Melanesian leaders want meeting with Indonesian president on West Papua 'as soon as practicable’
9:38 am today
Lydia Lewis, in Nuku'alofa, Tonga
The Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) wants to have a meeting with Indonesia's incoming President Prabowo Subianto to address ongoing human rights concerns in West Papua.
It comes after Fiji and Papua New Guinea's prime ministers - Sitiveni Rabuka and James Marape - failed to organise a visit after being appointed special envoys on West Papua, at last year's Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) leaders meeting.
Marape told RNZ Pacific: "We could not find a time where both of us got to Indonesia."
The MSG met on the sidelines of the 53rd Pacific Islands Leaders' Summit in Nuku'alofa on Tuesday.
Vanuatu's Prime Minister and the sub-regional bloc's chair, Charlot Salwai, said there has been concerns surrounding West Papua for some time.
"Some issues in relations to human rights...because the [Pacific Islands] Forum back in 2019 decided to ask [for a] UN mission to do fact-finding mission in Indonesia."
The United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) president, Benny Wenda, said: "It is time for PIF to reaffirm their 2019 call for a UN High Commissioner for Human Rights visit to West Papua.
"It has now been five years since PIF's initial demand for a UN visit was made, and over 110 countries have echoed this Pacific call," he posted on X.
Salwai said it would be good to have a face-to-face meeting with Subianto.
The MSG leaders released a statement on Tuesday, stating: "The welfare of the interests of our Melanesians in West Papua and the other Papuan Provinces in Indonesia is an ongoing concern to our peoples."
"In this regard, the MSG Leaders Dialogue with the President of Indonesia is a project of great importance that must be pursued.
"The [MSG] Secretariat must maintain contact with the relevant Indonesian authorities to ensure that opportunities are identified for all MSG Leaders to meet with the Indonesian President as soon as practicable."
The group will have a Special Leaders' Summit on 14 and 15 November in Fiji.
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