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MUI, PGI condemn racist abuse of Papuans, appeal for peace
“End all racist behavior, attitudes, utterances and actions in Indonesia, as our country is a big country with various ethnicities, cultures and customs,” head of MUI Papua, Saiful Islam Al-Payege said in a release made available for The Jakarta Post on Monday,
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Smoke rises from the West Papua Council building in Manokwari on Monday as demonstrators set it on fire in protest at racist abuse of Papuan students in Surabaya. (Antara/Toyiban)
T
he Papua office of the Indonesian Ulema Council (MUI Papua) and the Indonesian Communion of Churches (PGI) have condemned the recent racist abuse of Papuan students in Surabaya, East Java, and have called on people to stop all racist behavior in the country.
“End all racist behavior, attitudes, utterances and actions in Indonesia, as our country is a big country with various ethnicities, cultures and customs,” head of MUI Papua, Saiful Islam Al-Payege said in a release made available for The Jakarta Post on Monday.
Read also: Papuan students on Java face increased pressures from Islamist, nationalist groups
“MUI Papua encourages every DPRP [People Representatives Council] Papua member to visit and observe the condition of the students in Surabaya as DPRP Papua is the representative of the Papua people,” he said.
Meanwhile, the general secretary of the PGI, Rev. Gomar Gultom, also delivered a similar appeal, urging parties to make peaceful efforts to settle problems in Papua.
“I appeal for every related party to prioritize dialog in resolving all problems. Violent vigilantism will never solve these problems. I only feel deeper concern at the defamation of the students’ ethnicity,” Gomar said in a statement to the Post.
He also quoted Law no 40/2008 on the eradication of racial and ethnical discrimination, and how the problem added to the Papua-related problems today.
