31 July, 2013LP3BH-Manokwari, an organisation which advocates human rights for the people of the Land of Papua, strongly supports the move which has been taken by the MRP (Papuan People’s Council)  to call for peaceful dialogue between Papua and Indonesia.

This move is very much in accord with Law 21/2001 on Special Autonomy for the Province of Papua which grants full powers to  the MRP  as the cultural representative of the indigenous Papuan people.

It is crucially important for the dialogue to take place in 2013 because this is the best way  to secure a peaceful and dignified solution to the conflict and the many substantial problems in the Land of Papua.

A number of leaders of countries such as the UK,  the USA, New Zealand, Australia and several European countries, as well as the United Nations, have also called on the Government  of Indonesia to agree to a peaceful dialogue as the way to resolve the problems in Papua. Bearing all this in mind, the LP3BH believes that  there are strong reasons for the Government  of Indonesia under the leadership of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to  provide the space for such a dialogue to take place.

Moreover, it is unconstitutional for the Ministry of the Interior and other government ministries in Jakarta to press for an evaluation of of the Special Autonomy Law as this is in violation of Articles 77 and 78 on the evaluation or amendment of the law.

The LP3BH once again  expresses full support for the moves by the MRP for Papua and West Papua  for the holding of a dialogue between Papua and Indonesia  and various people’s representative bodies bodies such  the DPR-Papua and the DPR-West Papua to support such a move.

Peace

Yan Christian Warinussy,

Executive Director of the LP3BH

[Translated by TAPOL]