WPR: Why are West Papuans pushing for independence from Indonesia, and how has this effort evolved? …
WPR: Why are West Papuans pushing for independence from Indonesia, and how has this effort evolved? …
UPDATE: An earlier version of this story said that Vanuatu started to accept payment for its citizenship program in Bitcoin.
This has been denied by the country’s citizenship office, as reported in the Vila Times.
LONDON – The South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu denied it is accepting payments in Bitcoin for its $200,000 citizenship program.
“The Citizenship Office, representing the Citizenship Commission, is presenting to the media and other agencies in Vanuatu, that the Citizenship Office has not got any legal confirmation on any so called Bitcoin payments as stated in the media outlets,” Acting General Secretary Samuel Garae said, according to the Vila Times.
“The Office of the Citizenship is giving an assurance to all the Citizenship Designated Agents, that all the payments concerning the DSP program will still be in US dollars as prescribed by the Citizenship Regulations,” he said.
“Any other arrangement made by any sub-agent will not be considered by the Citizenship Office.”
Vanuatu is a member of the Commonwealth and citizenship provides visa-free travel to 113 countries including the UK, Russia and European Union states.
Vanuatu also advertises its low taxes for citizenship buyers, offering a second passport in a country that levies no capital gains or income taxes. Potential citizens don’t need to live in Vanuatu, or even visit the country once.
Earlier a group known as the Vanuatu Information Centre Network said that the country had started to accept the cryptocurrency.
The multi-billion dollar investment migration industry, which sees governments offering visas and citizenship to people in return for investments in local businesses and property, has boomed amid increased global uncertainty over borders and immigration.
Earlier this year, the Thai government started offering “elite” residency visas for wealthy foreign citizens, allowing them to live in the country for around $3,000 (£2,403) a year.
There are seven different packages, with the most expensive being the “Elite Ultimate Privilege” scheme. It costs $60,000 for 20 years residency, along with a $600 a year membership fee.
Included in the price is a state-sponsored concierge programme, entitling members to VIP access to government agencies dealing with immigration, driving licences, and work permits.
Source: Ben Moshinsky, Business Insider UK, VilaTimes.com
Two members of parliament from Vanuatu’s opposition have joined a government party in a move described as being good for West Papua.
The leader of the Vanua’aku Pati, Joe Natuman, welcomed the pair into the country’s oldest political party at a kava ceremony in Port Vila.
It meant the party now has eight MPs, making it the biggest party in the coalition government led by Charlot Salwai.
Mr Natuman, who is the Deputy Prime Minister, said the move by the two MPs would help mitigate efforts to undermine Vanuatu’s interests on West Papua.
He was referring to moves by the People’s Progress Party leader Sato Kilman in forging closer ties with Indonesia, in spite of his country’s long-running support for West Papuan independence.
According to Mr Natuman, Mr Kilman’s previous actions when in government, including supporting Indonesia’s entry to the Melanesian Spearhead Group, were not good for Papua.
Mr Kilman recently told RNZ Pacific that in his view the best way to address human rights issues in West Papua was to maintain dialogue with Jakarta.
However he criticised Mr Salwai’s government for being inconsistent on foreign policy issues.
Abraham, BBC Indonesia
Pemerintah Indonesia menegaskan tidak dapat mencegah negara-negara di kawasan Pasifik Selatan mengangkat kasus pelanggaran HAM di Papua ke Sidang Umum PBB.
Soalnya, seperti dijelaskan Menteri Luar Negeri Retno Marsudi, setiap negara anggota PBB mendapat hak untuk membicarakan perihal apapun di forum sidang umum.
“Semua negara bebas menyampaikan pendapat. Itu hak mereka,” ujarnya usai memaparkan capaian kinerja Kementerian Luar Negeri di bawah pemerintahan Presiden Joko Widodo di Jakarta, Kamis (26/10).
Namun para diplomat Indonesia di PBB bisa menjawab semua tuntutan dan desakan yang muncul tersebut dengan pemaparan kemajuan pembangunan yang dicanangkan oleh pemerintah.
“Hak kami adalah menjelaskan pembangunan yang dilakukan di Papua, perkembangan komprehensif dan lain-lain, itu sudah kami jelaskan,” kata Retno.
