Friday, July 3, 2020

1) ’Stop denying and listen to us’: Papuans hopeful for talk, action to end everyday racism



2)  Webinar panel on Papua sharply divided over media ‘black hole’ 
3) Fake news and disinformation abound in West Papua
4) Open letter to Jakarta – Papuan self-determination isn’t special autonomy v2 
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1)  ’Stop denying and listen to us’: Papuans hopeful for talk, action to end everyday racism
Gemma Holliani Cahya 
The Jakarta Post  Jakarta   /   Fri, July 3, 2020   /   10:04 am

For years, media coverage on Papua has straddled narratives on politics, natural resources, development, security and human rights, attracting attention from around the world.
However, there is one issue that is still rarely discussed in public – the casual racism experienced by native Papuans in their day-to-day lives.


‘Do you think I’m an animal?’
“I remember I sometimes regretted my decision to study in Java. If only I knew it would be that hurtful, I would have just gone to a university in Sorong,” Norce Herlin Mak Momao, 24, told The Jakarta Post on Saturday.
Like many young Papuans, Norce left Sorong, her homeland, in 2013 and flew to Yogyakarta to go to university there, hoping to benefit from better higher education standards.
It was her first time living far away from her family, but she quickly learned how people tended to look at her and treat her differently because of her appearance or because she was from Papua.
The first few years were the hardest for her, she said.
Finding a place to stay, for instance, was unnecessarily difficult. Once, the owner of a rooming house refused to take her in despite a sign advertising a vacancy up front. She was told there weren’t any rooms available.
“I think when they see Papuans they have this belief that we are mean human beings who will bring trouble to their place,” Norce said.
“When I go to restaurants or stores, I can feel how they stare at me from head to toe like there is something wrong with me. Those experiences made me want to stay in my room and avoid public places.”
Oftentimes, even when she was with friends or family in public places like malls and tourist sites, strangers would casually take out their mobile phone to record or take pictures of her without her consent, all the while giggling among themselves and making her feel like a laughing stock.
“One time I was so annoyed that I grabbed the cellphone from one of them and deleted the video of me they took. I told them, ‘do you think I’m an animal so you could treat me this way?’” she said. “They just went silent. They were adults, not some children. I was really angry.”



Norce’s sister, who is two years younger, also experienced such casual racism when she visited her for the holidays. It became such an unbearable experience that she decided to cancel her application to a university in Yogyakarta and return to Sorong to study.
“Maybe if I had lighter skin or straight hair, I wouldn’t be treated this way. But it is beyond our power to choose the physical appearance we are born with,” Norce said. “We are also human, like any other. If they say Papua is really part of Indonesia, then educate yourself about us. The world is not only filled with people of your own race; educate your children about the diversity we have.”
Norce is now pursuing a doctoral degree in law and working at a legal aid organization in Yogyakarta. She would return to Papua after graduating, she said, so that she could continue her work at a human rights organization.
Discussions on racism in Papua have flourished in online seminars and on social media following the death of black American George Floyd, which galvanized the #BlackLivesMatter movement in the United States, which rippled across to Indonesia. A number of local groups began to discuss racism in the country by campaigning that #PapuanLivesMatter too.
Efforts to end years of racism against Papuans have not progressed fast enough, activists have bemoaned, but they believe the growing debate and sense of solidarity with the minority could be a good opportunity for change.
“Racism has been happening for decades in Papua, but these discussions can be a positive start, as more and more people start to recognize these public issues and start addressing the problem,” Elvira Rumkabu, an international relations lecturer at Cenderawasih University, said on Sunday.
“I believe this will bring change. We can’t end racism alone, we must do it together.”
Elvira said people had been reluctant to discuss issues related to Papua, mostly due to the running narrative that there are only two sides of the equation: separatism or the undisputable Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (“NKRI harga mati”).
“That’s the only narrative we have been fed. It has framed the discussion in a way that snuffs out any necessary debate on humanity. There is a fundamental human issue here that must be addressed; discussing Papua is discussing humanity,” she said.
 
