perpetrators have been brought to justice."
For its part, the Indonesian government routinely denies such charges and claims the actions of its security forces in West Papua are simply a necessary counterpoint to a criminal insurgency that threatens law and order, the safety of the population and the legitimacy of the state.
Over the last decade, however, the dynamics of this struggle have begun to change, with the emergence - alongside the armed struggle - of a new civic non-violent independence movement, the West Papuan National Committee (KNPB). Its membership has grown exponentially and it has bred a new generation of activists focused on both organising non-violent mass protest and making the outside world more aware of their plight. And that, says Robinson, has provoked the Indonesians into a predictably harsh response.
Amnesty International is equally critical. In August 2012 it said it continued to receive "credible reports of human rights violations committed by the security forces … including torture and other ill-treatment, unnecessary and excessive use of force and firearms by the security forces and possible unlawful killings. Investigations into reports of human rights violations by the security forces are rare and only a few perpetrators have been brought to justice."
For its part, the Indonesian government routinely denies such charges and claims the actions of its security forces in West Papua are simply a necessary counterpoint to a criminal insurgency that threatens law and order, the safety of the population and the legitimacy of the state.
Over the last decade, however, the dynamics of this struggle have begun to change, with the emergence - alongside the armed struggle - of a new civic non-violent independence movement, the West Papuan National Committee (KNPB). Its membership has grown exponentially and it has bred a new generation of activists focused on both organising non-violent mass protest and making the outside world more aware of their plight. And that, says Robinson, has provoked the Indonesians into a predictably harsh response.
"In the past few years we've seen a change in the security situation in West Papua - I think in response to the growing momentum behind their campaign for a referendum on self-determination which has got widespread popular support, but which is also gaining momentum internationally. [It has] resulted in a greater security crackdown on all peaceful activists who are in any way affiliated with the independence movement," Robinson says.
So what lies behind this five-decade-old struggle and why, in the face of Indonesia's heavy handed intransigence, are activists so determined to continue with their campaigns and protests?
So what lies behind this five-decade-old struggle and why, in the face of Indonesia's heavy handed intransigence, are activists so determined to continue with their campaigns and protests?
People & Power sent filmmaker Dom Rotheroe and fixer Sally Collister to find out. Because it is virtually impossible for foreign journalists to obtain official permission to visit the territory they travelled in the guise of tourists. Filming discreetly, keeping a low profile and evading the attention of the security police they managed to meet up with KNPB supporters and activists and hear a remarkable story of a people committed to doing whatever it takes to gain control of their own destiny.
| People & Power can be seen each week at the following times GMT: Wednesday: 2230; Thursday: 0930; Friday: 0330; Saturday: 1630; Sunday: 2230; Monday: 0930. Click here for more People & Power |
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2) Human Rights Watch Slams Indonesia for Minority Rights, Imprisoned Activists
Hayley Davis | January 31, 2013
Hayley Davis | January 31, 2013
Indonesia must do more to defend minority rights and free imprisoned activists to set an example for other consolidating democracies in the wake of the Arab Spring, New York-based Human Rights Watch said in a report released Thursday.
The annual World Report, which reviews progress on human rights in over 90 countries, identified religious violence, discriminatory local by-laws and the imprisonment of Papuan and Moluccan peaceful activists as inhibiting Indonesia’s path to becoming a “rights-respecting democracy.”
HRW deputy Asia Director Phelim Kine said the issue called for strong leadership from the Indonesian government.
“Violence against religious minorities will only get worse so long as the Indonesian government encourages or ignores attacks by Islamist militants,” he said.
Religious discrimination is not limited to acts by Muslim groups in Indonesia, with protests in Papua and Christian-majority areas such as Kupang in East Nusa Tenggara halting the construction of mosques as recently as 2011.
Joseph Saunders, Deputy director at HRW, called for a presidential task-force to develop a plan of action on religious violence but cautioned against involving the Ministry of Religion because it frequently exacerbated conflicts.
“[President Susilo Bambang] Yudhoyono hasn’t wanted to touch the issue,” Saunders said. “Religion remains within the authority of the central government and we want them to wield that power. Perpetrators of religious crime should be arrested and prosecuted with a punishment commensurate with the crime.”
In the report, HRW accused Indonesian police of remaining complicit with religious violence, citing the failure of police to respond to an attack on a group of Shia students and teachers in August 2012 as one example. The attack killed two people when Sunni militants set fire to houses in East Java.
Saunders said reforming the legal system and professionalizing the police and military were paramount to ensuring the continued consolidation of democracy in Indonesia.
“The legal infrastructure itself is far from perfect,” he said. “In some aspects, it certainly facilitates discrimination toward religious minorities.”
