West Papua's Independent Human Rights Media
Statement from Forkorus Yaboisembut, Chair of the Papuan Customary Council to West Papua Media Alerts by sms on 12 January 2011:
“Problems of mutual suspicion between families [created as a result of reports of a plan to kill Forkorus Yaboisembut] have been resolved peacefully.
Whether the security forces are involved in plots to kill me or not remains to be seen.”
Press Release issued by the Papuan People’s Coalition for Truth (KRPBK)
[Received by TAPOL on 12 January 2011]
OTSUS (Special Autonomy) is a catastrophe, which is the most appropriate
word to to describe the role f the Indonesian Republic in binding
together Papua and Jakarta with their offerings to quell the the Papuan
people’s calls for MERDEKA.
We all know that since the enactment of OTSUS, the blood of the Papuan
people has been shed more than ever before, in all corners, in the
mountains, the valleys, along the coasts and in the cities.The
aspirations of the people have been stifled by legalistic measures that
have put the rights of the people behind bars. The stigma of separatism
is being increasingly stoked up and linked to the struggling Papuan
people. The Papuan people are being marginalised in their own homeland.
We still remember 15 August 2005 when the entire people came out onto
the streets throughout the territory of the Land of Papua, calling for
OTSUS to be handed back to the Indonesian government, but the fact is
that the Indonesian government doesn’t care about this. OTSUS continues
to be imposed by force with a series of actions that are destroying the
lives of the indigenous Papuan people. One such action was the
establishment of the MRP (Majelis Rakyat Papua) which was said to be
the cultural representative of the Papuan people, but was deliberately
created as a toothless institution.
On 8 – 9 June 2010, the Papuan people held a Grand Assembly (MUBES)
which adopted eleven recommendations as their solemn and most important
agreement. We all agreed that these eleven recommendations were born
out of the desperation of the Papuan people because of the tricks by
Jakarta.
On 17 July 2010, mustering all their forces, the Papuan people came out
onto the streets to hand back OTSUS and to demand that the Indonesian
government immediately implement the eleven recommendations of MUBES.
But the government has been struck by forgetfulness. Official agencies
such as the provincial assembly (DPRP) and the governors have simply
ignored these demands. In order to safeguard their hold over the Land of
Papua, an OTSUS Evaluation Committee was set up which has been rejected
by the people. An Indonesian-style agency, the Lembaga Masyarakat Adat,
was set up as a counter-weight to the Dewan Adat Papua (Traditional
Council of Papua). A committee for the recruitment of members of the
MPR was set up under the control of the Kesbangpol (a government agency
the name of which we cannot identify) to recruit members of the MRP.
These measures were taken to safeguard the election of the governors and
deputy governors of the provinces of Papua and West Papua, bearing in
mind that it will be up to the MRP to decide who are chosen to become
the governors and deputy governors.
The recruitment of the members of the MRP , based on a special
regulation, is now in progress in various parts of the territory and
will be completed shortly.
On 10 January 2011, a ministerial meeting was held in Jakarta to set up
two MRPs and on 18 January, the recruitment of the members of the MRPs
will be finalised, their names will be made public and they will be
sworn in on 31 January 2011.
All these facts show clearly that the Indonesian government, the DPRP
and the governors of the provinces of Papua and West Papua have violated
the wishes of the Papuan people. OTSUS, the offering made by Jakarta to
the Papuan people, has been rejected by the Papuan people who demand
that their political status should be established as a sovereign nation
and state.There can be no compromise this for would only lead the
Papuan people to many long years of suffering in their own homeland.
As the people of this homeland, what more can we do to continue with our
resistance? The only word is RESIST!
The Papuan People’s Coalition for Truth (KRPBK) demand the following:
1. That the establishment of the second MRP should be halted because
this does not conform with the wishes of the Papuan people who have
already rejected OTSUS.
2. To call on donor countries to immediately end their contributions to
OTSUS funds via the Indonesian government because OTSUS has failed.
3. The DPRP should immediately convene a plenary session to decide on
its response to the eleven recommendations made public by MUBES on 8 – 9
June 2010.