‘Listen to us, stop denying’
Growing up dark-skinned with curly hair in Indonesia is not easy, says 25-year-old vlogger Barneci Nuboba.
As a native Papuan born and raised in Timika, Eci has seen how most young Papuan girls she knows have tried or been tempted to straighten their hair so they can feel better about themselves – so they can fit in.
As a response to this, she started the online campaign #talingkarclub on Instagram, where girls post pictures of themselves showing off their curly hair with pride and connect with one another for support using the hashtag. Talingkar is the Papuan word for curly hair.
“Growing up, we have no role models in Indonesia that can make us feel good about ourselves. Beautiful people are portrayed in the media only as light-skinned girls with straight hair,” Eci said.

Since 2018, Eci has been posting videos on her Youtube channel dedicated to curly hair treatments, like tips to use coconut oil as a moisturizer, as well as other how-to styling videos. She has amassed a loyal following of 6,000 subscribers on her channel and regularly speaks in Papuan dialects to make her Papuan audience feel comfortable.
However, her journey is not without its challenges.
“I often find many racist comments on my channel mocking my hair and my skin or saying that it’s ugly. At first it really brought me down, but nowadays I just delete them immediately. There are many young followers on my channel, so I don’t want them to get hurt by those comments,” she said.
“Even after all the things that we’ve experienced, some people still say that this kind of racism does not exist. I want to say to those people that unless you are Papuan, you’ll never be able to fully understand it.
"Such racism is real and we face it every single day. So please listen to us and stop denying.”
 
‘If you don’t want to sit next to a Papuan, don’t come to Papua’
Even in their hometown, Papuans still face everyday racism. Yuliana Langowuyo, 37, the director of the Secretariat for Justice and Peace (SKPKC) Fransiskan Papua in Jayapura, shared just some of her stories that prove how casual racism can easily be found on the island.
Yuliana recounted the several times that non-Papuan commuters would cover their noses whenever she hopped on an angkot (public minivan) in Jayapura. “I could tell that people like that were new in town, because people don’t do that if they’ve been living here for years. It still makes me angry, though,” she said.
“One time, I met a lady who moved away from me in the angkot and was in a hurry to cover her nose and mouth with her jacket when she saw me. I told her, ‘if you don’t want to sit next to a Papuan, don’t come to Papua.’ Don’t come here just to hurt our feelings with that kind of attitude.”
It is not just about the slurs and hurt feelings that are visible in the everyday experiences of native Papuans. Yuliana said she also saw that discrimination was baked into the government’s development projects.
“There is a village called Kwarja in Jayapura. Jayapura’s native people live there, mostly cocoa farmers. There is [still] no asphalt road there, no schools or health facilities, and no electricity,” she told the Post.
Just 25 kilometers away from the village, in a residential complex built to accommodate people under the New Order’s transmigration scheme, the local administration has provided schools, health facilities and even an asphalt road to connect the five settlement units there, Yuliana said.
“People in my church [...] have tried for years to persuade the government to give better road access to the natives living in villages, but it’s so hard. They are still isolated and many of their children are still illiterate because they can’t go to school,” the activist complained.
“And this is happening in Jayapura, the capital city of Papua – can you imagine the discrimination that happens in other more rural regencies?”
To ensure that her nieces and the younger generations of Papuans won’t have to experience the same everyday racism and discrimination that she currently faces, Yuliana insists on bringing this fight to the authorities.
“This fight is not because we want to be glorified, we are involved in this fight so we can matter, just so we can be treated as other human beings. This is supposed to be our basic human right and the fact that we have to really struggle to achieve it is really saddening,” she said.
 
Where is the government in this discussion?
While more and more people have started to recognize the problem and tried to educate themselves about the struggles of everyday Papuans, activists have criticized the state for being so seemingly unmoved by the current changes underway.
“Up until today, the government has not responded to any of these discussions. We need to push for bigger change, a change in our political and social constructs, a structural and systemic policy to end racism, said Elvira from Cendrawasih University.
In a recent online discussion held by Human Rights Watch Group Indonesia, a National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) commissioner, Choirul Anam, highlighted that there was still no law enforcement measure that effectively addressed acts of racism in Indonesia.
The people involved in alleged racial abuse against Papuan students in East Java last year were not even charged for their racist acts. Choirul said these people, which included military personnel and members of the general public, were instead charged for "making a commotion and being violent".
“We have failed to seriously address the matter at the heart of this racism case,” the commissioner said. "The government must use all the instruments at its disposal – from law enforcement, prevention to self-correction – to end racism."