Secara diplomatik, tambah Retno, Indonesia sebenarnya secara konsisten berupaya membangun hubungan dengan negara-negara di Pasifik Selatan.
Hubungan itu dijalin bukan hanya dengan secara aktif menghadiri forum multilateral yang digelar di kawasan, namun -tegas Menlu Retno- Indonesia juga sempat membantu Fiji dan Vanuatu, dua negara di Pasifik selatan, yang dilanda bencana alam tahun 2015.
“Presensi Indonesia untuk semua forum di kawasan itu sangat kelihatan, baik dalam MSG (Melanesian Spearhead Group), PIF (Pacific Islands Forum), dan PIDF (Pacific Island Development Forum),” ujar Retno.
Namun, Retno menyebut pemerintah Indonesia tidak akan bersedia membahas isu tentang penentuan hak sendiri, kemerdekaan, dan separatisme.
“Di situlah titik kami berhenti. Pemerintah tidak akan mundur satu inci pun jika bicara separatisme,” tegasnya.
Ketua Tim Kajian Papua di Lembaga Ilmu Pengetahuan Indonesia, Adriana Elisabeth, menilai tanggapan para diplomat terhadap desakan negara Pasifik Selatan selama ini masih kurang tepat.
Menurut Adriana, pemerintah sepatutnya tak hanya memaparkan capaian pembangunan infrastruktur, tapi juga mengakui adanya sejumlah pelanggaran hak sosial politik yang masih terjadi di Papua dan Papua Barat.
Di era keterbukaan informasi berbasis teknologi, kata Adriana, peristiwa apapun di Papua dapat diketahui masyarakat luas, termasuk negara-negara lain.
“Yang tidak pernah disentuh adalah faktor sipil-politik, seperti kebebasan berekspresi dan kekerasan oleh aparat dan sipil bersenjata. Ini tidak disampaikan secara diplomatis sehingga pemerintah seolah defensif,” ujarnya.
Ditambahkannya bahwa menilai desakan terkait Papua dari dalam negeri maupun negara-negara Pasifik Selatan di forum global berpotensi untuk terus bergulir karena -selain ikatan emosional di antara ras Melanesia- juga disebabkan karena penyelesaian persoalan Papua yang belum menyeluruh.
“Kekecewaan atas capaian pemerintah tidak bisa ditolak karena bagi mereka infrastruktur bukan satu-satunya persoalan di Papua,” kata Adriana.
Dalam dua tahun terakhir, isu Papua selalu muncul di sidang umum PBB.
September lalu misalnya, Perdana Menteri Vanuatu, Charlot Salwai, meminta Dewan HAM PBB menyelidiki pelbagai kasus pelanggaran HAM di Papua. Dalam sidang yang sama, PM Tuvalu, Enele Sosene Sopoaga, mendorong agar PBB ikut serta mengadvokasi penentuan nasib sendiri untuk warga Papua.
Adapun, Louis Straker, Perdana Menteri Saint Vincent dan Grenadine -negara di Kepulauan Karibia- menuding dekolonisasi di Papua belum berakhir. “Upaya intensif penting untuk mewujudkan pemerintah mandiri dan kesetaraan politik di Papua,” kata Straker,
Permintaan itu lantas dijawab oleh Sekretaris III Perwakilan Tetap Indonesia untuk PBB, Ainan Nuran, dengan menyebut isu pelanggaran HAM di Papua merupakan berita bohong.
“Provinsi Papua dan Papua Barat adalah bagian dari kesatuan dan kedaulatan Indonesia. Keduanya akan selalu menjadi bagian kesatuan Indonesia.”
“Negara-negara tersebut dengan bodohnya tertipu oleh individu yang memiliki agenda separatis untuk mengeksploitasi isu HAM,” kata Ainun.
Sementara September tahun sebelumnya, diplomat muda Indonesia lainnya untuk PBB, Nara Masista Rakhmatia, menyebut pemerintah tidak pernah menutup kasus apapun di Papua.
“Mustahil pelanggaran HAM terjadi tanpa diketahui dan diperiksa,” kata Nara.
Dalam catatan Setara Institute, pada tahun 2016 setidaknya terjadi 107 pelanggaran bernuansa HAM di Papua, yang meningkat dari 16 kasus pada tahun 2015 dan 68 kasus sepanjang 2014.