4. That the Lembaga Masyarakant Adat created by the government should be
dissolved because it does not represent the indigenous peoples in the
seven traditional regions of the Land of Papua.
5. That the Papuan conflict should be resolved immediately by granting
the Papuan people the right to self-determination.
The eight components of the KRPBK are:
Osama Usman Yogobi. KRPBK
Musye Weror, Students Council of UNCEN
Marthen Agapa, Coordinator of Parjal
Jack Wanggai, National Authority of West Papua
Simon Alua, chairmaan of AMPTPI.
Petrus Rumbiak, Papuan Youth
Alius Asao, SHDRP
Selpius Bobii,chairman of the Pepera Front
Bintang Papua, 11 January 2011
Forkorus Yaboisembut, the chairman of the Papuan Indigenous Council, DAP
has reported that two members of the police force came to visit him at
2pm the previous day, saying that they wanted to take him to Jayapura
police headquarters to question him about a case of bribery in
connection with attempts to kill him some time ago.
Speaking by phone to Bintang Papua, Forkorus said that he was confused
by the police officers’ visit because, according to him, the case they
wished to discuss had been resolved in a collegial fashion within the
kampung. He said that there had been some misunderstandings between
himself and some of his grandchildren but the matter had been resolved
peacefully in November 2010. If the police now intend to investigate the
matter, this would be quite wrong because the matter had already been
resolved within the family.
‘There is no need for the police to investigate the matter,’ said
Forkorus, ‘because I have already told the media that the matter has
been resolved.’ He said that the money involved had already been
returned to its rightful owners within the family. The incident had
occurred when one of his grandchildren, under the influence of drink,
had made threatening remarks against him.
The local chief of police has denied that they had made any attempt to
take Forkorus in for questioning.
Abridged in translation by TAPOL
Bintang Papua,11 January 2011
Given the growing concern about the implementation of Special Autonomy
(OTSUS) as reflected in the decisions of the Grand Assembly of the MRP
and the Papuan Indigenous People held on 9-10 June 2010, several church
leaders have called on the Indonesian president, the governors of the
provinces of Papua and West Papua and the chairmen of the provincial
legislative assemblies to halt the process of selecting members of the
MRP (Majelis Rakyat Papua – Papuan People’s Assembly) until such time as
there are clear answers to the eleven recommendations that were
submitted to the provincial assembly (DPRP) on 18 June 2010, according
to a joint communique by the churches The signatories include the head
of the Evangelical Church, the GKI, Rev. Jemima Krey, the head of the
Kingmi church, Rev. Benny Giay, Rev. Socrates Yoman and the head of the
Pentacostal Church, Rev. Tonny Infandi.
The assembly held in June 2010 which was facilitated by the MRP was an
official forum representing the voice of the Papuan people, well within
the framework of the rule of law in Indonesia. On that occasion, the
Papuan people clearly expressed the view that the OTSUS Law 21/2001 had
failed to result in any improvements in the living conditions of the
Papuan people which is why the Papuan people had returned the law to
Jakarta.
The handing back of the law to the two provincial assemblies occurred in
Jayapura and Manokwari on 18 June 2010, when a deadline of one month was
set for members of the asemblies to hold plenary sessions to respond to
the people’s aspirations, but since that time, neither of the assemblies
had adopted any measures to respond to these demands.
The impression is that the the central government as well as the
provincial assemblies are not in any way interested in taking any
action to improve the implementation of OTSUS, which is in direct
contradiction with the wishes of the Papuan people.
The situation has been further aggravated by current moves to set up a
new MRP, a body that has now been rejected by the Papuan people.
There is even the impression that the central government via the
intermediary of the United Agency of the Papuan Provinces, is about to
create a ‘puppet MRP’ within the framework of the OTSUS law that will be
incapable of granting protection and upholding the basis rights of the
indigenous Papuan people.
Church leaders regard the creation of such an MRP as being in serious
violation of the dignity of the Papuan people. The church leaders
therefore state the following:
Firstly, we respect the aspirations of the indigenous Papuan people as
declared in the decisions of the Grand Assembly on 9 -10 June 2010, that
OTSUS has failed and has been returned to the central government.