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2)  Webinar panel on Papua sharply divided over media ‘black hole’ 
By Pacific Media Watch -  July 3, 2020
The “Understanding information about the land of Papua ” webinar livestream. Video: Redaksi Jubi
A senior Indonesian government official and a New Zealand journalism professor have clashed over differing perspectives on access for journalists and media to the West Papua region.
Speaking on a webinar organised by the Jubi newspaper in Jayapura, Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ director of the European affairs Sade Bimantara said Papua was “much more open” than credited in social media.
However, Pacific Media Centre director Professor David Robie said it was still extremely difficult for journalists in Australia, New Zealand and Pacific nations to visit the Melanesian region on assignment.
He said it was “mixed” at best but in spite of the obstacles some excellent reporting was being done. This was the exception rather than the rule, as mainstream media in Australasia often ignored the West Papua issue.

Criticism of development policies
Dr Robie cited the criticisms of development policies such as the Trans-Papuan Highway that had involved minimal or no consultation with Papuans, such as exposed by the recent book The Roadby John Martinkus about “exploitation by foreign companies, environmental destruction and colonisation by Indonesian transmigrants”.
He said there needed to be more journalists visiting Papua freely “without minders” to report on the development issues and challenges, as well as social justice and human rights.
Bimantara said that while the “free and unhindered access” for media had been “slow to trickle down the bureaucratic ladder”, the policy had resulted in “robust and wide” data communication and access across Papua.
The ban on the internet – recently declared illegal by an Indonesian court – for a month last year at the time of the so-called Papuan Uprising with protests over racism was imposed to “put a break on the spreading of hate crime”.
Bimantara said the processing of journalists wishing to go to Papua had been speeded up and Jakarta-based media and foreign journalists were “free to go any time” providing they gave notification of where they were going.
He said that between 2016 and this year, out of 69 applications to visit Papua, 55 had been approved, “which means 80 percent were approved”.


Covid blamed for current restrictions
Any current restrictions were due to covid-19 coronavirus spread concerns.
Dr Robie said that due to the “extreme difficulties for journalists getting visas through the government ‘clearing house’ in Jakarta, the recent ABC production relied heavily on journalists on the ground in Papua, beginning their story with Papuan migrants and refugees in neighbouring Papua New Guinea.
“In the case of the ‘Selling Out’ programme, the producers relied on a ruse – the crew filmed the Wasur National Park in the massive wetlands near Merauke while actually making the wider palm oil investigation,” he said.
“As both a journalist and media academic, I have often referred to the West Papua information ‘black hole’ in various articles and videos since I wrote my first article about Papua in 1983.
“Other journalists have also referred to this black hole or black spot.”
Bimantara described racism against Papuans as an “isolated pattern”, but a prominent Papuan clergyman, Reverend Dr Socratez S. Yoman this week characterised “racism and injustice” as the root of the problems in Papua in an open letter to the Jakarta government.
The foreign affairs official said the Papuan Lives Matter movement had been gaining momentum in Indonesia since widespread anti-racism protests from Jakarta to Jayapura last year.
Sparked by racist harassment
The protests were sparked by racist harassment of West Papuan university students in Indonesia’s second-largest city, Surabaya.
Bimantara said that fake news and disinformation were prevalent in coverage of Indonesian-ruled West Papua.
He said there was a problem with disinformation about West Papua which was an “infodemic spreading like covid-19”, although he claimed this as coming from those leading the Papuan independence movement.
However, Dr Robie cited an investigation by the BBC and the Australian Strategic Policy Institute (ASPI) last year that found that a coordinated and well-funded network of “bots” – or automated accounts – that promoted a pro-government line was “skewing the narrative” about Papua.
When asked about this, Bimantara did not answer, while in other comments apparently blaming the disinformation on pro-independence sources.
“Just last week, our own news website Asia Pacific Report asiapacificreport.nz published a story about a Tongan Kiwi beauty queen, Diamond Langi, making a fairly low key solidarity statement in support of Papuan self-determination and expressing empathy for jailed political prisoners,” Dr Robie said.
“Langi was immediately denounced and abused by thousands of social media trolls from Indonesia and she was forced to close her Instagram account and render her Facebook account non active.”