Pemerintah Indonesia -lewat Menko Polhukam Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan- pernah membentuk tim khusus untuk menuntaskan 12 kasus HAM di Papua, antara lain kasus Wamena, kasus Kongres Rakyat Papua III, dan penghilangan Aristoteles, sopir Ketua Presidium Dewan Papua, Theys Hiyo Aluay.
Aluay sendiri tewas ditembak aparat keamanan Indonesia pada 10 November 2001 lalu.
Tim lintas lembaga itu awalnya ditargetkan menyelesaikan seluruh perkara tersebut tahun 2016 namun kinerja tim itu agaknya tak berlanjut ketika Kemenko Polhukam dipimpin oleh Wiranto, ,mantan Menteri Pertahanan dan Panglima TNI.
Abraham, BBC Indonesia
Pemerintah Indonesia menegaskan tidak dapat mencegah negara-negara di kawasan Pasifik Selatan mengangkat kasus pelanggaran HAM di Papua ke Sidang Umum PBB.
Soalnya, seperti dijelaskan Menteri Luar Negeri Retno Marsudi, setiap negara anggota PBB mendapat hak untuk membicarakan perihal apapun di forum sidang umum.
“Semua negara bebas menyampaikan pendapat. Itu hak mereka,” ujarnya usai memaparkan capaian kinerja Kementerian Luar Negeri di bawah pemerintahan Presiden Joko Widodo di Jakarta, Kamis (26/10).
Namun para diplomat Indonesia di PBB bisa menjawab semua tuntutan dan desakan yang muncul tersebut dengan pemaparan kemajuan pembangunan yang dicanangkan oleh pemerintah.
“Hak kami adalah menjelaskan pembangunan yang dilakukan di Papua, perkembangan komprehensif dan lain-lain, itu sudah kami jelaskan,” kata Retno.
Secara diplomatik, tambah Retno, Indonesia sebenarnya secara konsisten berupaya membangun hubungan dengan negara-negara di Pasifik Selatan.
Hubungan itu dijalin bukan hanya dengan secara aktif menghadiri forum multilateral yang digelar di kawasan, namun -tegas Menlu Retno- Indonesia juga sempat membantu Fiji dan Vanuatu, dua negara di Pasifik selatan, yang dilanda bencana alam tahun 2015.
“Presensi Indonesia untuk semua forum di kawasan itu sangat kelihatan, baik dalam MSG (Melanesian Spearhead Group), PIF (Pacific Islands Forum), dan PIDF (Pacific Island Development Forum),” ujar Retno.
Namun, Retno menyebut pemerintah Indonesia tidak akan bersedia membahas isu tentang penentuan hak sendiri, kemerdekaan, dan separatisme.
“Di situlah titik kami berhenti. Pemerintah tidak akan mundur satu inci pun jika bicara separatisme,” tegasnya.
Ketua Tim Kajian Papua di Lembaga Ilmu Pengetahuan Indonesia, Adriana Elisabeth, menilai tanggapan para diplomat terhadap desakan negara Pasifik Selatan selama ini masih kurang tepat.
Menurut Adriana, pemerintah sepatutnya tak hanya memaparkan capaian pembangunan infrastruktur, tapi juga mengakui adanya sejumlah pelanggaran hak sosial politik yang masih terjadi di Papua dan Papua Barat.
Di era keterbukaan informasi berbasis teknologi, kata Adriana, peristiwa apapun di Papua dapat diketahui masyarakat luas, termasuk negara-negara lain.
“Yang tidak pernah disentuh adalah faktor sipil-politik, seperti kebebasan berekspresi dan kekerasan oleh aparat dan sipil bersenjata. Ini tidak disampaikan secara diplomatis sehingga pemerintah seolah defensif,” ujarnya.
Ditambahkannya bahwa menilai desakan terkait Papua dari dalam negeri maupun negara-negara Pasifik Selatan di forum global berpotensi untuk terus bergulir karena -selain ikatan emosional di antara ras Melanesia- juga disebabkan karena penyelesaian persoalan Papua yang belum menyeluruh.
