A West Papua delegation led by United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) president Benny Wenda, West Papua Interim Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister Morris Kaloran and ULMWP secretary Rex Reinakiek is in the country to meet with the Fiji Government and lobby for their support for West Papua’s full membership in the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG).
The MSG is made up of the Republic Of Fiji, the Front De Liberational De Nationale Kanak Et Solcialiste (FLNKS), Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and the Republic Of Vanuatu.
A spokesman of the delegation said the group arrived in the country on Monday last week and might be here until the end of this week.
“The delegate is here to try and lobby to the Fiji Government that the West Papua issue can be highlighted and that they become a full member of the MSG,” he said.
“That is their main purpose here, but the bigger picture is for West Papua to gain its independence from Indonesia.
“We are here to meet with Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka, other ministers whose ministries are directly linked to our struggles, the Pacific Islands Forum Secretary, and other groups within Fiji who have a strong support for the independence of West Papua.”
The group is expected to meet Mr Rabuka today.
Moderator Rev. Dr. Tevita Havea
General Secretary Rev. James Bhagwan
G.P .O Box 208, Suva.
4 Thurston Street, Suva, Fiji Tel: (679) 3311 277 / 3302332 Fax: (679) 3303 205
e-mail: pacific@pcc.org.fj
PCC Statement
The Pacific Conference of Churches has concluded a series of meetings with Benny Wenda and other representatives of the united liberation movement of West Papua during his visit to Fiji.
We reiterated our support for the ULMWP in its continued bid for the self-determination of the West Papuan people and their desire for an end to the human rights abuse at the hands of Indonesian security forces.
The PCC continues to support the ULMWP’s bid for membership of the Melanesian Spearhead Group along the lines that the Kanak Socialist National Liberation front (FLNKS) in Kanaky - New Caledonia was admitted to the regional bloc.
The PCC renews its position that the ULMWP must be consulted by governments, the United Nations and the European Union on West Papua issues as a recognised representative of the Papuan people.
With the endorsement of pacific church leaders, the PCC calls for a boycott on the purchase of all Indonesian products sold in the pacific and engagement in activities and programmes organised or supported by the Indonesian government, as a means to draw attention to the plight of the Papuan people.
The ULMWP delegation was hosted to a lunch by the PCC for a moment of prayer and fellowship during their schedule of meeting other Fijian dignitaries in Suva.
Reverend James Bhagwan General Secretary
SUVA
FEBRUARY 20, 2023
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