Webinar drew lively interest
The webinar, moderated by leading Papuan journalist Victor Mambor, who visited New Zealand in 2014, drew lively interest with about 1000 viewers on YouTube in two days.
In response to some webinar social media chat comments, a Papuan NGO activist, who declined to be named, said: “Most of the questions raised are by intelligence agents who are using Papuan people’s accounts, photos or fake names.”
Former Green Party MP Catherine Delahunty said the panel was a worthwhile effort for greater understanding but she was disappointed by the “monotonous denials” of Bimantara over the difficulties for media reporting on West Papua.
“He made claims that are fine in theory but not in practice and also he made the revealing statement that the Indonesian state wants to know where journalists are going and what stories they plan to write.
“That is not the definition of a free press, that is censorship by an occupying government.”
Dr Robie cited the latest international reports from highly reputable media watchdogs on the issues in West Papua but the Indonesian responses were “very unsatisfactory”, she said.
“To accuse the United Liberation Movement of West Papua (ULMWP) and [a pro-independence leader] Benny Wenda as responsible for the killers of workers on the Trans Papuan Highway is just wrong.
“The armed struggle and the international solidarity effort are not the same groups, although all are dedicated to freedom for West Papua.

Honouring Te Tiriti
Delahunty, a spokesperson for West Papua Action Auckland, said that one point where she agreed with Bimantara was when he had talked about sovereignty movements in other countries such as Aotearoa New Zealand.
“Those of us who stand for a Free West Papua also need to stand up for a full honouring of Te Tiriti in this country.”
She commended Mambor and Jubi for hosting this dialogue, saying Professor Robie had a great understanding of the issues and the Pacific context but the claims made by Bimantara were the “usual justifications for the oppressive regime” in West Papua.
Joe Collins, leader of the Australian West Papua Association (AWPA), said from Sydney that although there has been improvement towards democracy in Indonesia it had not translated into democracy in West Papua.
“While people can be arrested and charged with treason simply for raising their national flag, it proves there is no justice under Indonesian rule,” he said.
“For all the talk about journalists being free to go to West Papua, journalists are regularly intimidated for covering demonstrations in West Papua and there is a track record of foreign journalists being arrested or deported for trying to do their job”.

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3) Fake news and disinformation abound in West Papua
From Dateline Pacific, 6:02 am today  
Audio
 Listen duration 4′ :14″ Add to playlist  Download 
Fake news and disinformation are prevalent in coverage of Indonesian-ruled West Papua.
That's according to both Indonesia's government and journalists who cover the region where a conflict over Papuan independence aims has simmered for decades.
This week a virtual panel was held regarding the flow of information about Papua region called 'Understanding Information About the Land of Papua'.
Representing Jakarta was a senior official from Indonesia's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Sade Bimantara.
He said there is a problem with dis-information about West Papua which is spreading together like a virus, although he identifies it as coming from those leading the Papuan independence movement………………

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4) Open letter to Jakarta – Papuan self-determination isn’t special autonomy v2 
By PMC Editor -  July 3, 2020
A Papuan church leader and advocate for social justice has penned an open letter to the Indonesian government calling for justice and an end to racism to enable a genuine self-determination process for the Melanesian region.
“The problem of Papua has become increasingly complex and severe because the root of the problem is racism and injustice, not separatism and treason,” says Reverend Dr Socratez S. Yoman, president of the Alliance of West Papuan Baptist Churches.
“It has now [become] increasingly complicated due to the global mobilisation of ‘Black Lives Matter and West Papua Lives Matter’ [movements] which has become part of the international community.
“However, no matter how difficult and complicated, there must be a way out for a win-win solution.”
Criticising the Indonesian government’s preparation of Special Autonomy Version II plans for the “Land of Papua” from an indigenous perspective, he cites an Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) report stating that racism and injustice against indigenous Papuans is the root of the problem.