Among the necessary reforms, Saunders highlighted a need “for a provision that allows the central government to dismiss people when they fail to implement supreme court decisions. That would apply beyond religious freedom issues.”
Legislators this week called again for an ad hoc human rights court to be set up in order to probe past rights violations in Indonesia. Though Djoko Suyanto, the coordinating minister for political, legal and security affairs, said that the court would be discussed in a meeting with Yudhoyono on Wednesday, the president made no public commitment to its establishment.
When asked about the potential for human rights abuse cases during the anti-communist purge of 1965-1966 in Indonesia, Saunders said it would be a traumatic but useful part of the nation’s history for the government to address.
“Take the example in Latin America of the cases from the ‘Dirty Wars,’” he said. “Addressing those issues went hand in hand with building law and accountability.”
“The Act of Killing,” a documentary about the self-proclaimed Indonesian gangsters who perpetrated many of the communist killings during this period, has been selected to be screened at the 2013 Berlin Film Festival, though it has yet to pass Indonesia’s censorship board.
Acts of peaceful political expression are also being conflated with participation in armed separatist movements, according to the HRW report.
In May 2012, the Indonesian government dismissed the recommendations of 11 United Nations member states to release political prisoners including Filep Karma, a Papuan independence activist, and others serving up to 20 years imprisonment for activities such as dancing or raising separatist flags, the report said.
The annual World Report, which reviews progress on human rights in over 90 countries, identified religious violence, discriminatory local by-laws and the imprisonment of Papuan and Moluccan peaceful activists as inhibiting Indonesia’s path to becoming a “rights-respecting democracy.”
HRW deputy Asia Director Phelim Kine said the issue called for strong leadership from the Indonesian government.
“Violence against religious minorities will only get worse so long as the Indonesian government encourages or ignores attacks by Islamist militants,” he said.
Religious discrimination is not limited to acts by Muslim groups in Indonesia, with protests in Papua and Christian-majority areas such as Kupang in East Nusa Tenggara halting the construction of mosques as recently as 2011.
Joseph Saunders, Deputy director at HRW, called for a presidential task-force to develop a plan of action on religious violence but cautioned against involving the Ministry of Religion because it frequently exacerbated conflicts.
“[President Susilo Bambang] Yudhoyono hasn’t wanted to touch the issue,” Saunders said. “Religion remains within the authority of the central government and we want them to wield that power. Perpetrators of religious crime should be arrested and prosecuted with a punishment commensurate with the crime.”
In the report, HRW accused Indonesian police of remaining complicit with religious violence, citing the failure of police to respond to an attack on a group of Shia students and teachers in August 2012 as one example. The attack killed two people when Sunni militants set fire to houses in East Java.
Saunders said reforming the legal system and professionalizing the police and military were paramount to ensuring the continued consolidation of democracy in Indonesia.
“The legal infrastructure itself is far from perfect,” he said. “In some aspects, it certainly facilitates discrimination toward religious minorities.”
Among the necessary reforms, Saunders highlighted a need “for a provision that allows the central government to dismiss people when they fail to implement supreme court decisions. That would apply beyond religious freedom issues.”
Legislators this week called again for an ad hoc human rights court to be set up in order to probe past rights violations in Indonesia. Though Djoko Suyanto, the coordinating minister for political, legal and security affairs, said that the court would be discussed in a meeting with Yudhoyono on Wednesday, the president made no public commitment to its establishment.
When asked about the potential for human rights abuse cases during the anti-communist purge of 1965-1966 in Indonesia, Saunders said it would be a traumatic but useful part of the nation’s history for the government to address.
“Take the example in Latin America of the cases from the ‘Dirty Wars,’” he said. “Addressing those issues went hand in hand with building law and accountability.”
“The Act of Killing,” a documentary about the self-proclaimed Indonesian gangsters who perpetrated many of the communist killings during this period, has been selected to be screened at the 2013 Berlin Film Festival, though it has yet to pass Indonesia’s censorship board.
Acts of peaceful political expression are also being conflated with participation in armed separatist movements, according to the HRW report.
In May 2012, the Indonesian government dismissed the recommendations of 11 United Nations member states to release political prisoners including Filep Karma, a Papuan independence activist, and others serving up to 20 years imprisonment for activities such as dancing or raising separatist flags, the report said.
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3) Quick count shows ‘Lukmen’ leads Papua poll
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Down To Earth
5) MIFEE-affected communities want their land back
A roundup of recent material about MIFEE, January 2013
Indigenous communities living along the Bian and Maro Rivers in Merauke, southern Papua, have demanded the return of their customary lands taken for the Merauke Integrated Food and Energy Estate (MIFEE) mega-project. A set of demands issued after four days of community discussions in December also called for the revoking of location permits covering their customary land and for the companies involved to restore the damage done and pay compensation to affected communities....................................
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