1) Pacific women call for investigation of women’s rights in West Papua

2) Maori students in NZ march for West Papua

3) Papua Legislator Accuses Government as Pro-Capitalist over Palm Oil Bill

4) Papua Export-Import Revenue Drops in July

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http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/311827/pacific-women-call-for-investigation-of-women's-rights-in-west-papua

1) Pacific women call for investigation of women’s rights in West Papua

7:26 pm today

 

West Papuan human rights activist Rode Wanimbo address the 7th Pacific Women's Network Against Violence Against Women, while Bernadetha Mahuse looks on. Photo: Pacific Women's Network Against Violence Against Women

The call comes from the Pacific Women's Network Against Violence Against Women which represents policy makers and front line workers from 13 Pacific countries.

Representatives of women from West Papua attended the networks 7th meeting in Fiji last week and raised some critical issues and gaps in service delivery for victims of gender violence in West Papua.West Papuan human rights activists Rode Wanimbo (centre with headdress), Bernadetha Mahuse (second from right) and Ivana Yohana (right) seen with Merilyn Tahi (left, Vanuatu), Shamima Ali (second from left, Fiji) and Ofa Likiliki (Tonga). Photo: Pacific Women's Network Against Violence Against Women

The director of Tonga's Women and Children Crisis Centre, Ofa Guttenbeil-Likiliki said the network stands in solidarity with women from West Papua.

"Members of the network in the outcomes resolution are calling for a fact-finding mission to be undertaken in West Papua to look into the status of women and girls and the impact of the conflict and political tensions on women and girls as a result, " said Ofa Guttenbeil-Likiliki.

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http://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/311832/maori-students-in-nz-march-for-west-papua

2) Maori students in NZ march for West Papua

10 minutes ago 

Hundreds of Māori students marched to New Zealand's parliament today calling for freedom for West Papua.

The march was met at the steps of parliament by MPs from various political parties, who spoke of their concern about Indonesian state oppression in the Papua region.

Maori protestors at West Papua rally, Wellington Photo: RNZI

The students gathered in the capital for the annual conference Te Huinga Tauira o Te Mana Ākonga ,this year hosted by Ngāi Tauira, the Māori Students' Association at Victoria University of Wellington.

A co-president of Ngāi Tauira, Raimona Tapiata, said the hundreds gathered felt strongly about the plight of West Papuans, from which they drew many parallels with how Māori experienced colonialism.

He said for instance Maori can relate to the marginalisation of West Papuans' indgenous language under Indonesian rule.

"Especially having come from similar backgrounds, similar cultural beliefs, similar values and what our culture is all about, all those types of connections between all Pacific nations is another element that comes into play, " he said.

Addressing the crowd, the MP Marama Davidson said West Papuans' struggle was their struggle.

NZ Green MP Marama Davidson  Photo: RNZI

"We are standing up for up for the people of West Papua, we are standing their mana whenua. We are standing up for their tino rangatiratanga," she said,

“ But we're also standing up for all of us and the better world we are trying to create by supporting eachother, because the oppression, the colonisation, the abuse of human rights, it all breathes the same oxygen."

                        Former boxer David Tua on the left with Jerome Mika, Labour’s Pacific Vice-President Photo: RNZI

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http://tabloidjubi.com/eng/papua-legislator-accuses-government-as-pro-capitalist-over-palm-oil-bill/

3) Papua Legislator Accuses Government as Pro-Capitalist over Palm Oil Bill

23 August 2016

Jayapura, Jubi – Papua legislator Laurenzus Kadepa said he would refuse the Palm Oil Plantation bill currently being deliberated at the House of Representatives.

 

He said the government and the House agreed to complete it in 2016 under the pretext of protecting and preventing foreign intervention in the sector.

“Who will get benefit from this law? To whom the opportunities will open? It’s apparently favoring and benefiting investors more. It favors the capitalists. This national policy is not pro-people. If it was passed, I refused it to be applied in Papua,” Kadepa told Jubi on Monday (22/8/2016).