Reverend Yoman also calls for the Indonesian government to hold “peaceful dialogue without limitations” with the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) mediated by a third party in a neutral place.
This would be comparable to the RI-GAM negotiations over Aceh in Helsinki, Finland, on 15 August 2005. “This goal is a win-win solution.”
Open letter to IndonesiaReverend Yoman’s letter states:
Dear Dr Tito Karnavian 
Interior Minister of the Republic of Indonesia 
Jakarta
Through this letter, as one of the leaders of the Church in the Land of Papua I would like to convey to the Minister of the Interior of the Republic of Indonesia about the disappointment and anxiety faced by the people in the Land of Papua, especially Indigenous Papuans in addressing the Evaluation of Special Autonomy and the preparation of Special Autonomy Version II which is currently being prepared by the government.
I hear and follow and read on social media or in messages shared through WhatsApp that Indigenous Papuans are increasingly voicing their rejection of the Draft Law on Special Autonomy II. I cite one example of the rejection of the government’s version of the Special Autonomy Draft Law.
“We on behalf of the people of Region III Doberay (Birds Head), West Papua reject the Interior Ministers version of Papua’s Special Autonomy Bill. Return it to the Papuan people so that what they want is included in the Special Autonomy Bill so that in the future they can get the best solution for the future of the Land of Papua,” chairperson of the Papua Region III Customary Council Doberay, Mananwir Paul Fincent Major (Tuesday (6/23).
In my opinion, this voice of rejection is very reasonable and can be accepted with common sense because it has seen the real dynamics of Special Autonomy over the last 19 years, which is that Special Autonomy cannot answer the demands and fulfil the expectations of Indigenous Papuans.
For example: The 2001 Special Autonomy which mandated for protection, recognition of the basic rights of Indigenous Papuans, empowerment, and affirmative action, has failed, causing deep disappointment among Indigenous Papuans.
During Special Autonomy many Indigenous Papuans were killed at the hands of the security apparatus. Local political parties have not been allowed.
The Morning Star flag is prohibited from flying. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) has never been implemented.
While the people of Aceh were given a special place in the hearts of the Indonesian government by being provided with a space for peace negotiations between GAM and the Republic of Indonesia mediated by a third party in a neutral venue in Helsinki on August 15, 2005.
Local political parties were able to be formed and GAM flags were allowed to fly freely.
Looking at the background of the birth of the Special Autonomy Law No. 21/2001, it is clear that it was not a gift from the Indonesian government to the people of Papua, but it was established because the people of Papua demanded independence in order to leave the Republic of Indonesia.
So, Special Autonomy is a win-win solution between the Indigenous Papuans and the Indonesian government.
Papuans are demanding independence because there is a historical background of injustice, racism and state crime in the implementation of the 1969 Act of Free Choice (PEPERA). I have carefully studied the documents resulting from the Act of Free Choice.
Annex 1 was prepared by the UN representative, Dr Fernando Ortiz Sanz from Bolivia and Annex II report is the version of the Indonesian government. The Annex II report has significant differences to the Annex 1 report.
When the Indonesian government promoted the word “wellbeing” to Papuans, the word was not a new expression, but was a repetition of what had been conveyed by the Minister of the Interior of the Republic of Indonesia Amir Machmud during the implementation of the Act of Free Choice (Pepera) of July 14, 1969 in Merauke, in the presence of participants of the Members of the Forum for the Act of Free Choice.
“… the Indonesian government, desires and is able to protect the wellbeing of the people of West Irian, therefore, there is no other choice, but to stay with Indonesia.” See Source Material: United Nations Official Records: 1812th Plenary Meeting of the UN Assembly, agenda item 98,19 November 1969, paragraph 18, p.2).
The Minister of Home Affairs from The Government of the Republic of Indonesia promised that they were: “… willing and able to protect the welfare of the people of West Irian …”
