JP/Seto Wardhana

Chronic problems remain in Papua and West Papua despite the Rp 105 trillion (US$7.47 billion) allotted to these provinces from 2002 to 2018.

Racial abuse against students and youth from Papua by a group of people in Surabaya, East Java. on Aug. 16 has triggered demonstrations in various cities, highlighting calls for a referendum, including in Manokwari and Jayapura. Some of the protests led to the burning of private and government facilities.

Addressing human rights conditions in Papua is urgent and fundamental. It is urgent as the issues relate to the existence and future of indigenous Papuans. Indonesia would face even more complexity if these issues remained neglected. They are fundamental as they relate to the dignity of people who are repeatedly subject to violence in Papua. Papuans have also become victims of poor health and education conditions in Papua and West Papua. This means the issue is also crucial to Indonesia’s future as a nation.

Repeated incidences of violence involving weapons and other human rights violations leads to the constant sense of being under threat among Papuans, while hardly any party responsible for such violations is being held accountable, leading to more people being killed and injured.

The last incident was the murder of 21 construction workers of a bridge in Bukit Kabo, Nduga regency last December, by a group of armed Papuans claiming to be from the Free Papua Movement (OPM). Personnel from the Indonesian Military (TNI) and the police were among casualties in the ensuing hunt for the perpetrators, while people fled from Nduga to surrounding areas. Reports say some 180 people died in the months after while seeking shelter. Last year, global human rights watchdog Amnesty International stated there were 95 extrajudicial killings since 2010 in Papua and West Papua.

Second is the sense of economic injustice. In its Papua Road Map a decade ago, researchers from the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI) confirmed that the development pattern in Papua had alienated locals from economic fields. Public services were chronically poor, especially in remote areas, particularly regarding health and education. These were most strongly reflected in last year’s reports of famine and malnutrition in Agats regency, where at least 72 people died and hundreds of others were hospitalized.

Poor education is reflected in the low human development indexes of Papua and West Papua compared to all other provinces. Statistics Indonesia (BPS) ranked the human development index (HDI) for Papua at 57.25 and West Papua at 61.73 compared to the national average of 69.55. The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) revealed that 30 percent of Papuan students had not completed elementary and junior high education. Worse, in the hinterland, around 50 percent of elementary students and 73 percent of junior high students have dropped out.

All these problems remain despite the fact that special autonomy funds allotted to Papua from 2002 until 2018 have reached more than Rp 59 trillion, and additional funds for infrastructure since 2007 have totaled more than Rp 16 trillion. For West Papua, nearly Rp 18.5 trillion was allotted in the period of 2009 to 2018, with Rp 7.9 trillion in additional infrastructure funds, apart from oil and gas revenues of Rp 3.5 trillion. Therefore, special autonomy funds, additional infrastructure funds and oil and gas revenues for Papua and West Papua from 2002 to 2018 have reached Rp 105 trillion.

However new policies are crucial to enable mutual trust among Papuans and the government. It is mutual trust that would enable the implementation of further policies and programs, which should be based on the protection and provision of human rights.

However, before securing the commitment of Papuans to new policies, it is crucial to have a clear and unified platform among elements of the state and central government in Jakarta. To achieve this, the House of Representatives, Regional Representatives Council, the president, military, National Police and political party leaders need to reach an agreement on future measures for Papua and West Papua. As in past experience, Papuans’ trust in Jakarta erodes once they sense that the state and government elements in Jakarta are not solid.

To weave that sense of mutual trust, the government would need to identify the strategic actors in both provinces. One of today’s important actors are the youth and students within Indonesia and overseas. They are the group that can best absorb and disseminate information with their sophisticated mastery of technology.

More importantly, they are the pressure group in Papua and in other cities such as Jakarta, Bandung in West Java, Surabaya in East Java, Semarang in Central Java, Manado in North Sulawesi and Makassar in South Sulawesi. Despite reports of anxious students returning to Papua, fearing arrests, the youth and students have pioneered protests related to local grievances, mainly human rights violations.

Other strategic local actors are local politicians and elected government leaders, the latter including 42 regents and mayors.

No less important are members of the Papuan People’s Assembly and West Papuan People’s Assembly representing women, religious and customary groups. Leaders of the Catholic and Protestant churches are highly influential, so are the clerics of the Muslim community in Papua.

Other strategic pressure groups are the armed groups involved in hit and run guerilla tactics in the hinterland and forests. A clear mapping of the strength and positions of these groups are vital to enable effective communication with their leaders. They are key to face problems in Papua.

Such identification of actors would enable the government to lay out its communication strategy as a start to build better trust with Papuans, and to better understand the problems at hand to seek solutions.

Learning from past events, including the latest racist incidents triggering wide reactions in Papua and West Papua, government responses and measures should be based on earnest intention to protect and safeguard political and civic rights, apart from social, economic and cultural rights. The ultimate goal, of course, is to erode the sense of alienation and constant feeling of being under threat among Papuans.

________________________

The author is a commissioner at the National Commission on Human Rights and lecturer at Bhayangkara University, Jakarta.

Popular

Stocks sink, oil surges on reports of Middle East attacks

Israel launches strike against Iran: US media

North Sulawesi volcano eruption forces evacuations, airport closure