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Jokowi talks up ‘prosperity approach’ for Papua
In addition to dialogue, Jokowi said the government had also constructed physical infrastructure in the region to reduce economic inequality.
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Warm welcome: A female vendor greets President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo during his visit to Mama-Mama Market in Jayapura, Papua. (JP/Nethy Dharma Somba)
P
resident Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has said he will focus on continuing an approach based on dialogue and prosperity to deal with the unrest that has flared up in Papua and West Papua in recent weeks.
“We have approached Papua through dialogue and prosperity,” he said in a meeting with the editors-in-chief of several press organizations, including The Jakarta Post, at the State Palace in Central Jakarta on Tuesday.
Jokowi said he had implemented this approach during his first five years in office by visiting Papua and West Papua at least two or three times a year, more than any other previous president, in an effort to build trust with Papuans.
In addition to dialogue, he said the government had also constructed physical infrastructure in the region to reduce economic inequality.
“We have taken a close look at the situation in Papua and evaluate it every year,” he said. “Without such infrastructure development, the situation would be even worse.”
Jokowi said the next step the government would take was to ensure the special autonomy funds for the two provinces were used correctly to develop industries and markets there.
The country’s easternmost provinces have been rocked by protests and rioting since Aug. 19, following an incident in which Papuan university students living in a dormitory in Surabaya, East Java, were subjected to physical and verbal attacks by security personnel and members of mass organizations.