But, the reality in the course of the 51 years from 1969 to 2020 is in contradiction with these beautiful and sweet words which turned the Land of Papua into a human disaster and tragedy with suffering, tears, blood and bones scattered over the Land of Papua.
Indigenous Papuans are slaughtered like animals with the stigma of being “separatists”, treasonous, and criminals in the interests of national sovereignty and national security.
Professor Dr Franz Magnis-Suseno, a Catholic cleric acknowledged the humanitarian tragedy experienced by the Indigenous Papuans as follows..
“There is an impression that Papuans are treated as if they have not been recognised as human beings …”
He adds “… The situation in Papua is bad, abnormal, uncivilized, and shameful, because it is closed to foreign media. Papua is a rotting wound on the body of the Indonesian people.” (Source: Magnis: Nationality, Democracy, Pluralism: 2015, p. 255)
Historical facts prove that the incorporation of Papua into Indonesian territory was a bloody history and filled with injustice because the Indonesian military forced Papuans with the muzzles of their weapons.
Most of the people of Indonesia, including the Minister for Home Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, H. Dr. Tito Karnavian do not necessarily know much about the process of incorporating Papua into Indonesian territory. The process of integration was through cruel, brutal and inhumane processes.
According to Amiruddin al Rahab: “Papua integrated with Indonesia through the force of the military.” (Source: The Papuan Secret War, Trauma and Separatism, 2010: p. 42).
What Amiruddin said is not excessive. There is evidence of the military being directly involved and leading the implementation of the 1969 Act of Free Choice (PEPERA). The Ambassador of Gabon at the United Nations General Assembly in 1989 queried question number 6: “Why is there no secret representation, but an open consultation attended by the government and the military? ” (Source: United Nations Official Records: 1812th Plenary Meeting of the UN GA, agenda item 108, 20 November 1969, paragraph 11, p.2).
“On July 14, 1969, the Referendum (PEPERA) began with 175 Members of the Deliberation Forum for Merauke. On this occasion a large group of Indonesian soldiers were present …” (Source: UN Official Report Annex 1, paragraphs 189-200).
The letter of the military leadership reads: “Intensify all activities in each field by using all organic and material forces both from the Army and other forces. Stick to the guidelines. The Referendum in West Irian (IRBA) 1969 MUST BE WON, MUST BE WON … ” (Source: Official Telegram Letter Col. Inf. Soepomo, Regional Military Command
Tjenderawasih Number: TR-20 / PS / PSAD / 196, dated 20-2-1967, based on Radio Gram MEN / PANGAD No: TR-228/1967 TBT dated 7-2-1967, regarding: Facing the Referendum at the IRBA (West Irian) in 1969).
In 1969 a majority of 95 percent of West Papuans voted for independence: “… that 95 percent of Papuans support the Papuan independence movement.” (Source: Secret Meeting of the United States Ambassador to Indonesia with UN Team Member Fernando Ortiz Sanz, in June 1969: Summary of Jack W. Lydman’s report, July 18, 1969, in NAA).
The Indonesian Ambassador, Sudjarwo Tjondronegoro admitted: “Many Papuans may not agree to live with Indonesia.” (Source: UNGA Official Records MM.ex 1, paragraph 126).
Dr Fernando Ortiz Sanz reported to the UN General Assembly in 1969:
“The majority of Papuans show a desire to separate from Indonesia and support the vision to establish an independent Papuan state.” (Source: UN Doc. Annex I, A / 7723, paragraph 243, p.47).
The political rights of the people of Papua have been truly betrayed along with their basic rights and conscience. The hope of Papuans has been sacrificed by the muzzle of Indonesian military weapons.
As for the history of the Papuan people, December 1, 1961 is Independence Day for the People and Nation of Papua. Independence was dissolved by Ir. Sukarno on 9 December 1961 by stating: “Disband the Netherlands-Made Country”.
This historical resistance and political status of Papua is the longest running conflict in Asia.
This is proven by the long struggle and resistance carried out by strong educated native Papuans before Papua was forcibly joined into Indonesian territory at the muzzle of a weapon.
Here are the names of some of the virtuous warriors: Herman Womsiwor, Markus Kaisiepo, Nicolaas Jouwe, F. Torey, Nicolaas Tanggafma, Bernadus (Ben) Tanggafma, Hermanus Wayoi, Fritz Kihirio and many others not mentioned here.