Secondly, that the central government and the provincial assemblies
should immediately stop all moves to select members of the MRP until
such time as there are concrete responses to the results of the Grand
Assembly that were made public on 16 June 2010.
Thirdly, we call upon the governors of the Papuan provinces to stop
ignoring the aspirations of the Papuan people and to sit down with the
people to hold comprehensive talks about Papuan aspirations in rejection
of OTSUS, democratically and in a spirit of justice.
Fourthly, we call on the central government to enter in dialogue with
the Papuan people so as to bring to an end the protracted legal and
political uncertainty which has brought despair to the Papuan people
who we lead in this Land of Papua.
Fifthly, we reject all attempts or formulations that spread confusion
about the demand for dialogue between the Papuan people and the
government of Indonesia which has for many years been expressed by the
Papuan people.
Sixthly, we urge the Indonesian government to stop all forms of
intimidation and terror and other repressive measures that are aimed at
stifling critical opinions from our community regarding development
that is now under way in the Land of Papua which has failed to respect
the interests of the common people.
COALITION OF UNITED PAPUAN PEOPLE FOR TRUTH (KRPBK) CALLS FOR DISBANDMENT OF THE MRP
Jayapura: A large number of people who are members of the KRPBK took part in a demonstration in Jayapura on Monday 11 January protesting against the recruitment of members of the Majelis Rakyat Papua (Papuan People’s Assembly). They called for the MRP to be disbanded without delay because Special Autonomy (OTSUS) has been a total failure.
The demonstration began with a series of speeches outside the office of the MRP, under the guard of security forces from the police and Brimob. The demonstrators then proceeded to the office of the DPRP, the Papuan provincial legislative assembly, to present their demands.
Representatives from several components of civil society in Papua stated their views in a series of speeches. They said that OTSUS which had bound Papua to Jakarta has been declared a failure by all the Papuan people at the time when they declared that they had handed back the OTSUS law to the Indonesian government on 12 August and 17 July 2010. This means that there is no question of recruiting members of the MRP. The MRP which was set up as the the cultural voice of the Papuan people within the framework of OTSUS had proved incapable of representing the views of the Papuan people because it turned out to be nothing but a puppet. This means that there is no longer any need for the MRP to continue to exist in Papua.
They also urged the DPRP to implement the eleven recommendations [see below] adopted by the Grand Assembly of the Papuan People in June 2010. They pointed out that there had been no reaction to these eleven recommendations and nothing had changed.
The demonstrators called upon the Euroopean Union, the US and other countries which have made contributions to OTSUS to end their financial support . They also called upon these countries and the international community to push for acknowledgement of the status of Papua as a sovereign state and an independent people.
If these demands are not speedily implemented, the KPRBK said that it will occupy the offices of the MRP and the DPRP together with a far greater number of people. This action will take place simultaneously throughout the national territory of West Papua.
The KRPBK demonstration then met the chairman of the Commission A of the DPRP who is also the chairman of the MRP recruitment comittee, Drs Ruben Magai, who explained that the authority to disband the MRP rests with the MPR – the People’s Consultative Assembly of the Republic of Indonesia – and the matter could not be handled by the DPRP, nor does the DPRP have the authority to respond to the eleven recommendations of the Papuan People.
Ruben Magai also said that a special committee to evaluate OTSUS had been set up and the evaluation would happen very soon. As for the recruitment of members of the MRP, that is also in progress, together with the selection of the new governor and deputy governor, which is to be carried out by the MRP.
The KRPBK said that they were not satisfied with the response of the DPRP. They read out a statement of their opinion, while at the same time saying that they would refuse to make any written statement to the DPRP about their aspirations until such time as their demands had been met.
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NB: The eleven recommendations were adopted by the MRP and the Indigenous People of Papua in June 2010 and call among other things for OTSUS to be returned to Indonesia, for an internationally-mediated dialogue with the Papuan people, for the holding of a referendum for Papuan independence, for the demilitarisation of Papua, for an embargo on international assistance for the implementation of OTSUS and for the closure of Freeport.
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