FREE WEST PAPUA CAMPAIGN (UK)

A SUMMARY

WEST PAPUA has been illegally occupied by the Indonesian military since it was
handed over, against the will of the indigenous population, by the Netherlands
to Indonesia in1963.

For the past 45 years, successive Indonesian regimes have used extreme violence
against the people of West Papua as the only possible way of terrorising them
into submitting to rule by Indonesia.

Since 1963 at least 100,000 West Papuans have died at the hands of the
Indonesian occupying forces, representing approximately 10% of the population.
Countless others have been tortured, raped, intimidated and imprisoned.

As was revealed earlier this year (2008) by the UN Special Rapporteur on
Torture, Dr Manfred Nowak, the Indonesian security forces are continuing to
commit these Crimes against Humanity in West Papua to this day, including
so-called “sweeping operations” in which Indonesian Special Forces and
para-military police kill and torture West Papuan civilians, destroy crops and
burn homes and churches, forcing hundreds of men, women & children to flee into
the jungle to save their lives.

Since 2000, the OPM (Free Papua Movement) has been committed to pursuing independence for West Papua through purely peaceful, democratic means. The Indonesian Government has however responded to this commitment with yet more violence against the West Papuans and an ever increasing military, police and intelligence presence.

These are the key issues:

(i) SELF-DETERMINATION: The root cause of the conflict is the denial of the West Papuans’ right to self-determination, a right which was recognised by the international community throughout the 1950’s and ‘60’s. However, with the help of General Suharto’s Western allies (including the UK), Indonesia staged a sham referendum in 1969.

Cruelly called the “Act of Free Choice”, the Indonesian military hand-picked 1,026 Papuan elders to ‘represent’ a then population of 800,000, and forced them at gun-point to vote for Indonesia. Suharto and the West knew full well that if they had allowed the Papuans ‘one person-one vote’, as is required under international law, they would have voted overwhelmingly for independence.

West Papuans are calling for a new UN-monitored independence referendum, in the same way as the East Timorese were allowed to vote in a free and fair, one person-one vote referendum in 1999.

(ii) DIALOGUE: The West Papuans are calling on the Indonesian Government to enter into internationally-mediated dialogue, without pre-conditions, with genuinely representative West Papuan leaders. Indonesia has to date refused. Western governments (including the UK) claim the conflict is an “internal matter” and thus currently refuse to offer to mediate dialogue.

(iii) ACCESS: The Indonesian Government severely restricts access to West Papua for foreign journalists and international human rights observers, including Amnesty International.

(iv) DE-MILITARISATION: As a first step towards peace, West Papuans are calling on the Indonesian Government to halt all planned increases of its military (TNI) presence in West Papua and immediately withdraw the TNI, para-military Police (Brimob) and intelligence agents (BIN) to barracks. This would be a hugely important first step to reducing the currently highly charged and tense situation in West Papua. As Ms Hina Jilani, UN Special Representative on Human Rights Defenders, said on 28 January 2008 “A climate of fear undeniably prevails in West Papua”.

(v) FREEDOM of EXPRESSION: West Papuans are calling on the Indonesian Government to allow them to exercise their rights to Freedom of Expression, Association & Assembly, particularly in relation to peaceful demonstrations in favour of self-determination & independence for West Papua (including peaceful raisings of the Morning Star flag), and immediately & unconditionally release all West Papuan political prisoners. Indonesia is currently in breach of its obligations under the International Covenant on Civil & Political Rights which it signed in 2006.

By way of example, two West Papuan independence activists, Filep Karma and Yusak Pakage, were sentenced in 2005 to 15 and 10 years imprisonment
respectively for peacefully raising the Morning Star flag on 1^st December 2004. Amnesty International has recognised them as Prisoners of Conscience and is campaigning for their immediate and unconditional release, together with all other Papuan political prisoners.

(vi) DEMOCRACY: West Papuans are calling on the Indonesian Government to allow any Papuan in favour of self-determination / independence the freedom to pursue these aims via the democratic process. (At present any type of “Free West Papua Party” is illegal under Indonesian law.)

(vii) NATURAL RESOURCES & ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE: West Papua is blessed/cursed with abundant natural resources; gold, copper, nickel, natural gas, timber etc. With the help of Western multi-nationals such as BP & Rio Tinto, Indonesia & the West are making vast profits at the expense of the West Papuan people and their natural environment.

Many observers believe that Western governments’ (including the UK) reluctance to condemn human rights abuses committed by the Indonesian military in West Papua is to avoid damaging their economic interests with Indonesia.

(viii) ARMS SALES TO INDONESIA: Western countries (including the UK) continue to sell arms to Indonesia despite overwhelming evidence that the Indonesian military uses such weapons to oppress civilian populations, including in West Papua.

For example, in 2005, British-made Centrica water-cannons were deployed against unarmed West Papuan demonstrators in Jayapura, the capital of West Papua. The Indonesian Police mixed acid with the water, leaving many Papuans permanently blinded.