“Kekecewaan atas capaian pemerintah tidak bisa ditolak karena bagi mereka infrastruktur bukan satu-satunya persoalan di Papua,” kata Adriana.
Dalam dua tahun terakhir, isu Papua selalu muncul di sidang umum PBB.
September lalu misalnya, Perdana Menteri Vanuatu, Charlot Salwai, meminta Dewan HAM PBB menyelidiki pelbagai kasus pelanggaran HAM di Papua. Dalam sidang yang sama, PM Tuvalu, Enele Sosene Sopoaga, mendorong agar PBB ikut serta mengadvokasi penentuan nasib sendiri untuk warga Papua.
Adapun, Louis Straker, Perdana Menteri Saint Vincent dan Grenadine -negara di Kepulauan Karibia- menuding dekolonisasi di Papua belum berakhir. “Upaya intensif penting untuk mewujudkan pemerintah mandiri dan kesetaraan politik di Papua,” kata Straker,
Permintaan itu lantas dijawab oleh Sekretaris III Perwakilan Tetap Indonesia untuk PBB, Ainan Nuran, dengan menyebut isu pelanggaran HAM di Papua merupakan berita bohong.
“Provinsi Papua dan Papua Barat adalah bagian dari kesatuan dan kedaulatan Indonesia. Keduanya akan selalu menjadi bagian kesatuan Indonesia.”
“Negara-negara tersebut dengan bodohnya tertipu oleh individu yang memiliki agenda separatis untuk mengeksploitasi isu HAM,” kata Ainun.
Sementara September tahun sebelumnya, diplomat muda Indonesia lainnya untuk PBB, Nara Masista Rakhmatia, menyebut pemerintah tidak pernah menutup kasus apapun di Papua.
“Mustahil pelanggaran HAM terjadi tanpa diketahui dan diperiksa,” kata Nara.
Dalam catatan Setara Institute, pada tahun 2016 setidaknya terjadi 107 pelanggaran bernuansa HAM di Papua, yang meningkat dari 16 kasus pada tahun 2015 dan 68 kasus sepanjang 2014.
Pemerintah Indonesia -lewat Menko Polhukam Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan- pernah membentuk tim khusus untuk menuntaskan 12 kasus HAM di Papua, antara lain kasus Wamena, kasus Kongres Rakyat Papua III, dan penghilangan Aristoteles, sopir Ketua Presidium Dewan Papua, Theys Hiyo Aluay.
Aluay sendiri tewas ditembak aparat keamanan Indonesia pada 10 November 2001 lalu.
Tim lintas lembaga itu awalnya ditargetkan menyelesaikan seluruh perkara tersebut tahun 2016 namun kinerja tim itu agaknya tak berlanjut ketika Kemenko Polhukam dipimpin oleh Wiranto, ,mantan Menteri Pertahanan dan Panglima TNI.
More than 40 organisations in West Papua, Jakarta, and worldwide have brought their analysis on the human rights and conflict situation in West Papua together.
The executive summary of the 218-pages report explains how several human rights standards have deteriorated over the last two years.
The report is compiled by the International Coalition for Papua (ICP) and the German Westpapua-Netzwerk (WPN). The executive summary says:
“The years 2015 and 2016 were characterised by a significant aggravation of the human rights situation in West Papua compared to previous years. The term West Papua refers to the Indonesian easternmost provinces of ‘Papua’ and ‘Papua Barat’. Reports by local human rights defenders describe an alarming shrinking of democratic space.
“Although Indonesian President Joko Widodo pushed economic development and granted clemency to five long-term political prisoners, the police strictly limited even the most peaceful dissident political activities.
“Indigenous Papuans, particularly women, continued to have a high risk of becoming victims of human rights violations. Racist attitudes toward West Papuans among the police and military, insufficient legal protection, the lack of proper law enforcement, inconsistent policy implementation and corruptive practices amongst government officials contributed to the impunity of security forces.
“Government critics and activists faced legal prosecution with varying charges. Using a charge of treason (‘makar’) remained common against non-violent offenders.
“West Papuan political activists also faced an increasing number of charges incitement or violence despite the non-violence of protest and almost all activism.
“The deterioration of the political and civil rights situation in West Papua during the past two years was most obvious in the sheer number of political arrests.