The Central Government issued the moratorium on oil palm plantation  some time ago, but it was just talk without being materialized.

“As it’s already happened, people affected by oil palm plantations would be more victimized. It’s an overlapped policy. Resolve the problem with the oil palm investors with the customary people first,” he said.

He added the Indonesian House of Representative could ratify the bill, but he would continue to refuse it to be implemented in Papua for good. It’s not the time for investment to harm the people. It is now the time for the government to resolve the dispute on oil palm plantation with people who continue to complain and ask for their rights.

“For example, Yerisiam Tribe in Nabire. Until now people are still rejecting the oil palm plantation. It is similar with other regions in Papua, such as Merauke and Manokwari. I think it would be the same in other Indonesian regions to refuse the implementation of Oil Palm Plantation Law. I pay attention more to the condition of the victims of oil palm plantation in Papua and the landowners,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Coordinator of Coalition for Oil Palm Plantation Victims in Papua, John Gobay said the reason behind the oil palm plantation law was to protect the oil palm farmers. But in Indonesia, the oil palm farmers are only existed in Sumatera, Sulawesi and other regions but not in Papua. Now what was happened is the customary people are becoming the victims of the oil palm company.

“Given not the bill of the protection of oil palm plantation is currently included in the National Legislation Program, it needs to refuse it for some reasons,” said John Gobay.

Among the reasons are it’s simply a guile of plantation investors who hiding behind the farmers to get their intention to take the forest and the land increasing the burden of huge deforestation. Another reason, especially in Papua there are no oil palm farmers. Therefore the parliament should not arbitrarily formulate the legal product. Because it only increases the problem instead of resolve it. The law would crash with the Presidential Decree on oil palm plantation and mining moratorium by Jokowi Administration.

“The state should be focus on the protection of the customary people through the bill on customary people protection after the decision 35 by Constitutional Court. The entire customary people and the victims of oil pal plantation in Papua strongly reject this particular bill,” he said.

He said the Indonesian House of Representative should make the legal product that not harms the victims of oil palm plantation especially in Papua. “We need recognition from the State for the sake of the customary people not the oil palm market,” he said. (*/rom)

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http://tabloidjubi.com/eng/papua-export-import-revenue-drops-in-july/

4) Papua Export-Import Revenue Drops in July

23 August 2016

Jayapura, Jubi- Export-import revenue for Papua Province fell to US$101.15 million, 45.46 percent, from compared to the previous month of US $85.47 million, the Papua Statistics Bureau said.

Import revenues in July dropped to US$47.80 million, or 43.96 percent, compared to June’s US$85.28 million.

“Export and import activities dropped in July due to the Muslim holiday, so the loading activities for exports and imports in the entire Indonesian regions were not conducted for fully 30 days,” the Head of Papua Statistic Central Bureau JB Priyono said in the official statement received by Jubi on Monday (21/8/2016).

He revealed the reduction of export revenue in Papua mostly occurred for non-mining and gas categories that reach US$0.11 million (81,37 percent), followed by the wood and furnitures up to US$6.42 million (59,88 percent), and export on Copper and Concentrate (HS26) up to US$77.79 million (44,55 percent).

Related to the export from Papua to six major countries in July 2016, the reduction reached US$96.83 million or decrease to 45,06 percent compared with the same export values in June 2016.  Export to Philippines reached the larger number namely US$37.37 million, followed with India U$25.92 million and South Korea that reached US$16.93 million.

“Cumulatively, the Papua export to six major countries in January-July 2016 compared with the same period in last year has decreased to 30.74 percent, it is similar with the export activities to other countries that decrease to 62.82 percent,” he said.

Concerning the import, cumulatively it reached US$395.69 million in January-July 2016 or decrease to 2.73 percent from the same period in 2015 that reached US$406.82 million. Last April, Papua Governor Lukas Enembe with the Director General of Pelindo IV Doso Agung launched the direct call of primary export to Tiongkok. Through direct call, Papua entrepreneurs could save 10 days of shipping time and save the cost up to USD 300-600 per container. (*/rom)