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Second chance in Papua, despite declining optimism

Papua and West Papua have remained Indonesia’s poorest provinces, according to data from 1990 to 2018. If these two provinces — which enjoyed special autonomy since 2002 — cannot address the basic issue of poverty, how can we be optimistic about the new provinces?

Hipolitus Yolisandry Ringgi Wangge (The Jakarta Post)
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Jakarta
Tue, November 12, 2019

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Second chance in Papua, despite declining optimism What remains missing from Jokowi’s promises is the lack of security for Papuans, particularly following riots and ongoing military operations in a number of areas. (JP/Syofiardi Bachyul Jb)

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hortly after announcing his new Cabinet, President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo visited some areas in Papua and West Papua. The key points of his visit were still welfare-oriented policies and promises. Developmental programs, it’s assumed, will result in indigenous Papuans’ loyalty toward the central government.

Here I will only highlight three prominent pledges of Jokowi and his ministers to Papua: creating new provinces and regencies, building Papuan youth centers and addressing human rights violations.

The central government’s recent plans to form new provinces in Papua, such as South Papua and Central Highlands, have received mixed response from local indigenous Papuans. On the one hand, the new provinces will hopefully boost local welfare as it will bring more government services closer to the people.

However, Papua and West Papua have remained Indonesia’s poorest provinces, according to data from 1990 to 2018. If these two provinces — which enjoyed special autonomy since 2002 — cannot address the basic issue of poverty, how can we be optimistic about the new provinces?

It is also crucial to manage the expected influx of migrants once the new provinces are established. Although many Papuan and non-Papuan residents usually get along well, perceived inequality can flare up and lead to fatalities, such as in Wamena. Papuans and non-Papuans were killed and the absence of authorities’ explanations of gunshot wounds among the causes of death leaves speculations of Papuans “attacking” non-Papuans.

On the other hand, newly formed provinces would mirror the poor performances of some recently established regencies in Papua. For instance, the Home Ministry last year listed Indonesian regencies with the poorest performances and most are in the central highlands of Papua, such as Lanny Jaya, Nduga, Mamberamo Raya, Yahukimo, Puncak, Puncak Jaya, Deiyai, Nabire and Paniai.

One indicator of government performance is the poor quality of delivering basic services to society. Nduga was a new regency separated from the Jayawijaya regency in 2008, but medical facilities are still only available in four districts to cover the 32 districts of Nduga. Further, medical staff are rarely available in remote districts. Thus, the idea of creating a new Central Highlands province is highly questionable given such conditions in some highland areas.

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