2) Indonesia-Pacific Parliamentary Forum Discusses Climate Change, Papua: House Speaker
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1) MSG Director-General under fire for West Papua comments
Broadcast Thu 25 Jul 2024 at 6:00am
There has been a backlash against the Director-General of the Melanesian Spearhead Group, Leonard Louma, after Indonesian media reports emerged of him saying the situation in West Papua was "stable and conducive" during a visit to the territory last month.
The visit, which was unannounced, has been criticised for lack of transparency.
"Melanesian countries want to see how the MSG is dealing with the human rights issue in West Papua so they need to be transparent in any of the trips made to that place," said the President of the Vanuatu Free West Papua Association, Lai Sakita.
"The population of West Papua are Melanesian ... and the entity called the MSG should be working for this population not for people who are outside."
Credits
- Leah Lowonbu, Reporter Image Details Leonard Louma
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesian House of Representatives Speaker Puan Maharani closed the Indonesia-Pacific Parliamentary Partnership (IPPP) forum on Thursday, July 25, 2024. According to Puan, the forum discussed various issues from climate change to Papua.
Puan said that IPPP is a forum initiated by the Indonesian House of Representatives. "The Indonesian House of Representatives initiated this meeting because it considered that cooperation with Pacific countries would be geopolitically essential," said Puan on Thursday.
Puan said several countries in the Pacific region attended the meeting, including Cook Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Papua New Guinea, Tuvalu, Kiribati, the Republic of Fiji, and Indonesia. In addition, the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) organization was also present.
Regarding climate issues, Puan said the IPPP forum resulted in a joint commitment to work together to tackle the impacts of climate change.
Meanwhile, the issue of Papua was discussed in the MSG-Indonesia meeting held on the sidelines of the IPPP. The meeting was attended by delegates from Fiji, Solomon, Papua New Guinea, and MSG representatives.
"We relayed the information about our brothers and sisters in Papua, about how there are four provinces in Papua now, and about what Indonesia has done in regards to Papua,” said Puan.
The IPPP Forum also discussed marine potential in the Pacific region, specifically on economic development which resulted in the agreement to advance multilateral agreements between Pacific countries.
Puan said that the IPPP Forum also produced several recommendations. "Among them is the mutual respect related to the principle of equal respect for sovereignty and territorial unity and how we maintain peace among the Pacific region," she said.
In addition, Puan said that the Indonesian House of Representatives has committed to helping Pacific countries, especially in carrying out parliamentary functions and producing synergy between parliament and government.
Previously, the IPPP Forum was opened by President Joko Widodo or Jokowi on Thursday morning, July 25, 2024. Jokowi appreciated the partnership between the Indonesian House of Representatives and the parliaments of Pacific countries as a strategic initiative to strengthen partnerships in the Pacific region.
SULTAN ABDURRAHMAN
Koteka Wenda's childhood is full of bittersweet memories and lessons. Her early memories are of her family fleeing West Papua as political-refugees to live in exile in the safety of the United Kingdom.
It was in exile where Koteka and her family discovered what it means to grow a community and continue the spreading of their message to "Free West Papua" using their abilities as mucians, educators and living witnesses to being a West Papuan in Indonesia.
Koteka is now developing her own understanding of the unique position she holds as a young-exiled-woman to bring fresh perspectives and goals to the "Free West Papua" movement.
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