“Those arrests drastically increased to 1083 in 2015, and then quadrupled in 2016 to 5361 arrests, in tandem with growing political protest for self-determination.
“Almost all of the arrests came during peaceful protest in support of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP). In addition, the Indonesian government and the regional police in West Papua increasingly restricted the right to freedom of opinion and expression using official statements (Makhlumat) issued by the Papuan Regional Police in 2016.
“Local journalists in West Papua faced continued intimidation and obstruction from the security forces. In comparison to previous years, the number of reported cases against local journalists has slightly decreased throughout the reporting period 2015 and 2016.
“President Joko Widodo’s promise in May 2015, to make West Papua freely accessible to foreign journalists and international observers was not implemented. Foreign journalists were in an increasing number of cases prevented from entering West Papua or when permitted to enter, they faced obstruction, surveillance, intimidation and physical violence.
“International human rights organisations and humanitarian organisations such as the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) remained banned from freely accessing West Papua.
“Human rights defenders in West Papua had to work under fear of being monitored, threatened and obstructed by the security forces. The killing of well-known human rights defender Joberth Jitmau, marked the sad highlight of attacks against human rights defenders during these two years.
“The police termed Jitmau’s killing a traffic accident and did not conduct a criminal investigation. Jitmau’s case was a representative example of the widespread impunity in West Papua.
“Only in rare instances were security forces prosecuted in public or military trials. Two of the three cases of prosecution resulted in considerably low sentences for the perpetrators in view of the severity of the criminal offences.
“Security force members also continued to use torture and ill-treatment as a common response to political protest or incidents of alleged disturbance of public order. Extra-judicial killings occurred particularly often as an act of revenge or retaliation for violent acts or other non-violent interactions with members of the security forces.
“The situation with regard to economic, social and cultural rights in West Papua was stagnant. The quality of education in West Papua remained considerably low, due to poor management of the education system, inadequate competencies, high absence rates amongst teachers, and inadequate funding. (Less than 1 percent of Papua Province’s annual budget goes to education.)
“There is still no culturally appropriate curriculum in place, which is capable of improving the educational situation of indigenous Papuan children and of preserving local cultures.
“Health care and education remained in a devastating condition, far below the national average, despite the large amount of special autonomy funds that flow to the two administrative provinces Papua and Papua Barat.
“There is a strong imbalance in the fulfillment of minimum standards in terms of health, education, food and labor rights between the urban areas and the remote inland areas of West Papua.
“Indigenous Papuans, who mostly reside outside the urban centres, suffer the most of this imbalance. Both Papuan provinces are amongst the regions with the highest prevalence rate for HIV/AIDS infections and child mortality of any ‘Indonesian province’, while the quality of health services is alarmingly low.
“Insufficient equipment in rural health care institutions and a lack of adequate health monitoring and response mechanisms remained strikingly evident. These shortcomings were highlighted when a pertussis epidemic broke out in the remote highland regency of Nduga, killing least 51 children and three adults within a span of three months in late 2015. Malnutrition enabled the rapid spread of the epidemic.
“The case also mirrors the government’s growing challenge to guarantee indigenous Papuans right to food. Palm oil plantations and other agricultural mega-projects have led to the destruction of local food sources, livestock and access to clean drinking water.
“Cases of domestic violence are often settled in non-legal ways, which fail to bring justice for the victims and lack a deterrent effect for perpetrators. Women living with HIV/AIDS are particularly often facing discrimination and stigmatization.
“The very existence of West Papuans is threatened by the uncontrolled migration from other parts of Indonesia. This particularly applies to the urban centers where they have largely become a marginalised minority facing strong economic competition.
“In most rural areas, where indigenous Papuans are still the majority, government-promoted large-scale natural resource exploitation projects attract migrants and continue to cause severe environmental degradation as well as the destruction of live stock of indigenous communities.
“Government institutions continued to facilitate the interests of private Indonesian and foreign companies. This practice negatively impacts indigenous people’s right to their ancestral lands and resources as well as their right to determine their development.
“Resource extraction often means clearing large forest areas and polluting of water resources, thereby forcing indigenous communities to change their very way of life. Destruction of forests and hunting grounds as a life source puts an additional burden on women, in particular.”