These figures had travelled the world including to the UN in the 1960s. It can be said that these educated native Papuans felt betrayed by the United Nations, America, the Netherlands and Indonesia because they were not involved in the New York agreement on August 15, 1962. These Papuan leaders expressed their feelings as follows.
“We were traded as goats by the Americans.” (Source: Maire Leadbeater: See No Evil: New Zealand’s betrayal of the people of West Papua: 2018, pp. 94).
This brief historical process has been written and conveyed to the Indonesian government, so that the government does not ignore it and does not take the view that we do not yet know these historical facts. If this history is ignored in the process of solving the Papua problem, then there will never be a peaceful solution between Indonesia and the people of Papua.
During this time the government and the security services have quietly taken cover behind the political stigma that Papuans are separatists, rebels, along with the latest myth that they are part of criminal gangs. So, the basic problem is not the political stigma used by the state to suppress the Indigenous Papuans. The root or heart of the problem between Indonesia and the people of Papua is actually racism and injustice. From racism and injustice, four major problems have been discovered by the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI).
The LIPI team was very careful in formulating the root causes of the Papuan conflict. The LIPI team, were of the opinion that it was dangerous to even reveal the root of the problem. However, the LIPI team succeeded in mapping the consequences of 4 problems which were the result of the real root of the problem, namely racism and injustice.
In this letter I rank the root of the problems suffered by the Papuans so far as follows:
  1. RACISM as the main source of the problem.
  2. INJUSTICE as the main source of the problem.
  3. The history of the integration and political status of West Papua in Indonesia as a result of RACISIM AND INJUSTICE.
  4. Gross human rights violations committed by the state for 57 years as a result of RACISIM AND INJUSTICE
  5. Discrimination and marginalisation as a result of RACISM and INJUSTICE
  6. The failure of development in the fields of education, health and economy for the Indigenous Papuans because Indigenous Papuans are considered to be “Monkeys” and therefore they do not need to be developed. This is caused by RACISM and INJUSTICE.
Through this letter, I submit, that as long as the roots of the problem, namely Racism and Injustice, have not yet been resolved, Papuans will continue to fight for political rights and dignity and a future over their ancestral lands.
Instead the Indonesian government uses the strength of the security services and the legal system of the state to suppress and oppress Papuans. Also, the government will incur significant costs to bribe diplomats and Prime Ministers of states who sympathise with the struggle of the Papuan people.
The problem of Papua has become increasingly complex and severe because the root of the problem is racism and injustice, not separatism and treason. It has now been increasingly complicated due to the global mobilisation of “Black Lives Matter and West Papua Lives Matter” which has become part of the international community. However, no matter how difficult and complicated, there must be a way out for a win-win solution.
Therefore, through this open letter, I submit to the government of the Republic of Indonesia through the Minister of Home Affairs as follows:
  1. Self-determination for the People of Papua as the final and peaceful solution to end RACISM and INJUSTICE towards Indigenous Papuans NOT Special Autonomy Version II.
  2. To move towards the process of Self-Determination for the people of Papua, the Indonesian government should hold peaceful dialogue without limitations with the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) mediated by a third party in a neutral place. Like RI-GAM in Helsinki on 15 August 2005. This goal is a win-win solution.
  3. Cooperation agreements between Indonesia and West Papua will be discussed further at the negotiating table between Indonesia and ULMWP.
Thank you. God Bless Us 
Ita Wakhu Purom, Monday, 29 June 2020. 

Reverend Dr Socratez S.Yoman, MAPresident of the Alliance of West Papuan Baptist Churches
Member: Papuan Council of Churches (WPCC)
Member: Pacific Council of Churches (PCC)
Member : Baptist World Alliance (BWA)
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